"Re-Forming Rebels: Bute, Wilkes, and the Scottish Highlands in Anti-Jacobite Conspiracy (1759-1765)"

 

Tanner Ogle, Ph.D. Candidate | History

Abstract:

Imperial historians have often discounted conspiracies of Scots in the imperial government between the 1760s and 1770s as mere polemic or as ethnic prejudice. In analyzing the Patriot Movement fostered by John Wilkes, I not only contend that these fears merit serious consideration, but argue that this movement’s ‘Scotophobia’ would be better understood as anti-Jacobitism grounded in living memory. Revealing important perceptions about Scottish imperial officials, Wilkite propaganda centered not on Scotland, but on Highlanders who were blamed by both Scots and the English for the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. This research not only contributes to scholarship on the origins of the American Revolution, it argues that the Jacobite Rising was a formative moment for the British Empire, and reveals an important strain of ‘highlandization’.

 

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"Drone-Based Music, Transformative Experiences and Activism"

 

Kim Kattari, Associate Professor | Performance, Visualization & Fine Arts

Abstract:

I settled onto the floor as the first notes of the Drone Not Drones event wafted to my ears from the strike of a gamelan gong. From tambura to synthesizer, drum to accordion, Bulgarian chorus to powwow song, a musical drone was sustained for 28 continuous hours over the course of more than 45 performing groups. Drawing on my ethnographic research, I’ll consider how the long-form event facilitated transformative experiences that allowed participants to reflect on the destruction caused by military drones and imagine a world at peace. This presentation offers new ways of thinking about drone-based music as a vehicle for exploring dystopia and utopia, a sonic medium for personal healing, and a catalyst for activist engagement.

 

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The Colloquium Series offers Glasscock Center Fellows an opportunity to discuss a work-in-progress with faculty and graduate students from different disciplines. Each colloquium begins with the presenter’s short (10-15 minute) exposition of the project, after which the floor is open for comments and queries. The format is by design informal, conversational, and interdisciplinary.

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