Human-made violence (war and armed conflict, systemic and structural violence) leaves lasting marks on people, communities, and the natural world. The impacts and effects of human-made catastrophes may be seen and felt long after the violence has stopped. In the face of past and ongoing violence, literature has served as both a repository of collective suffering and a creative space for resistance, reconciliation, and renewal. This seminar seeks papers that explore the ways in which literature has represented, reimagined, and contested the figure of the victim, examining the intersections between historical experience and artistic expression. It aims to analyze how authors across different periods and traditions have articulated narratives of violence, vulnerability, and endurance, and how these narratives engage with questions of ethics, identity, and collective responsibility. This seminar also welcomes reflections on the intersections between literature and other cultural forms—film, music, theater, and the visual arts—that expand our understanding of how victimhood and resilience are articulated across media and generations.

Possible topics and approaches include, but are not limited to:

• Representations of victims and survivors

• Violence and narrative / artistic form

• Victimhood, gender, and sexuality

• Institutional violence and moral responsibility

• Colonialism, postcolonialism, and the politics of representation

• Corporeality, precarity, and the aesthetics of suffering

• Ethical implications of representing victims

• Environmental degradation, displacement, and eco-trauma

• Comparative and transnational perspectives

• Displacement and resilience in narratives of migration and victimhood