Leading academics from Writtle College and its partner institution the University of Essex, have set ‘The horse and other animals in the sciences, arts and everyday life’ as the title for the third conference in an interdisciplinary series.
The conference is scheduled to be held at Writtle College on 17 November.
The principal focus of the conference as reflected in the title is the horse. Speakers will present papers which will look at the perception of the horse through time, including the horse in myth, art, and as a symbol. Other papers will be looking into representations of the horse in literature, on screen and on stage, and even review how the horse may have benefited and shaped from human understanding.
The conference also aims to engage with a wider audience through exploring the topic of animals in landscape and geography. Covering areas such as the impact of animals on agriculture, industry and transport, speakers will address a variety of issues. Continuing with the theme speakers will host discussion about the relationship between the design of the landscape and animals, paying close attention to the changing landscape through and the role that animals have played in shaping its appearance and function.
Dr Jeremy Strong, Head of Higher Education and one of the conference organisers said: “This is the third annual conference on an interdisciplinary theme between partners Writtle College and the University of Essex. We specifically chose the title 'the horse and other animals...' to offer an event that would be relevant for the Writtle students who will attend as part of our 'Study Week' portfolio. As in previous years, we have been pleased by the range of leading academics from a number of disciplines across both institutions who have submitted papers for consideration. We have received a great deal of interest and the conference promises to be a wide ranging and thought provoking event.”
It is anticipated that the conference will be of interest to a wide range of attendees working not only in the disciplines of Equine and Animal Science but also from within such diverse fields as Art History, Literary & Screen studies, Psychoanalysis, Agriculture, Economics, Sports Science, Planning, Psychology, Sociology, Law, among many others.