International DFG-Conference on ethics and literature: Ser y deber ser

At the invitation of the Chair of Romance Literatures and Cultures (Prof. Dr Susanne Hartwig), a conference on "Ethics in Literature" took place at the University of Passau from 9 to 11 October. Under the title "Ser y deber ser", 20 academics from Spain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and the USA gathered to discuss the role of literature, theatre and film in dealing with moral dilemmas of the 20th century.

The participants included members of the Spanish research groups InGenArte led by Prof. Dr María Francisca Vilches de Frutos from the top Spanish academic institution CSIC/Madrid and GEXEL led by Prof. Dr Manuel Aznar Soler at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. The lectures dealt with individual topics such as the death penalty, vigilante justice or civil courage as well as overarching questions about the possibilities and limits of depicting dilemmas. "Various epochs of the 20th century were considered, in particular the Spanish Civil War and National Socialism in Germany," reports Susanne Hartwig.

The academic part was complemented by a varied supporting programme, the highlight of which was the screening of the film "Cirqo" (director: Orlando Lübbert; Chile 2013), which was not yet officially shown in cinemas in Germany at the time and deals with the dilemma of vigilante justice under the Pinochet dictatorship. The event took place with the financial support of the DFG and the HISPANEX programme of the Spanish Embassy.

Principal Investigator(s) at the University	Prof. Dr. Susanne Hartwig (Lehrstuhl für Romanische Literaturen und Kulturen)
Project period	09.10.2015 - 11.10.2015
Source of funding	DFG - Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft