Division of Social Studies Events

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Archive as Activation:
Rediscovering Mina Loy

Karla Kelsey, Professor of English and Creative Writing, Susquehanna University

Tuesday, March 3, 2026
5:30 pm

Stevenson Library - 1st Floor
Recovering women writers from literary obscurity is both an archival and a feminist act. Join poet and scholar Karla Kelsey for a reading exploring the revolutionary work of modernist writer and artist Mina Loy (1882-1966), followed by a conversation with Alys Moody. As editor of Lost Writings: Two Novels by Mina Loy and author of the poet's novel Transcendental Factory: For Mina Loy, Kelsey uncovers multiple ways fragmented archives can activate new creative possibility. This event offers participants insight into the editorial process, poetic homage, and the generative power of lost texts.Sponsored by: Division of Languages and Literature; Gender and Sexuality Studies Program; Literature Program.

For more information, call 845-758-6822, or e-mail [email protected].

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Rome's Jewish Queen: the Story of Berenice

Bruce Chilton, Bernard Iddings Bell Professor of Philosophy and Religion; Director, Institute of Advanced Theology

Friday, March 6, 2026
12:30–1:30 pm

Bard Hall
Berenice (born circa 28) was the most notorious Jewish woman in the Roman Empire of her time. Multiple marriages, rumors of incestuous relations with her brother (Agrippa II of the Herodian dynasty), and her scandalous liaison with Titus, the Roman general and emperor‑to‑be, guaranteed Berenice’s celebrity. This reputation does not, however, paint a complete portrait of Berenice, nor does it capture her significance. Her political acumen was as effective as it would become legendary. The great‑granddaughter of Herod the Great and the daughter of King Agrippa I, she promoted the family’s unusual version of Judaism as well as its outsized ambitions. Berenice was a pivotal figure in Agrippa II’s advance in imperial preferment; played a crucial role during the Jewish‑Roman war; and, as consort to Titus, supported his father, Vespasian, in his accession to the role of emperor.

Join us every other Monday starting Feb. 23rd. 
For more information, call 845-758-7667, or e-mail [email protected].

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Hudson Valley Political Theory presents:
The Social Costs of the Elite's Work Hours: An Egalitarian Case for Universal Work TIime Regulations

Julie L. Rose
Professor of Government, Dartmouth College

Friday, March 6, 2026
5 pm

Lippman 100, Union College
In the United States today,work is increasingly polarized around “good jobs” and “bad jobs”, generally following familiar patterns of social stratification.There is, however, a striking exception to the congruence between labor market polarization and socioeconomic inequality. That is, in the US today, the good jobs of the socially and economically advantaged are often marred by one undesirable feature: long work hours. If people have claims to limits on their work hours, should such claims apply universally, protecting even those workers who are otherwise advantaged? Or should highly-paid professionals be excepted, as they are in the Fair Labor Standards Act?  Recent arguments in political philosophy support an ‘exempt the elite’ position.  On this view, the elite’s long hours are acceptable, even desirable, because they generate tax revenue that can be redistributed to the less advantaged.  I here challenge the position that the elite’s long hours should be welcomed by showing how their long hours generate a range of inegalitarian social costs.  If the elite’s long hours are more detrimental than beneficial to the realization of broadly egalitarian commitments, there is an egalitarian justification for not exempting the elite from work time regulations.

Paper will be pre-circulated.  Contact [email protected] or Pinar Kemerli at [email protected] for the paper.Sponsored by: Union College Political Science and Philosophy Departments, American Studies Program, and The Dean of Bard College.

For more information, call 845-758-6822, or e-mail [email protected].

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Rome's Jewish Queen: the Story of Berenice

Bruce Chilton, Bernard Iddings Bell Professor of Philosophy and Religion; Director, Institute of Advanced Theology

Monday, March 9, 2026
12:30–1:30 pm

Bard Hall
Berenice (born circa 28) was the most notorious Jewish woman in the Roman Empire of her time. Multiple marriages, rumors of incestuous relations with her brother (Agrippa II of the Herodian dynasty), and her scandalous liaison with Titus, the Roman general and emperor‑to‑be, guaranteed Berenice’s celebrity. This reputation does not, however, paint a complete portrait of Berenice, nor does it capture her significance. Her political acumen was as effective as it would become legendary. The great‑granddaughter of Herod the Great and the daughter of King Agrippa I, she promoted the family’s unusual version of Judaism as well as its outsized ambitions. Berenice was a pivotal figure in Agrippa II’s advance in imperial preferment; played a crucial role during the Jewish‑Roman war; and, as consort to Titus, supported his father, Vespasian, in his accession to the role of emperor.

Join us every other Monday starting Feb. 23rd. 
For more information, call 845-758-7667, or e-mail [email protected].

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Rome's Jewish Queen: the Story of Berenice

Bruce Chilton, Bernard Iddings Bell Professor of Philosophy and Religion; Director, Institute of Advanced Theology

Friday, March 20, 2026
12:30–1:30 pm

Bard Hall
Berenice (born circa 28) was the most notorious Jewish woman in the Roman Empire of her time. Multiple marriages, rumors of incestuous relations with her brother (Agrippa II of the Herodian dynasty), and her scandalous liaison with Titus, the Roman general and emperor‑to‑be, guaranteed Berenice’s celebrity. This reputation does not, however, paint a complete portrait of Berenice, nor does it capture her significance. Her political acumen was as effective as it would become legendary. The great‑granddaughter of Herod the Great and the daughter of King Agrippa I, she promoted the family’s unusual version of Judaism as well as its outsized ambitions. Berenice was a pivotal figure in Agrippa II’s advance in imperial preferment; played a crucial role during the Jewish‑Roman war; and, as consort to Titus, supported his father, Vespasian, in his accession to the role of emperor.

Join us every other Monday starting Feb. 23rd. 
For more information, call 845-758-7667, or e-mail [email protected].