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Wednesday, February 04, 2026
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Readings in History and Theory groupFAB4.74In his seminal 1981 work The Political Unconscious, Fredric Jameson positioned history as the touchstone of critical dialectical thought – famously urging readers to 鈥榓lways historicise!鈥� – yet also cautioned against assuming that all texts were reducible to their historical context. In the half century since, challenges to the 鈥榟istorical-contextualist鈥� paradigm have proliferated as various movements, from postcriticism to new materialism, have advocated new hermeneutical and theoretical approaches. The problem of the historical situatedness of cultural texts, however, endures. With this group, we aim to create a space for reflection on the relationship between 鈥榯heory鈥� and 鈥榟istory鈥� that neither presumes a necessary antagonism between the two nor reduces one to the other. How might key areas of enquiry in the humanities be enriched, we ask, by thinking history and theory together?
The group is open to staff and postgraduates. Please register for the group at this link: |
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A Biography of Palestinian Cinema", featuring Saleem Albeik (novelist & critic)SO.10 Social SciencesA Biography of Palestinian Cinema", featuring Saleem Albeik (novelist & critic) 13:00 - 14:20, Wed, 04 Feb '26
Location: S0.10 (Social Sciences Building)
Come join us in what promises to be a convivial and engaging talk and discussion about Palestinian cinema, featuring the Palestinian novelist and film critic Saleem Albeik.
Abstract: This talk is based on the author鈥檚 recent book Biography of Palestinian Cinema: Limitations of Spaces and Characters, published (in Arabic) by the Institute of Palestine Studies (2025), which narrates the story of feature films made by Palestinians between two axial events in Palestinian history: The 鈥淪tones Intifada鈥� (1987-1991) and the current genocidal war (2023- ). The book outlines the national context before commencing its story, reading cinema as responding to the political conditions of the Palestinian people and arguing that the Al-Aqsa [Second] Intifada (2000-2005) generated a transformation in that cinema.
The book critically examines a principal aspect of Palestinian cinema: its imposed limitations regarding space and casting, ascribing these limitations to the conditions of colonial occupation, settlement, policies and institutions. Limited space led to limited casting opportunities, and these in turn affected the chances of achieving the aims of a particular film. Such limitations constitute a structural condition of Palestinian cinema in general, though certain films became exceptions that proved the rule. Those films in which cast members rebelled against imposed limitations of space were instrumental in helping to liberate their participants, who thus evolved as dramatic figures themselves.
The book discusses 57 feature films and attempts to show how each one dealt with the presence of limitations and their five manifestations, dubbed according to the fifth letter of the Arabic alphabet, jim: Soldier (jundi), Jeep, Checkpoint (hajiz), Jail (sijn), and Wall (jidar).
Since the Nakba of 1948, the history of the Palestinian people has been truly tragic, and catastrophes have elicited acts of heroism not lacking in tragedy. This history may be tracked through its various stages and in various depictions of and by the population, the cinema being one such depiction. Saleem Albeik鈥檚 book offers a history of that cinema within the historical context of the Palestine Question, attempting to present that history through its films.
The author: Saleem Albeik is a film critic and novelist. He has published two works of film criticism, Reflections on Palestinian Cinema (2023) and A Biography of Palestinian Cinema: Limitations of Spaces and Characters (2025). He has also published three novels: Two Tickets to Saffuriyya (2017), Scenario (2019), and The Eye of the Rooster (2022). Born to a refugee family, he currently lives in Paris, where he writes a weekly column on cinema and culture in the newspaper Al-Usbu` al-`Arabi. He founded the cultural magazine Rumman and acts as its editor.
For more information, contact Nadia.Backleh@warwick.ac.uk
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PLCRG event - "A Biography of Palestinian Cinema", featuring Saleem Albeik (novelist & critic)S0.10 (Social Sciences Building)Come join us in what promises to be a convivial and engaging talk and discussion about Palestinian cinema, featuring the Palestinian novelist and film critic Saleem Albeik.
Abstract: This talk is based on the author鈥檚 recent book Biography of Palestinian Cinema: Limitations of Spaces and Characters, published (in Arabic) by the Institute of Palestine Studies (2025), which narrates the story of feature films made by Palestinians between two axial events in Palestinian history: The 鈥淪tones Intifada鈥� (1987-1991) and the current genocidal war (2023- ). The book outlines the national context before commencing its story, reading cinema as responding to the political conditions of the Palestinian people and arguing that the Al-Aqsa [Second] Intifada (2000-2005) generated a transformation in that cinema.
The book critically examines a principal aspect of Palestinian cinema: its imposed limitations regarding space and casting, ascribing these limitations to the conditions of colonial occupation, settlement, policies and institutions. Limited space led to limited casting opportunities, and these in turn affected the chances of achieving the aims of a particular film. Such limitations constitute a structural condition of Palestinian cinema in general, though certain films became exceptions that proved the rule. Those films in which cast members rebelled against imposed limitations of space were instrumental in helping to liberate their participants, who thus evolved as dramatic figures themselves.
The book discusses 57 feature films and attempts to show how each one dealt with the presence of limitations and their five manifestations, dubbed with - what the author calls - the five jims (referring to the Arabic letter "J"): Soldier (jundi), Jeep, Checkpoint (hajiz), Jail (sijn), and Wall (jidar).
Since the Nakba of 1948, the history of the Palestinian people has been truly tragic, and catastrophes have elicited acts of heroism not lacking in tragedy. This history may be tracked through its various stages and in various depictions of and by the population, the cinema being one such depiction. Saleem Albeik鈥檚 book offers a history of that cinema within the historical context of the Palestine Question, attempting to present that history through its films.
The author: Saleem Albeik is a film critic and novelist. He has published two works of film criticism, Reflections on Palestinian Cinema (2023) and A Biography of Palestinian Cinema: Limitations of Spaces and Characters (2025). He has also published three novels: Two Tickets to Saffuriyya (2017), Scenario (2019), and The Eye of the Rooster (2022). Born to a refugee family, he currently lives in Paris, where he writes a weekly column on cinema and culture in the newspaper Al-Usbu` al-`Arabi. He founded the cultural magazine Rumman and acts as its editor.
For more information, contact Nadia.Backleh@warwick.ac.uk |
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Work in Progress Seminar - Dan King (Exeter)鈥楳ethodist Diagnostics: Framing disease recognition in Soranus and Caelius Aurelianus鈥�. |
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History Research seminar, The Politics of History, Joan Scott (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton)FAB5.01 Faculty of Arts BuildingSpeaker: Joan Scott, Professor Emerita, Princeton |
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Big Questions of Academic Life EventPanoramas Room, Rootes BuildingDear all,
Please see details at the above link about an event taking place next week (4th Feb) that explores the big questions that surround academia, faith and university life. Short talks will be given by Professor David Lines (Italian/Renaissance Studies) and Dr Andi Wang (Statistics) as well as time for a time of general discussion of some of these questions in small groups. Staff and students of all stages are welcome to attend. Do not hesitate to contact me (Miriam.Gordon@warwick.ac.uk) for more information. Kind regards Miriam Dr Miriam Gordon IAS Early Career Fellow |
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Professionalization Event-Cover Letters I*Student Hub (FAB5.49)Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies. For ad-hoc queries and 1-1 support, please email Al铆rio Karina, alirio.karina@warwick.ac.uk |
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CHMST Research ShowcaseOC1.08, Oculus Building |
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Falling Skies: conversations on ways of being in an era of eco-social catastropheFAB 4.79Dear colleagues, Please join us in this cross-faculty working group which connects a range of disciplines including Literature, History, Philosophy, and Life Sciences. With the word CARE, the fourth session on Wednesday 4 February, 5-6pm, FAB4.79 will be led by Fabienne Viala, Professor in Hispanic and Caribbean Studies, who will introduce a short pre-circulated to open the conversation. Adeline Johns-Putra is a scholar of English literature, with primary expertise in the relationship between climate and literature. She currently holds the position of Professor of English Literature at Queen's University, Canada. Please to attend as seats are limited. We hope to see many of you there! Best, Paola Sanges Ghetti (SMLC) Dr Michela Coletta (SMLC) |