Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory (CCCT)
Chair: Professor Chris Weedon
Director of Postgraduate Research: Professor Radhika Mohanram
Situated in the Cardiff School of English, Communication and Philosophy and with strong links to the Cardiff Humanities Research Institute, the Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory (CCCT) is embedded within a rich and vibrant research environment offering excellent opportunities for both discipline based and interdisciplinary research. Many members of the Centre are also members of the English Literature Research Group, and there is regular dialogue with the School’s Philosophy Group, particularly those working in the area of Continental Philosophy.
The Centre has a long and distinguished history as a field-leader. It was established in 1989 to create an institutional space for teaching and research in the (then) new field of theory. The first of its kind in the UK, and indeed one of the first anywhere in the world, the Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory quickly built a strong international reputation for research into the work of Louis Althusser, Roland Barthes, Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault and Jacques Lacan, among many other key names. The centre’s founding members wrote pioneering works – e.g. Catherine Belsey (1980) Critical Practice, Terence Hawkes (1977) Structuralism and Semiotics, Christopher Norris (1982) Deconstruction: Theory and Practice and Chris Weedon (1987) Feminist Practice and Poststructuralist Theory – that contributed significantly to the establishment of the field of theory as an area of teaching and research in the contemporary university and still today function as standard points of reference for scholars and students. After marking its twentieth anniversary with an international conference on ‘Zoontotechnics (Animality / Technicity)’, at which Bernard Stiegler gave one of the distinguished keynote addresses, CCCT continues to be at the forefront of teaching and research in the now very well established field of theory, as its recent conferences and publications amply demonstrate. (See the Centre's Annual Report.)
The Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory’s main fields of research include:
- Critical theory: Deconstruction, Deleuze Studies, Poststructuralism
- Cultural history
- Film and media studies
- Gender and sexuality
- Postcolonialism, nation and culture, collective memory
- Posthumanism
- Postmodernism
In addition, individual projects exist in law and literature and music and culture.
Members of CCCT are involved in interdisciplinary networks on ‘Crime Narratives in Context’ and ‘Wales-Ireland’. They also participate in activities in the School’s Centre for Editorial and Intertextual Research.
Members of the Centre edited a number of journals and book series:
Research Seminars, Conferences and Workshops
In addition to its regular seminar series, the Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory regularly hosts international conferences attracting high profile speakers from all over the world. In recent years it has organised conferences on ‘Alain Badiou’ (2002), ‘Deleuze and Cinema’ (2006) and ‘Theory, Faith and Culture’ (2007). In 2008 the Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory hosted the inaugural international Deleuze Studies conference.
Postgraduate Research Students and Visiting Scholars
The School offers two Postgraduate courses in this field:
The School very much welcomes applicants from students from outside the United Kingdom. More information is provided on the School’s international page.
The Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory has a number of Erasmus exchange programs in place supporting both staff and students.
Cardiff Humanities Research Institute (CHRI)
The Centre for Critical and Cultural Theory maintains an active affiliation with Cardiff Humanities Research Institute, which is a founding member of the Consortium of Institutes of Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences.
Cardiff Humanities Research Institute (CHRI)
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