[KB] Updated CFP / Submission Window Reopens: "Kenneth Burke, the Humanities, and Agency in the Era of AI"

David Blakesley david.blakesley at gmail.com
Fri Apr 11 07:50:06 EDT 2025 

The KBS 2025 conference has pivoted to virtual-only format, so we have
reopened the submission window. The new deadline is April 20, 2025, at
midnight wherever you are. With the change to the virtual format, we've
revised the conference description and details, which you can read in full
at the *KB Journal *website or in summary form below.  Conference Website:
http://kbjournal.org/kbs25. Submit proposals via Submittable here
<https://parlorpress.submittable.com/submit/316164/2025-conference-of-the-kenneth-burke-society>
.



*The 12th Triennial Conference of the Kenneth Burke Society 2025*

"Kenneth Burke, the Humanities, and Agency in the Era of AI"

A Virtual Conference and Film Festival

*Fast Facts*

Conference Dates: May 23–25, 2025

Location: Online in Zoom, Gather <https://app.gather.town/app>, and New Art
City <https://newart.city/>

Proposal Submission Deadline: 20 April 2025. Submit proposals via
Submittable here.
<https://parlorpress.submittable.com/submit/316164/2025-conference-of-the-kenneth-burke-society>
Proposal Acceptance Notifications: Revolving
RENEW A MEMBERSHIP OR JOIN THE KENNETH BURKE SOCIETY HERE
<https://kbjournal.org/join_kbs> ($10 for students; $25 for all others; all
presenters must be current members of the Kenneth Burke
Society)·

   - Conference Website: http://kbjournal.org/kbs25
   - Conference Chair: David Blakesley (dblakes at clemson.edu)
   - Program Chair: Taylor Wyatt (tjwyatt at g.clemson.edu)
   - Conference Coordinator: Andrew Okai (aokai at g.clemson.edu)
   - New Art City Coordinator: Eddie Lohmeyer (elohmey at clemson.edu)
   - Film Festival Coordinator: David Williams (dgwilli at g.clemson.edu)
   - Accessibility Coordinator: Ashlyn Walden (acwalde at g.clemson.edu)
   - Gather Coordinator: Dave Rochlin (drochli at g.clemson.edu)


*KBS Awards*
Call for Nominations for the 12th Triennial Kenneth Burke Society Awards
(coming soon)
*Registration*
Attending KBS 2025 will be free for all attendees. Presenters must be
members of the Kenneth Burke Society. Not yet a member? Student memberships
are only $10 annually, and regular memberships are only $25!
*Summary of the Conference Details*

The 12th Triennial Conference of the Kenneth Burke Society welcomes
proposals that focus on any Burkean subject. Proposals that address the
conference theme, “Kenneth Burke, the Humanities, and Agency in the Era of
AI,” are especially welcome. The conference will be hosted by the Kenneth
Burke Society and Clemson University, from May 23 to May 25, 2025. In
addition to lively presentations, performances, exhibits, a film festival,
games, and unending conversation in the parlor, KBS 2025 will also feature
a virtual exhibition space in New Art City <https://newart.city/> that
features presentations, installations, art, and video. A film production
crew will film a live theatrical and cinematic enactment of the Burkeian
parlor for *The Wordman* film. The theatrical trailer for *The Wordman* will
premiere at the conference.

*Conference Theme*

*Kenneth Burke, the Humanities, and Agency in the Era of AI*

Daniel Plate and James Hutson argue that we must view AI “not merely as a
technological tool, but as a powerful extension of our symbolic lives, with
profound ethical implications” (“Reclaiming the Symbol: Ethics, Rhetoric,
and the Humanistic Integration of GAI: A Burkean Perspective
<https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1612&context=faculty-research-papers>,”
p. 69). They view AI as an extension of human symbolic action and argue for
a balanced approach to its use, which can potentially bridge the divide
between humanistic inquiry (what Burke advocates) and continuing digital
innovation. Is it possible to view AI as anything other than an adversary
of the humanities (especially since AI isn’t going anywhere soon)? Plate
and Hutson argue that it is possible to develop a more nuanced
understanding of AI by viewing this technology specifically within the
context of Burkean rhetorical theory. The LLMs that fuel generative (and
textual) AI may enable contextually coherent and persuasive or informative
predictions, so how might this generative capacity be differentiated from
what Burke calls the entelichial nature of language, our efforts to track
down the implications of a terminology (dramatism, terministic screens), or
the idea that language does our thinking for us. What might Burke have
thought of the technological, linguistically infused golems of generative
AI? How does or might generative AI transform (for better or worse) the
understanding and value of the humanities? What’s the difference between
human and AI agency? What acts might human-AI agency or agents perform?
This theme welcomes presentations that offer Burkean readings of AI, which
collectively may attest to the importance of the humanities in guiding our
ethical and creative uses of AI technology.

“I expect AI to be capable of superhuman persuasion well before it is
superhuman at general intelligence," ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman tweeted
<https://x.com/sama/status/1716972815960961174> on X (formerly Twitter) in
October of 2023, "which may lead to some very strange outcomes." We welcome
proposals for individual presentations, panels, flash talks, Film Festival
entry, critical AI projects installations, games, BAHFest presentations, or
seminars that explore them:

   - What strange outcomes might those be?
   - What does AI have to do with Kenneth Burke?
   - How might dramatism (Burke) differ from pattern recognition (AI)?
   - How does AI complicate our understanding of Agency? Act? Scene? Agent?
   Purpose? Attitude?
   - In what ways might generative AI and its superhuman
   persuasion/rhetoric function as a counter-statement to traditional
   principles of rhetoric?
   - For Burke, pure persuasion is a motive. Can AI simulate pure
   persuasion? Agency?
   - How does generative AI reinforce or challenge systemic racism,
   ableism, sexism, classicism, and the intersectional nature of identity and
   identification?
   - How might a Burkean rhetoric of ecological action illuminate the
   material and economic impact of AI?
   - In the era of AI, why/how does rhetoric matter?

As with prior KBS conferences, we also welcome all proposals from all
disciplines—and all students and scholars of Kenneth Burke’s work.

We invite proposals for individual presentations, panels, flash talks, Film
Festival entries, critical AI projects installations, games, BAHFest
presentations, or seminars exploring the above ideas and concerns.
Proposals should be submitted in Submittable HERE
<https://parlorpress.submittable.com/submit/316164/2025-conference-of-the-kenneth-burke-society>.
The submission window opens January 21, 2025, and closes Sunday, April 20,
2025, at midnight wherever you are. Proposals for individual presentations,
flash talks, short films, critical AI projects, installations,
performances, or BAHFest presentations should be no more than 250 words.
Proposals for panels with multiple presenters may be up to 500 words.
Acceptances will be announced on a revolving basis.

*Film Festival*

We invite conference attendees, both in person and virtual, to submit short
films for the inaugural Kenneth Burke Film Festival. Those who wish to
participate should submit pitches of 150-200 words for their films (also
due by April 20, 2025). A film pitch is a brief but concise rundown of your
film: title, premise, style, and thematic relevance. The pitch doesn’t have
to completely summarize the film but should highlight a compelling idea
that connects with the theme of this year’s conference (“Kenneth Burke, the
Humanities, and Agency in the Era of AI”). Conference attendees whose
pitches are accepted will be notified by April 25, 2025, and invited to
submit a rough cut or trailer at the next step.

*The Virtual Venues*

Asynchronous virtual presentations will be in the form of pre-recorded
video hosted by the presenter “live” in Zoom, with additional interactivity
in Gather. All presentations (papers, films, posters, flash talks,
installations, performances) will also be curated in the interactive
virtual space New Art City <https://newart.city/> at the reincarnation of
the Virtual Burkeian Parlor. Virtual or onsite attendees will have access
to the Virtual Burkean Parlor in Gather <https://app.gather.town/app>,
coordinated by Dave Rochlin (drochli at g.clemson.edu). Watch a Gather demo
here: https://youtu.be/JePchzu_USM?si=4yldHcfHVTg2ymOv.


*For Burkean Nomads*

Some hearty KB travelers and local presenters will meet at Clemson for
"live" presentations in a hybrid space that allows for virtual
participation in Zoom, Gather, and New Art City. They'll also gather
at the Post-Conference
Festival/Pool Party/*Wordman* filming (hosted by ParlorFlix in Anderson,
SC). If you'll be on site (or want to be), let Dave know (
dblakes at clemson.edu).

*Technical Support*

Virtual and onsite presenters can ask for technical support to produce
video presentations, installations, or other alternative formats. Email
Andrew Okai (Program Coordinator) at aokai at g.clemson.edu, Ashlyn Walden
(Accessibility Coordinator) at acwalde at g.clemson.edu, or Taylor Wyatt (
tjwyatt at g.clemson.edu).


Cheers,

Dave
---
Campbell Chair in Technical Communication
Professor of Rhetorics, Communication, and Information Design
Interim Director, RCID
Immediate Past President of the Faculty Senate
Publisher, Parlor Press <https://parlorpress.com/>
he/him/his

Clemson University
616 Strode Tower
Clemson, SC 29634
765.409.2649 (cell or text)
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