[Philosop] [Reminder] Workshop “Philosophemes in Marguerite Porete’s Mirror of Simple Souls” – Call for Abstracts

[Geneviève Barrette]

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WORKSHOP

“PHILOSOPHEMES IN MARGUERITE PORETE’S

MIRROR OF SIMPLE SOULS”

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

 

Dates of the workshop:           May 13-14, 2026

Location:                                        Collège Ahuntsic, Montréal

Submission deadline:              December 1, 2025

 

The Mirror of Simple Souls by Marguerite Porete is a late thirteenth-century work of speculative mysticism. Addressing themes such as true authority, the relationship between knowledge and will, and the relationship between the practice of virtues and the attainment of the mystical state, it is an example of high-level theoretical writing produced outside the university context. Though its many tensions, digressions and overlaps generate challenges, the book fascinates due to the vibrant coherence between the radical type of freedom it introduces, and the tragic fate of its author, who, refusing to retract her book, was burned at the stake. In spite of the auto-da-fé, it circulated to some extent, passing into the hands of Eckhart of Hochheim, Jan Van Ruusbroec, Jean Gerson, Marguerite de Navarre, and Simone Weil.

 

Although recent studies have shed light on aspects of Marguerite Porete’s thought, its philosophical elements still need to be explored in greater depth.

 

We invite proposals that bring to light, discuss or draw implications from philosophical concepts, theses, distinctions and arguments set out in The Mirror of Simple Souls, notably ones that situate these elements with respect to historically or philosophically related works.

 

The workshop will be held in person, with one hybrid session.

Each presentation will be 30 minutes long, followed by a 30-minute discussion.

 

To submit a proposal

Please email a 300–500-word abstract and a short bio to Geneviève Barrette (genevieve...@collegeahuntsic.qc.ca) by December 1, 2025, specifying whether you would participate in person or online.

 

Organiser

Geneviève Barrette (Collège Ahuntsic/U. Laval)

 

Scientific Committee

John Arblaster (U. Antwerp)

Geneviève Barrette (Collège Ahuntsic/U. Laval)

Isabelle Chouinard (UQAM)

Emily Perry (Concordia U.)

David Piché (U. Montréal)

 

Confirmed participants

Pascale Bermon (CNRS-LEM)

Danielle Dubois (U. Manitoba)

Peter King (U. Toronto)

Michael Rea (U. Notre Dame)

 

Partnerships

Collège Ahuntsic

Extending New Narratives in the History of Philosophy

Faculté de philosophie de l’Université Laval

Institut d’études anciennes et médiévales de l’Université Laval (IÉAM)

Laboratoire de philosophie ancienne et médiévale (LAPAM)

 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/15gPFOXCiRmSbAoDDLIrFtD_gxnzbyNft/view?usp=sharing