A SIAM SOCIETY LECTURE   The Prospects for Comparative Cultural Studies   by Professor Dr. Juergen Wertheimer,  Tuebingen University, Germany

  
Professor Juergen Wertheimer is Professor of German and Comparative Literature at Tuebingen University, Germany, an institution known internationally for its prominence in the field of Comparative Literature. A native of Munich, he studied German and Comparative Literature, English and Art History in Germany and Italy, graduating with a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature at Munich University. His scholarly works embrace a very wide range of subjects, including the Classics of Western literatures as well as "hot" issues related to cultural conflicts and integration. Literary studies for him do not only mean interpretative prowess and critical acuity, but also philological spadework connected with the editing of literary works, monograph series and academic journals. (On March 7, 2008, he spoke at a seminar organized by the Commission on Higher Education to a large group of Thai editors on the topic "Editing a Learned Journal"). He is at present Editor of the renowned journal in Comparative Literature "ARCADIA".
 
For his second lecture to be presented at the Siam Society, Professor Wertheimer will address a topic which has been his main concern in recent years, namely, to reach out to contemporary demands for "International Literatures" and at the same time to explore the possibilities offered by important developments in Cultural Studies. In his lecture of 7 March, he made it quite clear that whatever be the innovations in terms of substance or methodology, a humanities scholar's prime responsibility is to harmonize aesthetics with ethics.

 
Professor Wertheimer's visits to Thailand and Japan are being supported by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany.

 
The lecture will be introduced by Professor Chetana Nagavajara, Honorary Member of the Siam Society and President of the Humboldt Club, Thailand.  

DATE:	5 April 2008 (Saturday)
TIME:	10.00 a.m.
PLACE:	The Siam Society, 131 Asoke Rd, Sukhumvit 21
	For more information, please telephone Khun Arunsri at (02) 661 6470-7, fax (02) 258 3491, or e-mail info@siam-society.org Office Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 9.00 a.m. – 5.00 p.m.
Non-Members Donation: 200 baht	Siam Society Members, Members’ spouses and children, and all students showing valid student I.D. cards, are admitted free of charge.

The Siam Society is deeply grateful to the James H.W. Thompson Foundation for its generous support of the 2007-2008 Lecture Series.