Humanities Symposium

September 28th-October 2nd, 2026

Twenty-five years ago, when the then Department of Literature and Language and the Department of Philosophy decided to organize “Murder in the Mansion,” we called it a Symposium because we wanted to emphasize an aspect of academic engagement fundamental to our disciplines, the focus on conversation.  Today, as social media, twenty-four hour news cycles, AI, and political division seem to threaten our ability to interact deeply and meaningfully with each other, even with those we may not agree with, that reciprocal, conversation-based format, that requires both listening and speaking, seems all the more important.  Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised, then, to discover that the original, root sense of conversation isn’t about talking with each other at all:  it’s about living with others, opening up to the possibility of turning ourselves about as we encounter others, and in that way allowing ourselves to celebrate everything our common humanity has to offer.  So, this year, instead of engaging with one focused subject from many angles, throughout the five days of our 25^th Symposium we hope to resume conversations on one of the five topic groupings representing the past twenty-five years:   Our Encounters and Conversations; Our Comparative Impulses; Our Contexts; Our Technologies; Our Narratives and Languages.

Special thanks to The Louie M. and Betty M. Phillips Foundation for their support. 

Featured Speakers: 

2026 Humanities Symposium Featured Speakers

	Dana Bultman Harry and Jane Wilson Professor  of Humanities and Head of Romance Languages, University of Georgia
	Ashley Davis World Music Artist, Reiki Master Teacher and Belmont Alumna
	Mark Edmundson Presidential University Professor, University of Virginia
	Gabriela Gonzales Freelance writer and Belmont Alumna
	Holly Liu Charles A Dana Professor of German and Chinese, Alma College
	Rachel Martin Author of  A Most Tolerant Little Town and Nashville Hot Hot Chicken
	Alex Priou Professor of Political Philosophy Roubos Sabbatical Scholar at the Benson Center for the Study of Western Civilization at the University of Colorado Boulder and Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Austin
	Dr. Masood Raja Belmont BA and MA alumnus and Professor The Linsly School, Wheeling, West Virginia

 Symposium Schedule + more info coming soon! 

About the Humanities Symposium

Every fall semester since 2001, the School of Humanities, with the support of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, has organized and presented a week-long series of interdisciplinary talks, panel discussions and activities on a topic which engages with a central aspect of the human experience.

Past symposia have focused on subjects ranging from fairy tales to food, time to technology, Benjamin Franklin to the lunar landing, democracy to otherness, travel to home. In addition to presentations by featured speakers from across the country - including writers, philosophers, social reformers and academics from a wide range of disciplines - presentations and panels by Belmont faculty and students have consistently provided most of the events, involving participants from across the campus.

Most events are offered for WELLCore credit. Additional activities coordinated in conjunction with the symposia in years past have included an international film festival, art exhibits, an astronomical viewing, service projects and field trips to local and regional museums. Recordings can be accessed through the Belmont Library Open Commons at the Belmont Digital Repository.