Call for Papers for the Upcoming Issue #22

We are living in a time when historical alliances and conflicts—whether among different ideologies and economic-political models (such as feudalism, capitalism, and liberalism) or between globalization and the nation-state—are being reshaped. In this "new" era, the long-standing crisis of liberal democracy, declared "the verdict of History," and its attendant humanist discourse now reverberate across nearly every domain of lived experience. In trying to understand/narrate this transformative moment we find ourselves in, diverse approaches intersect in a common experience: the collapse of the familiar and the uncanny feeling it engenders. This structure of feeling compels us not only toward the "new" but toward time itself—and it is precisely at this juncture that we encounter a recurring signifier in contemporary narratives: "neo-."

Of course, "neo-" is not making its debut on the stage of thought today. Yet the all-pervading uncanniness that now seeps into everything reminds us that the "new" is no mere change—and "neo-" itself seems to transform, as if adapting to the undulating, turbulent nature of time in these "neo-times" we find ourselves inhabiting. This transformative moment of "neo-" not only steers us toward new strata of meaning in the reflective domain but also renders conspicuous the necessity of a radical—and indeed imperative—"new" within thought itself. These strata compel us to conceive of "neo-" not merely as a revised extension of the past but as a distinct mode of intellectual production emerging directly from the crises of the present—leaving thought itself poised at a threshold.

At this threshold, as thought turns toward understanding/narrating the collapse of the familiar in our present, the question of how to conceptualize this "new" "neo-"—inscribed within our time—emerges as an inescapable site of contestation. In this context, debates over whether "neo-" reflects a naïve assumption of continuity or an evolutionist-organicist notion of progress—or whether it instead signals a discontinuity marked by the spectral return of the past, the dissolution of social bonds, and the reconfiguration of experience—open up an essential terrain of intellectual inquiry.

Within this field of inquiry, particular deployments of "neo-"—primarily within frameworks addressing new modes of vassalage—reveal the ongoing transformation of sovereignty. Parallel to this transformation, the weakening of supranational structures, the rise of "charismatic" power formations, the emergence of post-hoc discourses alongside accelerating migrant and refugee mobilities, and the intensifying racism are pushing not only law and politics but also philosophy, sociology, geography, history, art, and other social sciences and humanities beyond their familiar frameworks. All these developments signal not merely the emergence of new theoretical positions but also the increasingly palpable need for radical narrative forms capable of rendering intelligible the affective disorientation that characterizes our present.

In this present moment, where even the specters of the past haunt the present, manifesting as intertemporal negotiations, the dissolution of citizenship and institutional belonging foregrounds both the quest for the "new" and the emergent forms of solidarity it generates. In this context, merely declaring our era as "new" proves inadequate—the true imperative lies in wresting "neo-" from the strata of meaning that seek to contain it and rethinking it through the emergent strata of meaning that constitute our present. At this very juncture, unprecedented forms of allegiance, unexpected solidarities, and improbable alliances between generations and societal power groups—groups we'd not ordinarily associate, yet now actively challenging conventional expectations—emerge as defining signs of this transformation. Thus, the frequently invoked "neo-" in contemporary narratives—signifying a transformation far more unfamiliar than we typically assume—propels both thought and storytelling into uncharted critical terrain.

Within this framework, our dual quest to understand and narrate the present compels us to interrogate how "neo-"—that familiar prefix echoing across historical epochs—has ruptured its fixed forms to become a distinct expression of our time. Together, we theorize its contemporary manifestations, the functions it now performs, and the interpretive possibilities revealed through "neo-"narratives; we confront what this 'neo-' elicits in us while engaging with the historical contingencies of earlier iterations. In doing so, we co-construct a space of critical encounter—and invite you to join us.


Potential Topics
Narrative Function of "Neo": Representation, Rupture, Repetition
The Dynamics of Classical "-isms" Becoming "Neo-"
Philosophy's "Neo" Forms: Transforming Concepts, Reconstructed Philosophies
"Neo" Forms of Science: Contemporary Debates from Methodology to Life
Law's "Neo" Forms: New Freedoms, New Limitations, New Contracts in the Tension Between Locality and Universality
"Neo" on Screen: New Production, Distribution and Consumption Practices
Neo-Animism: Rethinking Nature
The New Political: Neo-Authoritarian, Neo-Feudal, Neo-Liberal, Neo-Technocratic
Neo-Globalization: Technology, Digitalization, Fluidity
Labor and Work's "Neo" Forms: Shifting Boundaries Between Home and Workplace
Neo-Reactionary Movements, New Antagonisms
"Neo" Orientations in Understanding/Narrating Turkey: Neo-Kemalism, Neo-Secularism and Neo-Conservatism
New Social Movements: New Paths, New Comradeships, New 'We's
New Intimacies: Ending Loves, New Sexualities
"Neo" Forms of Gender, Body and Identity
New Spiritual Quests: Awakening Through Apocalyptic Narratives
Neo-Humanism in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
Emotions in Neo-Times