The Max-Planck-Institute for European Legal History offers 3 three-year PhD and / or Post-graduate positions, focusing on the history of early modern moral theology and canon law (2 positions) and on the juridical experiences of convivencia and its significance for early modern law in colonial Latin America (1 position). The latter is part of a joint project of four Institutes of the Max-Planck-Society called ‘Convivencia. Iberian to Global Dynamics (500–1750)‘. Contracts will be given for three years, starting from April 1st, 2015.
Applicants should have a formation either in law, theology, canon law, history or philosophy. They will be working at the Max-Planck-Institute in Frankfurt, integrated into the research field ‘Legal history of Ibero-America’ of the research department II, led by Thomas Duve. Language abilities should include Spanish or Portuguese, English, and Latin. Researchers are also expected to be willing to acquire knowledge in German during their stay in Germany.
In the case of PhD-positions, the PhD title might be granted by the Goethe University Frankfurt, if the applicants qualify for this. However, candidates who wish to obtain their PhD degree at another university will also be admitted.
Positions 1, 2:
Knowledge of the pragmatici. Presence and significance of pragmatic normative literature in Ibero-America in the late 16th and early 17th century
These two positions are part of a co-operation between the Goethe University Frankfurt and the Max-Planck-Institute for European Legal History in the new DFG-financed Collaborative Research Centre (Sonderforschungsbereich) ‘Discourses of Weakness and Resource Regimes’ (‘Schwächediskurse und Ressourcenregime’).
The project ‘Knowledge of the pragmatici’ is dedicated to the first century of the establishment of Spanish colonial order in America and reflects upon the significance of texts which have been labelled as “pragmatic literature” in the field of law and moral theology. PhD position holders are expected to research on one of the two following subject matters:
1) the methods employed by Martín de Azpilcueta in his manual for confessors in comparison with his work as a canon lawyer; or
2) the influence of the moral cases addressed to the Third Mexican Provincial Council (1585) on the elaboration of the Directorio de confesores drafted by the same church assembly.
More information about the research project:
http://www.rg.mpg.de/research/knowledge_of_the_pragmatici
http://www.rg.mpg.de/forschung/wissen_der_pragmatici
Position 3:
Experiences with convivencia and the New World
This position forms part of a larger project ‘Convivencia: Iberian to Global Dynamics, 500-1750’ of the Max Planck Institute for European Legal History, Frankfurt (Thomas Duve), the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz - Max-Planck-Institut (Gerhard Wolf), the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin (Jürgen Renn), and the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, Halle/Saale (Günther Schlee), in cooperation with David Nirenberg (Chicago University), associate to the Max-Planck-Society.
‘Convivencia: Iberian to Global Dynamics, 500-1750’ investigates cooperative and conflictual interactions of different cultural and religious communities in the Iberian world from the sixth to the eighteenth centuries. Within this broader framework, to be theoretically reflected, the Max Planck Institute for European Legal History Institute's project group, led by Thomas Duve (MPIeR Frankfurt) and Raja Sakrani (Käte Hamburger Kolleg ‘Recht als Kultur’, Bon2n/MPIeR Frankfurt), contributes to the Convivencia project with multi-disciplinary legal historical research on medieval and early modern situations of convivencia in Europe and Latin America.
More information about the research project:
http://www.rg.mpg.de/research/convivencia
Application Process
Applications should contain a CV and list of publications as well as a five page outline on the research project. It should be clear whether the application is for a PhD or a Postdoc position and whether – in the case of the PhD position – the candidate is already studying in a PhD program.
Applications should be submitted electronically (max. 10 MB per email) by January 31st, 2015 to the following email address jobs@rg.mpg.de indicating the reference “EURE-D-1-2014”.
Candidates will be informed about the selection results in writing by February 28th, 2015.
The postgraduate remuneration will be governed by the German Collective Agreement for the Public Sector (TVöD) EG 13 (65 %) and is currently 2,268.25 Euro gross. The working time consists of 39 hours per week.
In case of a Postdoc-contract, the remuneration (E13) will be increased to 100% and is currently 3.489,62 Euro gross. The working time consists of 39 hours per week.
The Max-Planck Society is committed to increasing the number of individuals with disabilities in its work-force and therefore encourages applications from such qualified individuals.
The Max Planck Society seeks to increase the number of women in those areas where they are underrepresented and therefore explicitly encourages women to apply.
Inquiries about the research program ‘Knowledge of the pragmatici’ can be directed to Otto Danwerth (danwerth@rg.mpg.de) and about the program ‘Convivencia: Iberian to Global Dynamics’ to Christoph Meyer (cmeyer@rg.mpg.de).