Course Name: Trauma, Archives, and Colonialism
Instructor:
SLN: 15027
Meeting Time: TBD (Tue or Thurs, 3:30-5:20pm)
Term: Spring 2015
Our goal will be to look at the intersection of history and theory through a critical investigation of the traumas of colonialism, constructions of identities and subjectivities, and the de-centering effects of postcolonial and feminist theories. Historiography is not only about different methods of shaping historical narratives. Historiography is also about silences and the politics of location. How does postmodern critical discourse affect historical studies? How does one interpret oral testimonies recorded after traumatic experiences? How do we account for beliefs in witchcraft or the supernatural in historical studies? By taking an interdisciplinary approach to “culture,” theory, and history, this course will blend together a number of different methodologies associated with deconstruction, psychoanalysis, feminist theories, postcolonial theories, trauma theories, and literary theories. The emphasis this quarter will be on different ways of constructing and situating historical archives and how interactions among testimony, memory, and trauma influence the construction and deconstruction of archives. Students will gain familiarity with these different critical approaches through readings, class discussion, and written work.