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| Semester | fall semester 2020 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Julia Tischler (julia.tischler@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | The seminar inquires into the Global South’s – specifically Africa’s – position in the history of transnational knowledge production and theory building. Historically, Africa and other parts of the “developing world” have been seen as sites of gathering data – such as specimens of animals and plants, ethnographic descriptions and objects -, while the production of theory took place in Europe. Moreover, the development paradigm has styled Western modernity as the universal model of progress since the Enlightenment, with any developments in the south denigrated as faulty imitations and forever incomplete copies. Challenging this image of Africa as a repository of “raw data” and receiver rather than producer of knowledge, prominent scholars of various disciplines have pointed to the global souths’ contributions to the sciences and humanities. In the context of anti-colonial nationalism, several African colonial territories, respectively independent nations, saw the emergence of important schools of history (for instance in Ibadan, Accra, Dar es Salaam), which laid important foundations for the new intellectual programmatic of African History as an academic discipline. African philosophers, politicians, and writers published path-breaking theoretical deliberations and literary texts that fed into innovative debates on colonialism and postcolonialism. In the past as much as in the present, African experts have contributed immensely to global knowledge on health and healing. Another prominent field, not commonly associated with the African continent, is Science and Technology Studies. By delving into several specific fields, the course explores Africa’s position in global knowledge and theory-building. Students wishing to participate in this class should be prepared to read complex abstract texts in English. |
| Bibliography | Jean Comaroff and John L. Comaroff (2012), Theory from the South: Or, How Euro-America Is Evolving Toward Africa. Paradigm Publishers. Clapperton Mavhunga (2017), What Do Science, Technology, and Innovation Mean from Africa? MIT Press. Fran Collyer, Raewyn Connell and Joao Maia (2018), Knowledge and Global Power: Making New Sciences in the South. Monash University Press. |
| Comments | Aufgrund der coronabedingten Einschränkungen ist die Teilnehmerzahl auf 30 beschränkt. Der verfügbare Unterrichtsraum bietet Platz für 15 Teilnehmende. Bei höherer Belegung wird in dieser Lehrveranstaltung der Präsenzunterricht mit digitalen Elementen kombiniert (Halbklassen, Zuschaltung, Arbeitsgruppen…). |
| Admission requirements | Für Masterstudierende und fortgeschrittene Bachelorstudierende der Geschichte mit abgeschlossener Grundstufe (Nachweis von drei Proseminaren und den drei obligatorischen Proseminararbeiten). Bei Überbelegung kann die Teilnehmerzahl beschränkt werden. In diesem Fall werden Studierende der Geschichte bevorzugt zugelassen. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Modul: Areas: Afrika (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Modul: Aufbau Neuere / Neueste Geschichte (Bachelor's degree subject: History) Modul: Epochen der europäischen Geschichte: Neuere / Neueste Geschichte (Master's degree program: European History (Start of studies before 01.08.2018)) Modul: Epochen der europäischen Geschichte: Neuere / Neueste Geschichte (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Modul: Fields: Knowledge Production and Transfer (Master's degree program: African Studies) Modul: Neuere / Neueste Geschichte (Master's degree subject: History) Modul: Profil: Geschichte Afrikas (Master's degree program: European History (Start of studies before 01.08.2018)) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Aktive Teilnahme. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Departement Geschichte |