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| Semester | spring semester 2024 |
| Course frequency | Irregular |
| Lecturers | Christiane Schlote (christiane.schlote@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | According to the environmental anthropologist Jerry Jacka, we are living in a ‘mineral age’, since “our entire livelihoods are utterly dependent on minerals. From the copper that lights our homes and workspaces (…), to the iron ores that shape our transportation systems, to the gold, silicon, lithium, and other various minerals of the ‘digital age’ (…) that comprise our phones and computers” (2018). Paradoxically, however, and despite the marked visibility of extraction sites such as coal and gold mines, oil refineries and deforestation areas, these remain “not so much invisible but unseen” (Wenzel 2017). In this course, we will examine a wide range of global literary, dramatic, filmic, poetic and artistic responses to resource extractions, whether in the form of fossil fuels, minerals or biomass, and ask how the texts engage with the environmental, physical and social impacts caused by resource extraction and how they may contribute to illuminating complex concepts such as the ‘logic of extraction’, ‘extractivism’, the ‘new scramble for Africa’, the ‘paradox of plenty’ and ‘sacrifice zones’. |
| Learning objectives | Students will be introduced to extraction narratives within the broader field of energy humanities and the discursive frameworks of the practice of extraction and the concept of extractivism. |
| Bibliography | Students should acquire the following text: Jennifer Haigh, "Heat and Light" (2016). Theoretical and additional primary texts will be made available on ADAM. |
| Weblink | ADAM |
| Admission requirements | For MA and PhD students only |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | Online, mandatory |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Wednesday | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday 28.02.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 06.03.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 13.03.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 20.03.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 27.03.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 03.04.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 10.04.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 17.04.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 24.04.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 01.05.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Tag der Arbeit |
| Wednesday 08.05.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 15.05.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 22.05.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Wednesday 29.05.2024 | 12.15-14.00 | Nadelberg 6, Raum 11 |
| Modules |
Modul: Anglophone Literary and Cultural Studies (Master's degree subject: English) Modul: Literatur- und kulturwissenschaftliche Forschung (Master's degree program: Literary Studies) Modul: Research in Anglophone Literary and Cultural Studies (Master's degree subject: English) Module: Fields: Media and Imagination (Master's degree program: African Studies) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Regular and active participation, reading assignments, oral presentation, optional seminar pa-per |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Englische Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft |