AAAS 20.02 Race and Archival Silences

This course will cover the methods scholars use to uncover narratives that seem to lie outside of the traditional archive, broadly defined. We will look at the history and foundations of archival practice, with a specific focus on the rise of archives in the United States, and the effect that race and this history have had on the ways historical narratives are constructed. Does recent scholarly interest in such silences actually distort the records that do exist for marginalized people? We will analyze strategies for reading "silences" in the archival record, such as critical fabulation, reading "against the grain," and "presencing.” We will also analyze the critical debate around the concept of archival “silences.”

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:SOC; WCult:W

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Department-Specific Course Categories

African and African-American Studies