| Kommentar |
In the American context, Border Studies came about as an interdisciplinary academic field in the 1990s. In its earliest and most limited sense it refers to the study of culture and society along the U.S./ Mexican border. However, the imaginary and theoretical implications of the border – e.g. as a site of exchange, exclusion, inclusion and protection – reach far beyond the study of the history the U.S./Mexican border. More recent scholarship in Border Studies includes topics such as the following: sexual, gender, ethnic, racial distinctions and their social and symbolic constructions and functions. Theoretical issues such as transgression, transnatonalism, and cultural citizenship have been discussed as part of Border Studies. Certainly the history and mythology of the Frontier – central issues of American Studies – overlap in important ways with the paradigm of Border Studies. The seminar will examine the significance of the history of border constructions for the study of American society and culture. The reading will include historiography, cultural theory, gender studies, fiction and performance art. A major focus will be on Mexican-American cultural production. Film screenings will take place in addition to the seminar meetings. Additional films will be provided at Mediothek (Dorotheenstr.). A reader will be available for purchase in the first week of teaching. In preparation for the seminar please watch Babel (2006, dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu). |
