Tupaias Drawings - Einzelansicht

In this class, we will study a number of coloured drawings which came into being during James Cook's first circumnavigation of the planet. They were drawn by Tupaia, a Polynesian master navigator and tahu'a (scientist /priest) who joined Cook's crew in Tahiti in 1769. The drawings will be starting points for the discussion of larger issues, such as: How can very different knoweldge traditions communcate in the absence of a common language? How did the Euroepan Enlightenment aquire knowledge about and deal with non-European 'Others'? How can these drawings be seen as a starting point for a postcolonial critique of Western discourses and science?

This course requires profound knowledge of James Cook's first voyage to the Pacific, of its archival records, and of South Polynesian cultures. All students who wish to participate in it are required to read a long essay titled 'The Making of Tupaia's Map' BEFORE the beginning of the semester. It is available here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00223344.2018.1512369

The course will be taught online via moodle. Most parts of the course will use asychronous teaching, yet there will be 3-4 sychronous sessions using zoom video conferencing. These sessions will take place Wednesdays, from 12 to 14.

All materials will be provided online via moodle.

written analysis of one drawing, based on group work project, 1000 words.