Pirates! Archaeologies of Piracy in the Atlantic World

The figure of the pirate is an all-time favorite in Western imagination. It has inspired some of the most popular narratives of the past, solidly grounded in classic literature and contemporary visual culture. Focusing on the mid-17th century, the golden age of piracy in the Atlantic World, this course will use historical and archaeological date to investigate the way in which the image of the pirate has been constructed in the West, as an embodiment of cultural, legal, moral and sexual transgression, and as an object of both fascination and fear which is still current in the contemporary, global world.