Global Africa: Creative Cultures
Examines contemporary and historical cultural production on and from Africa across a range of registers, including literary, musical and visual arts, material culture, and science and technology. Employs key theoretical concepts from anthropology and social theory to analyze these forms and phenomena. Uses case studies to consider how Africa articulates its place in, and relationship to, the world through creative practices. Discussion topics largely drawn from Francophone and sub-Saharan Africa, but also from throughout the continent and the African diaspora. Taught in English with a project that requires research in French. Limited to 18.
Spring 2018
Topics
- Course overview
- Performing Africa
- The visual, knowledge, and power
- African cinemas: Representation, circulation, audiences
- Value
- Authenticity, appropriation
- Writing and political engagement
- Writing about Africa in the world today
- Conceptualizing African scientific and technological knowledges
- African futures
Prerequisites & course information
Prereq: 21G.304 or permission of instructor U (Spring) Not offered regularly; consult department 3-0-10 units. HASS-S
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026–2027
- MIT OpenCourseWare ↗Spring 2018
- MIT OCW calendar ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.