The Colonising Word: Textual Culture and The Persistence of Colonialism

3.00 credits · Undergraduate

Prereq: Second-year standing; or permission of the department By problematizing textual culture, this course exposes the ways that our architecture of knowledge continues to support white, primarily male supremacy through its valuation of textuality as a legitimate vehicle of truth and knowledge. In addition to exploring the origins of textual culture as well as its relationship with oral ways of knowing, this course interrogates non-western textual and oral knowledge. It seeks, moreover, to contrast the ways that non-western oral knowledge is valued differently than western verbal knowledge. Students will also be exposed to ways of knowing that do not rely upon textuality, with a focus on visual and material culture. By embracing non-textual knowledge, students will discover ways of knowing as expressed, created, and used by women, Indigenous groups, and people of colour more broadly. (Format: Integrated Lecture/Laboratory 3 hours)