Embodied Histories

Undergraduate / Graduate

When does history require "more than words"? Are there histories that our bodies express that are not easily accessible through texts? This course explores relationships between the body, movement, and history, with a focus on dance. Co-taught by a dancer (Meredith Dincolo) and historian (Tara Zahra) we will combine weekly studio practice and seminar-style discussion. Subjects will include how human bodies archive history and can serve as sources for historians, the history of embodied knowledge, and the challenges of archiving and reconstructing dance. We will also consider how social and concert dance represent and reflect history. Assignments will include readings as well as viewing choreographic works on video; discussion of texts and videos; writing analyses of dances informed by the readings; attending relevant performances in Chicago and participating in a weekly studio-based class session in which we explore, through movement, the themes under consideration that week. Finally, each student will complete a final project in which they develop and share an embodied biography or personal history. You do not need to have any dance experience to take this course, but you must be willing to move!