| Unit name | Wild Things: Humans and Other Animals in the Modern World |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HIST10021 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Dudley |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
HIST13003 Special Topic Project listed |
| School/department | Department of History (Historical Studies) |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit aims to consider the ways in which human interaction with other creatures changed dramatically during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. European expansion encouraged the systematic study and categorisation of the natural world whilst simultaneously setting the stage for unprecedented environmental change. The period also saw developments in the ways in which animals were used in popular entertainment, from confinement in zoos to the broadcast of animals ‘at liberty’ in natural history documentaries. Pet keeping increased and many animals were now in need of protection from the violence of humans in the home, the city and the broader biosphere. Drawing extensively on contemporary sources (including cartoons, photography, films and novels), this unit’s aim is to examine the range of human ideas towards, and interactions with, animals which have emerged over the past two centuries, in Europe and North America.
On successful completion of this unit students will have a critical understanding and knowledge of the development of the interaction between humans and other animals in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Students will develop their skills in assessing, presenting, analysing and evaluating complex ideas and arguments, and in researching and writing essays.
1 x 2-hour seminar per week.
1 x 2-hour exam (100%).
Alfred Crosby, Ecological Imperialism (1986). Erica Fudge, Animal (2002). Linda Kalof, Looking at Animals in Human History (2007). Harriet Ritvo, The Animal Estate (1987). Charles Darwin, On the Origins of Species (1859). Val Plumwood, Being Prey (2000).
