Professor: Marcel Brousseau
4 credits
This colloquium considers how air travel is understood and made possible through different kinds of texts, whether written, drawn, sung, or woven. Focusing particularly on the 120-year history of the airplane, we will read, watch, and listen to a range of media chronicling the development of air travel from a niche pursuit to an intrinsic aspect of modern (and postmodern) life. Our texts include literature, technical writing, pre- and post-jet-age flight maps, and instrumental genres, including airplane safety cards. Films and music will broaden our approach to textuality, as will our study of the fabric of early planes, in-flight fashion, and airport carpeting and other furnishings. We will also consider the broader social impacts of the airplane, including discourses about travel documentation, the plane as military weapon, space travel, and the jet’s role in driving global warming. Students will engage in analytical and creative writing, and will respond to course themes with research projects devoted to their own textual flights of fancy. Come fly with us!