| Unit name | Remembering Transatlantic Enslavement |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HIST20122 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Jessica Moody |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of History (Historical Studies) |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Generations of enslaved African people and their descendants were tortured and exploited through systems of plantation enslavement in the US, Caribbean and South America well into the 19th century. The profits from these systems brought wealth, trade and cultural prestige to Europe and America. How should such a dissonant past be remembered in contemporary society? How can such traumatic experiences with such intense contemporary legacies concerning race and discrimination be appropriately represented through public history, museums and memorialisation? This unit explores the public memory of transatlantic enslavement in the Atlantic world, and may cover topics such as the slave forts in West Africa, Plantation Museums in America, public art and memorials in the Caribbean, and more recent efforts to face this difficult past in Europe including the marking of anniversaries, walking tours, ceremony and ritual, art as public history and ongoing debates over apologies, reparations and the (re)naming of civic sites and buildings.
The unit has one local field trip in which students will critically analyse Bristol’s public memory of enslavement.
This unit aims to:
1. Introduce students to the public memory of transatlantic enslavement in Europe, Africa and the Americas including how this has changed over time
2. Provide students with a number of in depth case studies which contextualise specific efforts to represent this past, placing these in temporal and geographical context
3. Introduce students to different types of public history initiatives and enable them to evaluate their effectiveness
4. Explore historic and contemporary debates over the representation of enslavement
5. Develop students’ skills in approaching public history, museums and memorials as primary sources
6. Develop students’ skills in critical reading and thinking, presentation and discussion appropriate to Level I/5
Successful students will be able to:
Classes will involve a combination of class discussion, investigative activities, and practical activities. Students will be expected to engage with readings and participate on a weekly basis. This will be further supported with drop-in sessions and self-directed exercises with tutor and peer feedback.
1 x 3500-word Essay (50%) [ILOs 1-6]; 1 x Timed Assessment (50%) [ILOs 1-6]
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. HIST20122).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
