206H12 Spring

2013:BODIES &
MACHINES

FallSpring 2014 (08/25/14-12/10/14)

Mondays, Wednesdays, and
Fridays
Section 001
10:00-10:50
Section 002
11:00-11:50WFMondays,
WednesdaysTuesdays and FriThursdays
92:00-9:350AM:15
01/09/13-05/01/13
Harvill BldgShantz Room 452411242E
Dr. Victor Braitberg
Assistant Professor
Honors Interdisciplinary Faculty
The Honors College
University of Arizona
Office Hours
Thursdays 1-4PM
Slonaker House 211
And Mondays 11:00-12:002:00
TuesdaysWednesdays 102:00-12:00:30
Fridays 10:00-12:00
and by
Appointment

Wednesdays 11-3 and by

Appointment
Email: victorb@email.arizona.edu
Office Tel.520- 621-0175

COURSE DESCRIPTION
From the world of industrial machines to the world of digital devices, the
changing landscape of technology in our everyday lives has a profound effect
on how we think about and experience our bodies. Using historical and crosscultural perspectives alongside out-of-the-classroom research this class
explores how configurations of bodies and machines shape what we define as
normal or natural, how we experience space and time, and how we understand
the differences between humans and non-humans.
At the same time, we will be explore how a wide range of social and cultural
groups experience and make sense ofing the relationship betweenof bodies and
machines to our personal experience. Throughout the semester students will be
encouraged to connect the themes of the course to the diverse ways that
configurations of body and machine inform our experience as embodied selves.
We will be particularly concerned with grasping how varied these configurations
of body and machine shape our experience of race, class, gender, sexuality

and other social distinctions that construct our bodies and selfhood and
relationship to others in specific ways.

Our point of departure will be ideas and images of technology and the body
from the scientific and technological revolutions of the 17 th and 18th centuries.
Our aim will be to understand how these imaginaries have informed our
contemporary experience of technology, the body and notions of the ideal
society. We will then turn our attention to the scientific and technological
movements of Eugenics and Taylorism of the late 19 th and early 20th centuries to
explore the ways that concerns about industrial production and population
growth intersected with visions of bodies perfectly tuned to the rhythms of the
factory and whose reproduction would be engineered to remove all hereditary
imperfections. Our examination of the mid-20th century to the present will be
concerned with the emergence of computing technologies and communication
networks. We will focus in particular on the histories of cybernetics and postindustrialism which have reimagined the boundaries between the human and
the machine as well as the social and the biological.

Our discussions, written assignments, and class projects will be based on a

broad, interdisciplinary range of sources including but not limited to popular
films, scholarly works, visual arts, and novels.
At the same time, we will be exploring the relationship of bodies and machines
to our personal experience. Throughout the semester students will be
encouraged to connect the themes of the course to the diverse ways that the
articulations of body and machine inform our experience as embodied selves.
We will be particularly concerned with grasping how these articulations shape
our experience of race, class, gender, sexuality and other social distinctions
that construct our bodies and selfhood in specific ways.
Throughout various points in the semester, we will be visited by guest
students who will be joining us for conversation. These will be a diverse range
of individuals ranging from U of A scholars and scientists to working physicians
and engineers as well as authors, poets, and musicians from the Tucson
community who will do one of our weekly readings and come in to discuss it
with us from the perspective of their profession or specialty. In addition we will
have at least one and possibly more excursions in the community to enrich our
in class learning. Such excursions will be for purposes of enrichment and
therefore not mandatory.

REQUIRED BOOKS (AVAILABLE FROM UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

BOOKSTORE):
Minsoo Kang (2011) Sublime Dreams of Living Machines.
1. Alexandra HowsonArthur W. Frank (1991) At the Will of the Body: Reflections
on Illness.
2. Mary Shelley (1818) Frankenstein, Or The Modern Prometheus.
3. Carolyn Thomas de la Pena (2003) The Body Electric: How Strange
Machines Built the Modern American.
4. Philip K Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?Alexandra Howson
(2013) The Body in Society, 2nd Edition.
OPTIONAL BOOK (AVAILABLE FROM UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
BOOKSTORE)
5. Robert Romanyshyn (1989) Technology as Symptom and Dream.
6. Sherry Turkle (2011) Alone Together: Why We Expect More From
Technology and Less From Each Other.
ARTICLES AND BOOK CHAPTERS
All required and recommended articles and book chapters will be made
available through the D2L course web page/siteD2l.
FILMS
First Contact
Frankenstein: BBC Documentary
Metropolis
3

Race: The Power of an Illusion

GATACCA
The Mechanical Bride
Blade Runner
City of Lost Children

COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. Identify and describe how visions and techniques for technologically
transforming the body articulate human values, beliefs, and desires.
2. Describe the political, economic, and cultural contexts for scientific
and technological modifications of the human body.
3. Evaluate how technological bodies transgress existing social and
political arrangements, or conversely, how they reinforce and
normalize them.
4. Evaluate the similarities and differences between contemporary and
historical imaginaries of bodies and machines.
EXPECTED LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Increased understanding of how of the relations between ideas about
science, technology, the body and society are related to one another.
2. Increased understanding of the historical relationships between
science, technology, the body and social thought.
3. Improved ability to think critically about social and political
beliefsideals and their relationship to understandings of science,
technology, and the body.
4. Ability to apply fieldwork methods used in cultural anthropology to
understanding beliefs and practices of social media users.
5. Expanded proficiency in expository writing. and the use of primary
sources.
TEACHING METHODOLOGY

The following methods will be used to explore course topics:

Instructor lectures
Out of class activities
Online discussions
ClassGroup discussions

BPublic blogging
SIndividual short essays
Team-based learning activities
Research paper
PIndividual presentations
Final Paper

GRADES
D2l DiscussionAttendance
50 pts | 05%
Participation
21050 pts | 20015%
Reading Notes
1500 pts | 150%
Short Papers (3)
D2L Discussion
300 pts | 30%
EthnographyGroup Final Paper
150 pts | 15%
Final Paper
Presentation
5200150 pts | 52015%
Mid-Term20025Public Blog
200 pts | 20%0%
Essay #1
100 pts | 10%
Essay #2
100 pts | 10%
Essays (3)
200300 pts | 350%% (10% each)
Total: 1000pts
A = (1000-900)
B = (890-800)
C = (790-700)
D = (690-600)
F = (below 590)

COURSE ACTIVITIES AND ASSESSMENT (Rubrics for all course activities

will be posted in D2L)
PARTICIAPTION 20% Of Grade (200PTS)
This is a discussion-based class. You will be expected to contribute to class
discussion frequently.

At the end of the semester I will look at the following criteria and issue a
grade by assessing the extent to which you have done the following:

Attends class regularly. (Missing no more than three classes).*

Participates regularly (at least once every 1-2 weeks) in discussion by

contributing topic-relevant comments and/or questions. Questions
and or comments demonstrate that the student has done the reading
and given it some thought. Relates previous class discussions, course
assignments, other classes, readings, media, personal experience or
other materials to the discussion in ways that are focused, relevant,
and insightful.

Builds upon/paraphrasing what others have said or asks for

clarification. Cites comments and/or questions made by classmates.
Brings the reading to class. Quotes relevant passages to illustrate or
support their question or comment.

Stays focused on assigned question and/or task when engaged in

group discussion/activity.

At the end of the semester I will look at the following criteria and issue a
grade by assessing whether you have done the following:
Note that attendance will be based on a pass/fail basis (3 or fewer absences
= full credit. More than 3 no credit)

40pts/Attends class regularly. (Missing no more than three classes).

40pts/Brings the reading to class. Quotes relevant passages to

illustrate or support their question or comment.

40pts/Participates in discussion by contributing topic-relevant

comments and/or questions. Questions and or comments
demonstrate that the student has done the reading and given it some
thought. Relates previous class discussions, course assignments,
other classes, readings, media, personal experience or other materials
to the discussion in ways that are focused, relevant, and insightful.

40pts/Builds upon/paraphrasing what others have said or asking for

clarification. Cites comments and/or questions made by classmates.

40pts/Stays focused on assigned question and/or task when asked to

do group discussion/activity.

*Note that attendance will be based on a pass/fail basis. Three or

fewer absences will equal full credit. More than three absences will
equal 0 credit.

D2L DISCUSSION 30% of Grade (15 x 20PTS =300 PTS)Attendance

(50pts/5%: individual grade): You can miss any two days for any
reason and receive full credit for attendance. Arriving late and
leaving early will be counted as an absence. Three or more days of
being absent will result in 0 points for attendance.
The aim of this class is to create an environment where you can learn to think
holistically about bodies and machines. This means being able to observe,
analyze, and identify patterns between things that may, at first, not seem to be
related. It means being able to make connections between the past and the
present, between society and the individual, between fantasy and reality,
between the personal and the political.
Prompts for D2l discussion appear each week in the Table of Contents of our
D2L site . They will vary from week to week. Some prompts will ask you to
engage with an argument being made by one of our authors or to discuss with
examples a concept that has been introduced in class discussion. In some
cases you will be asked to respond to a video, a photograph, a poem, or other
cultural artifact. In some cases you will be asked to interview someone,
observe social behavior, or perform an experiment on yourself and share what
you discoveredreport on what you learned.
Excellent postings those receiving an A will not only engage fully with the
prompt but succeed in using specific examples to make relevant and thought
provoking connections with two or more of the following-- our readings, films,
current events, course assignments, class discussion, other classes, etc Why
would this be my criteria for excellence, i.e., for awarding an A?
A fundamental aim of this class is to create an environment where you
can learn to think holistically about bodies and machines. This means
being able to observe, analyze, and identify patterns between things
that may, at first, not seem to be related. It means being able to make
connections between the past and the present , between society and
the individual, between fantasy and reality, between the personal and
the political.
Prompts will be posted by 510pm on Sundays and will be due the
following Sunday by 510pm.
The grading rubric for D@L discussion will be in the content area under Course
Information.

ETHNOGRAPHY OF BODIES AND MACHINES (5670% of grade =

56700pts)

The most important assignment for this class is the ethnography. Ethnography
involves the analysis of a particular culture through hands on field research that
will take place outside of the classroom. Your ethnography will be a contribution
to our understanding of how people experience and make sense of the
relationship between bodies and machines.
This assignment will be made up of seven separate assignments that will
culminate in a 7-10 page paper that you will be due at the end of the semester.
Each assignment will be worth a certain number of points (see below) and will
have its own rubric and will be due every two weeks. Each of these
assignments will be discussed in class and you will have opportunities to form
working-groups with your peers to share ideas and strategies for completing
each assignment.
Assignment
Assignment
Assignment
Assignment
Assignment
Assignment
Assignment

1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:
7:

Proposal (2550pts)
Background Research (2550pts)
Field Notes (5075pts)
Interview (5075pts)
Draft of Ethnography (100pts)
Class Presentation (50pts)
Final draft of Ethnography (200pts)

Participation (150pts/15%: individual grade):The course will require full

participation (including active listening, facilitating, note-taking, and asking
questions). Successful participation in this class will mean bringing the
readings to class and engaging with them in a thoughtful way demonstrating
that you have completed the assigned reading and are engaging with relevant
ideas and issues both from the reading in question as well as other sources
including but not limited to personal experience and current events.
Furthermore your class participation should integrate and build upon the ideas
of your classmates, guest students, and/or the instructor. I will expect an
attitude of respect for both each other and the material under consideration
You will be expected to treat each other with respect when it comes to
differences of interpretation and opinion. And you will be expected to treat the
material we are discussing with respect in the sense that you will be expected
to give it your attention and serious consideration despite the fact that on
occasion this may be difficult to do since our discussionsyou may find the topic
difficult since it may challenge your beliefs and/or values.
In-Class Discussion Groups: On the first day of class you will divide
into a group of 3 students. This will be your discussion group for the
duration of the semester (as well as your presentation group).
Throughout the semester you will be periodically asked to convene
your group during class to discuss the assigned reading and to share
your questions and/or comments with the rest of the class.
Reading Notes (300pts/30%) Due every FridayThursday in class.
A printed copy of your reading notes will be due in class every
Friday. Every week, for fifteen weeks, you will be required to submit one or
8

two paragraphs of reading notes. To receive full credit (20pts) you will need
to do two things: 1) describe the authors thesis in your own words followed
by quoting the passage (with page numbers) which you think contains the
thesis statement and 2) discuss an aspect of the article that was unclear
and/or confusing. For those weeks when we have more than one assigned
reading, please focus on the reading that raised the most questions or
caused the greatest difficultyA printed copy of your reading notes will be due
in class every Thursday. Note that you will lose 10 points if you do not
cite the page number when providing quotations. Please focus on the
reading that raised the most questions or caused the greatest difficulty for
those weeks when we have more than one assigned reading.
3 Essay Comparing Imaginaries of Bodies and Machiness
(200300pts/230%): You will be required to write awrite two 65-87 page
essaypapers that will compare and contrast how the relationship
between bodies and machines has been imagined in different times and
places. This paper will ask you to use examples from contemporary
American culture. each be worth 100pts. Detailed instructions for each
paper will be presented two weeks before the paper is due along with the
grading rubric. You will have the opportunity to revise and resubmit this
paper as long as you The first two of these essays will be re-graded if the
revised version is submitted to the instructor seven days from the date
they were returned to you.
Group Presentations(200pts/20%)
Your group presentation will focus on a technological imaginary of the human
body using specific examples from advertisements, television, films, comics,
literature, video games, websites, news media, music, etc Your group
presentation should be no more than 15 minutes and should be delivered in an
engaging way creatively incorporating elements of speech, dance, text, images,
and/or music.
POLICY ON LATE ASSIGNMENTS
5% will be deducted for each day the assignment is late. The only exception to
this will be extreme extenuating circumstances such as family deaths and
hospitalization of the student. Please contact me if you have any concerns
about submitting an assignment on time and/or if you have any questions about
this policy.
COURSE POLICIES & EXPECTATIONS
Grades: Most students can expect to earn a B or C in this class if you have
met the requirements outlined in this syllabus. An A, however, will mean
that you have exceeded the requirements for this course. While devoting
considerable time and energy to our coursework may be necessary for
receiving a good grade like a B hard work alone will not be sufficient for
receiving an outstanding grade like an A. Receiving an A means you will
have demonstrated a thorough and accurate understanding of the course
materials by applying key concepts to novel cases and situations. Restating
in your own words examples from the readings, films, and/or class
discussions will not earn you an A. Earning an A will mean that you have
9

presented in a clear and compelling manner your own examples and

connections based on an accurate understanding of key concepts.
Revisions: Assignments 1-5 of the ethnography may be revised and regraded as long as the student meets with the instructor to discuss the
assignment and submits the assignment for re-grading no later than one
week from the time of their meeting.
Deadlines: D2L posts and Papers must be turned in by the time indicated in
the syllabus. 5% of total points for the assignment will be deducted for each
day it is late.
Attendance: In-class discussions and activities will be a central feature of
this class. You will be expected to attend all classes for the full scheduled
time. Arriving to class late on two or more occasions will be counted as an
absence. You are allowed two absences for any reason. Fifty points will be
taken from your final grade (out of 1000) for each additional class missed.
You will be responsible for submitting assignments ahead of time and for
getting notes from your classmates if you miss class.
Readings: This is a reading-intensive class. You will be expected to read
between 30-50 pages every week. Please do not take this class if you feel
that this is too much reading. All readings must be completed prior to the
class meeting for which they are scheduled. You arewill be expected to bring
the scheduled readings with you to class since we will be making reference to
them during referring to the readings in our class discussions. You will be
expected to cite relevant passages that are relevant to our discussion and
that support points that you make in discussion. You will also be asked to
read aloud from passages in the assigned reading.
All required and recommended articles and book chapters will be made
available on our D2l websiteline.
Technology: Laptop computers and other digital devices should be
used only for instructional purposes during class. Checking email
browsing the web, texting, etc... will be considered disruptive
behavior and a violation of the Student Code of Conduct. You will
receive a verbal warning for the first occurrence. Any recurrence
will result in losing all points for attendance and participation (20%
of grade).a minimum of fifty points from your final grade (out of
1000).
Attitude: This class is devoted to a thorough and complete exploration of the
relationship between bodies and machines. When I say "bodies", I mean all
aspects of the human body.

Be aware that our readings, films, and class discussions will

sometimes include topics that some people may findeel are
offensive and/or disturbing (for example attitudes and behaviors

10

related to sex and sexuality, gender, race, violence, religion,

politics, etc sexuality and violence).
As a cultural anthropologist, I consider it indispensable to study all aspects of
the human experience-- experiences that range from what some might consider
the sublime and solemn to the depraved and disgusting-- and everything in
between. This means that you will sometimes need to adopt an attitude of
critical detachment regarding your own values and beliefs to get the most out
of this class.
Accordingly, for the duration of this class you will be expected to adopt the
attitude of a cultural anthropologist. This will mean being non-judgmental
(ethnocentric) about the behaviors and beliefs that we will read about and
discuss. You will be expected to try and understand foreign behaviors and
beliefs from the perspective of those who hold them. The point here is to strive
for understanding, not evaluation and judgment accordin g to your own values
and beliefs, but according to the values and beliefs of the individuals and
groups under consideration- what some anthropologists refer to as "the natives
point of view."
Community: Bodies and Machines has a Facebook page and a YouTube channel
that you will be expected to utilize for class discussion and research purposes.
will be available in late January. The YouTube channel haswill have numerous
videos that deal with a wide range of topics related to the class ranging from
Cartesian philosophy and robotics, to post-Transhumanism and cell phone
commercials. The Facebook page contains a wide range of resources that relate
to the course.
YouTube playlist can be found @ will be for students past and present who have
taken this class and have remained interested in continuing our conversations
and explorations. No class credit will be associated with either of these sites.
Details on how to access these sites will be provided later in January.
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRI9krtdYpbQOfnOnHdBaJrE_I-mYzwb7

Facebook community page can be found @

https://www.facebook.com/BodiesANDMachines?ref=hl

COURSE ACTIVITIES AND ASSESSMENT

11

Attendance (50pts/5%: individual grade): You can miss any two days for
any reason and receive full credit for attendance. Arriving late and leaving
early will be counted as an absence. Three or more days of being absent will
result in 0 points for attendance.
Participation (150pts/15%: individual grade):The course will require full
participation (including active listening, facilitating, note-taking, and asking
questions). Successful participation in this class will mean engaging with the
readings in a thoughtful way that demonstrates you have completed the
assigned reading and are engaging with relevant ideas and issues both from the
reading in question as well as other sources including but not limited to
personal experience and current events. Furthermore your class participation
should integrate and build upon the ideas of your classmates, guest students,
and/or the instructor. Students will be expected to treat each others with
respect when it comes to differences of interpretation and opinion.
In-Class Discussion Groups: On the first day of class you will divide
into a group of between 35 and 6 students. This will be your
discussion group for the duration of the semester (as well as your
presentation group). Throughout the semester you will be periodically
asked to convene your group during class to discuss the assigned
reading and to share your questions and/or comments with the rest of
the class.
Reading Notes (30150pts/3015%) Due every Thursday in class.
Every week, for fifteen weeks, you will be required to submit two paragraphs of
reading notes. To receive full credit (210pts) you will need to do two things: 1)
describe the authors thesis in your own words followed by quoting the passage
which you think contains the thesis statement and 2) discuss an aspect of the
article that was unclear and/or confusing. Reading notes will be due in
class every Thursday. You can choose which reading to write about for those
weeks that have two assigned readings.
Blogging (200pts/20%): You will be required to post approximately two
double spaced pages in response to ten blog prompts. To receive full credit
(20pts) you will need to answer the question fully with relevant and well chosen
examples from course readings, outside sources, and personal experience.
2 Essays (200pts/20%): You will be required to write two 5-7 page papers
that will each be worth 150pts. Detailed instructions for each paper will be
presented two weeks before the paper is due along with the grading rubric.
The first two of theseese essays will be re-graded if the revised version is
submitted to the instructor seven days from the date they were returned to you.
Final Paper
Your final paper will be a 8-10 page research paper where you will write about a
technological imaginary of the human body using specific examples from
advertisements, television, films, comics, literature, video games, websites,
news media, music, etc
12

Final Paper Conference Presentation(200pts/20%)

You will deliver your final paper during the Bodies and Machines Conference
which will be held during the last two weeks of class. Your group presentation
will focus onYour group final paper presentation should be no more than 15
minutes and should be delivered in an engaging way creatively incorporating
elements ofthat usesspeech, dance, text, images, and/orsound, music, and/or
audience participation.

POLICY ON LATE ASSIGNMENTS

5% will be deducted for each day the assignment is late. The only exception to
this will be extreme extenuating circumstances such as family deaths and
hospitalization of the student. Please contact me if you have any concerns
about submitting an assignment on time and/or if you have any questions about
this policy.
Unless prior arrangements have been made, I will not accept or grade
assignments submitted after the deadline. The only exception to this will be
extreme extenuating circumstances such as family deaths and hospitalization of
the student. Please contact me if you have questions or concerns about this
policy.

COURSE CONDUCT AND CAMPUS POLICIES (BE FAMILIAR WITH ALL

CAMPUS POLICIES)
1.
I will be giving you my undivided attention during our time together in
the classroom and I expect you to do the same. This means that I will expect
you to refrain from engaging in activities during class time that are unrelated
to the course (for example texting or writing notes to your classmates,
updating your Facebook page, doing work for other classes, reading the
newspaper, playing cards, doing crossword puzzles, watching movies,
listening to music, etc.) This will be considered disruptive behavior and a
violation of item 5 in the University of Arizonas Code of Academic Integrity.
This item of the code prohibits "failing to observe rules of academic integrity
established by a faculty member for a particular course."
http://deanofstudents.arizona.edu/codeofacademicintegrity#prohibited_cond
uct
I take a violation of this expectation very seriously.
You will receive a verbal warning for the first occurrence and any
recurrence will result in losing all points for attendance and
participation (20% of grade).
2.
Food and technologies are issues in classrooms. Cellular telephones
are distracting, so please put them away. Laptops can be utilized, but only for
note-taking purposes. Please follow classroom rules regarding food and
beverages in the classroom.
13

32.
In that this is a safe environment for sharing and generating unique
ideas, please try to be open to diverse perspectives and learn from others
who may pose views that differ from your own. At times, course material
might seem offensive, but try to wrangle with new ideas and consider a
variety of perspectives instead of simply rejecting ideas posed in courserelated discussion. When sharing your own ideas, do not subject others to
inappropriate language or problematic assumptions about social groups.
43.
Rules on academic dishonesty will be strictly enforced. Plagiarism is
literary thievery, taking the words or ideas of another and representing them
as your own. Do not copy another students work, pull text from online
sources, or turn in the same work for this class that you have used in another
class. All work turned in must be original and specific to this course. Students
who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to
disciplinary penalties (e.g., failing grade or removal from the University).
Students are encouraged to share intellectual views and discuss freely the
principles and
applications of course materials. However, graded
work/exercises must be the product of independent effort unless otherwise
instructed. As previously mentioned, sStudents are expected to adhere to the
UA Code of Academic Integrity
http://deanofstudents.arizona.edu/codeofacademicintegrity .
Arrangements can be made if you have a physical challenge or condition that
could impair your participation and/or performance in this course. Please
notify the instructor immediately if you need accommodation, and register
with Disability Resources so that I can make accommodation: Disability
Resources Center, 1224 East Lowell Street, Tucson, AZ 85721, (520) 6213268, FAX (520) 621-9423, email: uadrc@email.arizona.edu,
http://drc.arizona.edu/. You must register and request that the Center or DRC
send me official notification of your accommodations needs as soon as
possible. Please plan to meet with me by appointment or during office hours
to discuss accommodations and how my course requirements and activities
may impact your ability to fully participate. The need for accommodations
must be documented by Disability Resources.
The Arizona Board of Regents Student Code of Conduct, ABOR Policy 5-308,
prohibits threats of physical harm to any member of the University
community, including to ones self. See:
http://policy.web.arizona.edu/~policy/threaten.shtml.
All student records will be managed and held confidentially.
http://www.registrar.arizona.edu/ferpa/default.htm
Information contained in the course syllabus, other than the grade
and absence policy, may be subject to change with advance notice,
as deemed appropriate by the instructor.

14

15

Spring Semester 2013

International Undergraduate Orientation

January 2-4, 2013

International Graduate Orientation

January 3-4, 2013

Classes begin

January 9, 2013

Martin Luther King Jr Holiday - no

classes

January 21, 2013

Spring recess

March 9-17, 2013

Last day of classes and laboratory

sessions

May 1, 2013

Reading Day - no classes or finals

May 2, 2013

16

Final examinations begin

May 3, 2013

Final examinations end

May 9, 2013

Spring Commencements

May 10 -11, 2013

Degree award date for students

completing by close of Spring Semester

May 11, 201

DUE DATES FOR ASSIGNMENTS AND EXAM

TUE SEP 10TH
Paper 1: Technology Memories
TH
TUE SEP 17
Paper 2: Gender Norms
TH
TUE SEP 24
Paper 3: Reflections on No-Tech
Challenge
THU OCT
3RD
Mid-Term Exam
TH
TUE OCT 29
ESSAY: Comparing Imaginaries of
Bodies and Machines
TH
TUE DEC
17 1-3pm Group Presentations

List of key concepts that you will be expected to define

and illustrate with relevant examples. A list of these
17

will be posted for each week on our D2l page. These

key concepts will be the basis for pop quizzes

18

COURSE OUTLINE:BODIES AND MACHINES

Note that the following course outline is subject to change. You will be
informed of any changes in advance. Check our course homepage frequently
for updates and any changes to the syllabus.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UNIT ONE: CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES ON BODIES

AND MACHINES IN CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL
PERSPECTIVECULTURAL AND HISTORICAL
ANTHROPOLOGICAL AND
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE HUMAN
BODY AND
THE MACHINE TECHNOLOGY
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 1|Approaches to the body, technology and society.Thinking
Critically Aug 25-29
About How Do We Make Sense ofInterpret
our Experience of Bodies and Machines?Bodies and
MachinesIntroductions

D2l Post due @ 5PM on Aug 29

READ| David Cevetello, The Elite Glucometer, 64-68. From
Evocative Objects.
Joel Garreau (2005) Be All You Can Be, 15-44. From
Radical Evolution.
WATCH| ABC News Segment on Bodies and Machines
http://abcnews.go.com/Archives/video/dec-22-1997-man-machine15209253
WATCH|ABC News Bodies and Machines from 1997
http://abcnews.go.com/Archives/video/dec-22-1997-man-machine15209253
DISCUSSION| This segment dates from 1997a couple of years after
you were born. Whats changed and what has remained the

19

same? Do we still view the relationship between humans and

machines in the same way?
READ| David Cevetello, The Elite Glucometer, 64-68; Stefan
Helmreich, The SX-70 Instant Camera, 210-215;
Annalee Newitz, My Laptop, 86-91. All from:
Sherry Turkle (2007), Ed. Evocative Objects. Cambridge, MA: MIT.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION|
MonAug1/26th
10
Introduction to the Class
Compare your relationship to your body with your relationship to the most
important machine(s) in your life. What are the similarities and differences?
How do these machines augment or otherwise enhance your physical abilities?
How do they hinder or otherwise diminish you? Describe what you depend on
them for and how you feel about this dependence. Compare your relationship to
these machines with Cevetellos relationship to his glucometer.
LECTURE| What is a body and what is a machine? How are the meanings
associated with each word similar to each other and how do they differ? How
can such considerations lead us to critically evaluate what it means to be
human, what it means to be alive, how we distinguish between what is natural
and what is artificial, and how we define what is real as distinct from what is
imagined?duction to the class
1 /15 Be ready to discuss:
Carol Delaney (2004) Our Bodies Ourselves, 231-265. From
Investigating Culture.
Questions you should be able to answer for this section: How do
anthropologists conduct their research? Define the following terms:
ethnography, fieldwork, participant-observation, culture, cultural relativism,
ethnocentrism, emic, etic, discourse, symbol, tacit, interpretation,
representation, and social constructivism. How do anthropologists distinguish
between the biological and cultural dimensions of the human body? What does
it mean to say that the human body has a history? How is the human body
socially and culturally constructed? What would be some examples? What
did Marcel Mauss mean by the term techniques of the body and what would
be some contemporary examples?
Objective for the week: We have an intimare relationship to both our boduies
and machines and define them in relatrion to each other.
Wed Aug. 28th
READING| Be prepared to discuss: David F. Channells (1991) The Mechanical
and the Organic, 3-10. Ch.1 The Vital Machine: A Study of Technology and
Organic Life. New York: Oxford University Press.
DISCUSS| Refer to the questions from Mondays lecture.
20

Fri Aug. 30th

DISCUSSION OF CHANNELLRESPONDACTIVITY| Be prepared to give examples of
how the boundaries between organic and mechanical life are currently being
redrawn. Identify the values and beliefs that are at stake in the blurring of
these boundaries. Come to class with examples taken from Your examples
should be taken from the articles, websites, and/or videos to be found on the
Bodies and Machines Facebook page.
ANDOUT|
Doing Anthropology http://techtv.mit.edu/videos/315-doinganthropology
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 2| Sep 3-5

Thinking Anthropologically about Bodies and

Machines
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Sep 1
READ| Luke Eric Lassiter (2009) Anthropology and Culture, 35-68.
From Invitation to Anthropology.
Horace Miner (1956), The Nacirema, 1-5.
TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Ethnography Proposal Friday Sep 5 by 10PM
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Introduction to the Cultural ation ofthe BodyHistory and Anthropology
of the Body and
Technology:
Making the
Strange Familiar and the Familiar
Strange.
Watch First Contact prior to Tuesday's class (available on
D2L)
Teue Jan. 15 Lecture
Carol Delaney (2004) Our Bodies Ourselves, 231-265.
From Investigating Culture.

Video: National Geographic Incredible Human Machine

READINGS| Carol Delaney (2004), Our Bodies, Ourselves,
230-263; Horace Miner, The Nacirema, 1-5 and Alexandra
Howson, Introduction From The Body in Society, 1-15.

S
Week 3| Sep 8-12
Introduction to the Cultural Interpretation
of the
Body
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Sep 7
READ| Carol Delaney (2004), Our Bodies, Ourselves, 230-263; From
Investigating Culture.
WATCH| Professor Natasha Schull (MIT) discusses her
anthropological research on video poker machines and the casino
industry. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUuIq8w9Nxg
Introduction to the Cultural Interpretation of Technology
21

WATCH ON D2L PRIOR TO MONDAY: Fit: Episodes in the History of the

Body.
PAPER 1 DUE IN CLASS: Technology Memories
Video: National Geographic Incredible Human Machine
READINGS| Rudi Volti Ch/1 The Nature of Technology,3-18.
Joel Garreau (2005) Be All You Can Be, 15-44.
, norms, tacit knowledge, habitus
6
DISCUSSSION| Come to class ready to discuss specific
examples from your personal experience that illustrate
when you have thought of yourself as being your body
versus having a body? Make note of the circumstances
that tend to promote one experience of the body versus
the other. What are the patterns that emerge? Define
what Delaney means by the following concepts of the body
and how we can distinguish between them: the gendered
body; the physical body, and the social body.
Fri Sept 13READING| Horace Miner (1956) Body Ritual Among
the Nacirema, 265-269. Carol Delaney Investigating
Culture: An Experiential Introduction to Anthropology.
New York: Blackwell.
DISCUSSSION| Describe how the Nacirema try to make their
bodies conform to cultural norms or standards. How do
these techniques of the body relate to particular values
and beliefs held by the Nacirema?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 4| Sep 15-19
Introduction to the Cultural Interpretation
of
Technology
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Sep 14
READ| Rudi Volti (2009) The Nature of Technology, 3-18. From
Society and Technological Change.
Studs Turkel (1974) Introduction, xiii-xxx. From Working.
TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Background Research Friday Sep 19
by 10PM
Mon Sept 16
PAPER 2ASSIGNMENT DUE IN CLASS| Gender Norms This
will be a
3 page paper (double spaced, 12 pt font, 1 inch margins) that
includes two advertisements from a media source. One
image should be of a man, and one of a woman. For each
ad you should do three things: First, describe the person in
the ad: body image, stance, expression, and so on.
Second, discuss why you think this particular image helps
22

to sell whatever product is being advertised. Third,

discuss how this particular image helps to sell whatever
product is being advertised. Third, discuss how this image
communicates something about the cultures notion of
males and females. If you have time, ask some of your
friends to comment on the photos as well and include their
comments in your analysis. Some of you will be asked to
share your findings with the class so be sure to bring the
images with you in a format that can be shown on the
classroom computer.

positivism, individualism, society, culture. ofThe way we

interpret experience is shaped by our perspective. How can
we distinguish between the perspective we have as
individuals and the perspective that we have acquired as
members of social groups sharing a particular culture?
What is a cultural perspective or worldview? How have
these shaped the way people interpret and experience
machines, their bodies and the bodies of others now and in
the past?
READING: Luke Eric Lassiter (2009) Anthropology and Culture,
35-68.
LECTURE| A historical consideration of the word technology
can help us see more clearly how our understanding of the
boundaries between science, art, and practical knowledge
have changed over time. Focusing on the social and
cultural dimensions of technology can help us
contextualize these changes ining meanings. Key concepts:
Utilitarianism, idealism, materialism, discourse, black box,
technological determinism, social construction of
technology, social shaping of technology.
READING| Alfred Gells (1988) Technology and Magic, 6-9.
Anthropology Today, Vol. 4, No. 2, April.
Thueu Jan. 17 Be ready to discuss:
Carol Delaney (2004) Our Bodies Ourselves, 231-265. From
Investigating Culture.Fri Sept 20
READING| Norbert Eliass The Rise of the Fork and excerpts
from Galen Cranzs, How Chairs Evolved.
DISCUSSSION| Be prepared to discussand clearly
distinguish betweenthe social, cultural, and
utilitarian dimensions of forks and chairs. How do
they exemplify the circuitousness of technology, as
discussed by Gell (6-7)? How can they be said to be

23

technologies of enchantment as defined by Gell (78)?

WEEK-END ACTIVITY: No-Tech Challenge| Abstain from
using any communication or screen-based technology
for 8 hours (Computer, smart phone, tablet,
television, etc). Notify friends and family prior to
starting that you will be out of touch for an 8 hour
period. Keep a journal of how you approached this
challenge in terms of strategy, your mood, your
thoughts, your interactions with others, any changes
in your behavior, and how long you were able to last.
Write a 3 page summary of your experience due in
class on Tue Sept 23.

Horace Miner: The Nacirema.

First Contact

Tuehu Jan. 2219 Be ready to discuss:

Norbert Elias: The Rise of the Fork.
Galen Cranz: How Chairs Evolved.
Assignment over the week-end: The
No-Tech
ChallengeAssignment:For next week, No-Tech Challenge
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 3|History and Anthropology of the Body and Technology: Making
the Strange Familiar and the Familiar Strange.Our Technologies,
Ourselves: Thinking Critically About Our
Relationship to
Technology
Blog 1 Due Monday (23rd) by 5pm
Tue Jan. 22 Be ready to discuss:
Horace Miner: The Nacirema.
Thu Jan.

2417 Be ready to discuss:

Horace Miner: The Nacirema.
Norbert Elias: The Rise of the Fork.
Galen Cranz: How Chairs Evolved.
Reading Notes Due

Assignment over the week-end: The No-Tech

Challenge
First Contact
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

24

Tue Jan. 22 Be ready to discuss:

Norbert Elias: The Rise of the Fork.
Galen Cranz: How Chairs Evolved.
Week 4|Our Technologies, Ourselves: Thinking Critically About Our
Relationship to Technology
Thueu Jan. 24 Be ready to discuss:
Tue Jan. 29 Be ready to discuss:
Nancy Baym: Making New Media Make Sense.
Thuue Jan. 3129 Lecture
Reading Notes Due
and discussion.
Essay 1 Due Sunday (Feb 3) 5pm- Upload to Dropbox

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Week 5|Joel Garreau (2005) Be All You Can Be, 15-44.

PAPER 3 DUE: Reflections on No-Tech Challenge
Sdescribes the role of these technologies in your life

ING Alexis Madrigal (2013) The Machine Zone: This is

Where you Go When You Just Cant Stop Looking at
Pictures on Facebook, The Atlantic, July 13, 115.Atlantic article

25

DISCUSS: Evaluate the extent to which Schulls analysis of

gambling machines can be applied to our everyday use of digital
technologies. Fri Sept 27
LECTURE: What are the conventional distinctions that
we make between bodies, persons, and machines?
What is the history of these distinctions? How are the
boundaries between these concepts being redrawn
today? What are the values, beliefs, and social
relationships that are associated with these ideas?
How can a consideration of the history of the idea of
living machines help us understand these issues
better?
READ: KangWeek 6|Uncanny Bodies

READING: Minsoo Kang (2012) The Power of the

Automaton, 38-54. Sublime Dreams of Living
Machines: The Automaton in the European
Imagination. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press.

Showing of Allison de Frens documentary The

Mechanical Bride, 7:00PM Center for Creative
Photography, Auditorium.

----------------------------------------------------------------------UNIT TWO: INTERPRETING BODIES AND MACHINESFROM PREMODERN TO MODERN BODIES

-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 5|Sep 22-26
Our Technologies, Our Selves?
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Sep 21
READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) Introduction 1-15. From The
Body in Society.
Belk (2004) Men and their Machines, 273-278. From Advances in
Consumer Research.
Natasha Schull (2011) Video Poker, 153-171. From The Inner
History of Devices.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 6|Sep 29-Oct 3 Embodiment and Selfhood
26

D2L Post due @ 5PM on Sep 28

READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) The Body in Everyday Life, 16-49.
From The Body in Society.
Anne Pollock (2011) The Internal Cardiac Defibrillator, 98-110. From
The Inner History of Devices.
TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Field Notes Friday Oct 3 by 10PM
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 76|Oct 6-10
Illness and Suffering
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Oct 5
READ| Arthur Frank (2001) At the Will of the Body, 1-63.
PRE-MODERN AND NON-WESTERN BODIES

READING: E.E Evans-Pritchard (1976) The Notion of WitchCraft Explains Unfortunate Events, 18-25.

READING: Irving A. Hallowell (1955) The Ojibwa Self and Its

Behavioral Environment, 38-45.

WATCH IN CLASS: Clip from Strangers Abroad Series- Sir

Edward Evans-Pritchard: Strange Beliefs

DISCUSSION OF PRITCHARD READING: How does EvansPritchard distinguish between the rational and the
superstitious in his discussion of Azande witch-craft? What
does he suggest is the social purpose of witch-craft?
Describe the similarities and the differences that you see
between Azande witch-craft and modern-day American
medicine.

DISCUSSION OF HALLOWELL READING: How are Ojibwa

understandings and beliefs regarding the boundaries of the
body similar to and how are they different from American
understandings? Specifically, how do the Ojibwa understand
and experience the boundaries of their bodies and their
selves in relation to the external world?
OPTIONAL ING-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 87|Oct 13-17
Modern Understandings of the BodySex
and Gender
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Oct 12
Tue Oct 15TH
READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) The Body, Gender and Sex, 50-84.
From The Body in Society.
WATCH| Jennifer Robertson on Japans Robot Nation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9HgYHSJUP0
The Mechanical Bride
TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Interview Friday Oct 17 by 10PM

27

READ: Rene Descartes (1986)[1640] Meditations on First

Philosophy, 3-23. Edited by John Cottingham, Meditations on
First Philosophy: With Selections from the Objections and
Replies. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

OPTIONAL READING: Ian Hacking (2007) Our Neo-Cartesian

Bodies in Parts, 78-105. Critical Inquiry, Vol. 34, No. 1.
READING: Justin Leiber (1994) Introduction, 1-15. Julian Offray
de la Mettrie (1751) Man A Machine, 73-76. Indianapolis, IN:
Hackett
Baym chapter on thinking about new media
Chapter from book: The Chair
(Have a group of students do a search of the word technology
in the new york times index from the 19 th century onwards)
Questions you should be able to answer: What is technology?
How is it different from technique? What is the history of the
word technology and how its meaning has changed over time?
Distinguish between social construction of technology,
technological determinism, and social shaping of technology.
Apply this to a paper where you reflect on your experience of the
no-tech challenge and current debates on the impact that social
media are having on human communication and relationshipsvideos by Baym and Turkle.
Week 4 | Introducing Embodiment and Experience: A
Phenomenological Perspectives on Bodiesthe Bodand Machinesy

Identify specific examples that illustrate

h.-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 9|Oct 20-24
Shame and Embarrassment
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Oct 19
READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) The Civilized Body, 85-114. From
The Body in Society.
WATCH| Excerpts from Race: The Power of an Illusion
and Fit: Episodes in the History of the Body
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 10|Oct 27-31
Desire and Pleasure
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Oct 26
READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) The Body in Consumer Culture
115-149. From The Body in Society.
Leon Kass Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of
Happiness http://frontrow.bc.edu/program/kass/TURN IN TO
DROPBOX| Draft Ethnography Friday by 10PM
WATCH| Leon Kass Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit
of Happiness http://frontrow.bc.edu/program/kass/

28

TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Draft Ethnography Friday Oct 31 by

10PM
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 11|Nov 3-7
The Boundary Between Life and
DeathPower and Knowledge
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Nov 2
READ| Alexandra Howson (2013) Regulating the Body, 150-178.
From The Body in Society.
Aslihan Sanal (2011) The Dialysis Machine, 138-152. From The Inner
History of Devices.
WATCH| Excerpts from Race: The Power of an Illusion and Fit:
Episodes in the History of the Body

WATCH PRIOR TO CLASS: Michel Foucault:

Beyond Good and Evil
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQHm-mbsCwk
Week 8| The Modern Body and Technologies of
Power: Introducing Michel Foucault.

READING: Michel Foucault (1976) The Body of the

Condemned, 3-31. Discipline and Punish: The Birth
of the Prison. New York: Vintage.
WATCH BEFORE CLASS on D2L: The Truman Show

READING: William G. Staples (1997) The Scaffold,

the Penitentiary, and Beyond, 13-30. The Culture of
Surveillance: Discipline and Social Control in the
United States. New York, NY: St. Martins.
What are the new techniques that Staples is
referring to? Is Trumans body isolated from
everyday life so that he can be watched and
29

regulated more effectively or have his

activities and lifestyle been structured in such
a way that he is always being regulated and in
a sense disciplining himself? Think of how
can we relate this discussion to real world
examples?

Essay 1 Due Friday (Feb 1) 5pm- Upload to Dropbox

ESSAY ONE DUE BY 5PM ON FRIDAY OCTOBER 5THUPLOAD TO DROPBOX

Tuehu Feb. 5Jan. 31 LectureBe ready

to discuss:

----------------------------------------------------------------------UNIT THREE: EMBODIMENT AND EXPERIENCE:

PHENOMENOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON BODIES AND
MACHINES
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 9| Distinguishing between Biomechanical and
Phenomenological Perspectives on the Body

ESSAY DUE IN CLASS: Comparing Imaginaries of

Bodies and Machines

OPTIONAL READING: James Marcum (2004)

Biomechanical and Phenomenological Models of the
Body, the Meaning of Illness and Quality of Care.
Medicine, Health Care, and Philosophy 7:311-320.

30

READING: Arthur Frank (1991) At the Will

of the
Body: Reflections on Illness, 1-63. New York, NY:
Houghton Mifflin

10
WATCH PRIOR TO CLASS on D2L: The Diving Bell and the
Butterfly
TueNov5th
READING: Arthur Frank (1991) At the Will
of the
Body: Reflections on Illness. New York, NY:
Houghton Mifflin

WATCH IN CLASS: Daniel C. Dennett on Artificial

Intelligence
http://bigthink.com/videos/daniel-dennett-investigatesartificial-intelligence
DISCUSSION: How compatible is the quest for telepresence with a phenomenological understanding
of the body? Are these technologies attempting to
leave the real body behind and create a new tele
or virtual body or are they leading to new forms of
embodiment, lived experience, and
communication? Will they lead to a future of new
forms of experience, expression, and
connectedness to others or will they enchant us
with virtual realities and interfaces that will limit
our creative expression and disconnect us from
authentic experiences of ourselves and others? Fri
Nov 1
DISCUSSION: What do efforts at creating telepresence teach us about human embodiment?
Watch: Daniel C. Dennett on Artifical Intelligence
http://bigthink.com/videos/daniel-dennett-investigatesartificial-intelligence
31

DISCUSSION: What do the experience of illness and

efforts at creating tele-presence teach us about
human embodiment?

The Frank book raises issues about the boundaries of the body,
as well as the abject. It raises questions about what is on the
inside and what is on the outside of the body and how
technology can be used to disconnect us from ourselves and
how the experience of self is intimately bound up with an
experience of body, with selfhood itself embodied and rooted in
bodily experience.

UNIT THREE: BODIES AND MACHINES CONFERENCEANSGRESSION

-------------------------------------------------------------------------The Frank book raises issues about the boundaries of the body, as well as the
abject. It raises questions about what is on the inside and what is on the
outside of the body and how technology can be used to disconnect us from
ourselves and how the experience of self is intimately bound up with an
experience of body, with selfhood itself embodied and rooted in bodily
experience.
How is Frankensteins monster a technological body and what boundaries does
it transgress and with what consequences.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------Intro to
phenomenology and the idea of embodiment.
Excerpt from Husserl, Merleau-Ponty or Drew Leder, or Michael Levin,
or Edward Casey

32

Week 19| The Body and Cultural Categories

ideas and practices of purity and pollution
READING: Alexandra Howson (2004) The Civilized Body,67-92.
The Body in Society: An Introduction. Cambridge, UK: Polity
Press
DISCUSSION/ACTIVITY: Bring in examples of emotional responses
to technologies that mix up boundaries such as life/death,
animal/human, body/machine, nature/culture.

Mathew Immergut (2010) Manscaping: The Tangle of Nature,

Culture, and Male Body Hair,287-304. Lisa Jean Moore and Mary
Kosut (2010)The Body Reader: Essential Social and Cultural
Readings. New York, NY: New York University. gREADING: Brian
Bloomfield and Theo Vurdubakis (2008) Re-Engineering the
Human: New Reproductive Technologies and the Specter of
Frankenstein. World Academy of Science, Engineering and
Technology, 17:1195-1200.

GROUP LED
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 12|Nov 10-14
The Body of Frankensteins Monster
StudentEthnography Presentations

D2L Post due @ 5PM on Nov 9 Nov 18LECTURE: TBA

READ: Frankenstein, Vol. 1

GROUP LED
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Nov 20READ: Frankenstein, Vol. 2 & 3
GROUP LED TBA
Nov 22GROUP LED
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 13|Nov 17-21
StudentEthnography Presentations
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Nov 16
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Week 14|Dec 1-5
EthnographyStudent Presentations
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Nov 30
In the Steps of Frankensteins Monster
--------------------------------------------------------------------------Week
15| Dec 8-10)
Course Wrap up
D2L Post due @ 5PM on Dec 7
TURN IN TO DROPBOX| Final Ethnography Friday Dec 10 by
10PM
Mon Nov 25
33

READING: Brian Bloomfield and Theo Vurdubakis (2008) ReEngineering the Human: New Reproductive Technologies and the
Specter of Frankenstein. World Academy of Science, Engineering
and Technology, 17:1195-1200.
Hannah Landecker (2000) Immortality, In Vitro: A History of the
HeLa Cell Line, 53-74. Paul Brodwin, Ed. Biotechnology and
Culture: Bodies, Anxieties, Ethics. Bloomington, IN: Indiana
University Press.

GROUP DISCUSSION:TBANO CLASS THU NOV 28TH THANKSGIVING

Wed Nov 27Hannah Landecker (2000) Immortality, In Vitro: A
History of the HeLa Cell Line, 53-74. Paul Brodwin, Ed.
Biotechnology and Culture: Bodies, Anxieties, Ethics.
Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
GROUP DISCUSSION: TBAHabitus and Techniques of the Body
----------------------------------------------------------------------UNIT FIVE: FROM MODERN TO POSTHUMANMODERN IMAGINARIES OF
TECHNOLOGY, THE HUMAN BODY, AND BEYOND
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 14| Cybernetics and Posthumanism
Cybernetic Imaginaries
READING: Philip K. Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric
Sheep?
OPTIONAL READING Katherine Hayles(1999) Prologue and Ch1.
Toward Embodied Virtuality,xi-xiv; 1-24. How We Became
Posthuman: Virtual Bodies, in Cybernetics, Literature, and
Informatics. Berkeley, CA: University of California.
Reading Donna Haraway. From the industrial body to the postindustrial and what that means. Also the links between science fiction
and science fact. The power of imaginaries.
READING: Philip K. Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric
Sheep?
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 15| Imagining the Boundaries of the Human, Non-Human, and
the Post-Human: Have we Become Posthuman or Have we Never Been
Human?ism

Week 16| Group Presentations

Final Presentations during exam week.
Week 5 | Medical Technology and the Sick Body

34

18 Imagining the Body Electric in the Era of

Industrialization
Carolyn Thomas de la Pena (2003) The Body Electric, 188.
Carolyn Thomas de la Pena (2003) The Body Electric, 88200.

Racialized Visions of Industrial Bodies 71st

Watch before Tuesday, Race: The Power of an Illusion, Part
Two (D2L)
Ronald Takaki, From Iron Cages.

ready
Ronald Takaki, From Iron Cages.3Gendered Visions of Industrial Bodies
Blog 8 Due Monday (8th) by 5pm
Tue April 9. Be ready to discuss
Anthea Callen (2008) Man or Machine: Ideals of the Laboring
Male Body and the Aesthetics of Industrial Production in Early
Twentieth Century Europe. From Art, Sex, and Eugenics:
Corpus Delecti.
Watch before Thursday, Metropolis (D2L)
Thu April 11. Be ready to discuss
Ludmilla Jordanovich (1989) Science, Machines, and
Gender. From Sexual Visions.

4Eugenic Imaginaries of the Bod y

Blog 8 Due Monday (15th) by 5pm
Watch before Tuesday, Race: The Power of an
Illusion, Part Two
(D2L)
Tue April 16. Be ready to discuss
Wendy Kline (2001) Motherhood, Morality and the "Moron".
From Building a Better Race.
Thu April 18. Be ready to discuss
Christina Cogdell (2004) Products or Bodies? Streamline
Design and Eugenics as Applied Biology. From: Eugenic
Design: Streamlining America in the 1930s.
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 15|From Cybernetic to Post-Human Imaginaries and Beyond
Blog 9 Due Monday (22nd) by 5pm
Watch before Tuesday, Blade Runner
(D2L)
Tue April 23. Be ready to discuss
Philip K Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric
Sheep?
35

Thu April 25. Be ready to discuss

Philip K Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric
Sheep?
Tue April 9. Be ready to discuss
Thu April 11. Be ready to discuss
Recommended article on Eugenics and Philip K Dick
http://www.worldheadpress.com/ezine7/
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 16|Exam Day: Group Presentations Final Reflections on Bodies
and Machines
Group Presentations Tuesday December 17, 1-3pm

36

5Due Due Due Due Due Due Due

Blog 10 Due Monday (29th) by 5pm
Paper 3 Due Sunday May 5 uploaded to Dropbox
Monday, May 6/Group presentations 3:30-5:30pm
Tue April 30. Be ready to discuss.
TBA
Discuss Frank: At The Will of the Body.
Guest Student: Medical doctor/patient- Doug Spegman?, Jeffrey Rhein?
UNIT TWO: THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION AND THE MAKING OF THE
MODERN BODY
Questions you should be able to answer: Describe the major scientific
and technological inventions of the 17th century. Explain the 17 th
century debate regarding the animal machine. How did scientists
and artists of the period differ in their understanding of the
similarities between the functioning of animal, human, and machine
bodies? Explain the role played in these debates by the invention of
linear perspective vision. Compare and contrast the views of Rene
Descartes and Jules Offray de la Mettrie in the debate over what made
human beings different (or not) from both animals and machines.
Explain the idea of mind-body dualism and relate it to the 17the
century debate over the animal-machine. What are the defining
characteristics of a Cartesian perspective on the human body?
Discuss some of the implications of this perspective for understanding
ourselves as human beings and our ethical relationship to the natural
world.
Week 6 |Early Modern Science and the Birth of the Human Machine
Watch before class a documentary on the enlightenment, TBA
9/4

Be ready to discuss:
Bruce Mazlish (1993) The Animal-Machine,14-30. From The
Fourth Discontinuity.

Week 7| The Cartesian Body (Visit by Rachna?)

Drew Leder?
Excerpts from Descartes
Should we, can we have a section on Descartes? (week 7?)
9/6

Be ready to discuss:
37

Gaby Wood (2002) The Blood of an Android,3-59. From:

Edisons Eve.

UNIT THREE: TECHNOLOGICAL IMAGINARIES OF THE HUMAN BODY

Questions you should be able to answer: What were the most
important scientific and technological discoveries and inventions of
the 18th century? What were the defining features of the following
historical and cultural periods: the Enlightenment, Describe the
scientific world view. Describe the role of the unconscious, symptoms,
and dreams from a psychoanalytical perspective. What role does
Romanyshyn see linear perspective vision playing in how Western
culture imagines the human body and the relationship that humans
have with the natural world. Which perspective best characterizes
Romanyshyns thesis: technological determinism, social construction
of technology, social shaping of technology?
Week 7|Psychological Perspectives on Technology and the Body
9/11 Be ready to discuss:
Robert Romanyshyn (1989) Technology as Symptom and
Dream, 1-31.
9/13 Be ready to discuss:
Robert Romanyshyn (1989) Technology as Symptom and Dream, 32-64.
Class Visit to U of A Museum of Art for presentation on linear
perspective vision
In class activity on Linear Perspetive with Honors Interdisciplinary
Faculty Debra Gregerman
-----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 8 |
September 18 and 20 Technologies of Vision and the
Making of
the Modern
Self
Introduce the concept of the Uncanny
ETA Hoffman, The Sandman
Watch before class: City of Lost Children
9/18 Be ready to discuss:
Robert Romanyshyn (1989) Technology as Symptom and
Dream, 65-102.
9/20 Be ready to discuss:
Robert Romanyshyn (1989) Technology as Symptom and
Dream, 103-132.
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Week 9 |
Modern

September 25 and 27Frankenstein and the Making of

Bodies

9/25 Be ready to discuss:

Frankenstein Vol. 1-2
Guest Student: Dr. Laura Berry
9/27 Be ready to discuss:
Frankenstein Vol. 3
Watch before coming to class: BBC Documentary on
Frankenstein
-----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 10 | October 2 and 4 Imagining the Body Electric in the Era of
Industrialization
Be ready to discuss:
Carolyn Thomas de la Pena (2003) The body Electric, 1-88.
10/4 Be ready to discuss:
Carolyn Thomas de la Pena (2003) The body Electric, 88200.
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 11 | The Politics and Aesthetics of Industrial Bodies
Anthea Callen (2008) Man or Machine: Ideals of the Laboring Male Body and
the Aesthetics of Industrial Production in Early Twentieth Century Europe,
139-161. Fae Brauer andAnthea Calen (2008) Art, Sex, and Eugenics:
Corpus Delecti.
Watch Prior to class and be ready to discuss:
Metropolis
Week 12| Eugenic Imaginaries of the Perfectible Body
Race: The Power of an Illusion, Part Two: The Stories We Tell
Be Ready to Discuss:
Christina Cogdell (2004) Products or Bodies? Streamline
Design and Eugenics as Applied Biology and Smooth
Flow: Biological Efficiency and Streamline Design, 218248. From: Eugenic Design: Streamlining America in the
1930s.
Guest Student: Sarah Moore, Art History?
Week 13|
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Week 14|
Week 15| Presentations
Week 16| Presentations
Exams
---------------------------------------------------------------------Week 9|
October 16 and 18 Racial Science and the Normal
Body
10/16 Watch Prior to class and be ready to discuss:
10/18 Be Ready to Discuss:
Keith Wailoo (1997) Preface and Intro, Drawing Blood: Technology and
Disease Identity in Twentieth-Century America; (2007) Inventing the
Heterozygote. From: Lock and Farquhar (2007) Beyond the Body Proper.
Guest Student: Kwan Lee, MD
-----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 10|

October 23 and 25 Medical Technology and the Making of

American Bodies

10/23 Be ready to discuss:

David Serlin (2004) Replaceable You: Engineering the Body in Postwar America, 22-158

10/25 Be ready to discuss:

David Serlin (2004) Replaceable You: Engineering the Body in Postwar America, 158190.
Group Three Presentation on Replaceable You

-----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 11|
Machines

October 30 and November 1- Sex, Gender and Love

10/3 Watch prior to class and be ready to discuss:

The Mechanical Bride
11/1 Be ready to discuss: TBA
Guest Lecture by Alison de Fren? (Film Studies, Occidental College)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 12 | November 6 and 8-

Machine's that Care

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11/6 Be ready to discuss:

Turkle, Part One The Robotic Moment
11/8 Watch and be ready to discuss:
Robot and Frank
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 13 | November 13 and 15 Cybernetic Selves
11/13 Be ready to discuss:
Turkle, Part Two: Networked
11/15 Be ready to discuss:
Turkle, Part Two: Networked
Group Four Presents on Turkle, ALone Together
---------------------------------------------------------------------Week 14| November 20 Cyborgs
11/20 Be ready to discuss:
Donna Haraway (1993) A Cyborg Manifesto.
----------------------------------------------------------------------Week 15 | November 27 and 29 The Post-Human Imagination
11/27 Be ready to discuss:
Philip K Dick (1968) Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Group Five Presents on Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric SHeep?
11/29 Watch and be ready to discuss:

Blade Runner
ESSAY #2 DUE FRIDAY NOVEMBER 30TH BY 5PM- UPLOAD TO DROPBOX
--------------------------------------------------------------------Week 16|

December 4 and 6 The Politics and Ethics of Post Humanism

12/4 Be ready to discuss:

McIntosh (2008) Human, Transhuman, Posthuman, 4-16.
12/6 Watch and be ready to discuss:
TBA
Guest Student Professor Susan Stryker?
---------------------------------------------------------------------Week 17| Dec 11 and 13
Self evaluation meetings

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