Authorised by Academic Registrar, April 1996
Synopsis The subject deals with texts that relate to the following argument: an important force in the making of contemporary civilisation has been the encounter, and its aftermath, between peoples leading distinctively different modes of life. One such significant encounter for example is that between native peoples of Europe and the native peoples of the Americas. The nature and dynamics of these encounters, often destructive to the point of ethnocide, also produce movements of criticism and opposition. The malcontents create forms of consciousness and organisation which, while modern in themselves, strive to counter the general destruction and alienation created by modernity itself. What emerges is a critique of contemporary civilisation and yet new identities, social movements with their own programs and literatures.
Assessment Two essays (3000 words): 50% each