Critical QuestionsBefore Reading. How is the concept of
nation constructed imaginatively, in the minds of its members? On what kind of evidence is it based (i.e. symbols, unofficial histories, personal anecdote, public events, etc.)?
Taking it Further. How do frontiers, the edges of nations and other communities, help define communities, both geographically and imaginatively? In particular, how has the concept of the American frontier colored Americans' perceptions of their country, of themselves, and of others? How does the U.S. self-conception as a nation shape its role and place in the world?
Electronic Fieldwork Readings:
Alan Thomas and Ben Crow, "Maps, Projections, and Ethnocentricity"
Patricia Nelson Limerick, "Adventures of the Frontier in the Twentieth Century"
Jane Tompkins, "At the Buffalo Bill Museum—June 1988"
Ronald Takaki, "A Different Mirror"
Web Connections for Chapter 4
Alan Thomas and Ben Crow, "Maps, Projections, and Ethnocentricity"
Thomas and Crow lay out the argument that maps are actually very subjective texts that tell stories and particular versions of history, even though some cartographers purport to be neutral, objective, and purely scientific in their methods and goals. What are the most powerful examples Thomas and Crow give to illustrate their argument? Many artists today incorporate maps and cartography into their works to raise provocative questions about politics, power, and history. Chilean Architect and artist Alfredo Jaar created a playful map of the Western hemisphere in his 1987 installation in Times Square, "A Logo for America." You can view the installation in Quick Time Animation on the Web. After viewing the piece, write a list of questions it raises about the mapping and naming of America.
Patricia Limerick, "Adventures of the Frontier in the Twentieth Century"
What is the relationship between images of the frontier and American values? Which values or American characteristics are implicated by the imagery and mythology of the frontier? How are they invoked, for example, for the uses that American presidents and politicians have made of them? Go to the
Web Research Activities section on this site and locate Electronic Frontiers. Beginning with the links provided there, explore some of the ways that the American Frontier is portrayed on the Web, both in relation to cyberspace and otherwise. Where do you see continuity with Limerick's argument?
Some of the sites listed here will also give helpful examples of Limerick's argument. What kind of historical narratives or myths do common household toys such as Lincoln Logs teach? What ideas about the frontier do you get when you take a virtual tour of Fort Ligonier in Pennsylvania? Or Mackinac Park in Michigan? What image and experience of the wild west is produced by Wild West City in New Jersey? Take a look at Wild West City's Anti-Violence Position. Do you accept their justification that firearms must be part of the show to educate their visitors accurately about the history of the U.S.? Where is the line between education and entertainment? Or history and propaganda? Why do you think the proprietors felt the need to issue an Anti-Violence Position?
Jane Tompkins, "At the Buffalo Bill Museum—June 1988"
The Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming, has an extensive site on the World Wide Web. There are also many other Web resources on Buffalo Bill. Beginning with the Web Research Activities section called
Electronic Frontiers, visit some of these resources and compare their presentation of materials on Buffalo Bill and the wild west to Tompkins' descriptions. Do you see or feel the same kind of contradictions? How is the West represented here?
Ronald Takaki "A Different Mirror"
In Takaki's phrase "a different mirror," what does he raise about objectivity or realistic representation? What arguments about history and history-telling might he be making? Photographs are often thought of as analogous to mirrors; we think we see an accurate image equal to the real object being represented. Visit sites below to explore photographic representations of the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII. What stories do these mirrors tell? How do their stories relate to Takaki's overall points? You might also visit sites that debate the protection of civil liberties in relation to the U.S. more recent crisis: September 11 and the War on Terrorism. Do Internet research on the 2002 Homeland Defense Bill.
There are also many Internet sites with photographs of various Los Angeles riots, not only the 1992 events in response to the Rodney King verdict, but also earlier events such as the Zoot Suit riots of the 1940's and the Watts riots of 1965. Explore the Internet for these sites and note whether or not you are visiting an individual's site of a photographic site sponsored by an organization or institution, such as the Los Angeles Police Department. Who uses the term
riots and who uses the term
uprisings? Although Takaki discusses the 1992 events in his essay, what is your reaction to the historical resurgence of riots in Los Angeles (or in the U.S. generally)? What kind of mirror does this photographic history produce?
Web Connections for Chapter 4
Many of the readings in this chapter would be interesting to read in connection with the Web Research Activity, "Virtual Tourism." Some of the Electronic Fieldwork questions suggest Websites with very interesting virtual tours and exhibits, but readings such as Myra Jehlen's "Papers of Empire," Jack Jackson's "Comanche Moon," and Agha Shahid Ali's "The Correspondent" would also work well. The readings at the beginning of the chapter relate most directly to the Web Research Activity "Electronic Frontiers: Cyberspace and the West." Reading Benedict Anderson's "The Concept of Nation'" and Frederick Jackson Turner's "The Significance of the Frontier in American History" would help to prepare for the broad Web activities, as well as many of the readings with explicit electronic fieldwork questions.
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