EAS422H1

Border as Method: Rethinking Frontiers in Asia

This course rethinks the meaning of borders through literature, film, satellite imagery, museum, and other multimedia materials. Specifically, the course explores media representations of the histories and technologies of borders and maritime frontiers that shape our geospatial understanding of modern East and Southeast Asia. From mountains and rivers to thermal imaging, drone surveillance, and smart walls, borders are both physical and virtual, external and internalized. We will connect the DMZ in Korea, Jeju island, military bases in Okinawa, Taiwan’s offshore islands, Subic Bay in the Philippines, and the artificial islands in the South China Sea.