Oceans Across Media (Honors): From seafarers to scientists, surfers to sirens, humankind’s close relationships to the sea span time and culture. This transdisciplinary course explores ways in which representations of this relationship, from “The Pearl Diver” of ancient Noh Theatre to Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic, have reflected (and sometimes transformed) various cultural contexts. Students will take a deep-dive into stories of human relationships to the ocean that have sparked replication, representation, and repetition across performance media. They will examine the cultural retellings inspired by these stories, and ways in which those tellings have in turn reflected and shaped their societal contexts. Students will also read key theoretical works, both ancient and contemporary, to gain an understanding of critical conceptual application to representations of human-ocean relationships. These theoretical concepts will serve as tools for students’ written analysis of the narratives and media we examine. Finally, students will apply their knowledge by creating their own representations of a human-ocean relationship through original creative digital media projects.
- Teacher: Antonia Krueger