Author Archive
December 5, 2011
On November 13, 2011, a group of Afro-Caribbean Dutch protestors were arrested in the city of Dordrecht, Netherlands for protesting figures associated with the Dutch holiday tradition of Sinterklaas. (You can see a play-by-play of the protests and arrests here) These figures, deemed Santa’s helpers, are called Zwarte Pieten (or Black Petes), and they arrive on a steamboat alongside Sinterklaas (or St. Nicholas, the Dutch Santa) dressed in Shakespearean clothing and wearing wooly black afro, braided, or dreadlock wigs, bright red lipstick, golden earrings, and blackface. The Zwarte Pieten are the comedians of Sinterklaas who cheerfully play brass instruments, throw sweets, play tricks, and often end up as the butt of practical jokes throughout the holiday season.
Two Zwarte Pieten, courtesy of Wiki Commons
People from outside of the Netherlands are often shocked when confronted with the Zwarte Pieten. They associate these figures with the American tradition of blackface minstrel-shows which contributed to the proliferation of racist stereotypes, attitudes, and perceptions within a racially divided society. The Dutch are aware of this issue, and how it looks to outsiders. This year, Vancouver’s cancellation of the Sinterklaas celebration due to Zwarte Piet made it into the Dutch news. The organizer of the festival said “We will have to teach the Canadians and the entire North-American population what Zwarte Piet really is.” This attracted much commentary and criticism from the Netherlands. But foriegn outrage and rejection to the Zwarte Piet isn’t new to the Dutch: In 2008, Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, made the decision to remove Zwarte Piet from its holiday lineup in response to tourist and layover flyers’ protest. Yet despite criticism from the outside world, Zwarte Piet remains a popular figure whom the vast majority of Dutch people want to keep at the center of Sinterklaas festivities. (more…)
Tags:afro-caribbean, anthropology, anti-immigration, blackface, Canada, Dordrecht, Dutch tradition, Holland, Netherlands, Paramaribo, post-colonialism, protest, PVV, race, racism, right-wing politics, Sinterklaas, slave trade, slavery, Suriname, UNESCO, Vancouver, Zwarte Piet
Posted in Europe, General, Latin America and Caribbean, North America | 3 Comments »
April 12, 2011
We’ve all applied for them, and we all love them: Summer Research Grants. There are few things better than getting paid to visit a new part of the country or the world in search of the Holy Grail of documents for your latest project.
Yet sometimes, it can feel as if the cycle of applying for these grants and fellowships is endless. That’s where this comic comes in:
For those of you waiting to hear back from your summer grant application process, good luck!
If you have a funny/poignant/thought-provoking/etc. idea for a history cartoon, please send it to Angela.C.Sutton[at]Vanderbilt[dot]edu. If I use your idea I will give you credit here.
Tags:academic travel, archives, fellowships, funding, grants, Research funding, scholarships
Posted in Academic Prizes, General, HCE Comics | Leave a Comment »
February 28, 2011
March is Women’s History Month. Along with uncovering and rethinking images of the woman and her contribution throughout history comes the responsibility to challenge the accepted stereotypes and persistent misinformation already out there.
For example: to this date, no historian has been able to uncover any evidence of bra-burning feminists of the 1960s.
This month, I pledge to use my historian super-powers for good instead of evil. Although women did not create the documents I use to write my dissertation, I will read against the grain to find their voices between the lines. To write a history without women is to write only half the story.
If you’re curious about what it takes to incorporate women in your historical research, I recommend historian Tanya Roth’s blog. Roth is completing a dissertation on the integration of women into the US military (1945-1978) and has written many thought-provoking posts on how she makes sense of the documentation and oral interviews.
If you have a funny/poignant/thought-provoking/etc. idea for a history cartoon, please send it to Angela.C.Sutton[at]Vanderbilt[dot]edu. If I use your idea I will give you credit here.
Tags:bra-burning, feminism, protest, women's history, women's history month
Posted in General, HCE Comics, North America | 2 Comments »
February 14, 2011
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Of course, not all historians have this strange a way of showing love, but should you be on the receiving end of a getaway like this, let me assure you that it was meant to be both romantic and beautiful.
Besides, who turns down free photocopying at an archive?
If you have a funny/poignant/thought-provoking/etc. idea for a history cartoon, please send it to Angela.C.Sutton[at]Vanderbilt[dot]edu. If I use your idea I will give you credit here
Tags:archival research, historians in love, History Compass Exchanges, history of St. Valentine, love, love and the archive, relics, saints, St. Valentine, travel, Valentine's Day
Posted in Europe, HCE Comics | 2 Comments »
January 26, 2011
Today we launch an irregular series of comics for historians and other aficionados of the past. We hope you enjoy the History Compass Exchanges cartoons as much as I enjoyed drawing them.
If you have a funny/poignant/thought-provoking/etc. idea for a history cartoon, please send it to Angela.C.Sutton[at]Vanderbilt[dot]edu. If I use your idea, I will give you credit here.
Tags:American History, cartoon, Columbus, comics, discovery, Exploration, History Compass Exchanges, Native Americans, New World, Vikings, World History
Posted in HCE Comics, North America | 9 Comments »
September 22, 2010
Trudging down the windward side of Princes Town’s Fort Gross Friedrichsburg in the Western Region of Ghana, I am most concerned with staying out of the sun and choosing my sandaled steps carefully among the terrain teeming with gnarled tree roots and millipedes.
“Well, what have you found?” asks archaeologist Dr. Chris DeCorse, Professor and Chair of Anthropology at Syracuse University.
Dr. DeCorse at the ruins of the Dutch Veerschechans near Elmina.
Found? Dr. DeCorse’s student and I look at each other from underneath a shady cluster of palm trees. We were supposed to be looking on the way down?
“F’s for you all!” Dr. DeCorse laughs good-naturedly while pointing to the trail of sun-bleached shells that runs from the slave-trading Fort’s rubbish chutes down to the rocky beach below. “Look again.”
(more…)
Posted in General | 2 Comments »
July 8, 2010
South African fan in Johannesburg during World Cup 2010 (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
As with the Beijing Olympics, the South African World Cup has shone a spotlight onto its host country, highlighting its diverse history for the world to see. While South Africa has traditionally been known for apartheid, the World Cup has successfully illuminated all parts of the nation’s history. For many in the world, the World Cup served as the first introduction of not only South Africa’s apartheid past, but also of a nation’s ability to take steps necessary to repair itself from a damage many historians have called “irreparable.”
One needs only to plug “South Africa” and “World Cup” into any search engine in order to find out more about South Africa’s struggle with racism and fledgling democracy. Alongside the report of each goal scored by Tshabalala is a history lesson of how such a thing would not have been possible a short generation ago when South Africa’s team barred blacks from playing. One article even claims that it was soccer that defeated apartheid! (more…)
Tags:apartheid, FIFA, football, history and sports, history of sport, Jesse Owens, Olympics, soccer, South Africa, sports, teaching, world cup
Posted in Africa, Europe, General, Latin America and Caribbean, World | 3 Comments »
June 23, 2010
Check to see if photography is allowed in the archive. (Courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
While some of us are lucky to have digitized access to all the sources we need, and can search them online from the convenience of home or an air-conditioned office, many more will be heading out to the archives this summer. Some archives, like the British National Archives/Public Records Office, are pristine and equipped with amenities like climate control, a snack bar, secure lockers for storage, and an internet café. Others consist of little more than a stack of unorganized papers inside of a sweltering one-room shack without electricity or running water.
Fortunately, most fall somewhere in between, and you can have a successful research trip with some beforehand preparation. There are many comprehensive lists of archival tips available online, so below I will list a few that tend to be neglected or underemphasized.
- Every archive has different rules regarding photography, photocopying, and what you may or may not bring into the document room with you. Find out beforehand so you can best formulate a plan of attack. There’s nothing worse than buying a new camera only to find out that photography is not allowed, or depending on typed transcription only to discover that computers are banned from the room.
- Be aware of hidden costs. Many archives are free to use, but this varies and some charge a small fee to join, an additional fee to use a camera, and most charge above-average rates for photocopies. In addition, some may charge for parking, for storing your belongings not allowed in the documents room, or for the rental of tools like dust masks, gloves, pencils, magnifying glasses, etc.
- Find out beforehand the names of archivists working there and make it a point to introduce yourself. They know much more than you ever will about what is in their archive and a polite word can save you a lot of time or help you find something you overlooked. The importance of this varies by country, and in some places, can literally be the difference between being allowed to see what you came to see, and being denied access.
- If you come across images, find out before you leave how to obtain copyrights for them for inclusion in your next book. It may not be possible to do this once you leave, and you’ll regret it forever. (Just ask my committee…)
- If one of the document/s you need is/are currently in use, try to be excited instead of annoyed. If you can find the person working in the same collection of documents as you, make it a point to speak with them (just not in the documents room). Get to know their project so you can keep them in mind for future panels or joint projects. Ask them what they have seen regarding your topic while working in the collection. It’s amazing what someone else’s fresh perspective on a topic close to yours will do for the way you think about your documents. If they are affable, you may want to work out the most efficient system for sharing the documents so no one has to be inconvenienced.
Feel free to add anything else you can think of, or to share anecdotes of you archival experience below.
Tags:archives, document collections, photography
Posted in Britain and Ireland, Europe, Online Resources | 5 Comments »
June 9, 2010
Like many people, I love summer. Don’t get me wrong, I hate the messy white streaks of sunscreen, I’m not overly fond of bees or ants, and I could do without breaking a sweat every time I want to walk faster than a toddler. But I do love the academic’s summer.
Fun in the Sun (Wiki Commons)
Summer is the time you do less work for others, and more for yourself. Teaching and administration loads tend to be lighter, and the name of the game is self-edification. Summer seems to be the time when you get to reap the rewards of a year of hard work and do travel for conferences and for research. I personally can’t travel enough, and so am forever writing grants and on the lookout for ways to combine work and pleasure.
If you’re like me (or especially if you aren’t), you may appreciate a few tips for the academic traveler:
- Always initiate every process early. Sure, the embassy claims a five day turnaround on foreign visas, but don’t take their word for it. Give yourself plenty of time to get that passport back, and to book transport and accommodation.
- If traveling outside North America or Western Europe, book a travel consult at your clinic. They take less than half an hour and save time and hassle. Many countries give their airport officials leeway to refuse entry for visitors that did not pay close attention to health requirements. Some countries require proof of tuberculosis or HIV status, certain vaccinations, a clean bill of health, or special prescriptions for mundane things like birth control and anti-malarials.
- Know your country’s obscenity & indecency laws. The possession of things that seem ordinary to you, like religious material, political publications, or anything that could potentially be construed as erotica/pornography can carry stiff penalties in some places of the world. These laws (and their enforcement) vary wildly, but it is worth knowing if your research topic could potentially intersect with them. For example, many primary sources and secondary publications concerning WWII could potentially be interpreted as illegal race-hate propaganda in Germany.
- Always ensure you have quick access to emergency funds. I try to do everything on a shoestring budget (including couchsurfing with fellow academics to save on hotel expenses, for example), but am prepared to pay up if I have to.
- Photocopy your passport and the contents of your wallet. Have one set on you separate from the originals, and leave another with a trusted family member, friend, or colleague. They will save you so much hassle if anything happens to the originals.
- Inform your university and a handful of friends of the exact dates you will be gone and where you will stay and which archives you will be working in. Register with the closest embassy so they are better able to help you in case of emergency.
- Take as much proof as possible of who you are and what you do with you. Take your University ID, and if you are a student, consider investing in an International Student Identity Card (ISIC), and bringing along letters of introduction from your faculty advisor. Think about whether or not you would have use for business cards to hand out to colleagues, acquaintances, archivists and librarians.
This list is by no means meant to be exhaustive, but a starting point. Please add your own academic travel tips in the comments below.
Posted in General | 2 Comments »
May 26, 2010
Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Picking the right title for your dissertation, article, or book can seem daunting. Of course a title is important for many purposes, from helping to orient readers to reasons related to search engine optimization. Unfortunately, we are never taught how to name our work, and everybody has a different opinion on what makes a good title.
We all know, however, that a good title is essential. It’s not that a good title can sell a shoddy book, but a bad title will turn readers off or cause your book to be overlooked by readers less savvy in their use of search engines and card catalogs.
In a dissertation seminar at Vanderbilt University, early modern historian Dr. Katherine Crawford once said that good titles contain not only important keywords, but also the argument of the book in some way.
Of course it’s tough to condense a paragraph or more of argument into a snappy title, but it’s been done before and can be done again. Here are three great examples:
(more…)
Tags:age of revolutions, argument, atlantic creoles, atlantic slave trade, early modern, history, History Compass Exchanges, keywords, nationalism, search engine optimization, titles
Posted in Africa, Europe, General, Latin America and Caribbean | 4 Comments »
May 12, 2010
Aside from adding a splash of color to one’s dissertation or latest book, there are many ways using old maps can enhance one’s historical project. While many look to maps to understand how borders and boundaries evolve, to determine the environmental changes that affect our history, or to deconstruct world-processes like colonialism and empire, Dr. Helmut Walser Smith, Vanderbilt’s Martha Rivers Ingram Chair of History and Director of the Max Kade Center for European and German Studies, has found unusual and innovative ways to use early maps to shape and further his understanding of European intellectual history.
Etzlaub's RomeWay Map, 1500. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
As an avid collector of old maps, Smith came across an upside-down (or South-oriented) map of what was essentially Germany from 1500 that captured his imagination—the Romeway Map. It was titled so because Rome is at the very top, and it was intended for millennial pilgrims to make their final voyage there before the end of the world. As a modern historian of nationalism, Smith knew little about why such a map existed, and started looking into the origins of it.
In addition to his answers, Smith found that investigating the Romeway map raised a whole host of new questions about concepts that had been taken for granted. Benedict Anderson and Eric Hobsbawm argue that nations are products of modernization, and yet here was a map that suggested conceptions of the nation were more complex, with roots that reach into the early modern. Smith’s research of 16th century mapmaking led him to think about what nation meant in the early modern period; namely that it was a more cohesive cultural idea than he had assumed. Smith discovered that these maps (which often came with descriptions from the makers) are just one cultural product among many that encouraged him to question in which terms early modern people conceived of their nation(s).
It was this thinking that created the framework for Smith’s latest book The Continuities of German History: Nation, Religion, and Race Across the Long Nineteenth Century. In the first chapter (“The Mirror Turn Lamp: Senses of the Nation Before Nationalism”), Smith argues (more…)
Tags:Atlantic History, atlas, Cartography, early modern Europe, European History, German History, History Compass Exchanges, Mapmaking, maps, Maritime History, national identity, religious history, Western Civilization
Posted in Europe, General, World | 5 Comments »
April 28, 2010
By now, many of our colleagues have heard news about the results of their applications to large grants and fellowships for the 2010-2011 academic year, and many hopeful colleagues have found out if this is the year they start graduate school.
"Don't give up!" Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
And while we all celebrate the achievements of everyone that has heard happy news, let’s talk about those who haven’t.
The first thing I would like to tell them is: Don’t give up!
It’s easy to internalize the process, to connect your lack of funding with a perceived lack in your project, or even worse—a perceived lack within yourself. Step back and try to see the big picture. More often than not, the reasons for rejection have less to do with your CV and the flaws in your proposed project, and more to do with external variables you cannot control. The same goes for grad school applications; if you meet all the admissions criteria and wrote a smart and insightful application, your rejection may not be the result of anything you did or failed to do.
These past three years, everyone is blaming the economy , but it is worth saying again- there is much less to go around than there used to be, and there are more people fighting for what is left. Many grants and fellowship committees have had to trim down the amount of funding available , or temporarily stop giving grants altogether, and many universities have decreased the amount of graduate students to whom they can make a funded commitment. In addition to this, the bad economy means that many more highly-qualified candidates are coming out of the woodwork and applying for these grants, fellowships, and to grad school as a way of protecting themselves from a stagnant job market. This year, the competition for academic resources was more fierce, and sadly more people had to miss out on these opportunities.
Aside from that, (more…)
Tags:CV, economics, fellowships, grad school, grants, History Compass Exchanges, rejection, volunteering
Posted in Academic Prizes, General, Online Resources | 3 Comments »
