Paul Merchant (Bristol): 'An Archipelagic Nation? Ecology and Identity on Chile’s Pacific Coast'
| Dates: | 27 October 2021 |
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| Times: | 17:00 - 18:30 |
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| What is it: | Seminar |
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| Organiser: | School of Arts, Languages and Cultures |
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| Speaker: | Paul Merchant |
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Part of the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies research seminar series 2020/21.
This event will be via Zoom. Here is the link: https://zoom.us/j/94462492930
Abstract: Discussions of identity, coloniality and ecology in the Pacific world have rarely considered that ocean’s eastern edge. Yet Chile’s complex relations with the cultures of its southern archipelago and its remote island territory of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) make it unquestionably a Pacific nation. Drawing on research carried out during my current AHRC Fellowship, this paper argues that when considering the intersection of environmental and social challenges in contemporary Chile, there is much to be gained by adopting an approach grounded in ‘archipelagic thinking’ (Martínez-San Miguel and Stephens 2020), which has to date been more familiar in Caribbean and Oceanic contexts. Through an analysis of recent documentary and essay films, as well as sound and installation art, I suggest that the project of decolonising our approach to the environmental humanities in Latin America is best served by an openness to multiple and incommensurable ‘ecological epistemes’ (Escobar 2020).
Speaker
Paul Merchant
Role: Senior Lecturer in Latin American Film and Visual Culture
Organisation: The University of Bristol
Travel and Contact Information
