BEXP 12A14 - All the Fish in the Sea: Marine Ecosystems and the Making of the Modern World

Despite the fact that water covers over 70% of our planet’s surface and that an estimated 50-80% of all life on Earth is found underwater, marine ecosystems rarely play prominent roles in our understandings of global history. When oceans and seas do appear, they are treated as little more than the backdrop of other human dramas – arenas for naval battles, routes for trade, sources of wealth. This course aims to rectify this omission and to demonstrate the profound influence of marine ecosystems on the development political, economic, and cultural systems worldwide. Each week focuses on a different species (or group of species) that has been historically important to human societies and will use these creatures and the ecosystems they inhabit as a starting point to explore human interaction with and exploitation of life under the sea. To achieve this, this course combines approaches from a range of disciplines, including comparative political, economic, and environmental history, anthropology, sociology, archeology, and the marine sciences. At the end of this course, students will have a greater knowledge of the history of global fisheries, including issues of contested use, fisheries governance, and the reciprocal relationship between human societies and the non-human systems they have long relied upon.

At the end of the course, the student is expected to : 1°) Understand the broad outline of the existing historiography of fisheries through readings and class lectures 2°) Be comfortable with reading and applying multidisciplinary perspectives on marine history in both class discussions and the final class essay

This course will combine traditional lectures and active student participation. Approximately half the class time will be devoted to lectures while the remaining time will be given to moderated discussions on the assigned readings and primary source materials to be handed out in class. Students are encouraged to engage with the course materials and the ideas they present. Attendance is mandatory; more than 2 absences will result in a failure of this class.

According to these principles, the final grade (on a 20-point scale) will the combination of the following assessments:

1)Pop Quizzes assigned readings (30%) – Each student will sit for three short quizzes focused on the given week’s readings. Questions will be both fact-based (dates, names) and analytical (responding to the reading). The quizzes will be unannounced and will take place randomly throughout the semsester. In total, these response papers will be worth 6/20 points towards the final grade (2 points for each response paper). All students are required to read and be prepared to discuss the weekly readings in class, even if they believe there will be no quiz that day.

2)Mid-term Exam (30%) – This exam will be administered at the beginning of class on week 6. The exam will consist of open response questions based on the content of the weekly lectures and assigned readings. This exam will last approximately 30 minutes and will be worth 6/20 points towards the final grade.

3)Final Primary Source Analysis (40%) – Students will be expected to select a primary source related to maritime history and produce a roughly 2000 word analysis of its context. If they are interested, students may submit their choice of primary source for week 8. No primary sources will be accepted after this date.

The final paper must be submitted by week 12. It should be handed in as both a print file AND sent via email as a .doc/.docx file to emelyn.rude@sciencespo.fr. The paper is worth 8/20 points towards the final grade. Late papers will lead to a non-negotiable penalty of -1 point for each late day.

Students are strongly discouraged from using electronic devices in the classroom, including both computers and phones. If you require a computer for notetaking, please let me know. Otherwise, please refrain from bringing electronics to class.