History 239KA - Topics in Asian History: 'History Beyond Empires and Nations: Kashmir 1846-2020'

This course examines how histories of borderlands and margins, emanating from empires and nation states, turn those areas into simultaneous objects of desire and control. Through the example of Kashmir -- long conceptualized as a famed paradisaical land, which in the postcolonial era turned into a politically disputed and a heavily militarized zone -- we will critically parse through orientalist, nationalist, academic, and popular histories about such regions. Building upon comparisons with similarly contested sites such as Palestine, the course will center a people's understanding of the history of a place through an exploration of counterhistorical narratives, literary works, protest music and poetry.

Course limited to sophomores, juniors and seniors