MITx: Visualizing Imperialism & the Philippines, 1898-1913

This course invites learners into the process of exploring history through content that looks back at a complex millennial time. Learners will acquire background and skills that will help with:

• the study of history and how it uses visual sources
• how political and cultural debates that occurred then shed light on similar issues today
• how to work with visual images
• how to engage challenging, at times disturbing, historical sources
• the study of databases and visual communication.

Module I—Introduction

• This module introduces the MIT Visualizing Cultures project and approach to history through the visual record, the source for the content and methodology.
• Overview of course content, methods of visual analysis, and background on Philippine and US history.
• Instructional team introduce their approaches to visual history, and present critical questions of race, power, and intercultural exchange that will frame discussion throughout the course.
• The evolution of digital education.

Module II—Civilization & Barbarism: Cartooning and Global Imperialism

• Based on the Visualizing Cultures unit, “Civilization and Barbarism: Cartoon Commentary & the ‘White Man’s Burden’ (1898-1902)”.
• This unit explores pro- and anti-imperialist imagery in the United States and international cartooning on the subject of “civilization” and colonialism at the turn of the century.
• How did Americans learn about U.S. colonialism in the Philippines?
• How did Filipinos and US-based critics of empire challenge and question American policies?
• How can visual evidence from the past serve as the basis for new digital forms of history?

Module III—Photography and Power I: the Philippine-American War

• Based on the Visualizing Cultures unit: “Photography & Power in the Colonial Philippines l: Conquest by the Camera (1898–1902)”.
• This module explores the role of photography in the Philippine American War (1898-1902).
• How did soldiers represent war experiences for themselves and for audiences in the United States?
• How did Filipinos respond to US colonization, and what role did visual images play in their responses?

Module IV—Photography & Power II: How Photography Colonized the Philippines

• Based on the Visualizing Cultures unit: “Photography & Power in the Colonial Philippines ll: Dean Worcester’s Photographic Record of the Philippines (1898–1913)”.
• This module uses the photographic archive of US colonial official Dean Worcester to consider relationship of photography to anthropology and colonial governance.
• How did photography serve as a basis for cultural engagement—both in positive and negative ways?
• What are the “ethics of looking”? What responsibilities do we have today when confronting potentially difficult images?

Module V—Conclusion: Images of Power/the Power of Images
A roundtable discussion on the relationship between visual images and US expansion, as well as the contemporary implications of teaching and disseminating images in a digital environment.