GV3DDT-Deathscapes and Dark Tourism

Module Provider: Geography and Environmental Science
Number of credits: 20 [10 ECTS credits]
Level:6
Terms in which taught: Spring term module
Pre-requisites:
Non-modular pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Current from: 2022/3

Module Convenor: Prof Avril Maddrell
Email: avril.maddrell@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:

This innovative module explores the geographies of deathscapes and Dark Tourism, bringing together geographical perspectives on landscapes, the environment, bodies, digital sites and deep mapping. Topics range from sites of genocide, such as Auschwitz, to everyday spaces of pet cemeteries and roadside memorials. It includes environmental issues through questions related to animal death, species extinction and climate change; and social, cultural and political issues through studying consumption, the needs of multicultural societies, and the role of Planning. Sites and experiences of ‘Dark Tourism’ are analysed, including the ethical issues associated with attracting visitors to different types of sites associated with death, violence or disaster. This links to the question of whether death is still a social taboo, particularly in the light of Day of the Dead festivals and Death Cafés? Concepts such as diversity, social inclusion, the Anthropocene, landscape, heritage, gender, class, identity, emotional and therapeutic geographies are explored. Examples are drawn from the UK and international contexts (e.g. USA, Europe, Senegal, Cambodia, Australia). The module links to other modules on Culture, Identity and Place, Population, and Consumption; it also builds on the topics of pilgrimage and memorialisation addressed in the Somerset, Berlin and Naples field trips. The module includes Day of the Dead workshop and a local field trip; it is assessed by an essay and a report.

Key topics include:

• Day of the Dead – is death a taboo topic?


• Deathscapes – reading the landscape


• Deep mapping - mapping places of grief and consolation


• Burial or Cremation – which and why? Local, religious, cultural and environmental factors


• Future proofing cemeteries and crematoria - planning needs for a multicultural society


• Can we mourn species extinction and climate change?


• Pilgrimage sites - first Dark Tourism destinations?


• Dark Tourism: voyeurism or respectful?

Aims:

This module aims to use a range of geographical concepts, theories and methods to:

1. explore and understand the geographies associated with death, loss and remembrance


2. be able to identify and analyse remembrance practices in varied contexts and to evaluate their environmental and social impact


3. identify planning needs for cemeteries and crematoria within the context of a multicultural society


4.  reflect on and map the emotional geographies of loss and consolation, including species extinction and climate change


5. evaluate whether death is a social taboo


6. identify and evaluate different types of Dark Tourism and associated ethical issues


7. to understand the visitor experience and management needs for different Dark Tourism sites

Assessable learning outcomes:

Knowledge of concepts such as deathscapes, extinction, taboo, genocide, Dark Tourism, grievability, social inlcusion and deep mapping.

An ability to apply these concepts to UK and international case studies.

An understanding of changing social attitudes to death, environmental loss, and the spaces and practices of remembrance.

An understanding of the varied roles of place, community and individual identity in burial, cremation and memorial practices; how these impact on funerary consumption, and  how these can be contested and negotiated in inclusive multicultural societies, including through planning.

An understanding of the types of Dark Tourism, the ethical issues associated with particular Dark Tourism sites and the range of strategies that are deployed to address these issues.

Additional outcomes:

Awareness of employment opportunities in the cemetery and Dark Tourism sectors.

Outline content:

• Is death a taboo subject?


• Day of the Dead workshop


• Deathscapes – reading the landscape


• Deep mapping - mapping grief and consolation


• Burial or Cremation – which, and why? Local, religious, cultural and environmental factors


• Future proofing cemeteries and crematoria - planning needs for a multicultural society


• Can we mourn species extinction and climate change? If so, how could it help?


• Is animal death grievable?


• Were pilgrimage sites the first Dark Tourism destinations?


• Dark Tourism: voyeurism or respectful?


• War Graves, genocide and political Dark Tourism


• Fieldtrip

Global context:

UK and international case studies, including USA, Cambodia, Poland, Australia, Ghana

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:

The module uses a combination of structured ‘lectorials’ (lectures with activities), seminars, a Day of the Dead workshop, weekly readings, popular sources (film and TV, fiction, You Tube etc.), and a local field trip, in order to provide a varied diet of opportunities for active and ‘real world’ learning.

 

Contact hours:

	Autumn	Spring	Summer
Lectures		16
Seminars		10
Fieldwork		4
Guided independent study:
Wider reading (independent)		30
Wider reading (directed)		20
Advance preparation for classes		10
Preparation for presentations		2
Preparation for seminars		10
Completion of formative assessment tasks		4
Group study tasks		4
Essay preparation		70
Reflection		20
Total hours by term	0	200	0
Total hours for module	200

Summative Assessment Methods:

Method	Percentage
Written assignment including essay	50
Project output other than dissertation	50

Summative assessment- Examinations:

Summative assessment- Coursework and in-class tests:

1. Report 3000 words (week [11] 7 autumn term)


2. Essay 3000 words  (week [15] 11 autumn term)

Formative assessment methods:

Coursework planning tasks and feedback; feedback on in class activities underpinning assessed work.

Penalties for late submission:

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of five working days;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than five working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/cqsd-old-site-documents/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Assessment requirements for a pass:

40%

Reassessment arrangements:

Resit coursework

Additional Costs (specified where applicable):

Last updated: 22 September 2022