Stuart Elden “How should we do the history of territory?”
Additional details
14 September 2011 – “How should we do the history of territory?” Department of Geography, University of California, Berkeley, USA
16 September 2011 – ”How should we do the history of territory?” School of Geography and Development, University of Arizona, Tucson, USA
Abstract
Foucault did not say very much about territory, and what he does is, at best, misleading. Nonetheless, Foucault is extremely helpful in beginning to think about the history of territory. The basis for these two claims is the purpose of this talk, as I offer some reflections on the work I have been doing over the past decade on the history of territory, culminating in the book The Birth of Territory. It moves through four stages. First, I discuss what Foucault does says about territory, and indicate why it is misleading. Second, I try to show what Foucault might offer to a more adequate history of territory. Third, briefly, I outline some of the other approaches I have utilised in this work, specifically looking at the German tradition of Begriffsgeschichte and the Cambridge school of contextual history. Finally, I outline some of the key elements of the account I offer in The Birth of Territory.
Foucault News 