Week 13

November 15th, 2015

Week 13 Tuesday

Drawing on David Staley, Theibault makes a distinction between two different uses of visualizations: as a means of quickly identifying patterns and as a way to make an argument or craft a narrative. As of now, we have focused largely visualizations used in the first sense. This week we will reflect critically on using visualizations to construct multimodal arguments and narratives.

Re: Reading and Exploration Assignments:

  • Read Theibault’s “Visualizations and Historical Arguments” and consider: What qualities should a visualization have to make effective arguments?
  • Theibault speaks of the issue of “rhetorical honesty.” Read Monmonier’s “Lying with Maps” and explore the websites listed in Set A. Explain what “rhetorical honesty” means in mapping. Reflect on how we should use visualizations in constructing an argument.
  • Explore one or more of the websites listed in Set B. All of these sites integrate mapping as an element of the arguments / narratives they develop. What argument / narrative does the site you explore develop? What role does mapping play in it? What problems, if any, have you found in the way mapping is used?
  • Student Presentations:

Getting Prepared for the Lab:

  • Download the Public (free) version of Tableau Desktop from here. Install it on your computer.

Week 13 Thursday

Re: Reading and Exploration Assignments:

  • Both Hitchcock and Bodenhamer express some concerns over the use of digital technologies in the humanities. What are their concerns? According to them, how should humanists address these concerns?
  • Explore the assigned websites. Have these sites successfully addressed the concerns raised by Hitchcock and Bodenhamer?

Getting Prepared for the Lab:

  • None.
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