136-209 Intimacy and Technology

Usually 75 points of first year study across any discipline area.

Intimate Technologies are those that we use to understand ourselves, and that we use to establish and maintain our relations with others. The subject approaches technologies of intimacy through a wide variety of examples and case studies - technologies of modesty and privacy (underwear and bedrooms), technologies of surveillance (CAT scans and bar-codes), communications technologies (love letters and SMS), reproductive technologies (IVF and sheep-gut), technologies that mediate personal identity (the data-body and flesh-fashion), and that mediate social and community relations (swarms and networks). The unifying themes that run through these examples approach technologies of intimacy in terms of their propensity to abstract, attenuate, individuate and discipline our intimate relations, and students are invited to critically assess this argument. In so doing, students will gain a fresh and critical understanding of the ways in which technologies and our lives are intertwined.

• form defensible judgements based on a critical evaluation of conflicting arguments;

• develop skills in written and oral communication;

• make appropriate use of primary and secondary sources in mounting an argument;

• conduct independent research.

A 2500 word essay 50% (due at the end of semester), a 1000 word essay 30% (due in week 4) and a 500 word seminar presentation 20% (due during the semester). A hurdle requirement of attendance at eight tutorials is applicable.