Full Proposals for IPY 2007-2008 Activities

Proposed IPY Activity Details

1.0 PROPOSER INFORMATION

(Activity ID No: 30)

1.1 Title of Activity
Representations of Sami in Nineteenth Century Polar Literature: The Arctic 'Other'

1.2 Short Form Title of Proposed Activity
Representations of Sami in the Arctic and Subarctic

1.3 Activity Leader Details
Karin Granqvist
Ph.D. Researcher
Sweden

1.4 Lead International Organisation(s) (if applicable)
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL

1.5 Other Countries involved in the activity
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL
NULL

1.6 Expression of Intent ID #'s brought together in this proposed activity
955

1.7 Location of Field Activities
Arctic

1.8 Which IPY themes are addressed
2. Change in the polar regions
4. Exploring new frontiers

1.9 What is the main IPY target addressed by this activity
1. Natural or social science

top of page

2.0 SUMMARY OF THE ACTIVITY

The Sami in travel writings form an image of a history being told about them. Being represented meant for the Sami that their lives and culture appeared stereotyped, because they inhabited areas that had been labelled as void from a scientific point of view ever since the time of Carl von Linné. The north was a place devoid of substance, which could therefore be filled with the explorers’ and researchers’ opinions and fantasies. During the nineteenth century, an interest in the exotic within the borders of the home nation was aroused, and in the process the Sami became objectified in travel writing. Polar travel writing formed part of the colonial project to conquer the northern parts of the Nordic countries, including Arctic areas. With reference to the Sami, this process provides us with simplified images. The representations of the Sami appear within a colonial discourse, in the form of depictions and explanations concerning the Arctic and the Sub-Arctic, and the people who inhabited these areas. It was common practice during the nineteenth century to discover “new” people and “new” cultures, and describe them, as a process of collecting information about them, and this was part of the colonial process as it was defined at that time. The depictions of the Sami in Sven Lovén’s travel journals from 1836-37, for instance, were mythical and ethnographical; they were also interwoven with perspectives on nature and the experience of being in an Arctic landscape that could be related to the Arctic sublime. There were also descriptions about the nature of the Sami, which could be connected to a three-dimensional layer of ethnocentrism, racism and exoticism. References to scientific works and literature also occurred in the text, but to a lesser extent. In other words, the several representations that existed at one and the same time may be divided into three themes that run parallel to one another in the travel writings of Lovén. References to scientific work were not so common in Lovén’s journals, and when they occurred they were usually dictionary references. Literature such as the epos Kalevala used, as references may be perceived as being of a mythical character. Other representations of a mythical character that related to the Sami were created in the context of socio-cultural descriptions, and may thus be perceived as ethnographic. The mythical and ethnographical representations were both embedded in romanticisation. Ethnographically coloured representations were common, for example, in art during the nineteenth century. These descriptions were close to the romantic view of the Sami. There were also descriptions of real dramas in the course voyages, and these may be detected as part of the Arctic sublime. In these descriptions, the Sami became a part of the Arctic sublime, since the Sami were perceived as able to interpret the behaviour of animals, which were part of the sublime. Depictions of the nature of the Sami formed another set of representations. The nature of the Sami is also connected to Sami society, described as being in opposition to Swedish/Western society, according to a racist perception of the Sami as being of a different race and nationality. Knowledge about the Sami decreased at the end of the nineteenth century, and this changed the image of the Sami to a more romantic perception, rather than a racist one. This romantic view was not part of the canon at the beginning of the nineteenth century, but it was nevertheless possible for this opinion to flourish. In travel writings from the nineteenth century it is clear that the travel writing contained personal opinions, which contaminated the text. People and cultures were designated as ‘the Other’ to define for the travellers what the former were not, i.e. Europeans. The stereotypical representations of the Sami may have been used to define what the explorers were not, in order not to risk becoming ‘the Other’ in the new and unknown environment that was the Arctic. Explorers were able to shift between representing Culture and being part of Nature at the same time. They never risked being estranged from themselves, since the otherness between Culture and Nature was inhabited by ‘the Other’. The in-between space was a place for explorers to get to know the wild man inside themselves, but since this space was already inhabited by ‘the Other’ this exploration could not get out of hand and result in the explorer turning into an alien being, or monster.

2.1 What is the evidence of inter-disciplinarity in this activity?
This activity involves disciplins like literature, sociology, history, cultural and postcolonial studies, and philosophy. This activity is therefore both inter-disciplinary and cross-disciplinary.

2.2 What will be the significant advances/developments from this activity? What will be the major deliverables? What are the outputs for your peers?
This activity will produce knowledge on how other cultures, peoples and environments have been presented; and that that knowlegde has often been produced within a frame of (an)other purpose, and is therefore sometimes not a mimetic image of the cultures, peoples and environments that have been depicted.

2.3 Outline the geographical location(s) for the proposed field work (approximate coordinates will be helpful if possible)

2.4 Define the approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities?

2.5 What major logistic support/facilities will be required for this project?

2.6 How will the required logistics be supplied? Have operators been approached?

2.7 If working in the Arctic regions, has there been contact with local indigenous groups or relevant authorities regarding access?

top of page

3.0 STRUCTURE OF THE ACTIVITY

3.1 Origin of the activity
This activity is the start of a new programme that will outlive IPY

3.2 How will the activity be organised and managed? Describe the proposed management structure and means for coordinating across the cluster
The activity will be organised and managed by the researcher (me, as a 'owne'r of the project/activity). Ongoing results will be presented at conferences and seminars, and in articles, that are related to polarhistory, cultural studies on polarresearch for instance.The project will most certain benefit other projects within social sciences and humanities, and will also gain a lot from other projects/activites across the cluster. This is due to the activity's crossdisciplinary outreach, that touches disciplines like sociology, history, literature, cultural and postcolonial studies, philospohy.

3.3 Will the activity leave a legacy of infrastructure and if so in what form?
Yes. 1. Investigation of sources (diaries and travel journals) from early journeys to the arctic area(s). 2. New knowlegde about the early attempts to reach the Arctc. 3. Knowlegde on how researchers have observed and investigated the arctic area, and what were interesting to "map" (animals, plants, ice) 4. A theoretical understanding on how cultures, peoples, socitites and nations have been understood and represented.

3.4 Will the activity involve nations other than traditional polar nations? How will this be addressed?
Not on this stage, but other nations that deals with indigenous issues might be intrested, such as Indigenous (Aboriginal) Studies in Australia and Indigenous (Inuit) Studies in Canada.

3.5 Will this activity be linked with other IPY core activities? If yes please specify
Yes. It will deepen the understanding of polar travels and their purpose from a historical point of view. It will also give a historical background on polar journeys and how the Arctic was detected in the past. It will most certain capture the interest of schoolchildren because the activity easily can be transformed in to a more popular form; the public since the project can easily be presented an understod for non-scholars; the decision-makers because the project can give knowlegde on how other cultures, societies, peoples and nations have been understood and represented on a theoretical level, which is of great importance in the age of the globalisation.

3.6 How will the activity manage its data? Is there a viable plan and which data management organisations/structures will be involved?
The data will first of all be presented in a book; a monography. Articles will be written to in connection to the activity.The role of the activity is to present research and define that the Arctic has been represented as "another" place within research due to the ideas and scientific discourses that flourished in the nineteenth century.There is a time table that stretches from the 1st of January 2005 to the 1st of January 2008, where source materials will be collected (in 2005-2007) and additional literature will be read (in 2006-2008) and a monography will be written (in 2007-2008).

3.7 Data Policy Agreement
Will this activity sign up to the IPY draft Data Policy (see website)
Yes

3.8 How will the activity contribute to developing the next generation of polar scientists, logisticians, etc.?
It will give knowledge on a theoretical level how and why polar scientists and researchers have understood and presented the Arctic region, its people and landscape as they have. The Arctic is a place in itself that can be transformed when investigated and articulated; and it is a crucial thing to be aware of one own's/early polar researchers' part in the transformation.

3.9 How will this activity address education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
This activity will produce knowledge on how other cultures, peoples and environments have been presented; and that knowlegde often has been produced within a frame of (an)other purpose, and is therefore sometimes not a mimetic image of the cultures, peoples and environments that have been depicted.
This is an important issue nowadays when people are moving to much greater extent than before; moving to get job, for political and human reasons for example. Nations and people are therefore encountered with, and encounter, other cultures, peoples, habits, traditions and the issues that might develop in encounters like that. Politicans, people involved in work with immigrants, different cultures and religions, and those just interested can benefit from this activity on how cultures, peoples, socitites and environtments have been, can be, depicted, because it not only answer how but also reveals why depictions of others look the way they are.
This knowlegde can easily be transformed into popular presentations in newspapers, magazines, and on radio, and into classrooms-situation to communicate the results to schoolchildren, and a (public) audience.

3.10 What are the proposed sources of funding for this activity?
Scholarships (already recieved one); funding from governmental sources (applied for, but not given any respons on yet), a postdoctoral scholarship for three years (recieved).

3.11 Additional Comments

top of page

4.0 CONSORTIUM INFORMATION

4.1 Contact Details

Lead Contact
Dr Karin Granqvist
Department for Historical Studies
Umeå university, Umeå
901 87
Sweden

Tel:          +47 90 786 98 06
Mobile:   + 47 730 364 276
Fax:         + 47 90 786 76 67
Email:       karin.granqvist@online.no

Second Contact
Dr Karin Granqvist
Department for Historical Studies
Umeå university, Umeå
901 87
Sweden

Tel:          +47 90 786 98 06
Mobile:   + 47 730 364 276
Fax:         + 47 90 786 76 67
Email:      karin.granqvist@online.no

4.2 Other significant consortium members and their affiliation