CoursesThe Chinese Body and Spacial Consumption in Chinatown
ASAM 3130 / ENGL 2275 / FNAR 3061 / FNAR 5155

The Chinese Body and Spacial Consumption in Chinatown

This course will tackle the topic of embodiment in Chinatown from the design-oriented perspectives of city planning, public art, cultural and cinema studies. The focus will be on how racialized bodies have been imagined and represented in colonial and post-colonial discourses since the 19th century during the emergence of mass global migration, often motivated by the search for work. The narrative of the Chinese in America will serve as case study during the transition from the commerce of enslaved bodies to the commerce of contracted bodies.

Instructor(s)
  • Kenneth Lum
Semester

Spring 2026

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M 1:45pm-4:44pm

This course will tackle the topic of embodiment in Chinatown from the design-oriented perspectives of city planning, public art, cultural and cinema studies. The focus will be on how racialized bodies have been imagined and represented in colonial and post-colonial discourses since the 19th century during the emergence of mass global migration, often motivated by the search for work. The narrative of the Chinese in America will serve as case study during the transition from the commerce of enslaved bodies to the commerce of contracted bodies.

Central to this narrative is the concept of Chinatown which were more than ethnic enclaves but products of racism, created as a political and social support system for newly arrived Chinese. Of importance is the enduring discourse of comparative racisms that continues to operate strongly in the United States to this day. No singular approach will be followed for this course. The methodology will be constellation and fluid. Students are encouraged to bring their own experiences and perspectives on identity formation into seminar discussions.

This is primarily an Art and Cultural Studies course that also intersects City Planning and Cinema Studies.

Hear more about the course from Professor Lum in this interview for The PARK Podcast:

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