Humanities Data

Catalog description

An introduction to the concepts and methods humanities scholars employ when working with data. We will discuss the concept, history, and politics of data; the logics, practices, and problems associated with quantification; data collection, analysis, and presentation; what it means to understand datasets as scholarship; and more. We will explore various computational projects and digital archives, asking what decisions scholars have made in constructing and interpreting their data and interrogating the consequences of those decisions. The class will include a hands-on component: participants will learn techniques for exploring existing humanities datasets and for constructing their own. The course is open to students across the humanities, although it will focus on literary and cultural studies. No experience with digital tools or methods is required or expected.