Historian to speak about borders
David Mould, Ph.D., professor emeritus of media arts and studies at Ohio University, has traveled widely.
Join historian and journalist David Mould on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m. on a journey to borders, both real and imagined. In his latest book on travel, history and culture, “Postcards from the Borderlands,” Mould explores the meaning of borders.
Are they simply political and geographical, marked by posts, walls and fences, or should people think of them more broadly? Some borders, set by surveys and treaties, take no account of geography, language and culture. There are borders within countries — physical, economic or social. And finally, there are the borders of one’s mind — the way people may think of unfamiliar places.
This virtual journey begins with maps and cartoons that poke fun at how people view other parts of the U.S. Mould moves on to the carve-up of Africa, the artificial (and often straight-line) borders drawn by colonial powers. In South Asia he explores “the world’s craziest border” between India and Bangladesh. He ends up in Central Asia, in that gerrymandered jumble of former Soviet republics whose names end in -stan.
Mould, Ph.D., professor emeritus of media arts and studies at Ohio University, has traveled widely in Asia and Southern Africa. Born in the UK, he worked as a newspaper and TV journalist before moving to the U.S. His travel essays and articles have been published in Newsweek, Christian Science Monitor, Times Higher Education and History News Network. His books include “Monsoon Postcards: Indian Ocean Journeys” and “Postcards from Stanland: Journeys in Central Asia.”
The program will be on Zoom. To register, go to www.doverlibrary.org/register or email Sherrel at srieger@doverlibrary.org.