I VISIONS OF CITY SPACES

1) THE NOTION OF THE CITY AS HERO

Description: A study of concepts of literary space.

Question: The idea of the city as the main character of a novel or of an imaginative world seems to have been evolved primarily in relation to the Victorian city. Attempt to define similar notions in relation to Georgian cities, and compare the two approaches.

Expected format: A word-processed text with notes and references.

References:

http://gober.net/victorian/  (Prof. Susan Horton, The City as Hero )

http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk

2) PANORAMAS

Description: Documentation on the history of panoramas

Question: Search for websites on the history of panoramas, in particular those of Robert Barker. Summarise their main arguments.

Expected format: A text-processed answer with hyperlinks.

References:

the CATI website http://www.cati.paris4.sorbonne.fr

•  under 'agrégation 2001-  image analysis' - section on panoramic vision

•  under 'master 1', 'virtual spaces' (subjective spaces)

II VISIONS OF COMPLEX SPACES

1) FLATLAND AND HYPERSPACE

Description: a study of concepts underlying visions of space

Question: Search for documents on Flatland and on higher dimensions (hyperspace).

Expected format: Word-processed texts with hyperlinks.

References: References and weblinks to be gathered by the student.

2) COMPLEX SPACES AND THE CITY

Description : A study of urban spaces in the light of the concepts introduced in the course.

Question: How can we relate these complex spaces to the experience of urban space?

Expected format: Word-processed texts with hyperlinks.

References: References and weblinks to be gathered by the student.