This article analyses the disputes over riverine islands between two princely states in colonial southern India in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These disputes arose because of changes in the islands’ landmass caused by water movements. Such tidal temporalities challenged cartographic rigidities and the established notions of sovereignty of states. What were assumed to be sovereign, undisputed and infallible were unsettled by such hydrological power and the fluid ecologies involved. A set of challenges emanated from external concepts arising from colonialism which undermined the native geographical understanding of the land-water continuum due to the monetisation of land. This article makes a critical appraisal of this double challenge to the traditional understanding of fluid ecologies while also highlighting the counter challenges from the princely states. These contests were particularly pronounced as the princely states had considerable autonomy in internal matters of administration and thus differed from the rest of the colonial territory directly ruled by the British in India. The article contributes to the study of riverine islands by investigating the nature and fluidity of shifting islands, whose variation in temporal contexts has been barely acknowledged in Island Studies to date.
{"title":"Fluid Ecologies, Sovereignty, and Colonialism: Princely contestations over riverine islands in colonial India","authors":"Mahendranath Sudhindranath, John Lourdusamy","doi":"10.21463/shima.208","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.208","url":null,"abstract":"This article analyses the disputes over riverine islands between two princely states in colonial southern India in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These disputes arose because of changes in the islands’ landmass caused by water movements. Such tidal temporalities challenged cartographic rigidities and the established notions of sovereignty of states. What were assumed to be sovereign, undisputed and infallible were unsettled by such hydrological power and the fluid ecologies involved. A set of challenges emanated from external concepts arising from colonialism which undermined the native geographical understanding of the land-water continuum due to the monetisation of land. This article makes a critical appraisal of this double challenge to the traditional understanding of fluid ecologies while also highlighting the counter challenges from the princely states. These contests were particularly pronounced as the princely states had considerable autonomy in internal matters of administration and thus differed from the rest of the colonial territory directly ruled by the British in India. The article contributes to the study of riverine islands by investigating the nature and fluidity of shifting islands, whose variation in temporal contexts has been barely acknowledged in Island Studies to date.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"53 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136133697","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Asrai is a nocturnal fairy popularly attributed to British folklore, most memorable for the fact that any exposure to sunlight will cause it to melt into water. Rather than developing from oral folk tradition, like most legendary creatures, the Asrai may have originated and evolved through literary sources, beginning with the poetry of the Scottish author Robert Buchanan in the 1870s. Since appearing in a folklore account of uncertain provenance in 1970, the Asrai has come into use as a fantasy creature with international spread, developing in a dialogue between print media and the Internet.
{"title":"Melting in the Daylight: The Asrai’s emergence in modern myth","authors":"Sarah Allison","doi":"10.21463/shima.198","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.198","url":null,"abstract":"The Asrai is a nocturnal fairy popularly attributed to British folklore, most memorable for the fact that any exposure to sunlight will cause it to melt into water. Rather than developing from oral folk tradition, like most legendary creatures, the Asrai may have originated and evolved through literary sources, beginning with the poetry of the Scottish author Robert Buchanan in the 1870s. Since appearing in a folklore account of uncertain provenance in 1970, the Asrai has come into use as a fantasy creature with international spread, developing in a dialogue between print media and the Internet.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"17 3-4","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136157977","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In 1690 CE, a transformation was initiated by the British East India Company on the seven islands along India's western coast. These islands, once primarily Portuguese territories featuring indigenous communities deeply intertwined with rich ecological and cultural histories spanning millennia, underwent a gradual metamorphosis into the major metropolis known as 'Bombay,' a trajectory that persists today in its rebranded identity as 'Mumbai.' This article delves into how the commonly accepted imaginations of urban utopia progressively turned away from the perceived stagnant waters of rivers and estuaries that, in reality, served as vital coastal ecological buffers. The expansion of Mumbai city propelled its citizens, particularly marginalised low-income groups and traditional settlement inhabitants, towards the outskirts where vestiges of natural ecosystems endure. This shift granted them rudimentary necessities such as water and outdoor spaces, including prospects for agriculture. The convergence of socially vulnerable communities with ecologically delicate zones frequently led to heightened intricacies and debilitation, placing immense stress on both the city's ecological and social resources. This article centres on the examination of urban rivers, using the Dahisar River, a representative seasonal watercourse in Mumbai, as a focal point. Through this exploration, it seeks to scrutinise the multifaceted networks intertwined with Mumbai's river systems, emphasising the urgency of recalibrating perceptions of rivers in Indian urban landscapes. The study also reflects upon the tumultuous socio-political dynamics of the city, involving governing bodies, indigenous stewards, urban residents, and industries. Amid the array of potential solutions, technical and ecological facets often take a backseat to the socio-political determination required to adopt a more ecologically conscious stance. Nonetheless, optimism persists, as climate change mitigation and urban well-being emerge as entrepreneurial prospects for the nation's economic hub. The national leadership aims to position itself as a catalyst for change, aligning with global ecological narratives on the political stage.
{"title":"Fluctuating Currents: Balancing urban growth and restoring native riverine synergies in Mumbai — the case of Dahisar River","authors":"Ajay Nayak, Kimaya Keluskar, Vikram Pawar","doi":"10.21463/shima.203","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.203","url":null,"abstract":"In 1690 CE, a transformation was initiated by the British East India Company on the seven islands along India's western coast. These islands, once primarily Portuguese territories featuring indigenous communities deeply intertwined with rich ecological and cultural histories spanning millennia, underwent a gradual metamorphosis into the major metropolis known as 'Bombay,' a trajectory that persists today in its rebranded identity as 'Mumbai.' This article delves into how the commonly accepted imaginations of urban utopia progressively turned away from the perceived stagnant waters of rivers and estuaries that, in reality, served as vital coastal ecological buffers. The expansion of Mumbai city propelled its citizens, particularly marginalised low-income groups and traditional settlement inhabitants, towards the outskirts where vestiges of natural ecosystems endure. This shift granted them rudimentary necessities such as water and outdoor spaces, including prospects for agriculture. The convergence of socially vulnerable communities with ecologically delicate zones frequently led to heightened intricacies and debilitation, placing immense stress on both the city's ecological and social resources. This article centres on the examination of urban rivers, using the Dahisar River, a representative seasonal watercourse in Mumbai, as a focal point. Through this exploration, it seeks to scrutinise the multifaceted networks intertwined with Mumbai's river systems, emphasising the urgency of recalibrating perceptions of rivers in Indian urban landscapes. The study also reflects upon the tumultuous socio-political dynamics of the city, involving governing bodies, indigenous stewards, urban residents, and industries. Amid the array of potential solutions, technical and ecological facets often take a backseat to the socio-political determination required to adopt a more ecologically conscious stance. Nonetheless, optimism persists, as climate change mitigation and urban well-being emerge as entrepreneurial prospects for the nation's economic hub. The national leadership aims to position itself as a catalyst for change, aligning with global ecological narratives on the political stage.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"24 2","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136158136","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This article aims to reconstruct the origins and evolution of the different types of fishing huts, commonly called casoni, which are widespread in Italy in the lagoon areas of the Upper Adriatic. The focus is on the role played by the casoni in the domestication of these lagoon spaces and on their evolution towards patrimonialisation. The first part of the article analyses the polysemic nature of the concept of aquatic space and proposes insights into different viewpoints and perceptions: from the terracentric vision to the recognition of indigenous knowledge; from the sphere of emotion, to the legislative arena. The second part argues how, in recent years, this emblematic example of human adaptation to a potentially hazradous space is evolving towards a new phase. In a period characterised by a crisis in the fishing sector, the simple fishers’ huts are gradually being transformed into tourist facilities. Paradoxically, this element of the local cultural landscape owes its survival to the 'marketing of tradition' often carried out personally by the fishers who have transformed themselves into tourism operators.
{"title":"Terracentric Visions and the Domestication of Aquatic Spaces: A case study of fishers’ huts in the Venetian and Caorle lagoons","authors":"Rita Vianello","doi":"10.21463/shima.200","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.200","url":null,"abstract":"This article aims to reconstruct the origins and evolution of the different types of fishing huts, commonly called casoni, which are widespread in Italy in the lagoon areas of the Upper Adriatic. The focus is on the role played by the casoni in the domestication of these lagoon spaces and on their evolution towards patrimonialisation. The first part of the article analyses the polysemic nature of the concept of aquatic space and proposes insights into different viewpoints and perceptions: from the terracentric vision to the recognition of indigenous knowledge; from the sphere of emotion, to the legislative arena. The second part argues how, in recent years, this emblematic example of human adaptation to a potentially hazradous space is evolving towards a new phase. In a period characterised by a crisis in the fishing sector, the simple fishers’ huts are gradually being transformed into tourist facilities. Paradoxically, this element of the local cultural landscape owes its survival to the 'marketing of tradition' often carried out personally by the fishers who have transformed themselves into tourism operators.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"24 9-10","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136133699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
As part of their reconstruction of the city following Allied bombing during World War II, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government infilled medium to small inland waterways (namely, canals and moats constructed during the 17th century) and utilised the resultant terrestrial strips for new purposes. Wartime damage reconstruction was conducted as part of the official city planning of Tokyo. During the 1940s, various waterways in Tokyo were infilled primarily with debris resulting from wartime bombing and, thereby, these landfills presented a model for the disposal of debris from disasters. In Japan, 115 municipalities were designated as war-damaged cities by the government, whose reconstruction was conducted as official city planning. The article examines how common the disposal of wartime debris via the in-filling of inland waterways was. The in-filling of Tokyo’s inland waterways caused the loss of watery spaces that are nowadays regarded as cultural heritage assets with recreational potential. Studies have either criticised the infilling of waterways or else underscored opposition to the activity. How then was it possible for the authorities to decide on infilling and land reclamation as city planning? Was there any social support for this project? Relatedly, should the decision by the metropolitan government to infill inland waterways be regarded as inappropriate? This article considers these questions and evaluates the modification of such areas after WWII.
{"title":"The Infilling and Reclamation of Inland Waterways in Tokyo, 1945–1962","authors":"Junichi Hasegawa","doi":"10.21463/shima.177","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.177","url":null,"abstract":"As part of their reconstruction of the city following Allied bombing during World War II, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government infilled medium to small inland waterways (namely, canals and moats constructed during the 17th century) and utilised the resultant terrestrial strips for new purposes. Wartime damage reconstruction was conducted as part of the official city planning of Tokyo. During the 1940s, various waterways in Tokyo were infilled primarily with debris resulting from wartime bombing and, thereby, these landfills presented a model for the disposal of debris from disasters. In Japan, 115 municipalities were designated as war-damaged cities by the government, whose reconstruction was conducted as official city planning. The article examines how common the disposal of wartime debris via the in-filling of inland waterways was. The in-filling of Tokyo’s inland waterways caused the loss of watery spaces that are nowadays regarded as cultural heritage assets with recreational potential. Studies have either criticised the infilling of waterways or else underscored opposition to the activity. How then was it possible for the authorities to decide on infilling and land reclamation as city planning? Was there any social support for this project? Relatedly, should the decision by the metropolitan government to infill inland waterways be regarded as inappropriate? This article considers these questions and evaluates the modification of such areas after WWII.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"12 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136157108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Both case report and epic, ‘River Reach’ is an exploratory anamnesis that presents a metamodern embodied reflection of systems entanglement – exposing attunements to and longings for a place-based riverine kinship capable of addressing a national heritage of displacements, immigrations, and enslavement. To improve state compliance with the US Clean Water Act, Graue Mill dam on Salt Creek at Fullersburg Woods (Oak Brook, IL) will be removed in coming months for creek restoration and re-realignment, creating a point of collision and potential among pasts and futures. ‘River Reach’ is a hyperlocal example of a practical, approachable step toward decolonial poetry and community – examining the insularities and permeabilities of whiteness while encouraging personal, deliberate engagement in the preparatory work required for recalibrating national identity cooperatively. As a centering poem for settler harm reduction and an adjunctive tool for collective action, the piece invites participants into a mimetic rehabitation of relationship through nature. ‘River Reach’ may be performed collectively in collaboration with movement, audiovisual elements, and facilitated reader/audience participation.
{"title":"River Reach: Chicagoland, riverine reflections and settler harm-reduction poetry","authors":"Rebecca Fiala","doi":"10.21463/shima.207","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.207","url":null,"abstract":"Both case report and epic, ‘River Reach’ is an exploratory anamnesis that presents a metamodern embodied reflection of systems entanglement – exposing attunements to and longings for a place-based riverine kinship capable of addressing a national heritage of displacements, immigrations, and enslavement. To improve state compliance with the US Clean Water Act, Graue Mill dam on Salt Creek at Fullersburg Woods (Oak Brook, IL) will be removed in coming months for creek restoration and re-realignment, creating a point of collision and potential among pasts and futures. ‘River Reach’ is a hyperlocal example of a practical, approachable step toward decolonial poetry and community – examining the insularities and permeabilities of whiteness while encouraging personal, deliberate engagement in the preparatory work required for recalibrating national identity cooperatively. As a centering poem for settler harm reduction and an adjunctive tool for collective action, the piece invites participants into a mimetic rehabitation of relationship through nature. ‘River Reach’ may be performed collectively in collaboration with movement, audiovisual elements, and facilitated reader/audience participation.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"110 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136133702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The management of surface freshwater bodies can be considered one of the most important issues affecting the quality of living spaces in the industrialised world. Today's awareness of the importance of sustainable water management includes the artificial canals built over centuries to meet multiple and different needs. The development of railways in the 19th century and the extraordinary spread of road transport after World War II led to the steady abandonment of historic canals all over Europe and the consequent deterioration of their water quality and corridor spaces. This deterioration, in turn, led to socio-cultural conflicts over the spaces and the necessity/desirability of maintaining them in the late 20th century. In recent years the benefits provided by blue-green infrastructure in terms of biodiversity, new socio-economical opportunities and the improvement of the well-being and mental health of their users has been acknowledged by scholars and policy makers in the European Union and elsewhere. The article analyses the territorialisation of the Battaglia Canal in Italy’s northwestern Veneto region, between Padua (Padova) and the Venetian Lagoon and its broader canalscape that has resulted from different adminsitrative and planning processes and the manner in which changes in socio-environmental perceptions has influenced approaches to managing the canal. Building on this, the article raises issues concerning the management of the canal and proposes some perspectives for a multifunctional recovery and a sustainable valourisation of it as a social and environmental asset.
{"title":"The Recovery of Disused Waterways as Blue Corridors: The Battaglia Canal between Padua and the Venetian Lagoon","authors":"Lisa Zecchin","doi":"10.21463/shima.209","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.209","url":null,"abstract":"The management of surface freshwater bodies can be considered one of the most important issues affecting the quality of living spaces in the industrialised world. Today's awareness of the importance of sustainable water management includes the artificial canals built over centuries to meet multiple and different needs. The development of railways in the 19th century and the extraordinary spread of road transport after World War II led to the steady abandonment of historic canals all over Europe and the consequent deterioration of their water quality and corridor spaces. This deterioration, in turn, led to socio-cultural conflicts over the spaces and the necessity/desirability of maintaining them in the late 20th century. In recent years the benefits provided by blue-green infrastructure in terms of biodiversity, new socio-economical opportunities and the improvement of the well-being and mental health of their users has been acknowledged by scholars and policy makers in the European Union and elsewhere. The article analyses the territorialisation of the Battaglia Canal in Italy’s northwestern Veneto region, between Padua (Padova) and the Venetian Lagoon and its broader canalscape that has resulted from different adminsitrative and planning processes and the manner in which changes in socio-environmental perceptions has influenced approaches to managing the canal. Building on this, the article raises issues concerning the management of the canal and proposes some perspectives for a multifunctional recovery and a sustainable valourisation of it as a social and environmental asset.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"58 5","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136134573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sarah A. Rich & Peter B. Campbell (Eds.), Contemporary Philosophy for Maritime Archaeology: Flat Ontologies, Oceanic Thought, and the Anthropocene (2022).","authors":"Mari Yamasaki","doi":"10.21463/shima.201","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.201","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"15 6","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136158010","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In this article I conduct the reader along a journey that follows different waterways within the Venetian lagoon and provides insights into the water-land interactions of this unique aquapelagic assemblage. Leveraging the methodological tool of hydro-perspectivism, I situate the analytical standpoint within two very different kinds of boat: the vaporetto (a local waterbus) and the kayak. The first, native to the lagoon, gives voice to a sample of the massive population of tourists that constantly crowds the lagoon’s islands and waters. Navigating the congested waterways leading from the Lido littoral to Venice’s historical centre, I raise issues such as over-tourism, water quality, and wave motion. Shifting the perspective to the kayak, a type of boat that originates in Inuit culture and is perfectly suited to the lagoon's shallow waters, the article then investigates the potentialities of analysing from the water’s edge, considering other serious problems of the Venetian aquapelago, such as pollution and hydro-morphological alterations. In conclusion, I argue that by conceiving the boat as not only as a means of transport but also as a means of acquiring and formulating knowledge, it is possible to revitalise hydrophilic feelings and thus the precious aquapelagic identity of Venice’s lagoon that has been in decline over the last century.
{"title":"Lagoon Wanderings: Boat hydro-perspectivism in the aquapelagic assemblage of the Venetian Lagoon","authors":"Petra Codato","doi":"10.21463/shima.199","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.199","url":null,"abstract":"In this article I conduct the reader along a journey that follows different waterways within the Venetian lagoon and provides insights into the water-land interactions of this unique aquapelagic assemblage. Leveraging the methodological tool of hydro-perspectivism, I situate the analytical standpoint within two very different kinds of boat: the vaporetto (a local waterbus) and the kayak. The first, native to the lagoon, gives voice to a sample of the massive population of tourists that constantly crowds the lagoon’s islands and waters. Navigating the congested waterways leading from the Lido littoral to Venice’s historical centre, I raise issues such as over-tourism, water quality, and wave motion. Shifting the perspective to the kayak, a type of boat that originates in Inuit culture and is perfectly suited to the lagoon's shallow waters, the article then investigates the potentialities of analysing from the water’s edge, considering other serious problems of the Venetian aquapelago, such as pollution and hydro-morphological alterations. In conclusion, I argue that by conceiving the boat as not only as a means of transport but also as a means of acquiring and formulating knowledge, it is possible to revitalise hydrophilic feelings and thus the precious aquapelagic identity of Venice’s lagoon that has been in decline over the last century.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"302 6","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136157377","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Considering ‘infrastructures as landscapes’ and ‘landscapes as infrastructures’, this article uses an open framework to reconsider the distinctive water infrastructure of France’s UNESCO-listed heritage Canal du Midi. More specifically, it profiles the Canal’s Mediterranean outlet. Viewed through a landscape architectonic lens, we investigate the canal, drawing on the theory of landscape narrative and using the illustrative method. The article identifies three crucial narratives – infrastructural, natural & environmental and social & cultural – that help to examine the spatial values of the Canal and its relationship with its southern coastal landscape. The study shows how the Canal du Midi has been transformed and has influenced its surroundings, becoming an integral part of the coastal landscape. We identify and analyse how the Canal functions as an infrastructure composition and an environmentally and culturally significant feature. The landscape narrative framework offers the possibility of sharpening the interpretation of water infrastructures beyond conventional problem-solving approaches by providing a holistic view of the Canal and its water landscapes. This, in turn, offers inspiration for the region's future development, which presently prioritises the preservation of the Canal du Midi and the regeneration of the surrounding area as distinct projects.
{"title":"Water Narratives: Exploring the convergence of the Canal du Midi and its coastal landscape","authors":"Pingyao Sun, Inge Bobbink, Amina Chouairi","doi":"10.21463/shima.202","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21463/shima.202","url":null,"abstract":"Considering ‘infrastructures as landscapes’ and ‘landscapes as infrastructures’, this article uses an open framework to reconsider the distinctive water infrastructure of France’s UNESCO-listed heritage Canal du Midi. More specifically, it profiles the Canal’s Mediterranean outlet. Viewed through a landscape architectonic lens, we investigate the canal, drawing on the theory of landscape narrative and using the illustrative method. The article identifies three crucial narratives – infrastructural, natural & environmental and social & cultural – that help to examine the spatial values of the Canal and its relationship with its southern coastal landscape. The study shows how the Canal du Midi has been transformed and has influenced its surroundings, becoming an integral part of the coastal landscape. We identify and analyse how the Canal functions as an infrastructure composition and an environmentally and culturally significant feature. The landscape narrative framework offers the possibility of sharpening the interpretation of water infrastructures beyond conventional problem-solving approaches by providing a holistic view of the Canal and its water landscapes. This, in turn, offers inspiration for the region's future development, which presently prioritises the preservation of the Canal du Midi and the regeneration of the surrounding area as distinct projects.","PeriodicalId":51896,"journal":{"name":"Shima-The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures","volume":"11 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136134568","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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