lit review: Evocative Objects

Sometimes a book just jumps off the shelf as you walk by it.  That happened to me yesterday with Evocative Objects: Things We Think With edited by Sherry Turkle and published by The MIT Press in 2007.  It is just too funny that the editor discusses bricolage in the opening chapter.  That is exactly what I am doing with my sessions.  But I digress...

I looked at the book briefly, wondering if there were any assignment ideas contained within the pages.  The answer?  Perhaps.

On page 7, the editor explains that the book contains autobiographical essays, created by the authors being asked to "choose an object and follow its associations: where does it take you; what do you feel; what are you able to understand?"  I think this is an interesting method for students to get into making sense of historical context and understanding.  I had been considering journal writing as an assignment, but this would take the concept to another level.

The book's brief chapters each focus on an object of the author's choice: a cello, ballet slippers, a laptop, a rolling pin, slime mold, etc.  34 objects in total, all described with a very personal connection.  I most enjoyed the chapter about "The Archive" by Susan Yee, who eloquently describes doing archival research with original and digital documents.  I also enjoyed "The Suitcase" by Olivia Daste, who targets emotion when describing her relationship with her grandmother's objects.

"There is a power of boundary objects and the general principle that objects are active life presences." (page 9)  This is exactly what I need students to experience.  How to create that experience is another matter.