Monterey Stories: Climate, Culture, Canneries
In this course we will explore the intersecting environmental and cultural histories of the Monterey Peninsula and its environs by examining the relationships between climate, biophysical environment, and human civilization at key stages of the region’s modern development. We will read and discuss a variety of works by historians, novelists, poets, and scientists on the complex historical dynamics of different regional groups, from the indigenous inhabitants of the region to various settler groups. Our primary focus will be on the twentieth-century historical context, when the sardine fishery and canneries competed for predominance with tourism. John Steinbeck’s novel Cannery Row and Connie Chiang’s historical study Shaping the Shoreline will be the two centerpieces of the reading list. Other authors whose work we will read include Robinson Jeffers, Ed Ricketts, Rebecca Solnit, and Ted Steinberg, among others. (This course is for students enrolled in the Middlebury Climate Semester Program (January-May) and will be taught on the Monterey campus.) (Approval Only)