Browsing by Author "Ellis, Jim"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Intertwined Histories: Plants in Their Social Contexts
    (University of Calgary Press, 2019-05) Ellis, Jim
    How do we understand the boundaries of individual creatures? What are the systems of interdependency that bind all living creatures together? Plants were among the the first to colonize the planet. They created the soil and the atmosphere that made life possible for animals. They are some of the largest and oldest life forms on Earth. In spite of their primacy, Western cultures have traditionally regarded plants as the lowest life forms, lacking mobility, sensation, and communication. But recent research argues that plants move and respond to their environment, communicate with each other, and form partnerships with other species. Art, poetry, and essays by cultural anthropologists, experimental plant biologists, philosophers, botanists and foresters expose the complex interactions of the vibrant living world around us and give us a lens through which we can explore our intertwined histories.
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    Mythologies of Outer Space
    (University of Calgary Press, 2025-01-15) Humble, Noreen; Ellis, Jim
    Every culture and society has read stories in the night sky. From the careful attention of astronomers across all times and all parts of the world to the search for alien life, the stories found in the shapes of constellations to the expansive imaginings of science fiction, there has always been life up there, at the very least, for our imaginations. Mythologies of Outer Space brings together academics and artists to explore diverse imaginings of outer space. It examines questions that, in a world where outer space is increasingly accessible, are no longer only science fiction. Is outer space terra nullius, open for settlement? What if there is life beyond earth? Will we repeat the mistakes of the colonial age on other planets? Should parts of outer space be protected, like nature reserves? What about resource extraction? Do celestial bodies, like the moon, have rights? Astronaut Robert Thirsk, Mi’kmaw astronomer Hilding Neilson, digital humanities scholar Chris Pak, and outer space archaeologist Alice Gorman, among others, are joined by artists including David Hoffos and Dianne Bos, literary scholars, art critics, scientists, and a poet to explore how humanity thinks about outer space in this joyful, curious book.
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    Shakespeare's Dramatic Style at the Curtain Playhouse (1597-99)
    (2024-01-31) Blyth, Benjamin Alfred; Bennett, Susan; Ellis, Jim; Jenkins, Jacqueline; Purcell, Stephen; Palacios, Joy
    My project was prompted by the Museum of London Archaeology’s (MOLA) excavations of the Curtain site in 2016. These revealed a rectangular playhouse that was so well-preserved it provided an unprecedentedly detailed set of performance conditions to study Shakespeare’s Shoreditch plays. Approaching the term “style” as a composite of what a dramatic text is made of/from (aesthetics) and how it is used (utility), I develop a hybrid methodology in this study that reanimates features of John Russell Brown’s 1970 book Shakespeare’s Dramatic Style and applies the latest advances in textual studies, theatre history, and practice-as-research (PaR) to show a new style of Shakespeare at the Curtain. The Lord Chamberlain’s Men relocated to the Curtain in 1597 after suffering a series of personal, legal, and financial setbacks and remained there until the new Globe opened in the summer of 1599. During this time, Shakespeare was an ambitious but cash-strapped playwright who retooled old plays to pull in new crowds (Romeo and Juliet), cashed-in on popular characters with sure-fire spin-offs (The Merry Wives of Windsor), and found innovative solutions for the Curtain’s fluid audiences (Henry V). In a series of three sequential case studies, I demonstrate that Shakespeare adapted his dramatic style to account for the unique circumstances and challenges presented by Curtain performance. The result was a raucous, violent, and interactive style of Shakespeare, unlike any other stage in his career or at any other playhouse. My research was heavily impacted by Covid-19, and consequently these findings have implications that reach beyond the study’s motivating purpose. In addition to providing new critical territory that engages scholars from across a broad range of disciplines in productive new conversations about Shakespeare’s style, my study presents a model that connects dramatic texts with their sites of performance while reducing geographical barriers to participation.
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    Water Rites: Reimagining Water in the West
    (University of Calgary Press, 2018-05) Ellis, Jim
    What are the challenges we face around water in Western Canada? What are our rights to water? Does water itself have rights? Water Rites: Reimagining Water in the West documents the many ways that water flows through our lives, connecting the humans, animals and plants that all depend on this precious and endangered resource. Essays from scholars, activists, environmentalists, and human rights advocates illuminate the diverse issues surrounding water in Alberta, including the right to access clean drinking water, the competing demands of the resource development industry and Indigenous communities, and the dwindling supply of fresh water in the face of human-caused climate change. Statements from community organizations detail the challenges facing watersheds, and the actions being taken to mitigate these problems. With a special focus on Environmental and Indigenous issues, Water Rites explores how deeply water is tied to human life. These essays are complemented by full-colour portfolios of work by contemporary painters, photographers, and installation artists who explore our relation to water. Reproductions of historical paintings, engravings and film stills demonstrate how water has shaped our country's cultural imaginary from its beginnings, proving that water is a vital resource for our lives and our imaginations.