Slavery and Race in the Encyclopaedia Britannica (1768-1860): A Text Mining Approach
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sci
Abstract
I will apply data mining techniques to examine language use in the Encyclopaedia Britannica from 1768-1860 to identify passive and distancing language used in relation to themes of race and slavery. The aim of this research is to uncover explicit and implicit themes relating to slavery and race and provide insight into the traces of attitudes evident in our printed heritage. This will seek to address the following questions; How is the impact of Atlantic slavery represented or alluded to in historical information sources? What is the legacy of slavery in our printed information environment? What text-mining approaches can be used to identify, analyse, and visualise these diverse and problematic histories?
Entries in the Encyclopaedia Britannica related to activities intrinsically linked to the slave trade such as sugar production appear to be addressed in a relatively passive manner with less detail and distancing between the author and topic. In comparison with an entry on wool production in Britain in the same eighth edition of the text, this subject is broached differently, with a warmer tone and a more in-depth discussion. By analysing activities and language used in relation to slavery, my research will offer further insights into how race and slavery were depicted in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and how this changed over time. The nuances are very subtle so a deeper textual analysis is required, comparing this language use to other entries in the Encyclopaedia Britannica to examine differences between specifically slavery-related activities and other productions or activities. Likely themes and analysis will focus on identity, erasure, power dynamics, and gender, although many more are likely to be apparent with further research.
The outcomes of these insights will be a broader discussion of implicit and explicit attitudes and themes in our printed heritage that may have been overlooked or not explored as fully as they could be previously due to the difficulty of analysing large datasets without digital tools and applications. This will offer the opportunity to contextualise the findings within a broader Scottish context and Scotland's links to slavery, examining the role of pro-slavery and anti-slavery campaigners in the Encyclopaedia Britannica and language use related to them. Making links between Scottish heritage and notable people of interest in the data to the wider collections at the National Library of Scotland will open up discussions about Scottish history and our links to the slave trade.
The research will engage with a large quantity of data from the Encyclopaedia Britannica, demonstrating how items in the National Library of Scotland Data Foundry can be interrogated and used, allowing for discussion of the applications of the digital humanities to discussing muted and erased narratives in our past.
Entries in the Encyclopaedia Britannica related to activities intrinsically linked to the slave trade such as sugar production appear to be addressed in a relatively passive manner with less detail and distancing between the author and topic. In comparison with an entry on wool production in Britain in the same eighth edition of the text, this subject is broached differently, with a warmer tone and a more in-depth discussion. By analysing activities and language used in relation to slavery, my research will offer further insights into how race and slavery were depicted in the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and how this changed over time. The nuances are very subtle so a deeper textual analysis is required, comparing this language use to other entries in the Encyclopaedia Britannica to examine differences between specifically slavery-related activities and other productions or activities. Likely themes and analysis will focus on identity, erasure, power dynamics, and gender, although many more are likely to be apparent with further research.
The outcomes of these insights will be a broader discussion of implicit and explicit attitudes and themes in our printed heritage that may have been overlooked or not explored as fully as they could be previously due to the difficulty of analysing large datasets without digital tools and applications. This will offer the opportunity to contextualise the findings within a broader Scottish context and Scotland's links to slavery, examining the role of pro-slavery and anti-slavery campaigners in the Encyclopaedia Britannica and language use related to them. Making links between Scottish heritage and notable people of interest in the data to the wider collections at the National Library of Scotland will open up discussions about Scottish history and our links to the slave trade.
The research will engage with a large quantity of data from the Encyclopaedia Britannica, demonstrating how items in the National Library of Scotland Data Foundry can be interrogated and used, allowing for discussion of the applications of the digital humanities to discussing muted and erased narratives in our past.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Diana Paton (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Ashleigh Charlton (Student) |