Graduation Year
2025
Document Type
Campus Only Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
American Studies
Second Department
Religious Studies
Reader 1
Erin Runions
Reader 2
Piya Chatterjee
Reader 3
Jasmine Baetz
Terms of Use & License Information
Abstract
At Scripps College, there is a little-known “ethnographic” art collection stored in an alarmed basement, collecting dust. This collection, which includes everything from human remains to looted Buddhist sculptures, has been exploited and neglected by the College for decades.
In this thesis, I argue that Scripps is an “imperial college” carrying out colonial violence in its acquisition, mismanagement, and exploitation of this collection. This case study upends myths about the U.S. academy, art museums, and knowledge production— exposing processes through which imperial institutions legitimize empire.
Recommended Citation
Halpern, Mara, "Hoarding Culture and Extracting Knowledge: Imperial Legacies at Scripps College" (2025). Scripps Senior Theses. 2684.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/2684
This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.
