What does your passport mean to you? Is it a symbol of connection and attachment? Does it provide a sense of belonging?

Dr. Patrick Bixby explores the historical implications of the passport through narratives of figures such as James Joyce and Langston Hughes. Dr. Patrick Bixby is Associate Professor of English at Arizona State University and Resident Director of the University Studies Abroad Consortium Summer Program at the NUI, Galway. While his research falls primarily under the heading of Irish studies, it also addresses literary modernism, Continental philosophy, and issues of travel, mobility, and the body.

His most recent books include: A History of Irish Modernism (with Gregory Castle) and Nietzsche and Irish Modernism; he is currently editing on the travel writings of Kathleen M. Murphy, Lady of Birr, and completing a monograph on the cultural history of the passport.

By examining the travel documents of artists, intellectuals, everyday travelers, and all-but-anonymous migrants, the book tells the story of how these seemingly humble objects implicate individuals, their emotions and imaginings, in some of the most sweeping transformations of modern history. Dr. Patrick Bixby is an Associate Professor of English at Arizona State University and Resident Director of the University Studies Abroad Consortium Summer Program at the NUI, Galway. While Dr. Bixby’s research falls primarily under the heading of Irish studies, it also addresses literary modernism, continental philosophy, and issues of travel, mobility, and the body.

He is currently writing a book titled “License to Travel: A Cultural History of the Passport,” which investigates the unyielding paradox of the document. By examining the travel documents of artists, intellectuals, everyday travelers, and all-but-anonymous migrants, the book tells the story of how these seemingly humble objects implicate individuals, their emotions, and imaginings, in some of the most sweeping transformations of modern history. 

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx