Society Culture and Thought

The Politics of Immigration — POL2259.01

Instructor: John Hultgren

Days & Time: WE 10:00am-11:50am

Credits: 2

The U.N. estimates that there are 281 international migrants in the world, a number that has grown precipitously over the past half century and shows little sign of dissipating. Over the same time period, anti-immigrant parties and leaders have sprung up across much of the world, with visions of national revitalization contingent upon militarized borders

Politics

The Politics of Main Street, USA — POL2107.01

Instructor: Tim Schroeder

Credits: 4

Populism is back, and the small-town, white working class has played a major role in the rise of both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. But what are the political attitudes and ideologies that drive so-called Main Street USA? And why has populism reared its head here at this particular political conjuncture? The course will explore the politics of Main Street through readings in

Society Culture and Thought

The Politics of Soul: Music, Emotion, Embodiment — MHI4305.01

Instructor: Joseph Alpar and Brian Michael Murphy

Credits: 2

How do various musical traditions seek to carry listeners toward a realm of emotional feeling and even to mystical experience? From soul in American rhythm and blues, to tarab in Arab music, hüzün in Turkish music, saudade in Brazilian music, and duende in Spanish Flamenco, there are numerous concepts that describe

Music Society Culture and Thought

The Politics of Student Movements in the '60s — SCT2141.01

Instructor: John Hultgren

Credits: 2

To most of you, the 1960’s might seem like ancient history. There wasn’t even social media! You might be surprised to find out that many of the problems confronted by the student movement during that time are the same as problems we see today. Although the student uprisings seemed focused on the Vietnam War, many other issues were part of the struggle: workers strikes,

Society Culture and Thought

The Psychology of Class — PSY4224.01

Instructor: Ella Ben Hagai

Credits: 4

In recent years there has been renewed interest among psychologists regarding how individuals' socio-economic position shape their psychology. In this class we will explore how class background shapes people's emotions, tastes (for food, music or art), and political ideologies. We will study these questions using both classical sociological theories (Marx, Weber, and Bourdieu)

Society Culture and Thought

The Psychology of Feelings and the Social Construction of Emotions — PSY4105.01

Instructor: Ella Ben Hagai

Credits: 4

This advanced course provides a general introduction to the basic science of feelings and emotions, including evolutionary, neurophysiological, and cognitive approaches. In addition to examining the psychological processes with which emotions are privately felt, we will examine the social construction of emotions. We will explore how culture, gender and class backgrounds shape

Society Culture and Thought

The Renaissance — HIS2341.01

Instructor: Carol Pal

Credits: 4

This course is a survey of the cultural, social, and religious movements that transformed Europe between 1350 and 1700. These revolutions in Western thought gave birth to the Enlightenment, and the intellectual outlook that still characterizes our culture today. Using primary source materials such as letters, literature, court records, diaries, and paintings, we examine both

Society Culture and Thought

The Renaissance — HIS2341.01

Instructor: Carol Pal

Credits: 4

This course is a survey of the cultural, social, and religious movements that transformed Europe between 1350 and 1600. These revolutions in Western thought gave birth to the Enlightenment and the intellectual outlook that still characterizes our culture today. Using primary source materials such as letters, literature, court records, diaries, and paintings, we examine both

Society Culture and Thought

The Renaissance — HIS2341.01

Instructor: Carol Pal

Credits: 4

This course is a survey of the cultural, social, and religious movements that transformed Europe between 1350 and 1600. These revolutions in Western thought gave birth to the Enlightenment, and the intellectual outlook that still characterizes our culture today. Using primary source materials such as letters, literature, court records, diaries, and paintings, we examine both

Society Culture and Thought

The Right to Opacity: Reading Fred Moten and Édouard Glissant — LIT4146.01

Instructor: An Duplan

Credits: 4

Literature Society Culture and Thought

The Sacred Bridge: Muslim and Jewish Soundscapes of the Middle East — MHI2245.01

Instructor: Joseph Alpar

Credits: 4

In an increasingly geo-politicized world, Muslim and Jewish identities are often seen in opposition to one another. Yet this is actually a new perspective, one that neglects the long, intertwined histories of these religious groups. Large Jewish populations lived in the lands of Islam without interruption from the early 7th century through the 20th century and some continue to

Music Society Culture and Thought

The Silk Road — HIS4116.01

Instructor: Carol Pal

Credits: 4

n this course, we examine six moments of intellectual encounter between "east" and "west" along the storied routes of the Silk Road. These encounters spanned a millennium, from the fifth century BCE to the fourteenth century. We will be reading travel narratives written by these adventurers – Herodotus, Xuan Zang, Al-Biruni, Marco Polo, Ibn Battuta, and Sir John

Society Culture and Thought

The Social Life of Trash — ANT4126.01

Instructor: Cecilia Salvi

Credits: 4

The last decade has seen an explosion of people around the world making everyday products- handbags, books, cups, jewelry, art, bricks, etc.- from residual materials that are destined for the landfill. In addition to demonstrating concern over environmental issues, their endeavors demonstrate how repurposing can be an individual, social, and collective right. Using primarily

Society Culture and Thought

The Social Natures of Crude Oil — APA4127.01

Instructor: David Bond

Credits: 4

Crude oil keeps the contemporary in motion. This basic fact has become as bland a platitude as it is an unexamined process. From plastic bags to electricity, from synthetic fertilizers to the passenger plane, from heat for our homes to fuel for our cars, our world is cultivated, packaged, transported, and consumed in the general momentum of hydrocarbon expenditures. These well

CAPA Society Culture and Thought Environment

The Social Psychology of Systems of Domination in the U.S. — PSY4250.01

Instructor: Audrey Devost

Days & Time: MO,TH 1:40pm-3:30pm

Credits: 4

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people think about, influence, and relate to one another. This course will explore social thinking, influence, and social relations that shape our lived experiences through a U.S. contextual lens. Social psychologists are increasingly concerned with the effects of the various systems of

Black Studies Psychology

The Special Immigrant Visa Program: A Research Seminar and Case Study of Immigration Reform — ANT4119.01

Instructor: Carly Rudzinski

Credits: 4

In his first months in office, President Biden announced a withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan, as well as a review of the Special Immigrant Visa Program, designed to provide protection for those Afghan nationals who worked with the United States. The current program is slow and confusing, and many Afghans are being killed while they wait for these visas. The situation

Society Culture and Thought

The Third Decade of Life — PSY2241.01

Instructor: Emily Waterman

Credits: 4

In this course we will draw from the fields of developmental psychology and sociology to discuss the third decade of life, or approximately ages 18 to 30. We will ask questions such as: When does adolescence end, and when does adulthood begin? Is ‘emerging adulthood’ an accurate term to describe this period? What should be the purpose of our 20s? Are recent demographic trends

Society Culture and Thought

The Third Decade of Life — PSY2241.01

Instructor: Emily Waterman

Credits: 2

In this course we will draw from the fields of developmental psychology and sociology to discuss the third decade of life, or approximately ages 18 to 30. We will ask questions such as: When does adolescence end, and when does adulthood begin? Is ‘emerging adulthood’ an accurate term to describe this period? What should be the purpose of our 20s? Are recent demographic trends

Society Culture and Thought

The Tuning in The Trees — MUS4279.01

Instructor: Omeed Goodarzi

Days & Time: FR 2:10pm-4:00pm

Credits: 2

The Tuning in the Trees is an advanced seminar in microtonality that treats tuning systems as both technical structures and living landscapes. Students will explore how musical intervals emerge from natural patterns—such as tree bifurcations, harmonic ratios, and number sequences—while engaging deeply with Just intonation, Meantone,

Music Composition Music Theory Philosophy

The U.S. Constitution: Amendments and Updates — HIS2141.02

Instructor: Eileen Scully

Credits: 2

The United States Constitution is an “invitation to struggle,” an arena and set of principles for unending battles between irreconcilable visions of freedom, well-being, consent, obligation, and community. Far from enshrining answers, it defends questions. Battles over constitutional interpretation and amendment have been battles to open or close core questions. In this seven

CAPA Society Culture and Thought

The U.S. Constitution: Amendments and Updates — HIS2141.02

Instructor: Eileen Scully

Days & Time: TBA

Credits: 2

The United States Constitution is an "invitation to struggle," an arena and set of principles for unending battles between irreconcilable visions of freedom, well-being, consent, obligation, and community. Far from enshrining answers, it defends questions. Battles over constitutional interpretation and amendment have been battles to open or close core

CAPA Society Culture and Thought

The U.S. Constitution: Rough Drafts and Ratification — HIS2139.01

Instructor: Eileen Scully

Days & Time: TBA

Credits: 2

The United States Constitution began as a idea and a rough draft. Indeed, when first presented to delegates at the Philadelphia Convention, the draft was a proposed treaty among thirteen erstwhile British colonies. In this seven-week seminar, we delve into the pivotal events, people, and debates that produced the final draft. We go on to explore the year-long ratification

CAPA Society Culture and Thought

The United States in the World — PEC2265.01

Instructor: Carly Rudzinski

Credits: 4

The aim of this course is to use a political economic lens to explore the “inside-outside” connections between violence and struggle within the United States and beyond its borders. To do this, we will examine the political, economic, cultural, and militaristic reach of the United States in the global political economy. We will look at the political economic basis of the US’s

Society Culture and Thought

The University as a Radical Experiment — SCT4148.01) (cancelled 10/17/2023

Instructor: Noah Coburn

Credits: 4

What does innovation look like in higher education? This course explores the history of experimentation in colleges and universities in North America, from the utopian visions of learning communities to the radical rethinking of how learning happens. It will examine the various waves of innovative institutions and how they reshaped higher education more broadly, and

Society Culture and Thought

The Working Class — SOC2203.01

Instructor: Debbie Warnock

Credits: 4

The American working class has been nearly ubiquitous in the media the last few years. Purported to have fueled the rise of Donald Trump due to class resentment, many now claim to speak for the working class, their experiences, and their motivations. But who are the working class, really? Grounded in the academic tradition of working-class studies, this course will use an

Society Culture and Thought