Instructor: R. Bulliet

This course presents and at the same time critiques a narrative world history from prehistoric times to 1500. The purpose of the course is to convey an understanding of how this rapidly growing field of history is being approached at three different levels: the narrative textbook level, the theoretical-conceptual level, and through discussion sections, the research level. All students are required to enroll in a weekly discussion section. Graded work for the course consists of two brief (5 page) papers based on activities in discussion sections as well as a take-home midterm and a final examination.

Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor. Examines the evolution of the ideas, institutions and practices associated with social justice in Africa and their relationship to contemporary international human rights movement and focuses on the role of human rights in social change. A number of themes will re-occur throughout the course, notably tensions between norms and reality, cultural diversity, economic and political asymmetries, the role of external actors, and women as rights providers. Countries of special interest include Liberia, Senegal, South African and Tanzania.

Prerequisites: Film W3001 or 3100 Fee: $75. A survey of American TV history, with a focus on dramatic narration related to independent cinema. Structured in three acts–from the “Golden Age” of the 1950s to the dramatic complexity found in recent Cable series–it begins with prestigious writers Rod Serling and Paddy Chayefsky; studies groundbreaking mini-series like “Roots” and “Holocaust”; and explores how shows such as “Hill Street Blues” and “Twin Peaks” laid the groundwork for HBO series including “Oz,” “The Sopranos,” “The Wire,” and “Six Feet Under.” Producing 13-week dramas over the span of years, these programs have developed a sophisticated narrative form, borrowing from as well as informing cinematic storytelling. Discussion Section Required.

Instructor: M. Shapiro

Relying on Charles Sander Peirce’s theory of interpretation in the context of his semiotic, this course develops a common language powerful enough to underwrite modern interdisciplinary studies in the 21st century.It explores three themes in particular: signs and cognition; the analogy between grammar and nature; historical explanation in the humanities and the sciences.

This course provides an introduction to Asian American literature since the mid-nineteenth century, with a focus on the most recent few decades. What does it mean to be Asian or partly Asian in America? Are there historical experiences, cultural expressions, or political positions that give Asian Americans a collective identity, as it is often assumed to be the case? How does the knowledge of their experiences and perspectives enrich our understandings of American culture and U.S.-Asian relations?

We will examine these questions through the lens of literature, prose narratives and poetry in particular. In other words, we will discuss a selected group of literary works so as to uncover the ways in which the most interesting minds among Asian Americans comment on the meanings of race, ethnicity, and culture, as well as their relations to other social issues, in both American and transnational contexts.

Readings may include Maxine Hong Kingston’s China Men, Hisaye Yamamoto’s Seventeen Syllables, Theresa Hak Kyung Cha’s Dictee, Jessica Hagedorn’s Dogeaters, Michael Ondaatje’s In the Skin of a Lion, Karen Tei Yamashita’s Tropic of Orange, Linh Dinh’s Blood and Soap, H. M. Naqvi’s Home Boy, and Todd Shimoda’s OH! A Mystery of ‘mono no aware.

Instructor: G. Okihiro

An introduction to the historical and contemporary ideas and manifestations of race in the U.S.. This course will explore the theoretical perspectives on the nature of race and ethnic relations, the debates around race by neo-conservative, liberal, and left scholars, the pervasiveness of race as a determinant of social, economic, and political standing an policy, media representations of race, and the intersections of race with gender, sexuality, citizenship, and class. Global Core.

Instructor: C. Brown and M. Ngai

This course explores the centrality of colonialism in the making of the modern world, emphasizing cross-cultural and social contact, exchange, and relations of power; dynamics of conquest and resistance; and discourses of civilization, empire, freedom, nationalism, and human rights, from 1500 to 2000. Topics include pre-modern empires; European exploration, contact, and conquest in the new world; Atlantic-world slavery and emancipation; European and Japanese colonialism in Asia, Africa, the Middle East. The course ends with a section on decolonization and post-colonialism in the period after World War II. Intensive reading and discussion of primary documents.

Please note that CPLS V3900 and G4900 are not the same course. An introduction to changing conceptions in the comparative study of literatures and societies, giving special attention to the stakes of interdisciplinary method in comparative scholarship. We will investigate the debates around comparativism in a number of fields, and our discussions will focus on rubrics of inquiry that combine strategies of research, analysis, and argumentation from multiple disciplinary formations: e.g. postcolonial studies, cultural studies, media studies, urban studies, globalization studies, feminism, translation studies. Enrollment is limited and the seminar is designed for grad students working toward a degree in Comparative Literature and Society. Students are expected to have a preliminary familiarity with the discipline in which they wish to do their doctoral work. PLEASE NOTE: This course is required for ICLS graduate students, and priority will be given to these students. Please contact the ICLS office for more information, at (212) 854-4541.

Instructor: B. Tamas

Lecture and discussion. Introduction to some of the major approaches and issues in the contemporary study of politics within nations, including the causes of revolution, the roots of democracy, and the nature of nationalism, through systematic study of politics in selected countries.

Instructor: V. Purdie-Vaughns

Prerequisites: none; some basic knowledge of social psychology is desirable. A comprehensive examination of how culture and diversity shape psychological processes. The class will explore psychological and political underpinnings of culture and diversity, emphasizing social psychological approaches. Topics include culture and social cognition, group and identity formation, psychology of multiculturalism, stereotyping, prejudice, and gender. Applications to real-world phenomena discussed.