| Kommentar |
In this survey course of North American cultural history we will examine the multiplicity of “America,” addressing issues such as regional and national cultures, race/ethnicity, social economic class, gender and sexual orientation while thinking about the formation of identities and societies. The question of what it means to be “American” or “Canadian” demands an exploration of the civic and cultural imagination and of the specific historical circumstances that have shaped that imagination over time. The course is organized around different clusters, each designed to explore a particular topic in North American Cultural Studies. After initial considerations of questions such as “What is America?” and “Are there other Americas?” we will develop our skills of cultural analysis by exploring several important clusters: the social and cultural evolution of the first peoples of the Americas, colonial encounters, the development of myths and ideals of American society, the making of the U.S. and Canadian nations, Hispano/a-American and African-American histories, the history of Asians in the U.S. and Canada, and the history of women. Furthermore, we will look at the emergence of consumer culture and the globalization of American culture.
Readings:
A course reader including theoretical and secondary texts will be made available for purchase.
Course requirements: Written final exam |
