In this course students will examine themes in the history of health in the United States, particularly in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Readings will focus on the intersections between health and environment, gender, race, law, and region. We will consider questions such as what's the impact of environmental change in transforming medical, scientific, and lay understanding and experience of health and illness? What's the role of illness in shaping changing perceptions of the environment? How has race been central to the construction and treatment of disease? How has gender shaped conceptions of and approaches to health? What historical role have issues of gender, race, and class played in the inequitable distribution of pollution and in activist involvement in combating environmental hazards? How has changing food production and culture shaped health? This course assumes no previous coursework in the field, and students with a wide variety of backgrounds and disciplines are encouraged to participate.
Originating in Slavic words for forced labor, the term "robot" evokes for many an image of blocky metallic humanoids beeping their way through a set of tasks. Yet robots also carry the specter of revolt. We tend to fear the automated tools we design to mechanize labor, even as we continue creating more of them. In this class, we will investigate U.S. popular culture's treatment of robots from early cinema's "mechanical men" to the modern controversy over generative AI. Along the way, we will survey U.S. law's responses to the spread of technology, with particular attention to the problems raised by cutting-edge innovations like self-driving cars and AI-generated artwork. We will read fiction by Isaac Asimov, Philip K. Dick, and Naomi Kritzer; analyze films like The Iron Giant and The Stepford Wives; and engage with the work of scholars like Donna Haraway, Dennis Yi Tenen, Scott Selisker, and others. By the end of the course, students will develop a more nuanced understanding of what it means to fear robots and what that fear obscures about them (and us).
This course is an introduction to the anthropological subfield of archaeology, its theories and methods, and the political and social issues that arise when we study human pasts. The course has three main components. First, we look at the history of the discipline, its theoretical underpinnings, and its practical applications. Next, we learn about archaeological methods, including how archaeologists create research designs, discover and excavate sites, and analyze artifacts and features. Last, we explore how archaeology confronts and deals with contemporary issues critical to the archaeological project and the communities that archaeologists engage with: e.g. heritage preservation and Indigenous/community rights, Black lives and Black histories, feminist archaeology and gender equality. Throughout the course, students will learn about archaeological case studies from around the globe and from a variety of historical periods.
How do Anthropologists understand and investigate the social and cultural contexts of health and illness? This course will examine the diverse ways in which humans use cultural resources to cope with pain, illness, suffering and healing in diverse cultural contexts. In addition, we will analyze various kinds of medical practices as cultural systems, examining how disease, health, body, and mind are socially constructed, how these constructions articulate with human biology, and vice versa. The course will provide an introduction to the major theoretical frameworks that guide anthropological approaches to studying human health-related behavior. Theory will be combined with case studies from a number of societies, from India, Japan, Brazil, and Haiti to the U.S. and Canada, enabling students to identify similarities across seemingly disparate cultural systems, while at the same time demonstrating the ways in which American health behaviors and practices are socially embedded and culturally specific. The course will emphasize the overall social, political, and economic contexts in which health behavior and health systems are shaped, and within which they must be understood.
Anthro 326 Archaeologies of Sustainability and Collapse
This course is a seminar that uses archaeological case studies from the past to interrogate human-environment relationships across time and space, including the present and the future. The emphasis here will not be on learning environmental archaeology methods. Instead, we will be focusing on how archaeologists think about key environmental concepts, including climate change, sustainability, and resilience. We will discuss examples of "failure" and "success" in the long history of human-environment interactions, and see if there's room for nuance along the way. We will also use this course as an opportunity to consider how archaeology can contribute to current environmental sustainability and environmental justice efforts. Prior coursework in archaeology is not required to appreciate this class or do well, but would be helpful.
Anthro 357 Biocultural Perspectives on Water Insecurity
The first objective of this course is to introduce students to the many ways that water impacts humans around the world. We will discuss what the international recommendations for safely managed water are and the health and social consequences of water insecurity. The second objective is to explore why there is such variety in water insecurity worldwide. Influences on access to water will be broadly considered; we will draw on literature in global health, ethnography, the life sciences, and public policy. These discussions will be guided by the socio-ecological framework, in which dimensions ranging from the individual to the geopolitical are considered. The third objective is to develop critical thinking and writing abilities to reflect on the multi-dimensional causes and consequences of water insecurity and the appropriateness of potential solutions. This will be accomplished through readings and documentaries that we have lovingly selected, writing weekly reflection pieces, preparing a short in-class presentation on recent media, and writing an OpEd.
This class is an introduction to political ecology, a multidisciplinary body of theory and research that analyzes the environmental articulations of political, economic, and social difference and inequality. The key concepts, debates, and approaches in this field address two main questions: (1) How do humans' interactions with the environment shape power and politics? (2) How do power and politics shape humans' interactions with the environment? These questions are critical to understanding and addressing the current issues of climate change, neoliberal capitalism, and environmental justice. Topics discussed in this class will include environmental scarcity and degradation, sustainability, resilience and conservation. Readings will come from a variety of disciplines within the social sciences and humanities. Case studies will range from the historical to the present-day. No prior background in the environmental sciences is needed to appreciate and engage in this course.
Anthro 390-0-23 Methods in Global Hlth and Antho: Turning Y
This class will provide rigorous guidance on how one moves through the scientific process, from articulating scientific questions to answering and presenting them in a way that your audience can really relate to. We will do this using data from a large dataset—the Gallup World Poll. Specific skills to be developed include human subjects training, formal literature review, hypothesis generation, development of analytic plans, performing descriptive statistics, creation of figures and tables, writing up results, scientific poster creation, and oral presentation of results. This course will be a terrific foundation for writing scientific manuscripts, theses, and dissertations.
The racialization of Indigenous polities in North America has been a key mechanism for undermining Indigenous sovereignty and facilitating settler colonialism. In analytically foregrounding Indigenous sovereignty, this course examines how race has been imposed upon Indigenous peoples and nations so settlers could dispossess them of their lands and their political authority over those lands. Through this course, we will consider how US anthropology contributed to the development of the notion of indigeneity-as-race in North America, the function of Indigenous racialization, and how Indigenous communities have grappled with their racialization throughout time and into the present.
"The risk of nuclear war is increasing, from North Korea's nuclear program to Russia's threat to use tactical nuclear weapons in its war with Ukraine. The nuclear arms race is also gaining momentum, as evidenced by China's growing nuclear arsenal and the U.S. "nuclear modernization" program. While the use of nuclear weapons would clearly threaten humanity and the entire planet, the development, maintenance, and possession of nuclear weapons, from uranium mining to nuclear waste disposal, has profound economic and environmental consequences, especially for marginalized populations. This advanced course in the anthropology of peace examines the role of cities - city leaders and city residents - in the politics of nuclear weapons. Cities have often been considered targets for nuclear attack, and in the 1950s, U.S. city residents routinely participated in civil defense drills. Since the 1960s, city leaders and a wide range of citizens have also been active in anti-nuclear activism. The UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which entered into force in January 2021, itself the result of global civil society efforts, has reinvigorated grassroots efforts to promote nuclear disarmament. In the U.S., more than 70 municipalities, including Boston, Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, have recently passed resolutions urging the federal government to support the TPNW. These resolutions have highlighted the connections between global nuclear security and critical local, national, and regional issues such as racism, gender inequality, economic inequality, environmental crisis, and memories of past violence. This course considers the potential implications of these city-level actions and conversations for national nuclear policy debates.
Anthro 390-0-38 Before Eco-Punks and Cottagecore: The Archaeology
"Whether foraging, farming, or clear cutting, this course explores people's relationships with the natural world. With a heavy emphasis on historical and Indigenous perspectives, students can look forward to surveying alternative perceptions of the environment using archaeological and ecological data. All humans require the environment to survive, but their cultural attitudes and survival methods vary widely. Through case studies, students will learn to recognize a spectrum of human-environmental relationships from what people leave behind. Course content will include lectures, in-class activities, assigned articles, and class discussions. No previous experience in archaeology is required."
This course aims to extend critiques of property through close readings and discussions of foundational and contemporary readings. We especially attend to the workings of demarcation: how lines get drawn on bodies and things in ways that make property possible. Entities ranging from land to airwaves to genes can become property once they are delimited and defined as discrete objects. We will investigate how processes of demarcation produce material objects, such as land, while simultaneously producing specific kinds of (often racialized, gendered, sexual, and classed) subjects, as lines are drawn marking and de-marking material and social boundaries, objects in landscapes, legal interests and ownability, human and more-than-human subjects, and spaces of inhabitation and violence. We further examine the varying frameworks and concepts scholars deploy to address the contemporary decolonial and environmental stakes of property, the wide array of ethnographic contexts for research, and possible ways forward considering current and longstanding challenges.
Art History 232 Intro to History of Architecture: 1400 to Present
How does the built environment shape social meaning and reflect historical change? In this introductory-level course, we will survey the human designed environment across the globe, from 1400 to the present day. Through in-depth analysis of buildings, cities, landscapes, and interiors, we will observe how spatial environments are created and invested with meaning. From Tenochtitlan, riverine capital of the Aztec empire, to the Forbidden City in Beijing and the Palazzo Medici in Florence, from the Palace of Rudolf Manga Bell in Douala to the Colonial Office of the Bank of London, and from Lina Bo Bardi's Glass House in São Paulo to David Adjaye's National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., this course will introduce students to the changing technologies, materials, uses, and aesthetics that have helped define architecture's modernity across time and geographies. Through detailed visual analysis and the study of primary source documents, students will become familiar with architectural terminology and historical techniques of architectural visualization. Through written exercises and guided slow looking, students will learn how to critically analyze and historically interpret the built environment at various scales.
Art History 368 Transnational Avant-Gardes: Imagining the Future
This course explores the movement of future-oriented art practices across the overlapping geopolitical spaces of modernity, 1900-1968. We focus on five paradigms that sought to place art in the position of the vanguard of social and political change. We engage these movements and their use and claims of art and architecture as "avant-garde" forces against established conventions. We examine Futurism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism, and Socialist Realism, tracing their formations and transformations across multiple geographies, including the Soviet Union, the Middle East, North Africa, Latin America, India, China, Japan, and elsewhere. We will engage these practices first from a historical perspective, examining the broad spectrum of new and critical art that emerged in the twentieth century. Our historical lens will focus on the transnational movement and connectivity of people and ideas, taking into consideration how the global economy of an unequal distribution of resources contributed to these practices. Secondly, and interconnected to these historical and economic shifts, we will adopt a historiographic perspective, questioning how the avant-garde has been depicted and acclaimed—assessed for meaning—for historians, artists, and collectives during various periods of transformation and resistance (and even revolution). Rather than drawing a strict division between the historical and so-called "neo" avant-garde movements, our aim is to recognize the continued exchanges and interplays between the avant-garde projects that preceded World War II and those that emerged after. This trans-temporal line of inquiry allows us to contemplate the continuation of avant-garde practices as artists navigated new contradictions and contexts in the ostensibly bipolar Cold War order.
This course provides students with an in-depth understanding of major developments in architectural, urban, and landscape history, from 1750 to 1890. Charting a period of significant change that animated architectural discourse and practice, students will explore the highly innovative and experimental ways in which key architects and planners responded to the challenges of a rapidly changing and globalizing world and to the possibilities introduced by new technologies and materials. While this course focuses on developments that took place within the European and North American frame, they are situated in relation to global processes including trade, imperialism, nationalism, migration, and industrialization. Each lecture is organized around defining transformations in architectural culture during this period: We will explore how the era of revolutions in the late 18th and early 19th centuries expanded the role of architecture in the creation of new types of public and political space; how industrial production and prefabrication gave rise to radically new architectural vocabularies and catalyzed debates about national styles and aesthetic and environmental "character"; and how new housing, labor, and urban reform movements, such as utopian socialism, offered visionary spatial strategies in pursuit of an elusive social equality. This course prioritizes discussion and critical reflection and emphasizes the study of primary sources.
Techno-Orientalism names a variant of Orientalism that associates Asians with a technological future. This seminar will explore how Techno-Orientalist tropes are used by, played with, and rewritten by Asian American authors. We will study how twentieth-century and contemporary issues of technology, globalization, and financial speculation collide with a history of yellow peril and Asian Invasion discourse, as well as how these tensions manifest in figures and tropes such as robots, aliens, and pandemics. Texts include poetry, novels, short stories, comics, and film.
Chem 105-7-01 Science and the Scientist: The Essence and Impact
In this seminar, we will delve into the world of chemistry research, exploring not only the processes that unfold within the laboratory but also the key decision-makers driving innovation. Through engaging readings, discussions, and presentations, you will have the opportunity to meet some of the chemists at Northwestern who illuminate their methodologies in tackling significant questions about our world. This course also emphasizes the importance of effective scientific communication. Whether articulating the nuanced technicalities of an experiment to peers or elucidating the broader implications of a study to the public, adept communication is indispensable for scientists. You will sharpen your communication skills, tailoring scientific narratives to suit diverse audiences and to achieve various objectives.
In this course, students will gain a solid understanding of the science, economics, and more importantly the environmental impact associated with various technologies, including, but not limited to natural gas, nuclear, wind, etc. Climate change and the potential impact and mitigation will be considered throughout the course.
We will study the theory and practice of Greek and Roman medicine, looking at ancient texts in translation, ancient artifacts and materials, and some modern scholarship. As a term project, students will learn to think like ancient physicians, diagnosing and prescribing treatments for patients from the Hippocratic case studies. During class discussion, we will engage critically with primary sources and examine the differences between ancient and modern science from a balanced historical perspective. We will also investigate the social, cultural, and economic forces that have affected the development of western medicine throughout its history.
This course will explore the history of European and Near Eastern astronomy from the 7th century BCE to the 6th century CE. Students will learn the fundamentals of the geocentric model, ancient methods of observation, and traditions of cosmology. We will study the history of time-reckoning and calendar-making, as well as portrayals of astronomy and celestial phenomena in myth and literature. In addition to reading ancient texts, students will also make their own observations using models of ancient instruments and the methods of ancient astronomers.
This class will take a look at the life and work of the groundbreaking Viennese psychologist Sigmund Freud from a comparative and interdisciplinary angle. Almost 80 years after his death, Freud's legacy continues to be controversial: some claim that his theories are no longer relevant in the light of new research, whereas others defend his theories and/or expand upon the implications and influence of his ideas, in the realm not only of psychology, medicine, and neuroscience, but also in the fields of sociology, cultural studies, philosophy, literary studies, criminal justice, queer studies, women's studies, communications, and many more. What is certain, however, is that, one way or another, Freud's theories and ideas have marked the world for all time. This class will read fundamental texts from Freud's body of work in dialogue with texts by Freud's near and distant predecessors and followers, both to situate Freud in his historical and cultural context, and to think through the many different kinds of questions that Freud's work addresses.
Comp Lit 302-0-1 Intersections between Literature and Mathematics
Literature and mathematic, though often seen as at opposite ends of the "liberal arts"— have over the course of millennia each enriched the other in a variety of ways. This class is designed for students to explore the connection between these two forms of writing, thinking, and analyzing the world—whether the world be the "real" one or one discovered through the exercise of imagination and logical reasoning. The principal requirement for the class is a final project that students propose and develop in consultation with the professor. The course is broken into three modules. The frist considers certain poetic genres and individual poems whose mathematical dimensions are an essential element of their meaning. The second revolved around the (short) "fictions" of Jorge Luis Borges. The third involves three portraits of the mathematician: those by Robert Musil, Leonard Michaels, and Alice Munro. The course is taught in English; those who know German and/or Spanish are encouraged to read the stories in the original.
In this seminar, we will look into the many different facets of the economics of gender. We will learn about economic decisions that individuals and households face from a unique gender perspective and ask ourselves: do women and men behave differently in economic circumstances? The topics we will cover include, among others: the status of women around the world, education, marriage, fertility, labor supply, bargaining power, and discrimination. For each topic, we will study concrete examples emanating from all over the world. Students will learn to use a wide variety of academic resources (including empirical research articles, ethnographic descriptions, and popular press books) and write different papers, including policy recommendations, multimodal essays, argument essays, and research papers.
This course applies the theoretical and empirical tools of microeconomics to the study of healthcare markets. We will cover topics such as the production and measurement of health, the provision and design of health insurance, the causes and consequences of provider behavior, and competition in healthcare markets. Special attention will be given to recent healthcare policy debates in the United States and the impacts of government regulations on healthcare.
This class will help students understand the key economic forces that have shaped the US health care and health insurance industry. What role do the particularities of health care and health insurance as economic goods play in explaining the size and growth rate of the health care sector? What's the effect of private incentives, adverse selection, moral hazard, and regulation? What's the effect of different organizational structures of health care provision? What can we learn from comparing the US health care / health insurance system to other countries' systems? Students will learn that these issues are important in the current public policy discussion.
In 1860, the population of the US was 30 million; by 2010 it was over 300 million. US families in 1860 had an average of 5 children; by 1940 that number was 2. In 1900, 1-in-5 people died before age 5; by 1980, that number was less than 1-in-50. How did these changes occur? How do we measure them? How did these changes affect US society? In this course, we will examine the demographic history of the US from after the Civil War to the mid 20th century. Students will learn core demographic concepts and measures, like fertility and mortality rates. They will explore the demographic patterns and changes in the United States. They will examine leading theories for fertility and mortality decline and explore the role of immigration in US history. Students will learn to analyze publicly available census microdata from IPUMS, culminating in an independent research project.
Econ 323-2-20 Enconomic History of the United States 1865-Present
The course examines the economic development of the United States since the Civil War to the present. It focuses on both long-term economic trends (like technological advance and industrialization) and the economic causes and consequences of particular events (like the Great Depression).
This course examines economic development over the long-run, with a focus on the transition to modern economic growth in the Western world. Topics include Malthusian stagnation, the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, the demographic transition, and globalization and the great divergence. Along the way, we will discuss long-run changes in inequality, technology, and labor force participation, as well as the role of institutions in economic development, and the interaction between economic conditions and political power. Much of the class will be focused around analyzing recent research on these topics. The class will also involve a writing component aimed at improving students' ability to write critically and concisely about economic topics.
This course examines economic development over the long-run, with a focus on the transition to modern economic growth in the Western world. Topics include Malthusian stagnation, the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, the demographic transition, and globalization and the great divergence. Along the way, we will discuss long-run changes in inequality, technology, and labor force participation, as well as the role of institutions in economic development, and the interaction between economic conditions and political power. Much of the class will be focused around analyzing recent research on these topics. The class will also involve a writing component aimed at improving students' ability to write critically and concisely about economic topics.
The goal of this course is to understand the functioning and regulation of energy markets. The energy sector is a vital input to the economy. It is often highly concentrated, generating concerns about competition, and a big emitter of greenhouse gases and other pollutants, generating concerns about the environment. As a consequence, the energy sector is subject to substantial economic and environmental regulation. We will use economic theory and empirical evidence to analyze the real-world operation of electricity, oil, and natural gas markets. These tools will allow us to critically understand how these markets are regulated. We will examine policies in a range of current topics. For example: Why has the performance of electricity markets been debated? Who pays the bill of carbon regulation? What are the pros and cons of renewable energy policies? What are the prospects for energy efficiency improvements? The course will draw upon material taught in Economics 310-1, 310-2, and 281, with the tools from Econ 310-1 and 281 being absolutely essential.
English 101-7-23 Bioinsecurities: Race and Colonialism in Global South
This reading-intensive first year seminar will consider how colonialism and contagion together produce racialization in science fiction. In the year of the pandemic, European nations voted for strict vaccine export control measures, effectively slowing down access to medications for the Global South. Phrases like "vaccine nationalism" as well as "vaccine passports" have become commonplace. This twilight zone of deepening crises, and the imperial paranoid imaginary of what Neel Ahuja calls "bioinsecurities," have long been represented by science fiction authors. Keeping a firm eye on epidemiology, race, and imperialism, this course charts a path along genre-bending, speculative fictions that imagine contagion and infection not just as disease but as racialized others from the late-nineteenth to the early twenty-first century. Contagion emerges not just as a moral panic or embodied paranoia about infection, but as a method of relationality that draws tightly controlled, governmentalized worlds around raced and differentiated bodies. We will think about how these fictional netherworlds produce new subjectivities of life, death, and living death. Alongside science fictional as well as speculative novels, spanning postcolonial, British as well as multiethnic US writing, we will also watch films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Night of the Living Dead, District 9, Arrival.
Is the American dream only a white dream, even a fantasy? Jordan Peele's Oscar-winning 2017 horror film Get Out, in which a white liberal family systematically transplants the brains of their aging family members into the bodies of Black people, satirizes the postracial fantasy of colorblindness. White wealth and flourishing (and eternal youth) are based on a horrifying techno-fix: the exploitation and extraction of Black life, the production of a living nightmare. Peele's film raises unsettling questions about the American conception of race—questions with deep histories—which this class aims to explore: How has race been mobilized as a structure of white supremacist social control? What has racialization meant for those being racialized? Centralizing the work of Black and Indigenous thinkers, our goal will be to interrogate what race has meant in American culture over time. We will read a selection of excerpts and short texts from the 18th and 19th centuries to learn about the development of "race science" as a logic underpinning violently imposed social hierarchies. In tandem with this material, we will analyze Peele's film and two contemporary novels with historical roots: Colson Whitehead's The Nickel Boys (2019), the story of a young Black man in a "reform school" in 1960s Florida, and Tommy Orange's Wandering Stars (2024), which traces the experience of two Indigenous boys at the Carlisle Indian School, an institution designed to destroy Native culture. In doing so, we will aim to investigate the question: What are our contemporary inheritances of these histories?
What are the politics of driving a car? What social choices do we make when we charge our phones? Are there philosophical and historical undertones to productivity vlogs on youtube? Even as these day-to-day acts of consumption might seem unrelated to each other, they are all connected by one critical concept: Energy. This course explores the social, political, and literary valences of energy to unearth the term's numerous and vastly divergent meanings. Over the quarter, we'll read texts ranging from Victorian novels to present day science fiction, tracking different understandings of energy that blur the line between scientific and imaginative ways of thinking. In our class discussions we'll enquire how literary authors use energy as a metaphor to name a variety of social dynamics like race, gender, class, empire, nature, and god. Reading literary texts alongside a social history of science, we'll use short writing tasks and class presentations to ask: how does the science of energy make its way through literature into our imaginations about the world? We will spend time with literary artefacts and study them with the premise that energy is both a force materially vital to life on earth and a vast imaginative resource for the worlds and societies we seek to build. Through a grading contract that rewards your labor and treats your energies as inherently valuable, we will focus on writing process, time management, and improvement over the course of the quarter.
Nature is one of humanity's most elastic concepts. Sometimes it seems to offer a healing refuge, but sometimes it seems to threaten -- or even contradict -- human survival. Are we part of nature, or do we encounter it? Is human society as natural as the pack or pod, or a defense against "the laws of nature"? Both human and literary history have been defined by the stories we tell about the environment; our common future will be shaped the same way. What new forms of attention might address the destabilized ecologies on which we now know we depend? Tracking environmental writing from the ancient Greeks to the Anthropocene, this course offers a deep dive into the storied concept of "nature" and the rise of ecological thought and environmental literature. Philosophical reflection began by wondering whether something dystopian separates humanity from the rest of the cosmos. Longstanding ideas of a utopian "green world" have offered an escape from the greyness of everyday life and a corrective to the corruptions of the (so-called) "real world." Meanwhile, industrial and technoscientific attempts to "master" the earth have scorched it instead, extinguishing countless species and toxifying land, water, air, and our bodies too - proving once and for all that we are a continuous part of the world. Classic literary concerns like close observation, perception, point-of-view, justice, ethics, belonging, and the wild or unknown frontier invariably draw on environmental content. And the way we represent the natural world, in turn, can be as consequential as scientific advances in the great project of preserving our planet.
Embark on a journey through time and space as we trace the genesis of science fiction—from the literary landscapes of the Age of Exploration (where colonial ambitions collide with speculative imagination), to the early science fiction television and film productions of the Space Age, to our own contemporary moment with Liu Cixin's groundbreaking novel "Three Body Problem" and its recent Netflix adaptation. Through close examination of these diverse texts and visual media, we will unravel the threads that connect past and present, exploring how science fiction grapples with the enduring anxieties of exploration, discovery, and power. What can the speculative visions of yesteryear teach us about our contemporary world? How do they inform our understanding of the political landscapes of the past, present, and future?
How do we "capture" nonhuman phenomena within literary forms and genres that are designed (mainly) by humans? As an introduction to critical methods in textual studies, our seminar will think about how representation works across species and how it can grasp the relationship between animate creatures and their elemental surroundings. These habitats will range from literal fields, forests, skies, and oceans to the wily conceptual terrain of "Nature" itself. By focusing on human representations of animals and the nonhuman more broadly, this seminar delves into the question of how literary re-presentations of the natural world work - this is both a practical and a philosophical question. To address it, we'll analyze the raw materials and core resources of the written word: close observation and description; perspective, point-of-view, and matters of voice; anthropomorphizing and/or animalizing imagery; and the mind-bendingly disparate frameworks of narrative, human, evolutionary, and planetary time. In return, our readings will also trouble assumptions about how exclusively "human" we humans ever really are when we write.
More than once, early modern England had to learn how that their world was bigger than they had known—adding after 1492 the Americas, and after Galileo, new worlds in the heavens. Often these realms were understood to be new worlds beside the more familiar one, part of it and yet somehow apart from it as well. As their worlds widened and multiplied, early modern English writers and thinkers learned to invent new worlds of their own, fairy realms, enchanted forests, kingdoms of darkness, dreamlike polities, imagined worlds through which they could offer critique of their own, or propose and explore what seemed impossible in it. Despite usually being avowed as fictions, these speculative worlds claimed value, seriousness, and even kinds of truth through the extravagance of their fantasies, while also asserting their pleasurableness and recreativity. In this class we will explore some of these worlds of imagination and how and why early modern writers crafted them.
This seminar will work across Shakespeare's genres (comedies, tragedies, and tragicomic hybrids), reading representative plays that show Shakespeare's preoccupation with humanity's cosmic place and his assessment of an ambivalent environmental situation for human beings. For critical context, shorter readings - from Genesis to the Anthropocene - will fuel our discussion. The course will explore Shakespeare's troubled sense that humankind, alone among all creaturely kinds, does not quite "belong" to nature. We'll assess how his understanding of "Nature" and our relation to it changes over time and how it varies in the distinct ecologies of tragedy and comedy. The critical concept of Shakespearean "green worlds" first arose to describe the retreats into nature (and away from civilized society) that typically occur in the comedies. In Shakespearean comedy, a removal to the green world (getting ourselves "back to Nature") counteracts one or another social ill, which in turn enables a rebalanced, healthier socio-political life to be restored. But how does this traditional and sometimes pastoral sense of a natural equilibrium hold up in a closer reading of the plays, especially if we consider comedies and tragedies together? Against what, exactly, is the human social order defined and established, and from what threatening "laws of nature" is it supposed to defend us? How does our grasp of more contemporary human impacts on the environment illuminate Shakespeare's premodern vision of human existence as a calamity of exposure - to both hard weather and our own worst instincts? This inquiry into Shakespeare's environmental vision will, finally, tell us something about the longer philosophical history of wondering what it means to be human.
The twentieth century has been called "the lethal century," more violent than any previous era. Contested though that claim may be, industrial capitalism, rival imperialisms, and rapid technological development converged to fuel interlocking civil, international, colonial, racial, and global conflicts, pressed by escalating machine warfare beyond the limiting human. Landmark literary works of the period confront such conflicts in many forms and on many fronts, from the racialized economic and cultural violence of European empires in Ireland, Africa, and India to genocide and the two world wars to decolonization and its vicissitudes to contemporary contests and "clashes" between the values of a declining imperial "west" and those of various rising "non-wests"--all under the globalizing domination of technological modernity. In the spirit of what Edward Said calls "worldly," or multicentric, critical practices, we'll read selected works by Kipling, Conrad, Forster, Yeats, Pound, Eliot, Joyce, Woolf, Mansfield, Rhys, and postimperial writers against these contexts—and we'll find that "difficult" modernist texts become stunningly legible in light of historical conditions that are still very much with us.
English 374 Studies in Native American and Indigenous Literatures
This course is designed in partnership with the Block Museum's 2025 exhibit of Indigenous art entitled "Woven Being." Building on the exhibit's attention to the "interwovenness of Indigenous art, materials, and time in the Chicago region," the course will place literatures and visual art from/about the Chicago region and Great Lakes in conversation to ask the following questions: what are the relations between Indigenous literatures and visual arts? How do different literary and visual forms weave materials, stories, and beings together? Anchored by four visual artists collaborating with the Block—Andrea Carlson (Grand Portage Ojibwe), Kelly Church (Pottawatomi/Ottawa/Ojibwe), Nora Lloyd (Ojibwe), and Jason Wesaw (Pokagon Band of Potawatomi)—the course places these artists' work in conversation with literatures by Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, Susan Power, Simon Pokagon, and more. Students will gain skills in art historical and literary research practices, exhibition design, archival research, the transcription and interpretation of historical materials, and more. Substantial class time will be spent at the Block engaging with the exhibit and with featured artists.
The United States is set to become a majority minority country by 2045. What are the many promises—and what are the many pitfalls, of interracial encounters, and what do they reveal about the country writ large? How do minority writers understand and narrate each other? This class brings contemporary African American, Native American, Latinx, and Asian American literature into relation with a focus on interracial dynamics. By examining complex topics from Black/Asian conflict during the 1992 LA Riots to the shared border migrations of indigenous and Latinx subjects, we will develop an analytical framework attuned to how American racial identity has been differentially and unevenly constructed through history, culture, and politics. A central goal of the course is decentering whiteness as the primary locus of literary analysis, to allow for more nuanced interpretations of topics such as U.S. imperialism, mixed race identity, activism, labor history, and immigration. In the process, we will familiarize ourselves with the richness and diversity of multiethnic American literature by considering a variety of genres, including poetry, novels, short stories, and film.
The World Health Organization declared the end of the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, 2023—three years and change after it began. Most of us continue to experience the aftermath of the pandemic in various ways.* Primary and secondary school students continue to lag behind grade level by as much as nine months; commercial zones in major urban areas remain empty as remote working arrangements persist; millions of families grieve for lives lost to the novel coronavirus; and millions more contend with the effects of long COVID. In short, even as the epidemiological threat of the SARS-COV-2 virus has waned, the sociocultural impact of this worldwide crisis has just begun to come into focus. Having spent three years in involuntary training as amateur epidemiologists, we can now turn to the humanistic disciplines—which analyze the processes and products of human culture—to take stock of what this experience has meant for our values, our outlook, our relationships, and our culture. In that spirit, this course will investigate plague literature over the longue durée—nearly seven centuries, from 1348 C.E.-2023 C.E.—to explore the diversity of human experience in relation to plague and pestilence as represented in the Western/Anglophone canon.** Guiding questions will include: how have different groups of people searched for answers about the mechanisms and the meanings of plague (in medicine, in religion, in moral philosophy)? how have cultures responded to death rates so high that they defy traditional rituals of mourning and memorialization? what underlying prejudices, suspicions, and other social ills tend to be activated by pandemics, and to what effect? what role does literature play in helping us to formulate, and sometimes to answer, these questions and others? Course readings are divided into three units: medieval and early modern Europe, from Boccaccio to Daniel Dafoe; literature of the U.S. AIDS epidemic, including Tony Kushner and Sapphire; and a final unit on contemporary literature, featuring presentiments of and responses to COVID-19 from Ling Ma, Carmen María Machado, and Michael Cunningham. Assignments will include collective annotations on Canvas, podcast episodes (produced in small groups), Canvas Discussions, and a final essay or creative project.
*As well as other crises—political, financial, moral, ethical, educational, racial, economic, and so on—but there are only ten weeks in the quarter. **The primary sources for this course were almost all composed in English; those originally composed in another language have been translated so widely as to occupy space in the Anglophone canon despite their origins in another linguistic tradition.
The field of disability studies grew out of the rights-based activism that led, in the United States, to the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. Yet, as disability theorists have observed, "western" literature has long been obsessed with disability as metaphor, character trait, and plot device. This course will serve as an introduction to the application of disability studies in literature. We will explore a range of questions: how do we approach the representation of disability in texts by non-disabled authors? How do we differentiate (or should we?) between disability and chronic illness, or between physical and mental disabilities? Can literary representation operate as activism? How do we parse the gap between disability as metaphor and lived experience? What does literature offer disability studies, and why should disability studies be a core method for studying literature? Readings will be divided between theoretical texts and primary sources. Students will learn to grapple with complex sociocultural and literary analysis, as well as to make space for their own primary source readings.
English 381-0-20 Underlying Conditions: Race, Health, Medicine
Race is socially constructed, but how is it medically constructed? This seminar surveys Black, Latinx, Asian, and Indigenous American literary and cultural production to question how "healthy" bodies in the United States are constituted, and in turn, what these racialized processes reveal about the essential role of race in producing a body politic. Concomitantly, we will also read scholarship from ethnic studies that charts racialized comorbidities, pre-existing conditions, and environmental racism, as well as work that expands our understanding of race's imbrications with medical paradigms such as eugenics, genetics, informed consent, reproductive rights, disability, mental illness, and, of course, pandemics.
This course considers the relationships between systems of human injustice and environmental issues—including industrial disasters, ocean acidification, and resource extraction. We examine environmental justice writing and artwork with a transnational, interconnected approach. For example, we ask how the Cameroonian-American writer Imbolo Mbue's depiction of pipeline spills in the fictional town of Kosawa connects to Native American resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline. We link a poem documenting silicosis in the lungs of West Virginian coal miners to a novel portraying the aftermath of the Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal, India. We compare a nonfiction account of Kenyan women resisting deforestation and an iPhone app reclaiming public access along the Malibu coast. We explore questions of voice, genre, and narrative, cataloguing the strategies writers and artists use to reach a global audience.
Our climate is rapidly changing. Rising sea levels and increasing ocean acidity, higher temperatures, more droughts, melting glaciers, wilder weather patterns, and mounting environmental disasters mean that climate change is increasingly visible in our daily lives. What role does human society play in these changes, and what consequences does society suffer as these changes occur? This course is an introduction to environmental sociology during which we will employ an intersectional, sociological perspective to look beyond the scientific basis for environmental problems to understand the social roots of environmental issues. We will cover a variety of topics in environmental sociology, including how actors such as corporations, the media, and social movements impact public opinion and environmental issues. Further, we will critically examine the gendered, racial, and socioeconomic production of disparate environmental risks. A primary, central focus of this sociology course is environmental inequality, and students engage with a wide range of theories to examine environmental issues of their own choosing. This is not a public policy course.
Envr Pol and Culture 337 Hazard, Disaster and Society
This course examines how socioeconomic and environmental factors work together to cause hazards and disasters in human society. In this course we learn the main concepts about disaster such as preparedness, vulnerability, resilience, response, mitigation, etc. We learn that a disaster does not have the same effect on everyone (all groups of people), and factors of social inequality such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender, make people more vulnerable to impacts of disasters. Also, this course, with an interdisciplinary perspective, analyzes disasters in the global North and South. This is a discussion-intensive course for advanced undergrad students. The classes are the student-centered with an emphasis on collaborative learning. The class meetings will consist of lecture, discussion, presentations, teamwork, activities, video/audio materials and projects.
Envr Pol and Culture 383 Environmental Anthropology
Environmental anthropology is a more recent outgrowth of ecological anthropology, which emerged in the 1960s and 70s as a quantitative focus on systemic human-environment relationships, especially as they pertain to patterns of social change and adaptation. Environmental anthropology became more prominent in the 1980s, and is typically characterized by qualitative research on communities' engagements with contemporary environmental issues. Environmental anthropology has greater commitments to advocacy, critique, and application than ecological anthropology, but as we'll see in this course, the proliferation of "new ecologies" (as opposed to "new environmentalisms") denotes the continued synergy between ecological and environmental anthropologies. This course is divided into two parts. Part I will provide an historical overview of the development of environmental anthropology. We will cover some of the most influential research trends in the field: environmental determinism, cultural ecology, systems ecology, ethnoecology, historical ecology, political ecology, ecofeminisms, and interspecies studies. Part II will then pivot to the application of environmental anthropology knowledge to some of the most pressing environmental issues facing the contemporary world: population pressure, capitalist consumption, biodiversity conservation, sustainable land use, climate change, and environmental justice.
Envr Pol and Culture 390-0-23 International Wildlife Law and Policy
Many scientists and policymakers believe that we are on the cusp of the world's sixth great extinction spasm, driven almost entirely by anthropogenic factors, including habitat destruction, unsustainable trade, the introduction of invasive species, and the looming specter of climate change. This course explores the role of international law in addressing the biodiversity crisis and efforts to protect wildlife species. An ancillary objective is to provide students with a foundation in international law, including skills in analyzing treaty provisions.
Envr Pol and Culture 390-0-24 Climate Geoengineering
Climate change is the keystone environmental issue of this generation, and most likely for many generations to come. While the world community and individual countries have formulated policies to address climate change, these policies are almost universally recognized as being wholly inadequate to effectuate the objective of the Paris Agreement to hold global temperatures to well below 2ºC above pre-industrial levels, and to pursue efforts to limit increases to 1.5ºC. Indeed, it has become increasingly obvious that achievement of Paris temperature objectives will require both aggressive emission reduction initiatives and large-scale deployment of carbon dioxide removal/negative emissions technologies and processes (CDR), sometimes also referred to as a major sub-category of climate geoengineering. Moreover, many believe that we will also need to deploy solar radiation management approaches, which seek to reduce the amount of incoming solar radiation, to buy us time as we decarbonize the world economy.
This senior seminar delves into the cultural, social, and political dimensions of the AIDS crisis in France, with a focus on public health, activism, and artistic responses. Through the works of writers and filmmakers such as Hervé Guibert, Cyril Collard and Guillaume Dustan, students will explore the ways in which AIDS reshaped French culture. The course also examines the role of activist groups like ACT UP-Paris and the contributions of scientists like Luc Montagnier and Françoise Barré-Sinoussi. As a research-focused seminar, students will be introduced to research methodologies and guided through the process of writing a research paper, developing critical analysis and academic writing skills in the context of AIDS and its cultural legacy in France.
This course introduces students to pressing disease and health care problems worldwide and examines efforts currently underway to address them. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the course identifies the main actors, institutions, practices and forms of knowledge production characteristic of what we call "global health" today, and explores the environmental, social, political and economic factors that shape patterns and experiences of illness and healthcare across societies. We will scrutinize the value systems underpinning specific paradigms in the policy and science of global health practice, and place present-day developments in historical perspective. As an introductory course on global health, the class delves into comparative health systems, including comparative health systems in high- and low-income countries. Key topics will include: policies and approaches to global health, key actors in global health, comparative health systems, structural violence, gender and reproductive health, chronic and communicable diseases, politics of global health research and evidence, and the ethics of global health equity.
This course introduces students to pressing disease and health care problems worldwide (including in the USA) and examines efforts currently underway to address them. Taking an interdisciplinary approach drawing on the social sciences and global/public health, the course identifies the main actors, institutions, practices and forms of knowledge production characteristic of what we call "global health" today, exploring the environmental, social, political and economic factors shaping patterns and experiences of illness and healthcare across societies. We will scrutinize the value systems that underpin specific paradigms in the policy and science of global health practice, and place present-day developments in historical perspective. As an introductory course on global health, the class delves into comparative health systems, including in high- and low-income countries. Key topics will include: policies and approaches to global health, key actors in global health, comparative health systems, structural violence, gender and reproductive health, chronic and communicable diseases (including pandemics), politics of global health research and evidence, and the ethics of global health equity.
This course introduces students to pressing disease and health care problems worldwide and examines efforts currently underway to address them. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the course identifies the main actors, institutions, practices and forms of knowledge production characteristic of what we call "global health" today, and explores the environmental, social, political and economic factors that shape patterns and experiences of illness and healthcare across societies. We will scrutinize the value systems that underpin specific paradigms in the policy and science of global health and place present-day developments in historical perspective. We will focus on social determinants of health, settler colonialism, colonialism, health and human rights, global health ethics, ecological determinants of health, and an overview of public health disciplines.
Gbl Hlth 221-0-1 Beyond Porn: Sexuality, Health and Pleasure
Threesomes. Squirting. Vibrators. Butt plugs. Multiple orgasms. You may have seen them in pornography, but have you ever wanted to study and talk about sex, and specifically, how to have a satisfying sex life? Many people look to pornography not just for entertainment, but also for education about what satisfying sexual encounters look like. Unfortunately, much of what people learn from pornography doesn't lead them to healthy and satisfying sexual encounters and relationships. This lecture class isn't actually about pornography. It goes beyond many presumptions about sex and pleasure depicted in pornography, the media, and popular culture, in order to equip students with information that can lead to more satisfying and healthy sexual experiences across their lifespan, regardless of how they identify, or who or what they like. The course also familiarizes students with a wide spectrum of human identities, practices, and attitudes towards sex and sexuality. The course includes lectures from guest speakers with particular expertise or experience in topics covered. Possible topics covered include: physiological and biological sex; gender; sexual orientation; homophobia and heterosexism; navigating sexual risks in a sex-positive way; sexual health disparities; sexual desire, arousal, and response; solitary sex & sex with others; sex toys; unconventional sexual practices; intimacy and effective communication; sexuality & aging; sexuality, disability & intimacy; sexual problems and solutions; sexual harassment and violence; selling sex; and hallmarks of great relationships; race, gender & sexuality, and yes, dotted through the quarter are some references to pornography.
The human body is embedded into a health framework that can produce hypervisibility, invisibility, or both. This course in social science and medical anthropology examines the role of social markers of difference, including race, class, gender, sexuality, age, and religion, in current debates and challenges in the theory and practice of global health. We will explore recent illness experiences, therapeutic and self-care interventions, and health practices and behaviors in socio-cultural and historical context through case studies in the U.S., Brazil, and South Africa. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to key concepts such as embodiment, medicalization, structural violence, social determinants of health, biopolitics, health equity, and an ethic of care. Central questions of the course include: How do categories of "Othering" determine disease and health in individuals and collectives? How is medical science and care influenced by economic and political institutions and by patient trust? How do social and economic inclusion/exclusion control access to health treatment and self-care and care of others? This course focuses on the linkages between society and health inequalities in the U.S. and economic powers. It offers a forum to explore policy application with a particular emphasis on definitions that form social factors. This course utilizes historical accounts, contemporary ethnographies, Twitter threads of health experiences, public health literature, media reports, TedTalks, and films to bring to life the "why's" of health differences.
Gbl Hlth 222-0-2 The Social Determinants of Health
The human body is embedded into a health framework that can produce hypervisibility, invisibility, or both. This upper-level course examines the role of social markers of difference, including race, class, gender, sexuality, age, and religion, in current debates and challenges in the theory and practice of global health. We will explore recent illness experiences, therapeutic and self-care interventions, and health practices and behaviors in socio-cultural and historical context through case studies in the U.S., Brazil, and South Africa. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to key concepts such as embodiment, medicalization, structural violence, social determinants of health, biopolitics, health equity, and an ethic of care. Central questions of the course include: How do categories of "Othering" determine disease and health in individuals and collectives? How is medical science and care influenced by economic and political institutions, and by patient trust? How do social and economic inclusion/exclusion control access to health treatment, self-care, and care of loved ones This course focuses on the linkages between society and health inequalities in the U.S., U.S. territories, Brazil, and Africa. It offers a forum to explore how social standings (mis)inform policies. This course utilizes historical accounts, contemporary ethnographies, Twitter threads of health experiences, public health literature, media reports, TedTalks, and films to bring to life the "why's" of health differences.
This lecture-based survey in public health and medical anthropology explores how political, economic, historical, and sociocultural forces impact health inequalities at home and around the world. We will explore contemporary illness experiences and therapeutic interventions in context through case studies from the US, Brazil, and South Africa. Students will be introduced to key concepts such as embodiment, medicalization, structural violence, the social determinants of health, and biopolitics. Central questions of the seminar include: How do social categories of difference determine disease and health in individuals and collectivities? How is medical science influenced by economic and political institutions and by patient mobilization? How does social and economic inclusion/exclusion govern access to treatment as well as care of the self and others? The course will provide advanced instruction in anthropological and related social scientific research methods as they apply to questions of social inequality and public health policy. he course draws from historical accounts, contemporary ethnographies, public health literature, media reports, and films.
Global health is a popular field of work and study for Americans, with an increasing number of medical trainees and practitioners, as well as people without medical training, going abroad to volunteer in areas where there are few health care practitioners or resources. In addition, college undergraduates, as well as medical trainees and practitioners, are going abroad in increasing numbers to conduct research in areas with few healthcare resources. But all of these endeavors, though often entered into with the best of intentions, are beset with ethical questions, concerns, and dilemmas, and can have unintended consequences. In this course, students will explore and consider these ethical challenges. In so doing, students will examine core global bioethical concerns - such as structural violence - and core global bioethical codes, guidelines, and principals - such as beneficence and solidarity - so they will be able to ethically assess global health practices in a way that places an emphasis on the central goal of global health: reducing health inequities. With an emphasis on the ethical responsibility to reduce inequities, we consider some of the most pressing global bioethical issues of our time: equity, fairness, and planetary health. Particular attention is given to the ethics of research during a pandemic and equitable access to vaccines and therapies for Covid-19.
This lecture-based survey in public health and medical anthropology explores how political, economic, historical, and sociocultural forces impact health inequalities at home and around the world. We will explore contemporary illness experiences and therapeutic interventions in context through case studies from the US, Brazil, and South Africa. Students will be introduced to key concepts such as embodiment, medicalization, structural violence, the social determinants of health, and biopolitics. Central questions of the seminar include: How do social categories of difference determine disease and health in individuals and collectivities? How is medical science influenced by economic and political institutions and by patient mobilization? How does social and economic inclusion/exclusion govern access to treatment as well as care of the self and others? The course will provide advanced instruction in anthropological and related social scientific research methods as they apply to questions of social inequality and public health policy. he course draws from historical accounts, contemporary ethnographies, public health literature, media reports, and films.
Global health is a popular field of work and study for Americans, with an increasing number of medical trainees and practitioners, as well as people without medical training, going abroad to volunteer in areas where there are few health care practitioners or resources. In addition, college undergraduates, as well as medical trainees and practitioners, are going abroad in increasing numbers to conduct research in areas with few healthcare resources. But all of these endeavors, though often entered into with the best of intentions, are beset with ethical questions, concerns, and dilemmas, and can have unintended consequences. In this course, students will explore and consider these ethical challenges. In so doing, students will examine core global bioethical concerns - such as structural violence - and core global bioethical codes, guidelines, and principals - such as beneficence and solidarity - so they will be able to ethically assess global health practices in a way that places an emphasis on the central goal of global health: reducing health inequities.
Global health is a popular field of work and study for Americans, with an increasing number of medical trainees and practitioners, as well as people without medical training, going abroad to volunteer in areas where there are few health care practitioners or resources. In addition, college undergraduates, as well as medical trainees and practitioners, are going abroad in increasing numbers to conduct research in areas with few healthcare resources. But all of these endeavors, though often entered into with the best of intentions, are beset with ethical questions, concerns, and dilemmas, and can have unintended consequences. In this course, students will explore and consider these ethical challenges. In so doing, students will examine core global bioethical concerns - such as structural violence - and core global bioethical codes, guidelines, and principals - such as beneficence and solidarity - so they will be able to ethically assess global health practices in a way that places an emphasis on the central goal of global health: reducing health inequities.
This course explores traditional and alternative data collection methods in public health research. The course focuses on decolonizing ways that Black/African American individuals have used to reveal their truths and construct and reconstruct images of themselves. Students will explore how these decolonizing processes can be applied in public health data collection to make research inclusive and to validate methods and ways of knowing that have assisted underserved, underheard, and underrepresented communities in advocating for justice to survive. Course readings and videos will provide a critical lens on qualitative data collection methods, including studies on historical and traumatic violence underscoring how people living in Black bodies work to survive, and negotiating processes that Black individuals use to exercise agency and evaluate systemic oppressions that impede how they navigate life as articulated by authors such as Joy DeGruy, Patricia Hill Collins, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Richard Delgado, and Jean Stefanci.
In this upper-level course exploring approaches to meld traditional data collection methods with alternative techniques, students will review decolonizing ways that Black/African American individuals have used to reveal their truths and construct and reconstruct images of themselves. Students will explore how these same processes can be applied in public health data collection to be inclusive and validate the methods and ways of knowing that have assisted underserved, underheard, and underrepresented communities in advocating for justice to survive. Course readings will consist of text that provides a critical lens to view qualitative data collection methods through and will include studies in historical and traumatic violence that underscore how people living in Black bodies work to survive by Joy DeGruy and the negotiating processes that Black individuals use to exercise agency and evaluate systemic oppressions that impede how they navigate life as articulated by authors such as Patricia Hill Collins, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Richard Delgado, and Jean Stefancic.
This lecture course uses the Covid-19 pandemic as a point of departure to study the history of global health and biomedicine. We will break the quarter into four segments during which we will consider: 1) the "unification of the globe" by infectious diseases; 2) the role of empires, industries, war, and revolutions in spreading biomedical cultures around the world; 3) the functions played by transnational and global health institutions in different continents; and 4) the growth of the pharmaceutical industry and the narcotics trade. Students will have a chance to apply insights from the readings - about histories of racial segregation, reproductive politics, militarization, and police powers - to the more recent past. Lectures and readings cover all world regions: Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, North America, Asia, Europe, and the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Gbl Hlth 310-1-1 Maternal Health in the 20th Century
Maternal health, in particular, maternal mortality, is a significant concern in global health, and in this class we will consider the historical roots of two areas of focus on improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality: women having access to skilled birth attendants and birth control options. We will look at this broad international concern by focusing on the work of one organization in the 1960s-1970s, the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM), by examining their papers, held at the Wellcome Library and Archives in London. We will visit the library the week before classes start and this research will form the basis of the seminar course during the quarter. This class will culminate in a major paper using the primary sources from the ICM research done in London.
This course draws on perspectives from anthropology, related social scientific fields, and the humanities to provide a critical introduction to psychological trauma and its increasingly significant place in contemporary global health discourses and agendas. We will explore the history of the concept and its applications in Western literature, science, and medicine; consider the relatively recent construction of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as a diagnostic category and the clinical approaches developed to treat it; and examine the politics and effects of applying the concept abroad through humanitarian psychiatry and/or global mental health projects. Key questions of the course will include: how and why has trauma become one of the most important signifiers of our era—and a key criterion of "victimhood?" What politics and debates have shaped the development and application of the PTSD diagnosis in recent decades? And how have notions of trauma and their varied applications transformed politics, suffering, and care in diverse communities around the world?
Gbl Hlth 320-0-20 Qualitative Research Methods in Global Health
This course is designed to provide global health students with the tools they will need in order to design, revise, conduct, and write up current and future qualitative research projects relating to global health topics. This course is experientially driven, allowing students opportunities to actually "do" research, while providing careful mentoring and engaging in in-depth discussions about ethical and methodological issues associated with qualitative approaches and with working with living humans. Students will learn methods such as: writing research proposals, research ethics, writing ethnographic field notes, doing qualitative interviews and focus groups, analyzing and writing up data.
This course draws on perspectives from anthropology and related social scientific fields to provide a comparative overview of the impact of armed conflict on public health and health care systems worldwide. Drawing primarily on examples from recent history, including conflicts in the Balkans, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East, we will explore warfare as a crucial sociopolitical determinant of global health disparities and consider organized efforts to respond to the health impacts of mass violence. Key topics that we will consider include variations in the relationship between warfare and public health across eras and cultures; the health and mental health impacts of forced displacement, military violence, and gender-based violence; and the roles of medical humanitarianism and humanitarian psychiatry in postwar recovery processes. Through close readings of classic and contemporary social theory, ethnographic accounts, and diverse research on war, health, and postwar humanitarian interventions, this course will encourage you to build your own critical perspective on war and public health anchored in history and the complexities of real-world situations.
Gbl Hlth 323 Global Health from Policy to Practice
This seminar explores health and development policy ethnographically, from the politics of policy-making to the impacts of policy on global health practice, and on local realities. Going beyond the intentions underlying policy, this course highlights the histories and material, political, economic, and social realities of policy and its application. Drawing on case studies of policy makers, government officials, insurance agents, health care workers, and beneficiaries, the course asks: what politics inform which issues become prioritized or codified in health and development policy, and which do not? How do philosophies and values about "good governance," "best practices," "preparedness," or "economic progress" influence the kinds of policies that are envisioned and/or implemented? How do politics affect health or medical system governance, and to what effect on the ground? In what ways are policies adapted, adopted, innovatively engaged, or outright rejected by various actors, and what does this mean for the challenges that such policies aim to address? Ultimately, what is the relationship between health politics and health disparities?
The history of reproduction is a large subject, and during this course we will touch on many, but by no means all, of what can be considered as part of this history. Our focus will be on human reproduction, considering the vantage points of both healthcare practitioners and lay women and men. We will look at ideas concerning fertility, conception, pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, birth control, abortion, and assisted reproduction. Because, at a fundamental level, reproduction is about power - as historian Amy Kaler (but by no means only Kaler), pointed out, "[c]control over human reproduction is eternally contested, in zones ranging from the comparative privacy of the conjugal bedroom to the political platform and programs of national polities" - we will pay attention to power in reproductive health. And, since the distribution of power in matters of reproduction has often been uneven and unequal - between men and women, between colonizing and Indigenous populations, between clinicians and lay people, between those in upper socioeconomic classes and those in lower socioeconomic classes - we will pay particular attention during this class to struggles over matters of reproduction as we explore historical changes and continuities in reproduction globally since 1900.
Gbl Hlth 326 Native Nations, Healthcare Systems and U.S. Policy
This seminar explores health and development policy ethnographically, from the politics of policy-making to the impacts of policy on global health practice, and on local realities. Going beyond the intentions underlying policy, this course highlights the histories and material, political, economic, and social realities of policy and its application. Drawing on case studies of policy makers, government officials, insurance agents, health care workers, and beneficiaries, the course asks: what politics inform which issues become prioritized or codified in health and development policy, and which do not? How do philosophies and values about "good governance," "best practices," "preparedness," or "economic progress" influence the kinds of policies that are envisioned and/or implemented? How do politics affect health or medical system governance, and to what effect on the ground? In what ways are policies adapted, adopted, innovatively engaged, or outright rejected by various actors, and what does this mean for the challenges that such policies aim to address? Ultimately, what is the relationship between health politics and health disparities?
This course examines how socioeconomic and environmental factors work together to cause hazards and disasters in human society. In this course we learn the main concepts about disaster such as preparedness, vulnerability, resilience, response, mitigation, etc. We learn that a disaster does not have the same effect on everyone (all groups of people), and factors of social inequality such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender, make people more vulnerable to impacts of disasters. Also, this course, with an interdisciplinary perspective, analyzes disasters in the global North and South. This is a discussion-intensive course for advanced undergrad students. The classes are the student-centered with an emphasis on collaborative learning. The class meetings will consist of lecture, discussion, presentations, teamwork, activities, video/audio materials and projects.
This course examines how socioeconomic and environmental factors work together to cause hazards and disasters in human society. In this course we learn the main concepts about disaster such as preparedness, vulnerability, resilience, response, mitigation, etc. We learn that a disaster does not have the same effect on everyone (all groups of people), and factors of social inequality such as race, ethnicity, class, and gender, make people more vulnerable to impacts of disasters. Also, this course, with an interdisciplinary perspective, analyzes disasters in the global North and South. This is a discussion-intensive course for advanced undergrad students. The classes are the student-centered with an emphasis on collaborative learning. The class meetings will consist of lecture, discussion, presentations, teamwork, activities, video/audio materials and projects.
This course examines how environmental problems reflect and exacerbate social inequality. In this course, we learn the definition of environmental (in)justice; the history of environmental justice; and also examples of environmental justice will be discussed. We will learn about environmental movements. This course has a critical perspective on health disparities in national and international levels. How environmental injustice impacts certain groups more than others and the social and political economic reasons for these injustices will be discussed in this course. This is a discussion-intensive course for advanced undergrad students. The classes are student-centered with an emphasis on collaborative learning. The class meetings will consist of lectures, discussions, presentations, teamwork, activities, video/audio materials and projects.
Gbl Hlth 339-0-1 Silent but Loud: Negotiating Health
To be "healthy" is a complex obstacle course that many individuals living in certain bodies have to navigate. Black bodies, for example, are often the tied to (un)health because they are stereotyped as in need to be controlled, managed, and "guided" into healthfulness. In the U.S., these narrow stereotypes are just a few of the ways Black bodies get defined. In this course, we will move beyond those restrictive stereotypes, guided by questions such as, "How does culture define health?", "How does the food pipeline affect the health of certain bodies?" and "What does it mean to live in an obesogenic environment?" In this course, we examine the connection between health, culture, food, and environment with a focus on what is silenced and what is loud when generating "fixes" for "diseased" bodies. Silence refers to the disregard and dismissiveness of the narratives and experiences around the oppressions attached to the health of certain bodies. Yet, this silence echoes as Loud when connected to their culture, food, and environment when discussing diseases highlighted in Black bodies such as obesity, hypertension, and diabetes.
This course draws on perspectives from anthropology, related social scientific fields, and the humanities to explore the role of the arts and media narratives in shaping politics and experiences of mental health and illness around the world. We will consider forms of storytelling—including literature, film, and theater—across eras and cultures, tracking shifts in perspectives on normality and pathology and their consequences for the most vulnerable. How does the power of Western psychiatry intersect with that of global media to reinforce reigning paradigms and imperatives for how suffering is to be understood, classified, and experienced? Conversely, what counter-narratives are being produced by artists and their communities? What role can the arts play in individual and collective forms of healing—or in exacerbating pain and grievance? What kinds of voices seem to have power, and which are neglected? Where is the line between cathartic and exploitative representation of trauma and mental illness? How, in short, do the stories we tell about mental illness "get under the skin" and shape forms of suffering and care?
From modern pandemics such as Ebola and COVID-19, to ancient scourges such as leprosy and the plague, epidemics have shaped human history. In turn, the response of human societies to infectious disease threats have varied wildly in time and across cultures. We are currently living such an event, and experiencing in dramatic fashion how disease reshapes society. This course will cover several prominent global epidemic episodes, examining the biology of the disease, epidemic pathways, sociopolitical responses and public health measures, and the relationship between the scientific and the cultural consequences of these outbreaks.
This seminar approaches global health topics from a political science perspective. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, global health security, global health governance, and global health diplomacy have emerged as key issues in understanding geopolitics. How do power dynamics shape the global health landscape? Who are the various actors (state and non-state; public and private) involved in global health decisions and how do they wield power to shape policy? How do these tactics combat or reinforce health disparities? What factors make collective action and cooperation around global health issues more likely? Throughout the course we investigate how state and local governments are influenced through top-down approaches from international institutions and bottom-up approaches from grass-roots organizations. In addition to a focus on understanding how actors and processes engage in agenda setting and influence policymaking, we will discuss how enacted policies and political events impact health services delivery and population health. Students will explore these dynamics through case studies such as vaccination campaigns, abortion access, noncommunicable disease management, HIV/AIDS, TB, and climate-driven health crises, among others. Ultimately, we examine the ways in which states navigate the tension between sovereignty and cooperation when striving for global health security in an increasingly inter-connected world.
This course introduces students to pressing disease and health care problems worldwide and examines efforts currently underway to address them. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the course identifies the main actors, institutions, practices and forms of knowledge production characteristic of what we call "global health" today, and explores the environmental, social, political and economic factors that shape patterns and experiences of illness and healthcare across societies. We will scrutinize the value systems that underpin specific paradigms in the policy and science of global health and place present-day developments in historical perspective. Key topics will include: policies and approaches to global health governance and interventions, global economies and their impacts on public health, medical humanitarianism, global mental health, maternal and child health, pandemics (HIV/AIDS, Ebola, H1N1, Swine Flu), malaria, food insecurity, health and human rights, and global health ethics.
Gbl Hlth 390-0-28 Global Circulations and Human Health
Human beings and human parts/products are on the move across the globe, shaped by inequities that drive poor health outcomes for many involved in these circulations. More human beings are being forced from their homes than ever before in history; more and more are being turned away as they seek resettlement. Global economic migration is poorly regulated and rife with exploitation. The flow of human organs for transplantation increasingly moves from the poor in the Global South to the rich in the Global North. Even the production of human babies through international surrogacy is driven by economic inequities. This course examines the role of advocacy, law, politics and ethics to preserve dignity and health as human beings and human parts increasingly circulate across global boundaries.
Gbl Hlth 390-0-29 Infectious Disease Eradication and Outbreak Control
Despite many efforts across several diseases spanning decades and billions of dollars, global health actors have only been able to eradicate one infectious human disease: smallpox. Why? This course will attempt to answer this question by examining several failed and continuing disease eradication efforts through a multidisciplinary lens. Case studies will include smallpox, malaria, polio, measles, and hypothetical emerging infectious diseases. We will examine the grandiose global health goal of total disease eradication in relation to sociopolitical realities that limit the applications of idealized technological interventions.
The characteristics of a good recipe are said to have a list of the ingredients, the amounts needed, and the directions for mixing the ingredients. However, outside of food-based ingredients, there are also social elements that contribute to a good recipe. Food is something that outside of the social constructs of race, phobias, and isms, that can bind us all together. This interdisciplinary course focuses on defining togetherness, belongingness, and the end goal of a recipe— eating. Through the lens of recipes, meal-making, social stigmas, nutrition, and health students will explore how cultural culinary practices have become evidence for illnesses, diseases, and death for certain bodies. Course readings, videos, dialogue, and recipe analyses will provide a critical lens for students to delve into the multifaceted dimensions of culinary practices, their impact on individuals and communities, and how some practices have been sifted through and out.
Gbl Hlth 390-0-32 Global Circulations and Human Health: Migrations
Human beings and human products are on the move across the globe, shaped by inequities that drive poor health outcomes for many involved in these flows even as these movements should, ideally, provide benefits for most. More people are being forced from their homes than ever before in history; more and more are being turned away as they seek resettlement. Global economic migration is poorly regulated and rife with exploitation. Cadaver procuration relies largely on the dying destitute and marginalized. The flow of human organs for transplantation increasingly moves from the poor in the Global South to the rich in the Global North. Altruistic donations of cord blood enrich private cord banks. Even the production of human babies through international surrogacy is driven by economic inequities. We will situate the movement of human beings and human parts as both a historical and a contemporary phenomenon, focusing on concepts such as equity, commodification, beneficence, human dignity, and common good. We will examine the role of advocacy, law, politics and ethics in preserving dignity and health as human beings and human parts increasingly circulate across international boundaries.
When I was an undergraduate student my "To Be Read" list was always really long and often forgotten. As I have re-established my love of reading for fun I see how literary genres influence and challenge our understanding of well-being/health. Fiction, non-fiction, poems, memoirs, novels, young adult fiction, science fiction, mysteries, fantasy, fairy tales, horror, magical realism, and so many other genres influence our definitions of health or wellbeing. They provide insight into how other folks imagine and understanding situations we may or may not find ourselves in. Our course will consider some of these and other genres noted above. The best text allow us to empathize with the characters or challenge what we thought we knew. We will read one book as a class. In addition, you'll be asked to individually select a book to read/listen to, a list of various text will also be provided if you need guidance in choosing a text. You will learn how these materials influence or challenge norms about health and well-being. Professor Reyes will help you access books that aren't easily available or affordable.
This class will provide rigorous guidance on how one moves through the scientific process, from articulating scientific questions to answering and presenting them in a way that your audience can really relate to. We will do this using data from a large dataset—the Gallup World Poll. Specific skills to be developed include human subjects training, formal literature review, hypothesis generation, development of analytic plans, performing descriptive statistics, creation of figures and tables, writing up results, scientific poster creation, and oral presentation of results. This course will be a terrific foundation for writing scientific manuscripts, theses, and dissertations.
German 250-0-20 Cultural History of Beer and Brewing from Germany to Chicago
This course will provide an overview of many different historical and practical aspects of beer and brewing in German-speaking culture while also including the rich history of German beer making in Chicago from the 1850s to today. Beyond the history and science of beer in Germany, we will read fictional and philosophical interpretations of beer and its cultural impact, from Martin Luther's advocation of drinking and the importance of alcohol in E.T.A. Hoffmann's work, to Friedrich Nietzsche's comparison of beer to Christianity. Local experts will be invited to speak to the class, and we will learn about the science of brewing by focusing on the different beer styles and brewing techniques used by German brew-masters and tavern owners from the Middle Ages to the present day. A beer tasting of non-alcoholic malted beverages will be included as part of the curriculum, as well as a tour of a local Chicago brewery.
Gndr St 221-0-1 Beyond Porn: Sexuality, Health and Pleasure
Threesomes. Squirting. Vibrators. Butt plugs. Multiple orgasms. You may have seen them in pornography, but have you ever wanted to study and talk about sex, and specifically, how to have a satisfying sex life? Many people look to pornography not just for entertainment, but also for education about what satisfying sexual encounters look like. Unfortunately, much of what people learn from pornography doesn't lead them to healthy and satisfying sexual encounters and relationships. This lecture class isn't actually about pornography. It goes beyond many presumptions about sex and pleasure depicted in pornography, the media, and popular culture, in order to equip students with information that can lead to more satisfying and healthy sexual experiences across their lifespan, regardless of how they identify, or who or what they like. The course also familiarizes students with a wide spectrum of human identities, practices, and attitudes towards sex and sexuality. The course includes lectures from guest speakers with particular expertise or experience in topics covered. Possible topics covered include: physiological and biological sex; gender; sexual orientation; homophobia and heterosexism; navigating sexual risks in a sex-positive way; sexual health disparities; sexual desire, arousal, and response; solitary sex & sex with others; sex toys; unconventional sexual practices; intimacy and effective communication; sexuality & aging; sexuality, disability & intimacy; sexual problems and solutions; sexual harassment and violence; selling sex; and hallmarks of great relationships; race, gender & sexuality, and yes, dotted through the quarter are some references to pornography.
From abstinence-only sex education programs to the public response to songs like WAP by Cardi B & Megan thee Stallion, we are bombarded with messaging that sexuality is stigmatized. But why is sexuality so taboo? How do social forces shape the way we view, experience, and regulate sexuality? Using a sociological lens, this course explores the intersection of sexuality and stigma. We will begin by exploring foundational theories of both stigma and sexuality in the social sciences. Armed with these frameworks, we will then engage with in-depth case studies of different stigmatized sexualities, including homosexuality & bisexuality, asexuality, HIV/AIDS, infidelity, sex work, kink, ethical non-monogamy, and disabled sexualities. The course will empower students to interrogate their own assumptions and to critically examine the forces that perpetuate sexual inequality in society. By the end of the course, students will have gained a deeper understanding of how stigma operates at both the individual and structural level. The final assignment requires students to write a proposal for a research project that would answer a sociological question of their choice about stigma and sexuality.
This course is an opportunity for students to critically examine what is often a taken-for-granted aspect of social life: gender. This course will involve learning about gender as well as applying gender theory. We will study a variety of theoretical approaches to the study of gender, with particular focus on how problems are identified and theories are developed. We will examine several emergent cases of gender theorization -- childhood gender and sexuality panics, bathroom surveillance, and the intersex experience, among others. By the end of the term, students will be able to 1) describe and compare theoretical anchors for the sociological study of gender and 2) in writing, apply gender theory to original ethnographic data. This is a reading-heavy upper division course and prior course experience in gender/sexuality studies (by way of taking Gender & Society or other course work) is strongly advised.
In this course, we will examine how the Western medical system and accompanying health practices impact people of different genders, as well as how healthcare as an institution and practice produces gender categories. Using interdisciplinary research with a focus on sociological studies, we will interrogate the social, institutional, and biological links between gender and health. We will discuss health inequalities between women, men, and trans* people from different race, ethnic, and class backgrounds, using sociological research to understand why these inequalities and forms of difference emerge and are sustained. We will explore how modern Western medicine views male and female bodies and defines their health and illnesses accordingly. Students will complete two short research projects over the term in which they use different data sources (interviews and media content) to examine gendered perceptions of health, health behaviors, help-seeking behaviors, and experiences with medical institutions.
Gndr St 332-0-21 Reproductive Health, Justice, Politics
As feminist scholar Michelle Murphy points out, "reproduction is not self-evidently a capacity located in sexed bodies"; it is instead a site (or formation) that joins, "cells, protocols, bodies, nations, capital, economics, freedom, and affect as much as sex and women into its sprawl." Thus, she reminds us, "how we constitute reproduction shapes how it can be imagined, altered and politicized." In this seminar we will explore the changing contours of "reproductive politics" from the 1960s to the present (or from the period immediately pre-Roe v Wade through the recent 2022 decision in Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization) through an in-depth investigation of a range of projects and organizations that conceptually reimagine what we mean by "reproduction," the scope and content of "reproductive politics," and the kinds of demands that can be made in the name of reproductive health, rights, freedom and justice.
Much recent fiction, film and theory are concerned with representing the internet and the World Wide Web. Sometimes cyberspace is depicted as a continuation of previous media such as television, cinema or telephone, but often it is envisioned as a new frontier. This course will examine the ways in which virtual media appears in cultural discourses. We consider how technological objects and tools participate in shaping elements of our culture that may appear natural, logical, or timeless. We will look examine films predicting the internet, cyberpunk fiction predating the www, and early websites from many sources. In addition, this quarter we will consider various generative AI programs, assessing their strengths and weaknesses. Our guiding questions will include the following: In what ways are these narratives shaping collective perceptions of the internet? How have virtual technologies challenged experiences of language, gender, community and identity? Following a Cultural Studies model for inquiry, this course will be project-based and experiential. Your attendance and participation are mandatory. No experience needed, only a willingness to take risks and share work.
Gndr St 374-0-20 Imagining the Internet: Fiction, Flim and Theory
Much recent fiction, film and theory are concerned with representing the internet and the World Wide Web. Sometimes cyberspace is depicted as a continuation of previous media such as television, cinema or telephone, but often it is envisioned as a new frontier. This course will examine the ways in which virtual media appears in cultural discourses. We consider how technological objects and tools participate in shaping elements of our culture that may appear natural, logical, or timeless. We will look examine films predicting the internet, cyberpunk fiction predating the www, and early websites from many sources. In addition, this quarter we will consider various generative AI programs, assessing their strengths and weaknesses. Our guiding questions will include the following: In what ways are these narratives shaping collective perceptions of the internet? How have virtual technologies challenged experiences of language, gender, community and identity? Following a Cultural Studies model for inquiry, this course will be project-based and experiential. Your attendance and participation are mandatory. No experience needed, only a willingness to take risks and share work.
This first-year seminar will consider the history of the internet from the mid-twentieth century to the present. This will not be a technical history of the computer science or actual infrastructure that constitute the internet, but rather a history of the social and political ideas contributing to a worldwide system of networked computers and protocols. In particular, the course will discuss the culture surrounding the internet - the ways that the Cold War, the counterculture, libertarianism, and environmentalism all fostered a set of beliefs that helped define Silicon Valley and continue to shape companies that call for revolution one day and place their trust in the market the next.
This course is about the relationships between climate and human society from historical perspectives. It is a discussion-oriented class on the role of climate in human experience, covering three themes: how the shifting atmospheric (weather) patterns impacted the dawn of humanity and Early Holocene cultural evolution about 10,000 years ago; the effects of the Little Ice Age on global history; and the implications of the human-induced climate change of the recent centuries for our unfolding future. We will develop skills to read, listen, and observe critically, effectively draw inferences, and summarize compelling ideas about how climate has shaped the human experience, including our notions of time, culture, and progress and how human ambitions and innovations are changing the planet. The class will explore various sources for studying climate history, from documents, visual arts, geosciences, oral literature, and artifacts to documentaries. Students will also discuss the different debates and ideas about the human-induced climate change epoch (Anthropocene), using the historical approach to understand the problems and solutions. In addition, students will be guided in setting and evaluating their academic goals and adjusting to the rhythm of college life.
Alder Tu, Th 11:00-12:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List A
History 220-0-20 History of the Future
Our world is awash in predictions: climate models and pandemic models, political polls and betting pools, economic forecasts and military scenarios, plus the ever-approaching AI utopia and/or hellscape. This is hardly new. For millennia, people have been debating what the future holds. They haven't always been right, of course, but even their mistakes tell us a great deal about the times they were made. Ironically, studying the future is an excellent way to study the past—and reconsider our present. In this course we will study 5,000 years of prognosticators, from Mesopotamian astrologers to today's climate scientists. Along the way we will read sci-fi authors and religious millenarians, socialists and Afro-futurists, eugenicists and high-tech visionaries. We will also play in-class scenario games and read Covid predictions to get a feel for how the future unfolds in lived time. This course may not teach you to predict the future more accurately, but it will help you to better understand visions of things to come. Come explore the alternative worlds of futures past.
History 300-0-20 Thinking Machines: The History and Ethics of AI
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is not new. Long before the term was coined in 1955, engineers and inventors sought to mechanize human thought and behavior. This course will address and contextualize the chronological arc of AI, from eighteenth-century automatons to today's large language models. Together, we will investigate how changing conceptions of human intelligence and creativity influenced the development and implementation of what we now call AI. In so doing, we will familiarize ourselves with changing strategies for creating "intelligent" machines and engage in lively debates over the problems and possibilities of machine sentience. Will this course secure you a six-figure salary working for OpenAI? Sadly, no. It will, however, enrich your knowledge of the historical trajectory, evolving ethics, and critical concepts of AI.
This course examines the history of cannabis in a global perspective to understand how and why a plant that has been crucial to most civilizations for thousands of years became one of the most consumed intoxicants in human history, and one of the most demonized, criminalized, controversial and profitable commodities of the modern world. We consider archeological evidence to explore the earliest uses and meanings of the plant in antiquity and how it spread from Central Asia to the rest of the planet. We also examine various types of historical works to comprehend what roles cannabis played in the rise of maritime empires and the formation of a global capitalist world. Then, we revisit some of the urban and rural cultures in various parts of the world that modernized the plant's uses and meanings in the 20th century. We also study scientific, legal, and pop-culture materials to elucidate what was at stake in the most heated controversies and campaigns against and in favor of the plant. We conclude analyzing the most recent debates and policies on decriminalization and legalization in North and South America in a comparative perspective, and their socio-economic, political, and environmental implications. We address these topics reading history, anthropology, sociology, political science, and journalism; and watching and analyzing critically songs, advertisement, literature, feature films, and documentary movies.
History 300-0-28 Histories of Medicine Across Asia
How have people understood the body across Asia? This course explores different conceptions of the body, illness, and therapeutics across several medical traditions in Asia, from the ancient and medieval periods up to the present day. We will study primary sources like medical diagrams, the biographies of physicians, and case notes about patients to understand the roles of medical practitioners in a range of contexts. We will explore traditions like Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Galenic medicine, and Tibetan medicine. These traditions were always dynamic, but they also changed dramatically in the modern period, as biomedicine became one of the many medical traditions of Asia.
This course will survey American history from the Colonial Era to the present with two premises in mind: that the natural world is not simply a passive background to human history but rather an active participant in historical change, and that human attitudes toward nature are both shaped by and in turn shape social, political, and economic behavior. The course will cover formal schools of thought about the natural world—from Transcendentalism to the conservation and environmental movements—but also discuss the many informal intersections of human activity and natural systems, from European colonialism to property regimes, migration and transportation, industry, consumer practices, war, technological innovation, political ideology, and food production.
This course is concerned with the history of Europe between 1890 and c. 1990. Its emphasis will be on material and political developments, not cultural-intellectual ones. It assumes some prior knowledge of Europe, including its geography, ethnography, and a good prior knowledge and understanding of the political and social background of twentieth century in Europe. The course will be based on two books, to be read in parallel: John Merriman, A History of Modern Europe, Fourth Edition (earlier editions are not acceptable) and Robert Paxton and Julie Hessler, Europe in the Twentieth Century (fifth ed.), denoted by P&H below. The course will cover the material in both books and class discussions will be based on them. Part of the assignment of this course is to come prepared to each class. The final exam will cover the entire reading as outlined below. In addition, there will be a 10-15 page paper due the first day of reading week in spring (see attached instructions sheets). Grades will be based on class participation, the paper, and the final exam.
History 352-0-20 A Global History of Death and Dying
How death shapes the modern world via slave trades, imperial conquests, pandemics, wars, medicine, and genocide. Transformations in rituals; personal and social meanings of death; ways and patterns of dying.
Tilley M, W 11:00-12:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List A
History 379-0-20 Biomedicine and World History
This lecture course uses the Covid-19 pandemic as a point of departure to study the history of global health and biomedicine. We will break the quarter into four segments during which we will consider: 1) the "unification of the globe" by infectious diseases; 2) the role of empires, industries, war, and revolutions in spreading biomedical cultures around the world; 3) the functions played by transnational and global health institutions in different continents; and 4) the growth of the pharmaceutical industry and the narcotics trade. Students will have a chance to apply insights from the readings - about histories of racial segregation, reproductive politics, militarization, and police powers - to the more recent past. Lectures and readings cover all world regions: Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, North America, Asia, Europe, and the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
How did computers become globally ubiquitous? Should we thank—or perhaps blame—isolated geniuses who toiled away in Silicon Valley? Or were our digital devices forged through geopolitics, international organizations, and world wars? This course will seek to answer these questions by analyzing the global development of modern computing from the nineteenth century to the present. In addition to looking at the technological and cultural contributions of the United States, we will spotlight the interconnected global nature of computing's history. By illuminating connections others have missed, we will see that the internet didn't connect the globe; rather, an interconnected world formed modern computing. To this end, participants will investigate how the Information Age was shaped through state planning in the Global South, Cold War competition, Japan's postwar growth, and the worldwide extraction of silica sand and quartz. Students will emerge from the seminar with both an appreciation of computing's historical highlights and an analytical framework for understanding how digital developments transcended borders and reconfigured the global community.
History 393-0-28 Illness and Disability in History
This course explores the changing meanings of disability and illness in history and around the world. How can we understand a historical figure as "disabled" before the invention of this category? What is the relationship between race, gender, class, illness and disability? By reading the historical writings of physicians, religious scholars, officials, activists, and others, some of whom were sick & disabled, we will investigate the social construction of categories relevant to disability and (chronic) illness in the history of Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas.
This course strives to respect contemporary disability justice principles, and as such, to be accessible to a range of bodyminds. Course materials will center academic and popular writings, podcasts, and memoirs, but will also include some film and visual art. Your final project will be a proposal for an archival and/or oral historical project on the history of illness and disability, which we will work towards throughout the semester. We will not carry out that proposal in this class, but you may in the future.
History 395-0-24 Energy and Environments: A Global History
Today's strong focus on decarbonization and renewable energy stems from reflections on how modern society has consumed large amounts of petroleum, resulting in global problems such as climate change. This has many precedents in human history, as, in many instances, people have viewed energy transitions as solutions to the environmental problems they faced. The class will examine the inseparable relationship between energy sources—human labor, biofuel, coal, electricity, oil, natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy—and the environmental concerns of the periods when these sources entered and dominated human societies. When a new energy source is introduced to a community, advocates often present it as a solution to existing environmental issues. However, throughout the entire cycle of energy production and consumption, many energy sources negatively impact both the environment and people. When a new energy source enters society, whose environment does it claim to protect? Who is marginalized by energy transitions?
In this course, students will research a case study from among the many refugee and migration crises that have dominated the news cycle in recent years. The final project is a short video about your case study. To develop your research projects, the class foregrounds different methodological approaches: 1) To move beyond journalism, we will conduct primary and secondary historical research to understand the complex historical roots of each case study. 2) We will analyze and practice forms of ethnographic writing to better situate and describe the lived experiences of migration and exile, both past and present. 3) We will pay attention to various forms of media, whether print culture, sound, or visual media, to interrogate but also experiment with contemporary modes of narrating and conveying human experience in the digital age. Our work in class will be collaborative, thus a key prerequisite is that you are mature and self-motivated. You do not need to have prior research experience, but you need to demonstrate a desire to dig into your topic and hone your ability to write deeply informed, rigorous, and nuanced arguments and to think about creative ways to bring rigorous historical and ethnographic detail to visual storytelling.
On a daily basis we consume—often without notice or concern—a substantial amount of racial knowledge. We routinely ingest, for example, infographics about demographic trends, media coverage on crime and undocumented immigration, and advertisements for ancestry tests. In complex and contextually specific ways, this diet shapes our personal and collective identities, social interactions and relationships, and political aspirations and anxieties. In this course, we endeavor to study the politics of racial knowledge—the ways in which categories, measurements, and other techniques of knowledge production have helped to constitute "race" as a seemingly objective, natural demarcation among human populations and institute forms of racial domination and inequality. Historically, racial knowledge has stipulated and legitimated what we might describe as a kind of racial ontology, a set of assumptions, claims, and prescriptions about race and racial superiority/inferiority—e.g., the notion that "whites" or "the West" represent the apex of human civilization. Drawing on diverse texts, this course explores of the emergence, evolution, and effects of racial knowledge. This exploration will begin by discussing the historical relationship between the modern concept of race and European colonialism and slavery. Subsequently, we will track several major developments in the history of racial knowledge, from Enlightenment naturalists to censuses to contemporary genomics research.
Molina Tu, Th 11:00-12:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List B
Humanities 220-0-20 Health, Biomedicine, Culture and Society
We are told constantly, "take care of yourself!" and we do our best to eat well, sleep well, and stay healthy. Our bodies are important to us.They are also important to the institutions we are a part of, including our families, our schools, our jobs, and our country. They are all invested in keeping our bodies healthy and productive. However, the array of institutions interested in the value of our bodies often have additional incentives- our health is surrounded by a hoard of controversies: - Why do some people get better medical care than others? - How should the healthcare system be organized? - How do we balance the risks of new medical treatments with the benefits? -What makes the stigma associated with disease and disability so enduring? - What happens when no diagnosis can be made? This course offers conceptual tools and perspectives for answering these controversies. To do so it surveys a variety of topics related to the intersections of health, biomedicine, culture, and society. We will analyze the cultural meanings associated with health and illness; the political debates surrounding health care, medical knowledge production, and medical decision-making; and the structure of thesocial institutions that comprise the health care industry. We will examine many problems with the current state of health and healthcare in the United States and also consider potential solutions.
Ponnuchamy M, W 2:00-3:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List B
Humanities 260-0-22 The Matter and Metaphor of Energy
What are the politics of driving a car? What social choices do we make when we charge our phones? Are there philosophical and historical undertones to productivity vlogs on youtube? Even as these day-to-day acts of consumption might seem unrelated to each other, they are all connected by one critical concept: Energy. This course explores the social, political, and literary valences of energy to unearth the term's numerous and vastly divergent meanings. Over the quarter, we'll read texts ranging from Victorian novels to present day science fiction, tracking different understandings of energy that blur the line between scientific and imaginative ways of thinking. In our class discussions we'll enquire how literary authors use energy as a metaphor to name a variety of social dynamics like race, gender, class, empire, nature, and god. Reading literary texts alongside a social history of science, we'll use short writing tasks and class presentations to ask: how does the science of energy make its way through literature into our imaginations about the world? We will spend time with literary artefacts and study them with the premise that energy is both a force materially vital to life on earth and a vast imaginative resource for the worlds and societies we seek to build. Through a grading contract that rewards your labor and treats your energies as inherently valuable, we will focus on writing process, time management, and improvement over the course of the quarter.
Humanities 260-0-23 Minds+Machines: Philosophical Issues in Generative AI
This course will take up a number of philosophical questions about generative artificial intelligence. Are generative AI models agents? Do they pose unique existential risks to humans? What does the surge in AI-generated content mean for art, social media, and politics? We will explore these questions through readings from philosophers, computer scientists, and others in the cognitive and social sciences.
Humanities 370-6-25 Digital Performances and the Era of Virality
In this project-based course we will investigate the relationship between performance and digital technology as "historians of the present." Drawing from a compendium of pandemic performances that are part of an in-progress archive, we will analyze, interpret, and critique digitally mediated performances such as vaxxies, mental health TikTok videos, Zoom plays, and social media participatory projects that emerged during recent times of social isolation and unrest. Key course questions include: What can we learn from the aesthetic and communicative strategies that these digital performances animated, linking personal experience and social engagement? In what ways do these performances connect with and might help us navigate today's context of (dis)information overload, polarization, and affective volatility? How have these performances critically expanded the field of digital performance studies, redefining what liveness is and does? Students will read scholarship on liveness and digital mediation, analyze networked performances of their choosing, and produce critical essays or curated performance collections using multimodal publishing platforms. By the end of the course, students will be able to critically analyze and assess digital artistic and social performances and apply digital literacy skills learned in hands-on sessions to present their research findings.
How does our understanding of global history change when we foreground law and empire? To what extent have international legal regimes arisen out of imperial dynamics? Why were slavery and settler colonialism so important to so many constitutional histories? This course takes up these and other questions in order to make sense of the interplay between laws, empires, and corporate entities around the world over the last four centuries (circa 1600 to 2000). We will examine: 1) the origins and effects of mixed jurisdictions (or legal pluralism) in different regions; 2) the ways empires have shaped key concepts of sovereignty and citizenship; 3) the role of transnational corporations in bolstering imperial rule; 4) the roots of empire in the history of human rights and international law; 5) scientific versus legal definitions of racial identities and indigeneity; and 6) entanglements between cultural and intellectual property.
McCormick - Biomed Eng 380-0-1 Medical Devices, Disease and Global Health
An examination of the intersection of technology and the delivery of health care in resource-poor environments, especially in Africa. Engineering and the application of technologies are important in delivery of health care. This is true in the developing world as well as in the developed world, however health care technologies often fail to work as intended when solutions from wealthy countries are used in poor countries. Differences in burden of disease, infrastructure, economic and social structures are examined in the context of developing practical ways to improve health in specific parts of the developing world. Students work with the instructor to develop ideas a term paper examining a particular intervention. The global burden of disease.
Medill - Journalism 390-0-27 Viruses and Viral Media
What are viruses? Are they living or dead? How does news media affect their influence on the world? And why do we say news "goes viral?" Designed for Medill and non-Medill students alike, Viruses and Viral Media will study how viruses intersect with race, sexuality, disability, economics and the news media. Historically and contemporarily, the course will look at how actual viruses and infectious diseases (such as HIV/AIDS, SARS-CoV-2, polio and monkeypox) have been covered in the global press. We will consider how certain groups of humans have been depicted as viruses themselves, such as how Jewish/disabled/queer/Roma people were described by the German and US press circa WW II; how African Americans were described in the US press circa Jim Crow; how viruses like HIV and MPX are queer(ed), and how Muslim, Mexican and migrant people are described in press and social media now. We will also consider why popular news "goes viral." Students will work in research groups to study viruses and virality in the news throughout the term.
Phil 101-7-20 Philosophy of Sex, Gender and Sexuality
To borrow a phrase from Aristotle: sex is said in many ways. The word "sex" can refer to the domain of the erotic, that is, to sexual desire and sexual activity. It can also refer to certain biological categories related to an animal's reproductive role, such as female, male, or intersex. Among humans, "sex," along with the nearby term "gender," can also refer to cultural or social categories like woman, man, or nonbinary. And there is also "sex" in the sense of sexual orientation, a set of categories describing an individual's typical pattern of sexual attraction, such as lesbian, gay, straight, or bisexual. Needless to say, things get complicated pretty quickly. In this seminar, we will read and discuss recent philosophical attempts to make sense of all this. The course will cover a wide range of topics, including: What is sexual desire? What (if anything) is sexual perversion? What is the best account of concepts like gender identity or sexual orientation? How (if at all) do those concepts relate to biological sex? What about the ethics and politics of sex? Is there anything wrong, morally speaking, with casual sex, or with the buying and selling of sex? Readings for this course will be drawn mostly from contemporary philosophical sources.
This course serves as an introduction to some of the most fundamental philosophical problems as well as to some classical attempts at dealing with those problems. There will be four main modules:1) The nature of Philosophy, 2) Knowledge & Reality, 3) Free Will and Determinism, and 4) Moral Philosophy. In this course, we will focus on four central philosophical questions:
1) What is the nature of philosophy? 2) What do I know? 3) Do we have free will, or is the future already determined? 4) What makes actions right and wrong?
The answers to these fundamental questions matter for answering practical problems we face in our lives as individuals and as members of society: Is abortion permissible? Can we wrong somebody merely by what we say? What do we owe to people who live in poverty? What exactly are the dangers posed by AI? Is genetic engineering morally permissible? Should prison be abolished?
How can we make our lives and our communities better? Why should we act justly, when being unjust can be profitable? What makes someone a true friend, how many kinds of friendships are there, and how many friends should we aim to have? These kinds of questions preoccupied ancient Greek philosophers, and their contributions to these topics continue to influence contemporary thought. We will investigate different proposed answers to these and other questions with a view to better understanding ancient Greek ethics, metaphysics, and epistemology. This course strongly emphasizes the development of close reading and writing skills. No prior exposure to ancient philosophy is required.
This course provides a broad overview of philosophical discussions about race and racism. In the course, we will engage theoretical questions such as: What do we mean when we say "race"? Is there a concept of race that undergirds users' many different conceptions of race? Do races exist, and what are races if they do exist? What is implicit bias? and What is racism? We will also engage practical questions such as: What is the relationship between race and health? Do we have good reasons to prescribe medications in accordance with race? Is it moral to believe that humans are divided into races? What ought we to do with race and race-talk given overriding moral concerns? Are implicit racial biases morally condemnable? How does race and racial perceptions impact law? Is racism permanent?
This course will take up a number of philosophical questions about generative artificial intelligence. Are generative AI models agents? Do they pose unique existential risks to humans? What does the surge in AI-generated content mean for art, social media, and politics? We will explore these questions through readings from philosophers, computer scientists, and others in the cognitive and social sciences.
The course will introduce students to metaphysical and epistemological issues raised by modern natural science. We will be guided by nested "what does it take"-questions. For example: What does it take for natural science to be -in societies with a scientific culture—the legitimate authority on matters of fact about nature? What does it take for a system of assertions to count as a good scientific theory? What does it take for a scientific theory to be testable by evidence like observational and experimental data (and: what does it take for certain series of experiences to count as data, observations, experimental results?)? What does it take for a given theory to be better supported by the available evidence than its competitors? What does it take for a given theory to explain the known phenomena in an area of knowledge? What does it take for an explanatory scientific theory to be credited with reference to underlying structures of reality? We will begin with a brief overview of the scientific revolution of the 16th and 17 th century, and then turn to contemporary discussions on the problem of induction, the problem of the underdetermination of theory choice by the available data, the problem of rationality, the problem of realism. This will include reflecting on reasons philosophers of science have established against some common preconceptions about what it takes to be entitled to scientific objectivity, such as that science provides ‘proof', or that there is one simple, context-free ‘scientific method', or that scientific objectivity is free of considerations of values or informed judgment. Many contemporary doubt-manufacturers selectively use parts of such reasons to suggest the skeptical attitude that science produces just one among many optional beliefs about reality, and that others (like religion, or what serves the oil industry) are equally valid. Against this, we will see that the reasons against proof as the standard (and in favor of evidential support and fallibility) in fact don't weaken but instead strengthen the justifications of why we ought to trust scientifically formed belief where it and its institutional and social conditions are available more than any other (purported) sources of information on nature.
Horne Tu, Th 11:00-12:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List B
Phil 269 Bioethics
This course is a study of moral and political problems related to biomedicine and biotechnology. In the first part of the course, we will study the physician-patient relationship. We will consider what values ought to govern that relationship, how those values may conflict, and how such conflicts are best resolved. In the second part of the course, we will turn to some specific ethical challenges related to biotechnology, including abortion, genetic manipulation, and physician-assisted suicide. We will close the course by surveying the field of public health ethics, with particular attention to ethical issues related to global pandemic preparedness and response.
Phil 275 Climate Change and Sustainability: Ethical Dimensions
An examination of moral and political challenges related to climate change and sustainability, as well as philosophical approaches to addressing these challenges. Topics to be addressed include: the fair distribution of the benefits and burdens of climate change mitigation and adaptation; the feasibility and desirability of perpetual economic growth; the moral status of nature and non-human animals; the demands of climate justice; and the ethics of geoengineering.
The course begins with a foundational competency in main concepts from the French philosopher Michel Foucault, including discipline and biopower, the productivity and plurality of power; normalization and its dependence on "abnormality;" the conditions under which freedom is also a form of subjection; disciplinary and punitive societies, the historical a priori. We review many of the aspects of Foucault's work that have strongly impacted inquiry in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. Turning, in the course's second section, to the work of French Martinian philosopher and decolonial theorist Frantz Fanon, we will critically compare Foucault's and Fanon's approaches to power, psychiatric medicine, families, biopolitics, self-surveillance, knowledge, selfhood, alterity, and colonization. Challenging both thinkers we will ask how these approaches both reinforce each other and, at times, call each other into question. Students will have the opportunity to write on each of the two French philosophers jointly or separately.
The course is reading intensive. It will include weekly contributions to class debate including online postings. your critical responses to the readings, and to each other are encouraged. The course is open to both undergraduates and graduates and includes a lecture component and separate discussion sections at the undergraduate and graduate level.
In this course we will be exploring several of the core topics philosophers have addressed in connection with the nature of mind and it place in nature. These include the nature of consciousness, the mind-body problem, the nature of thought and other psychological states, the nature of imagination, and the nature of the self.
What is the nature of short-term memory or implicit bias? Are our moral judgments impacted by emotional states? How do we know that tests like the n-back task, implicit association test, or fMRI studies produce evidence about memory, implicit attitudes, or emotional states? Psychologists appeal to tools of scientific reasoning, such as validation, construct development, and operational definitions, to evaluate when methods provide evidence about the objects of inquiry. We will analyze these tools as well as typical methods employed in psychology and cognitive neuroscience. These methods include: introspection, comparative animal research, controlled lab experiments, and functional neuroimaging. Using this analysis as background, we will evaluate particular cases of scientific reasoning about animal cognition, implicit bias, short-term and spatial memory, and moral judgment. At the end of this course, we will evaluate the role of replication and integration of results in producing knowledge about the mind/brain.
Thompson Tu, Th 9:30-10:50am Notes: SHC Core Course - List B
Phil 355 Scientific Method of the Social Sciences
Science is often considered a value-free enterprise. Scientists work in labs following the scientific method and provide society with relevant scientific facts. Policymakers then decide, based on their values, how to act on these facts. However, this picture does not fit the social sciences. Social scientists study social phenomena that seem to be defined according to particular social values. Well-being is something that is good for you, divorce is bad for you. Economists use models that make unrealistic assumptions about human behavior, yet still predict market outcomes. International indicators assess which countries have the most gendered violence, but key types of violence are left out so that more countries will report their data. Climate scientists must decide how to communicate their climate predictions (including their likelihood and the severity of their consequences) to policy makers and the public. In this course, we will evaluate methods such as economic games, sociological indicators, idealized economic models, self-report surveys, causal analysis of big data, and generative AI. In each case, we will assess to what extent these methods help us provide knowledge about our social world.
In this class we will explore traditional topics in the theory of knowledge - skepticism, the nature of (and prospects for) knowledge and rational belief, the sources of knowledge - from a variety of perspectives, and we will conclude by exploring what, if anything, we can know (and do) about the limits of our knowledge.
This course offers a deeper examination of a rapidly growing topic in environmental ethics and politics: environmental (in)justice. Together, we will critically reflect upon the questions that have shaped the contemporary discourse on environmental (in)justice. Some of the key questions that will be considered include: Is environmental injustice best understood through the lens of distributive justice alone, or must we take into account procedural justice as well? How does environmental justice relate to the values and ideals of other, more traditional forms of environmentalism? What, in turn, is its relationship—if any—to racism and other social justice issues, such as sexism and ableism? Moreover, what constitutes an environmental burden or benefit, and what is the appropriate standard for assessing ‘environmental risks' or forms of ‘exposure'? In the final section of the course, we will also reflect on how disagreement between stakeholders' moral and cultural standpoints complicates both the recognition and reparation of environmental injustices.
Poli Sci 390-0-21 Research in Global Climate Change
Each year, world leaders gather to negotiate pathways to addressing climate change. As the largest gathering of heads of state, the annual Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP) shines a light on our collective futures, bringing hope and skepticism around climate change to the fore. Despite nearly three decades of negotiations, the world is unlikely to avoid devastating impacts from climate change, where average global temperature increases will exceed the 2oC goal and is nearing well over 3oC. What, then, do COPs achieve? What role do they play in addressing global climate change? What role does science, business, technology, solidarity movements, and civil society play in shaping the global politics of climate change, and there with the potential to address climate change?
In this research seminar, students will design and conduct original empirical research on the Twenty-ninth Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC, which will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from November 11 - 24, 2024 with some virtual components accessible online. The seminar is structured to establish a baseline understanding of global climate governance. Students enrolled in this course should consider themselves research apprentices and collaborators. There are three parts to this course: literature review, research design, and execution. Students are expected to conduct original research related to their dissertations or senior theses OR can participate as a researcher in an ongoing collaborative research project that examines the politics of sites of global environmental governance like COPs.
Poli Sci 390-0-23 Climate Change and Collective Action
What gets in the way of collective action on climate change? This course examines the problem of climate change from a collective action perspective, starting by learning what political science says about collective action problems, identifying political and institutional obstacles in the case of climate change, and evaluating tools and avenues that have led to collective action on climate and in other domains.
When you imagine a city, what comes to mind? Perhaps New York, L.A., or Paris? Today, over half of the world's population lives in urban areas, and the most rapid urbanization is happening in cities in Africa and Asia. While urbanization can have positive effects, such as increased wages and accelerated innovation, population growth can also create strain on institutions and infrastructure. In addition, the forces of colonialism, capitalism, and racism exclude certain people and groups from the benefits of urbanization. This course will be organized around key questions. How are the cities that are urbanizing most rapidly today similar to or different from industrialized or post-industrial cities in the Global North? Who has power in a city? What determines this? And what are the implications? In this course, we will examine how politics relates to the lives of urban residents around the world, including right here in Chicago. We will engage with work from a variety of different regions (with an emphasis on the Global South) and media (including podcasts, videos, and blog posts). We will discuss theoretical debates with an eye toward how they are relevant to public policy and to people's everyday lives. We will also think critically about how to evaluate the evidence presented for different claims about cities.
Poli Sci 390-0-24 Health, Chronic Illness and Disability Politics
Health is simultaneously one of our most basic needs and one of our most commodified goods. We race for cures, rally for affordable and accessible healthcare, debate the ethics of various treatments, and pass laws meant to keep our public healthy. But what do we mean when we talk about "health" or what constitutes a "disease"? How do we define disability, and for what purpose? Who is served by "health politics"? This course examines chronic illnesses and disability (CID) among adults, focusing on the medical and psychosocial aspects of various mental and physical health conditions with implications for political domains of functioning. The primary aim of this course is to offer students an opportunity to explore the continuum of chronic illness and disability (CID) within adulthood through a political science lens. CID will be addressed by studying theoretical underpinnings drawing from medical, psychosocial, and political schemas and examining how these dimensions of understanding interact at the level of the individual, the family, the community, and the society-at-large.
Digital media and technologies, often considered liberation technology, have increasingly been employed by governments and non-political entities for political propaganda and repression. This course will examine the practices and implications of propaganda and repression within the digital media landscape. We will explore the role of digital media and technologies in authoritarian regimes, the common strategies and applications of digital propaganda and repression, and consider how various actors implement these tactics, along with their consequences and global impacts. Through course readings, in-class discussions, and student-led projects, students will develop a critical understanding of the interplay between digital media, politics, and civil society.
Poli Sci 390-0-30 International Wildlife Law and Policy
Many scientists and policymakers believe that we are on the cusp of the world's sixth great extinction spasm, driven almost entirely by anthropogenic factors, including habitat destruction, unsustainable trade, the introduction of invasive species, and the looming specter of climate change. This course explores the role of international law in addressing the biodiversity crisis and efforts to protect wildlife species. An ancillary objective is to provide students with a foundation in international law, including skills in analyzing treaty provisions.
The world's oceans, encompassing 70% of the world's area and 90% of its volume, are essential to life on Earth. However, they are increasingly imperiled by an array of anthropogenic stressors, including pollution, overexploitation of natural and non-living resources, and climate change. This class will focus on both the threats posed to ocean ecosystems, including impacts on marine living resources. The focus of the course will be on the role of international law, including treaties and customary international law, in addressing threats to the world's oceans. A large portion of the course will focus on the provisions of the so-called "constitution for the oceans," the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Poli Sci 390-0-31 Counter Intelligence for Civil Society
This course is an intensive examination of the evolving terrain of global digital electronic telecommunications through the lens of the research of the Citizen Lab. For over 20 years, the Citizen Lab -- an interdisciplinary research laboratory based at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto (which the instructor founded and currently directs) -- has investigated issues at the intersection of information and communication technologies, human rights, and global security. We use a "mixed methods" approach to research combining practices from political science, law, computer science, engineering, and area studies. We see ourselves as a kind of "early warning system," looking over the horizon, or peering beneath the covers of the technological systems that surround us, to expose abuses of power, violations of human rights, or other threats to privacy and security. The Citizen Lab is a pioneer in a new and growing field of "digital accountability" research. After setting the stage with some general readings on background and context, we turn to several modules organized as detailed examinations of the Citizen Lab's mixed methods research on information controls, including analyzing Internet and social media censorship and surveillance, investigating targeted digital espionage, and analyzing the harms and consequences of growing digital transnational repression. We conclude with an exploration of threat modeling and how each of you can improve your own digital hygiene.
This seminar approaches global health topics from a political science perspective. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, global health security, global health governance, and global health diplomacy have emerged as key issues in understanding geopolitics. How do power dynamics shape the global health landscape? Who are the various actors (state and non-state; public and private) involved in global health decisions and how do they wield power to shape policy? How do these tactics combat or reinforce health disparities? What factors make collective action and cooperation around global health issues more likely? Throughout the course we investigate how state and local governments are influenced through top-down approaches from international institutions and bottom-up approaches from grass-roots organizations. In addition to a focus on understanding how actors and processes engage in agenda setting and influence policymaking, we will discuss how enacted policies and political events impact health services delivery and population health. Students will explore these dynamics through case studies such as vaccination campaigns, abortion access, noncommunicable disease management, HIV/AIDS, TB, and climate-driven health crises, among others. Ultimately, we examine the ways in which states navigate the tension between sovereignty and cooperation when striving for global health security in an increasingly inter-connected world.
Psych 101-7-1 Mental Health Diagnosis and Treatment
While those going into the field of mental health typically think about it as a "helping profession", there is much more than meets the eye when it comes to the psychological, economic, and political forces that have defined the development of the field. The course will focus on the contemporary framework for defining mental illness - the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (now in its 5th edition) - with a particular focus on some of the problems that have emerged from the disease-based framework utilized in the manual, and the assumptions that it makes about disorders and typical development. We will explore the role of state mental hospitals in the U.S. in the early to mid-20th century, and we will examine the political forces that drove the de-institutionalization movement of the 1970s and 1980s, with additional consideration of the contemporary implications of the closing of state hospitals. Finally, the course will focus on the evolution of psychotherapy in the modern marketplace, and some of the challenges posed by the demands of the health insurance industry and academic research. The aggressive way in which the DSM has been marketed internationally and the implications of culture for diagnosis will also be discussed. Along the way, we will explore critiques of the pharmaceutical industry, the health insurance industry, and modern psychiatry. Some of these themes will also be explored through analysis of popular films and other media. Students will be evaluated on the basis of class attendance and participation, co-leading a class discussion with peers, and writing assignments including short reaction papers and a longer research paper.
Psych 101-7-2 Truth, Truthiness, and Trust in the Age of Deepfakes
In our current social and political environment, the nature of truth is often contested. Many institutions once widely regarded as objective purveyors of fact have fallen from grace in the eyes of a distrustful public. In what some refer to as a "post-truth era," public confidence in institutions is now at an all-time low, and many feel that personal beliefs, emotions, and opinions overshadow fact in popular discourse.
In this first-year seminar, "Truth, Truthiness, and Trust in Age of Deepfakes," we will consider the psychological mechanisms underlying judgments of truth, as well as socio-political factors that help shape our (dis)trust in information. Drawing from psychology and related fields (including sociology, philosophy, legal studies, and communication sciences), we will explore how emerging technologies, such as AI-generated "deepfakes," challenge traditional notions of evidence and reality. Through readings, discussions, and written assignments, students will develop a critical understanding of how humans perceive and engage with information in the social environment. We will engage in reflective thinking about our own judgments and explore potential avenues for addressing the erosion of trust and spread of misinformation in society.
Psych 101-7-3 Black Minds: Psychology's Construction and Constriction
Race is something that is constructed and something that constricts us. The field of psychology is responsible for both, but also has solutions for both. This class considers blackness and psychology from three perspectives: 1) How psychology has helped create the notion of race, 2) How psychology has treated black bodies historically, and 3) How these show up in the modern, everyday interactions we have. Through course readings, discussions, and written assignments, we will develop and apply an understanding of how psychology makes blackness, and the psychological implications of a race-aware society. We'll also learn how to read, critique, and write psychological research. Course readings will include journal articles and select chapters from popular press books. There is no required textbook.
The fragility of the human body, its susceptibility to illness and death, provoked a wide array of responses among religious practitioners in pre-modern China. Some pursued supernatural longevity and even immortality through various regimes of self-cultivation. Others, by contrast, renounced the body in part or whole through dramatic acts of self-immolation. Even in death, however, many aspired to rebirth in heavenly realms where bodies do not grow old and die, but rather live forever in bliss. This course examines these various attempts to overcome death in Chinese religion—including Buddhism, Daoism, and traditions that fall between these large categories—seeking to understand how the mortality of the body was used to authorize particular modes of embodied living. In the process, we will explore how these modes of religious life shaped attitudes toward food, medicine, gender, sexuality, and family.
Relig St 349 Medicine, Miracles, Magic: Healthcare of the Mind
Today, religion and science are often regarded as separate spheres of knowledge and practice, but was this always the case? In this class, we will explore the overlapping uses of medicine, miracles, and magic in premodern healthcare. We will ask what kinds of people were able to practice medicine (priests? physicians? nuns? magicians?), why a person's barber was also their surgeon, how the dead supported the health of the living, and why rituals like confession could treat stomach aches and other ailments. We will learn what a vial of urine could tell a medieval physician about a patient's habits, consider how an individual's astrological sign influenced their treatment plan, and discuss what an excess of garlic in a person's diet might tell us about the moral state of their spirit. By the end of this course, students will be able to identify and analyze the complex, nuanced systems that medieval people used to theorize the body and its relationship to the soul, and will be able to articulate how physical, spiritual, and even supernatural medicines were often combined to treat both. As we study the nuances of premodern medicine, we will also work to rethink the relationship between religion and science in our own world, and consider whether and where our modern healthcare practices align with the past as much as they depart from it.
Sch of Comm - Comm St 375 The Sociology of Online News
The goal of this upper-level undergraduate seminar is to survey the state of online news from a sociological perspective. We will divide the class into two main parts. The first part will be devoted to an overview of the state-of-the-art knowledge about the behavior of online news audiences worldwide. The second part will be focused on understanding the internal transformations that news organizations have undertaken over the past couple of decades to address this changing audience landscape and its connections to a series of technological, political, and economic challenges that have marked the evolution of the twenty-first century so far. Cutting across both parts will be the adoption of a global and comparative perspective by examining news audiences and organizations from across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The are two main learning objectives for this class: a) to understand the behavior of online news audiences worldwide; and, b) to understand the transformations of news organizations to address a changing news audience landscape.
Sch of Comm - Comm St 387-0-1 Critical Internet Studies
This course focuses on current issues in the field of Critical Internet Studies, with special attention directed to power dynamics related to the use and of internet-related technologies. We will touch on the economic, political, social, and cultural significance of the internet, and work to identify, understand, and analyze, the relations between existing oppressive power dynamics relating to racism, gender-based violence, and other forms of discrimination are entwined in various media issues. Readings focus on the cultural, social, economic, and political aspects of internet use, including creative uses. This class offers an opportunity to discuss the internet in a fundamental way, to engage with complex ideas, and to develop and refine critical thinking, verbal, and writing skills. We will explore timely topics (e.g., memes, misinformation, surveillance, algorithmic bias, tech and social justice, and more) across media and from historical, transnational, and multiple methodological perspectives.
Sch of Comm - Comm St 395-0-23 Social History of Psychedelic Medicines
This course provides social history of psychedelic medicines (LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, DMT, MDMA, ketamine, ayahuasca, nitrous oxide, etc.). It focuses primarily on the United States in the 20th century, however, we will also discuss important developments outside the US and prior to the 20th century where relevant. We will discuss the subjective, mind manifesting, and spiritual effects, the chemical structure, origins, legality, and neurobiology of each of the substances, as well as their clinical, and non-clinical uses and their effects on science, technology, arts, and culture. We will discuss their risks, benefits, and alternatives in a way that will support informed decision making about their use.
Sch of Comm - Comm St 395-0-29 Communication, Innovation and Organizing
The ability to lead and make change through innovation begins with the development of multiple perspectives on people and organizations. Individuals and groups habitually settle into fixed perspectives, unchallenged mental models of how the world works, unconscious filters determining what we pay attention to and what we ignore. These habits offer powerful economies of thought: without them, the simplest task of picking a face out in a crowd or listening to the radio while driving would be impossible. But they impose costs as well. They lock us into a single view of the world that may not be advantageous, that is surely incomplete, resistant to change, and likely to soon become outdated. Innovation involves trading off economy of thought for creativity of thought. It requires the discipline of interpreting what we see and hear in organizations from multiple standpoints. Accordingly, we will learn to analyze situations and craft implementation plans using three perspectives on organizations—strategic design, political and cultural. While leading change always presents challenges, our goal in this course is to use the three perspectives to develop a more complete understanding of these challenges and how to address them.
Sch of Comm St - Comm 246-0-1 Intro to Heath Communcation
People who understand communication are uniquely positioned to solve health related problems, and their services are increasingly in demand. As such, this course is designed to familiarize you with the theory and research on communication in health and illness contexts, focusing on how messages from interpersonal, organizational, cultural, and media sources affect health beliefs and behaviors. We will explore communication in health care delivery, healthcare organizations, as well as health promotion and disease prevention. By taking this course, you will become a more mindful, educated, and effective health communicator.
What is effective risk communication? If last few years has taught us anything, it is the need for effective risk communication. Readings and lectures will examine discoveries in social psychology and communication that inform our understanding of how people interpret risk information and make decisions. Through discussions, in-class activities, and student-led projects, students will explore the creation and evaluation of effective risk messages. Special emphasis will be given to the context of health and the environment.
Sch of Comm St - Comm 378-0-1 Online Communities and Crowds
Examination of the types of collaborations that occur in online communities and crowds. Emphasis on sociological, economic, and political analysis of how and why largescale online collaborations work
Sch of Comm St - Comm 395-0-25 Generative AI and The Media
Since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 generative AI has proliferated throughout society, capturing the imagination of the public with its potential to upend much of how people create and consume media and information. In this course we'll demystify this new technology, understand how it works, how to control it through prompting, and how to implement it in various use cases found in media production and communication. We'll also step back with a critical eye to ask questions of how generative AI changes the larger media system and raises ethical and governance issues around data, copyright, privacy, bias, and more.
Sch of Comm St - Comm 395-0-26 Digital Propaganda and Repression
Digital media and technologies, often considered as liberation technology, have increasingly been employed by governments and non-political entities for political propaganda and repression. This course will examine the practices and implications of propaganda and repression within the digital media landscape. We will explore the role of digital media and technologies in authoritarian regimes, the common strategies and applications of digital propaganda and repression, and consider how various actors implement these tactics, along with their consequences and global impacts. Through course readings, in-class discussions, and student-led projects, students will develop a critical understanding of the interplay between digital media, politics, and civil society.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 227 Communications and Technology
Examining factors informing and shaping the design of everyday objects and our virtual world; psychological aspects of computer-mediated communication and virtual collaboration, including impression relations, group dynamics, and social networks; social and institutional structures in which human communication is situated.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 295 Going Viral: The Powers and Perils
In today's digital culture, going viral on social media is commonly associated with success. However, the phenomenon of virality reveals a complex interplay between visibility and power. This class examines issues related to media virality and power, with an emphasis on understanding the advantages and drawbacks of visibility in contemporary media landscapes. It offers an opportunity to dig into tensions in the areas of media, culture, representation, and online communication. Students will learn to differentiate between key media concepts related to virality, like: memes, visibility, and attention. They will practice analyzing and critiquing the intertwined relationship between media engagement and economic and sociopolitical dynamics. Readings will touch on contemporary topics like: virality and activism, representation and social justice, and the economies of visibility and attention. Through this class, students will develop and refine their critical thinking, verbal, and writing skills in an interactive and collective learning environment.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 351 Technology and Human Interaction
Facebook and Twitter provide persistent services for exchanging personal information, Snaps can be compiled into stories that provide insight about your last 24 hours, ubiquitous and tangible computing environments allow objects to adapt to our everyday experiences, and new collaboration technologies enable people to work together on projects when they are thousands of miles apart. The design of such systems, however, is not simply a technical question. In order to successfully create these systems, we need to understand how people work, play, and communicate with one another in a wide variety of situations. This course illustrates the practice of understanding human interactions that take place both with and through technology; and it explores the design, creation and evaluation of technologies to support such interactions. Course topics include: design processes, prototype construction and technology evaluation techniques. Specialized topics may include social software and collaborative systems, value-sensitive design, and agent-based technologies. No programming experience is necessary. There will be occasional labs to explain technical content. Course requirements include short hands-on exercises, two exams, and a group project.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 358 Algorithms and Society
Algorithms work to define the information we consume, the jobs that are available to us, our romantic and intimate options, and more. While these technologies bring us many benefits, research suggests that they also have critical negative consequences. In this course, we will render visible the invisible when it comes to algorithmic influence on society. In this project-based course, we will use readings and discussion to understand 1) methods for analyzing algorithms, 2) how algorithms operate in specific contexts, and 3) paths forward that mitigate possible harms.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 395-0-22 Interactive Museum Exhibit Design
This course is for undergraduate students interested in the design of interactive museum exhibits. Students will engage with readings about the role museums play in public education/communication, how to design museum exhibits, the role technology can play in making museums interactive, and methods for evaluating learning and engagement at museum exhibits. Readings will primarily focus on interactive exhibits for science communication, with secondary opportunities to explore other types of museum exhibits. Individual assignments will include analyzing and presenting on an existing museum exhibit and creating a design concept/plan for a novel museum exhibit. Students will work in groups towards the end of the quarter to develop an in-depth design and evaluation plan for a novel museum exhibit and, as the final project, create a paper prototype of the exhibit. No previous design or technology experience is needed for students to enroll in this course.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 395-0-25 Social Media, Technology and Mental Health
This course will examine the relationship between social media, technology, and mental health. Students will explore and critically analyze the advantages, challenges, and opportunities of using social networking sites and technology (e.g. apps, digital interventions, video games) to communicate about and seek support for mental health disorders. Conversely, students will scrutinize social media, technology, its impact on mental health and wellness, with special attention paid to topics such as social comparison and online self-presentation.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 395-0-26 Digital Propaganda and Repression
Digital media and technologies, often considered as liberation technology, have increasingly been employed by governments and non-political entities for political propaganda and repression. This course will examine the practices and implications of propaganda and repression within the digital media landscape. We will explore the role of digital media and technologies in authoritarian regimes, the common strategies and applications of digital propaganda and repression, and consider how various actors implement these tactics, along with their consequences and global impacts. Through course readings, in-class discussions, and student-led projects, students will develop a critical understanding of the interplay between digital media, politics, and civil society.
Sch of Comm St - Comm St 395-0-30 The New Outer Space
This course offers a selective, yet galactic, approach to investigating the contemporary conditions of outer space in 2020s and 2030s. No longer the semi-exclusive domain of a few powerful nations and a handful of rich corporations (although both remain very active), still grudgingly shared with scientists such as astronomers and earth scientists (now shared more grudgingly than ever before) what is increasingly called The New Outer Space involves activities by most of the nations of the planet, a huge range and diverse scale of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and inventors, and a largely uniformed public that knows little to nothing about The New Outer Space that is arriving for our future. We will look at issues such as the vanishing of dark and quiet skies as satellites increase in number and undermine astronomical research; plans to build telescopes on the Shielded (Dark) side of the Moon; the growing environmental problems of space debris returning to Earth and splashdown at Point Nemo, the rapidly filling oceanic graveyard of satellites; the competition for access to and control of Cislunar Space; whether and why The Moon needs its own time zone; mega-constellations of satellites that will grow to includes thousands of satellites in orbit; LEO, MEO, GEO and other orbits; new direct-to-smartphone satellites such as BlueWalker 3, at certain moments the 9th-brightest object in the skies of the Northern Hemisphere; Space Advertising with coordinated satellites depicting corporate logos and similar images; names and corporations you have likely heard of, such as Elon Musk and SpaceX, as well as activities likely unknown to many, such as the rising importance of New Zealand as a launch site; and why nations we do not often associate with outer space activities (Rwanda, Luxembourg, and many others) are now co-investing with industry start-ups for a huge and growing range of outer space activities. Assignments will include attendance, short papers, short in-class oral reports, and tracking and reporting on selected satellites, projects, and corporations. When weather conditions permit (generally clear skies and ice and snow free) the last hour of class will be held outdoors as we attempt to observe ISS, Tiangong, BlueWalker 3, and the ACS3 Solar Sail if and when these and other objects are visible in the Evanston night sky. If we are very lucky, we might even see a Starlink deployment of 50+ cubesats at once. Dress for winter outdoors and look up.
Sch of Comm St - Perf St 330-0-1 Digital Performance in the Era of Virality
In this project-based course we will investigate the relationship between performance and digital technology as "historians of the present." Drawing from a compendium of pandemic performances that are part of an in-progress archive, we will analyze, interpret, and critique digitally mediated performances such as vaxxies, mental health TikTok videos, Zoom plays, and social media participatory projects that emerged during recent times of social isolation and unrest. Key course questions include: What can we learn from the aesthetic and communicative strategies that these digital performances animated, linking personal experience and social engagement? In what ways do these performances connect with and might help us navigate today's context of (dis)information overload, polarization, and affective volatility? How have these performances critically expanded the field of digital performance studies, redefining what liveness is and does? Students will read scholarship on liveness and digital mediation, analyze networked performances of their choosing, and produce critical essays or curated performance collections using multimodal publishing platforms. By the end of the course, students will be able to critically analyze and assess digital artistic and social performances and apply digital literacy skills learned in hands-on sessions to present their research findings.
Our climate is rapidly changing. Rising sea levels and increasing ocean acidity, higher temperatures, more droughts, melting glaciers, wilder weather patterns, and mounting environmental disasters mean that climate change is increasingly visible in our daily lives. What role does human society play in these changes, and what consequences does society suffer as these changes occur? This course is an introduction to environmental sociology during which we will employ an intersectional, sociological perspective to look beyond the scientific basis for environmental problems to understand the social roots of environmental issues. We will cover a variety of topics in environmental sociology, including how actors such as corporations, the media, and social movements impact public opinion and environmental issues. Further, we will critically examine the gendered, racial, and socioeconomic production of disparate environmental risks. A primary, central focus of this sociology course is environmental inequality, and students engage with a wide range of theories to examine environmental issues of their own choosing. This is not a public policy course.
Molina Tu, Th 11:00-12:20pm Notes: SHC Core Course - List B
Soc 220-0-20 Health, Biomedicine, Culture and Society
We are told constantly, "take care of yourself!" and we do our best to eat well, sleep well, and stay healthy. Our bodies are important to us. They are also important to the institutions we are a part of, including our families, our schools, our jobs, and our country. They are all invested in keeping our bodies healthy and productive. However, the array of institutions interested in the value of our bodies often have additional incentives- our health is surrounded by a hoard of controversies:
- Why do some people get better medical care than others? - How should the healthcare system be organized? - How do we balance the risks of new medical treatments with the benefits? - What makes the stigma associated with disease and disability so enduring? - What happens when no diagnosis can be made?
This course offers conceptual tools and perspectives for answering these controversies. To do so it surveys a variety of topics related to the intersections of health, biomedicine, culture, and society. We will analyze the cultural meanings associated with health and illness; the political debates surrounding health care, medical knowledge production, and medical decision-making; and the structure of the social institutions that comprise the health care industry. We will examine many problems with the current state of health and health care in the United States and also consider potential solutions.
Disasters are catastrophic events with human and natural causes and may be gradual or sudden and unexpected. What these events share is their potential to disrupt communities, displace residents, and cause economic, emotional, and social suffering. We know that disasters are on the rise globally and in the US, incurring significant economic and social consequences. The aim of this course is to understand how disasters like pandemics, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, plane crashes, oil spills, and terrorism provide a "strategic research site" where we can examine social life and inequality. In this course, students will be introduced to the idea that disasters are fundamentally social events. We will focus on the social, political, and economic conditions that influence disaster experience and recovery, paying special attention to the ways that social characteristics like race, class, gender, and age structure social vulnerability to risk before, during, and after disasters. In learning to think critically about prevailing media representations of disasters, students will master content analysis methodology by engaging in a term-long research project in which they study one recent disaster event and the associated media coverage. This is an introductory level course without any prerequisites.
On a daily basis we consume—often without notice or concern—a substantial amount of racial knowledge. We routinely ingest, for example, infographics about demographic trends, media coverage on crime and undocumented immigration, and advertisements for ancestry tests. In complex and contextually specific ways, this diet shapes our personal and collective identities, social interactions and relationships, and political aspirations and anxieties. In this course, we endeavor to study the politics of racial knowledge—the ways in which categories, measurements, and other techniques of knowledge production have helped to constitute "race" as a seemingly objective, natural demarcation among human populations and institute forms of racial domination and inequality. Historically, racial knowledge has stipulated and legitimated what we might describe as a kind of racial ontology, a set of assumptions, claims, and prescriptions about race and racial superiority/inferiority—e.g. the notion that "whites" or "the West" represent the apex of human civilization. Drawing on diverse texts, this course explores of the emergence, evolution, and effects of racial knowledge. This exploration will begin by discussing the historical relationship between the modern concept of race and European colonialism and slavery. Subsequently, we will track several major developments in the history of racial knowledge, from Enlightenment naturalists to censuses to contemporary genomics research.
The main emphasis in this course is on how sociological theory informs social research. We will read selections of classical social theory and then look at how various scholars have used that theory to help them analyze some aspect of society. We will keep moving between theoretical statements and applications or refinements of that theory. The course will be a mix of lectures and discussion.
Discussions of "the economy" often seem distant and technical. But economic activity can also be viewed like any other social activity: behavior that is structured by norms, institutions, and relationships. Economic Sociology presents this perspective. The course discusses sociology's main insights about the economy and how they contrast with perspectives from economics and psychology. Among other topics, we will discuss money's functions in intimate ties, changing norms around financial management, the relationship between money, gender, and race, and how this all relates to aggregate trends of inequality.
In this course, we will examine how the Western medical system and accompanying health practices impact people of different genders, as well as how healthcare as an institution and practice produces gender categories. Using interdisciplinary research with a focus on sociological studies, we will interrogate the social, institutional, and biological links between gender and health. We will discuss health inequalities between women, men, and trans* people from different race, ethnic, and class backgrounds, using sociological research to understand why these inequalities and forms of difference emerge and are sustained. We will explore how modern Western medicine views male and female bodies and defines their health and illnesses accordingly. Students will complete two short research projects over the term in which they use different data sources (interviews and media content) to examine gendered perceptions of health, health behaviors, help-seeking behaviors, and experiences with medical institutions.
This course is an opportunity for students to critically examine what is often a taken-for-granted aspect of social life: gender. This course will involve learning about gender as well as applying gender theory. We will study a variety of theoretical approaches to the study of gender, with particular focus on how problems are identified and theories are developed. We will examine several emergent cases of gender theorization -- childhood gender and sexuality panics, bathroom surveillance, and the intersex experience, among others. By the end of the term, students will be able to 1) describe and compare theoretical anchors for the sociological study of gender and 2) in writing, apply gender theory to original ethnographic data. This is a reading-heavy upper division course and prior course experience in gender/sexuality studies (by way of taking Gender & Society or other course work) is strongly advised.
What is sex? What is gender? What is sexuality? How are they related? Are they social constructs or biological realities? Can we have one without the others? In this upper division undergraduate seminar, we will explore the interconnected nexus of sex, gender, and sexuality. The course will expose students to a range of theoretical approaches to sex, gender, and sexuality from sociology and other disciplines. The course will also provide students with practice applying these theories to real-life cases. Additionally, students will develop the skills to perform qualitative coding—a key method of analysis of sociological data. By the end of the course, students will have explored a research question of their choice related to sex, gender, and/or sexuality by qualitatively coding data using NVivo.
Why, in moments of crisis, do some people distrust scientific experts while others embrace them? This course will begin to answer this question in three steps: First, we will unpack the tools that experts use to assert their authority and produce a binding perception of reality. Then, we will consider the way that social movements—including "citizen scientists," HIV/AIDS activists, and "biohackers"—contest, mistrust, or reaffirm experts' authority. Finally, we will study how these disputes are shaped by regulatory bureaucracies and the legal system. Throughout the course, students will apply concepts from the interdisciplinary field of science and technology studies (STS) to current "crises" that hinge on scientific expertise like climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the rise of artificial intelligence.
This course works comparatively with texts from Latin American modernismo and European traditions to elaborate on different conceptualizations of the modern imagination. Modernismo characterizes by its strategies of cultural appropriation on one side, and of cultural exhibition on the other, as it marks the moment of most intense traffic of symbolic and material goods and at the same time it claims its cultural autonomy that portrays in exhibitions, chronicles, journalism, and its poetry. Museums, world exhibitions, geographic expeditions, photography and travel writing, department stores, the fashion industry and the commodification of everyday life -what we can call an "exhibitionary complex-" rendered up and laid out the meaning of the modern world. Through these mechanisms the world began being represented as a framed visual display laid out for a spectator. We will explore the system of cultural appropriation and translation practiced by Latin American writers in a moment of imperial globalization and we will consider the Latin American inflexion on such topics as literature and cosmopolitism, the poetic representation of the street and metropolitan cities, the organization of urban leisure, the woman as objet d'art, the metropolitan fascination with subaltern cultures and debates on the production and consumption of mass urban culture. Prerequisite: SPAN 250-0, 251-0, 260-0, or 261-0.
Spanish 395 Bodies in Crisis: Illness, Transformation and Power
This course examines the relationship between illness, the body, and power relationships in Latin American cultural production from the early 20th century to the present. Through a multidisciplinary lens—including literature, film, theory, and visual art—we will explore how bodies in states of illness, disorder, and transformation reveal cultural anxieties and histories of oppression. Rather than viewing illness solely as a medical condition, we will investigate how it disrupts normative conceptions of race, gender, class, and sexuality. The course will interrogate how vulnerable, excessive, and often stigmatized bodies challenge control and order mechanisms, offering different ways of understanding identity, resistance, and human agency. By engaging with canonical and marginalized voices, we will explore ways in which the body opens spaces for new forms of resistance and meaning-making. Prerequisite: SPAN 250-0, 251-0, 260-0 or 261-0.
