Schedule of Classes

The Enlightenment, particularly the brand of enlightened despotism promoted by the Bourbons, transformed art and art institutions in the Hispanic world. Despite the ideals of ‘enlightened despotism,’ in actuality colonialism as the larger cultural system in which art functioned was an ongoing and complex process that involved negotiation, resistance, reconciliation, and manipulation of new and old art forms. This course explores how a new intellectual movement—framed under specific political goals—was and wasn’t accepted and both did and did not change art in Spain and its colonies.

A study of the causes of and solutions for pollution and environmental degradation weighs the value of ecosystems and their role in sustaining economic activity. Applies cost/benefit analysis to environmental issues and provides an introduction to economics of nonrenewable and renewable resources such as mines, forests, and fish.

This course studies international trade theories and trade policy. Topics include trade models, the gains from trade, determinants of the terms of trade and income distribution, global factor movements, protectionist policy, and trade agreements.

As an introduction to the geologic, physical, chemical, and biological processes of the world's ocean, this course emphasizes its complex relationships with human cultures. Students in this course engage with a mix of readings from scientific journals, textbooks, and classic literature while conducting their own scientific reviews to pursue questions at the frontiers of ocean sciences.

A survey of existing and emerging threats to wetland ecosystems and the consequences for animal and human populations. This course discusses causes, consequences, and solutions for issues of international and local concern based on an understanding of freshwater ecology and function. Also considers multiple perspectives on water use and attempts to reconcile these differences so as to identify and publicize potential conservation solutions.

Readings in representative authors, themes and periods from France and from other Francophone countries.

A survey of French films from the invention of cinema to the contemporary period, with an emphasis on points of connection with American cinema. From the Lumieres brothers to Melies, from Pathe and Gaumont to Surrealism (Clair, Bunuel, Cocteau), from Abel Gance to realism (Renoir, Carne) and from "New Wave" (Resnais, Godard, Truffaut) to "Modern Cinema" (Lelouch, Malle).

This course traces the development of economic theory from Plato and Aristotle, who consider it in the moral context of oiko nomos, law of the household, to the more modern political economy of Adam Smith. It then examines economic themes, broadly considered, in French literature such as Perceval ou le Conte du Graal, Molière’s plays of the Classical Age, and Zola’s 19th-century novel about the department store, Au Bonheur des Dames. All works of economic theory not originally in French are read in French translation.

This course investigates artifacts and events of current popular culture (art, political protests, graphic novels, musical (sub)cultures, film, and soccer) for their representation of contemporary German speaking countries. Students examine, research, and evaluate the various "texts" to understand how they are influenced by and conversely shape negotiations of nationality, identity, gender, class, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and class. Through this analysis, the course determines how texts illuminate and question present-day aspects of social and political affairs.

A general survey of the political, constitutional, economic, and social history of Britain and Ireland from pre-history to the Revolution of 1688.

This course rethinks the traditional, historical, and popular presentations of Africa as a coherent, bounded region. It employs a methodology of global interaction to unfold a regional approach to the continent's history, while providing the key analytical tools employed by African historians. It also examines the rise, problematic implications, and continued relevance of the concept of "Africa," "Africans," and "African history." In addition to becoming experts in the nested histories of one particular African locale, students will interrogate the broad wealth of African history and historiography.

A survey of the history of Japan from earliest times to the present. Topics include early Chinese influence, Buddhism, the rise of feudalism, unification in the 15th Century, the era of isolation, the intrusion of the west, the Meiji Restoration, the rise of Japan as a military power and World War II, and postwar recovery.

The history of Europe during the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries with an emphasis on the Renaissance in Italy and in northern Europe, Christian humanism, the Protestant and Catholic Reformations and the beginning of the era of the religious wars. Not open for credit to a student who has successfully completed either HIST 305 or HIST 306.

A study of the mixture of Indian and Spanish civilizations. Concentration on sixteenth-century culture of Aztecs and Incas, the evolution of Spanish colonial empire, the historical background to strongman government, the art and architecture of the colonies, and the Independence Period 1810-25.

This first offering in a two-course sequence introduces students to the history of the Middle East. Surveying the region's history prior to the eighteenth century, it considers the emergence of the world's earliest civilizations; the rise of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and the spread of Arab, Turkish, and Persian Empires. Emphasis is placed on the Middles East's place in global trade networks and imperial conflicts.

A seminar on the history of Latin American women from the seventeenth century to the present, examining the tension in Latin American countries concerning the role of women, their relationship to the family, and their desire for equality. The course explores controversies over the legal status of women, education, employment, and participation in political life. Students will examine several theoretical approaches to gender studies together with specific case studies.

An examination of the significant social, political, and intellectual movements in the history of Europe.

This course examines the great age of European expansion in the 19th and 20th centuries in Asia and explores the underpinnings of an imperial state. From the age of exploration, to the age of trade, to the age of European decolonization, the relations between the European and the local peoples underwent a significant change in terms of cultural contact, economic exploitation, and political domination. The course analyzes the results of these relations for the Europeans and for the Asians they ruled. It also considers why and how imperial dominations lost their force and new national identities emerged in Asia.

Schedule of Classes

International & Global Studies