Courses in Afroamerican and African Studies (Division 311)

 Introductory Courses

100. Introduction to Afro-American Studies. (4). (SS).
This course introduces and provides a general overview of the area of Afroamerican Studies. It employs a multi-disciplinary perspective which combines elements from conventional historical, political, sociocultural, and behavioral orientations in the analysis of Afroamerican culture and institutions. The course format is a lecture-discussion with three weekly lectures. Students meet with graduate student instructors once weekly to discuss course readings and lectures. The course will be supplemented by guest lecturers, selected CAAS colloquia, films, and special projects. Cost:2 WL:4 (Zafar)
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Historical Perspectives

230/Hist. 274. Survey of Afro-American History I. (3). (SS).
This lecture/discussion course surveys major themes, events, and personages in the history of Africans and people of African descent in the Americas, and in particular North America, though the end of the American Civil War. The survey begins on the African continent, follows captive Africans across the Atlantic, and then traces the contours of the struggle against slavery. Themes to be covered include: slavery and slave resistance; African-American culture; free Blacks, North and South; Black participation in the abolitionist movement; the role of African Americans in the Civil War. Students will read a variety of texts, including examples of Black testimony as well as the work of contemporary cultural and social historians. Assignments include in-class examinations and a comprehensive final, short essays, and class presentations. Cost:2 WL:4 (J. Scott)
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Literature and the Arts

108/Hist. of Art 108. Introduction to African Art. (4). (HU).
See History of Art 108. (Quarcoopome)
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274/English 274. Introduction to Afro-American Literature. (3). (HU).
See English 274. (Keizer)
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342/Theatre 233. Acting and the Black Experience. Permission of instructor (brief interview). (3). (HU).
See Theatre and Drama 233.
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Independent Study and Special Topics

103. First Year Social Science Seminar. (3). (SS).
Section 001 - Barrel of a Pen: African Politics in Literature. Africans have lived in an intensely political era since the end of World War II. They have struggled for independence, charted plans for decolonization, promoted and suffered the rise of authoritarian regimes, and debated and experimented with a wide variety of political frameworks for economic and social development. This course looks at the central role played by African writers in shaping the politics of this era. Readings will be selected from the works of writers, men and women, from throughout the continent, including Chinua Achebe, Ama Ata Aidoo, Ayi Kwei Armah, Mariama Ba, Camara Laye, Ngugi wa Thiongo, and others. Cost:2 WL:4 (Twumasi)
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