100. Introduction to Afro-American Studies. (4). (SS).
In this thematic approach to an understanding of Black folks
in the United States, we will take a multidisciplinary look at
African America. Although I have selected a pair of exemplary
novels as the twin anchors for this course, we will learn about
a variety of non-literary "stuff" – rural gardens, archaeological
digs, soul food, or the blues – that will refer to, augment, and heighten our readings of those two twentieth century classics.
Be prepared to use your eyes and ears: along with the lectures
and readings, documentary and feature film productions will be
screened during regular class meetings; we ll also be listening
to music from time to time. In addition to Toni Morrison's Beloved
and Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, assigned texts may
include such works as Mules and Men, By the Work of Their
Hands, and Blues People, and/or other books representative
of this cultural approach to African American studies. Cost:2
WL:4 (Zafar)
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Times, Location, and Availability
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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Times, Location, and Availability
446/Hist. 446. Africa to 1850. (3). (SS).
See History 446.
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Times, Location, and Availability
408. African Economies: Social and Political Settings. (4). (Excl).
A study of the factors which contribute to current economic
conditions in Africa: the problems and the potential for change, traditionalism and modernism in African economics, colonial economics, colonial economic policies. Uses case studies of representative
countries. (Twumasi)
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Times, Location, and Availability
418/Pol. Sci. 419. Black Americans and the Political System. Two courses in political science. (3). (Excl).
See Political Science 419.
(Walton)
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Times, Location, and Availability
426. Urban Redevelopment
and Social Justice. (3). (SS).
Section 001 – Urban Redevelopment and Social Justice – Can We
Have Both? A Seminar for Future Professionals. Taught from the perspective of a registered architect, this course is organized
around topical issues of design, professionalism, and equity in
urban resources development. Intended primarily for students with
non-architectural backgrounds, the course seeks to provide a spirited
exploration of the explicit (and subtle) connections between people, land, and power in our cities and the specific effects of these
linkages upon contemporary urban rebuilding. In the main, our
explorations are aimed at providing a broadened philosophical
understanding of the "Who?" and "Why?" of
contemporary urban redevelopment policies – particularly as such
policies impact on the emerging "central city." A seminar
format will be followed, combining formal and informal lectures, slide presentations, selected case studies, selected readings, and a series of student-generated workshops. Continued active
class participation and the preparation of a thirty minute audio
cassette tape for presentation near the end of the term are basic
course requirements. Ongoing class dialogue will be augmented
periodically with urban field trips and invited guests. WL:4
(Chaffers)
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Times, Location, and Availability
449/Pol. Sci. 459. African Politics. Prior or concurrent study of the Third World; Pol. Sci. 465 is recommended but not required. (3). (Excl).
See Political Science 459.
(Widner)
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Times, Location, and Availability
450. Law, Race, and the Historical Process, I. (3). (Excl).
Law defines the status and prospects of Blacks, occupies a
key role in Black ideological debates and organizational activity, and reflects the dominant crises in United States and world history.
This course covers the period from the initial interaction between
Blacks and the processes of law in Colonial North America to the
beginnings of the modern Civil Rights era. It reviews the law
of slavery and the slave trade, the Constitution and the status
of Blacks in the ante-bellum period, Constitutional and legislative
developments during Reconstruction, and the legal circumstance
of Blacks in the era of Jim Crow segregation. Cost:4
WL:1 (Woods)
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Times, Location, and Availability
108/Hist. of Art 108. Introduction to African Art. (4). (HU).
See History of Art 108.
(Quarcoopome)
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Times, Location, and Availability
274/English 274. Introduction to Afro-American Literature. (3). (HU).
See English 274. (Keizer)
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Times, Location, and Availability
342/Theatre 233. Acting and the Black Experience. Permission of instructor (brief interview). (3). (HU).
See Theatre and Drama 233.
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Times, Location, and Availability
348/Dance 358. Dance in
Culture: Origins of Jazz Dance. (3). (Excl).
Section 001 – Dances of Latinas/Latinos. For Fall Term, 1997, this course is offered jointly with American
Culture 311.001. (Velez Aguayo)
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Times, Location, and Availability
360. Afro-American Art. (3). (HU).
This course (1) introduces students to West African cultures
and their relationships to Afro-American culture; (2) develops
on a broad level an Afrocentric aesthetic point of view; (3) encourages
greater insight and exploration into the arts of African and Afro-American
people and the spirits and realities that motivate the "arts,"
and (4) creates a living vehicle for understanding and resolving
problematic cultural patterns which disturb, confuse, and cancerize
our historic and contemporary lives. Cost:2
WL:1 (Lockard)
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Times, Location, and Availability
442/Film-Video 442. Third World Cinema. (3). (Excl). Laboratory fee ($35) required.
See Film-Video 442. (Ukadike)
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Times, Location, and Availability
470/Film-Video 470. Cultural Issues in Cinema. (3). (HU). Laboratory fee ($35) required.
This course is designed to explore developments in the cross-cultural
use of media – from Hollywood feature films to ethnographic documentaries, from Caribbean liberationist literature to African allegories
of colonialism, from indigenous use of film and video to Black
Diasporan "oppositional" film practice. This course, at once theoretical, historical, and metacritical in its focus, is divided into two parts. The first deals with dominant Western
paradigms (Hollywood and ethnographic films) and the representation
of ethnic minorities and other cultures, while the second part
will profile Black film productions revealing counterimages that
call into question many of the assumptions that shape conventional
film history. We will foreground recent debates concerning Afrocentrism, Eurocentrism, multi-culturism, racism, sexism, and class bias
as reflected in films and discourse about films. Some of the films
screened include: Imitation of Life, The Searchers, Passion
of Remembrance, Sankofa, She's Gotta Have It, and Nice
Colored Girls. Readings, screening, and written assignments
required. Cost:4
WL:3,4 (Ukadike)
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Times, Location, and Availability
489/English 479. Topics in Afro-American Literature. CAAS 274 and/or 338 strongly recommended. (3). (Excl). May be repeated for a total of 6 credits.
See English 479. (Gunning)
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Times, Location, and Availability
303/Soc. 303. Race and Ethnic Relations. An introductory course in Sociology or CAAS. (4). (SS). (This course meets the Race and Ethnicity Requirement).
See Sociology 303. (Almaguer)
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Times, Location, and Availability
403. Education and Development in Africa. (3). (Excl).
This course is designed for (1) those who plan a career in
international education as teachers or as other specialists; (2)
practicing and perspective teachers who desire to broaden their
understanding of the process and dynamics of educational development
in other cultures, e.g., Africa; and (3) nonspecialists
who wish to understand the problems and ramifications of educational
development upon the development of national resources. For convenience
of treatment, the course will be organized under three broad divisions
of time, i.e., indigenous (traditional), colonial, and national education. Cost:2
(Wagaw)
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Times, Location, and Availability
444/Anthro. 414. Introduction to Caribbean Societies and Cultures, I. Junior standing. (3). (Excl).
See Anthropology 414.
(Owusu)
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Times, Location, and Availability
459/Anthro. 451. African-American Religion. One introductory course in the social sciences. (3). (Excl).
See Anthropology 451.
(Williams)
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Times, Location, and Availability
521/Soc. 521. African American
Intellectual Thought. Senior standing. (3). (Excl).
Section 001 – Paradigms of Social Progress. The purpose
of this course is to explore some debates and arguments constructed
by African American scholars on the "Negro Problem."
The objective will be to ascertain how African American scholarly
debate and commentary has framed definitions of, and has posed
solutions for, the social condition of the African-American community throughout the twentieth century. More specifically, we will consider
how these scholars framed their arguments within larger intellectual
and disciplinary frameworks. In doing so, we will attend to the
historical contexts that circumscribe these arguments. This course
will involve seminar-style discussion. Students will be evaluated
on a research paper that explores some dimension of African American
scholarly inquiry on a social issue of pertinence to Black Americans.
There also will be brief written assignments that will facilitate the development of the term paper. Cost:2
WL:2 (Young)
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Times, Location, and Availability
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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Times, Location, and Availability
358. Topics in Black World
Studies. (3). (Excl). May be elected for a total
of 6 credits.
Section 001 – Economic History of African Americans. This
course will cover the economic history of Africans in America
from the 15th century to the present, with emphasis placed on the historical roots of contemporary African-American life. Students
will leave the class with well-informed opinions on the following
topics: the contributions of African Americans to American economic
development; the economic foundations and legacies of racial slavery
in the United States; the economic significance and meaning of
freedom and citizenship; the economic thought of African Americans; the economic structure of Jim Crow and the responses of African
Americans to it; the economic causes and consequences of the Black
migration to the north; the economics of the Civil Rights Movement; the changing class structure of the Black community; the economics
of Black family structure; markets vs. the state in Black economic
development; an accounting of contemporary Black economic resources;
African Americans in the global economy; and economic strategies
for the future. Cost:2
WL:4 (Whatley)
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Times, Location, and Availability
Section 002 – Gender in Caribbean
Society. In this course, we will look at how gender has operated
across history, across the social field (in different social institutions
and practices), and across race and class groups in the Caribbean, focusing on women in the English-speaking sub-region. Throughout the course we will try to bring women to life by understanding
how they both suffer and resist indignities, and attempt to invent their own lives and livelihoods. Particular attention will be
paid to how race, ethnicity, class and gender interact in the
formation of male and female identities. Students will write two
take-home exams, and do a final paper and related presentation.
Open to but not restricted to CEW evening program students. (Green)
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Times, Location, and Availability
410. Supervised Reading and Research. Permission of instructor. (1-6). (Excl). (INDEPENDENT). May be repeated for credit with permission of the concentration advisor.
For students who can show appropriate preparation in courses
previously taken, the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies
offers course credit for independent study. A full-time faculty
member must agree to supervise the undertaking and to meet with the student during the term. The proposed course of study may
not duplicate the material of any course regularly offered by the Center. The reading and writing requirement should be comparable
to that required in a regular course for the same number of credits;
and all the work must be completed by the final day of class in the term. After consultation with and approval from a CAAS faculty
member, applications for independent study along with statements
describing the schedule of readings and of writing assignments
must be filled out. Such applications must be signed by the faculty
member involved and turned in before the end of the second week
of the term. It is therefore advisable to submit applications
(available in 200 West Hall) in advance of the beginning of the
independent study term and, upon approval, an electronic override
will be issued.
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Times, Location, and Availability
458. Issues in Black World
Studies. (3). (Excl). May be elected for a total
of 6 credits.
Section 001 – Slavery and Abolition in Brazil: Current Themes
in Comparative Perspective. For Fall Term, 1997, this section
is offered jointly with History
478. (Machado)
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Times, Location, and Availability
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