American Studies Course Descriptions
2011-12 General Catalog
209 Humanities 1
(831) 459-4658
http://amst.ucsc.edu
Lower-Division Courses
10. Introduction to American Studies. *
Organized around the themes of democracy and citizenship, explores the many ways the United States of America has been defined and interpreted. Highlights primary questions in American studies, and draws from multiple texts, genres, and methods. Satisfies American History and Institutions Requirement. (General Education Code(s): ER, IH, E.) (F) K. Lau, (S) A. Lonetree
Upper-Division Courses
100. Key Concepts in American Studies. F,W,S
Provides majors with an in-depth introduction to American studies and the major at UCSC. Introduces key American studies concepts and highlights the emphases of this major. Careful attention paid to critical reading skills and analytical writing. Required of all American studies majors. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment restricted to American studies majors. Enrollment limited to 20. (General Education Code(s): W.) F. Robinson, The Staff
101. Power, Identity, and Social Formations. W,S
Introduces critical conversations regarding social difference and power occurring in American studies and related disciplines and fields. Students address such issues from historical and contemporary perspectives, examining individual groups and taking a comparative approach. Course 100 recommended as preparation. Enrollment restricted to American studies majors. R. Ramirez, E. Porter
102. Reading Culture. F,W
Introduction to theoretical and methodological debates at the center of cultural studies as practiced in American studies. Balances theoretical readings with case studies to explore wide-ranging cultural productions and formations from different disciplinary perspectives and interpretive frameworks. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment restricted to American studies majors. Enrollment limited to 25. J. Daehnke, K. Lau
102A. Gender and U.S. Society. *
Introduction to the gendered analysis of U.S. society and culture from theoretical and historical perspectives. Particular attention given to the ways in which gender intersects with racial, ethnic, and class differences, focusing on the themes of work, politics, and sexuality. Course 1 or 10 is recommended prior to taking this course. K. Lau
102B. Sexuality and Culture. *
Examines how aspects of sexuality (such as sexual identities, preferences, roles, and desires) are fundamentally shaped by social-cultural and psychological factors. Topics include gender formation, the social construction of sexuality, and the historical emergence of the modern "gay" and "lesbian" identity of the U.S. Recommended for senior American studies majors. The Staff
107A. U.S. Popular Culture: 1800–1918. *
A survey of major popular cultural forms and texts in the pre-WWI era including Minstrelsy, Uncle Tom's Cabin, P.T. Barnum, Ramona, The Wizard of Oz, and Birth of a Nation, with attention to historical context and theory. F. Robinson
107B. U.S. Popular Culture: 1920–Present. *
Major popular cultural forms from the 1920s to the present. Topics include early "race" recordings; Depression radicalism; WWII entertainments; the Cold War; popular film genres; the 1970s and 1980s contemporary music (conjunto, jazz, rock, and rap). Particular attention to multicultural issues. Course 107A recommended. The Staff
109A. Technology and American Culture. *
Assesses political conditions under which the U.S. became committed to certain technologies, discusses merits of recent accounts of "crisis" in our politics and environment, and examines alternatives to mainstream politics and technology. Enrollment restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. The Staff
109B. Science Fiction in Multicultural America. *
Science fiction by authors and artists of diverse cultural backgrounds, contextualized within the political and economic conditions of the U.S. Enrollment restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. C. Ramirez
111A. The West in American Culture. W
Features texts with Western settings and with representative casts of Western characters. The often contradictory patterns that emerge from this regional literature and the qualities that attach to its familiar hero are explored. F. Robinson
112. Immigration and Assimilation. F
Examines immigration to U.S. from colonial era to present with special emphasis on issues of citizenship, social identities, and social membership. (General Education Code(s): ER.) C. Ramirez
113A. Imagining America. F
Examination of varied and often conflicting ways the ambiguous entity conventionally labeled "America" has been imagined, both positively and negatively, in political speeches, painting, fiction, film, television, music, drama, advertising, parades, and other modes of expression. J. Daehnke
113C. Citizens, Denizens, and Aliens. *
Compares the United States and France, two heterogeneous nations with Enlightenment-era origins, to explore theories and practices of citizenship, with a focus on both formal (e.g., political-juridical) and informal membership in a collective. Compares and contrasts citizens and non-citizens, such as denizens, migrants, and aliens, and the roles they play in and for the nation, state, civil society, and market. Enrollment restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. C. Ramirez
114A. Politics and American Culture. *
Examination of major conceptions of citizenship in the context of American society and culture, with particular attention both to the sources of these conceptions in Western political thought and to their elaboration and testing in specific historical situations. Enrollment restricted to juniors and seniors. The Staff
114B. Marxist Thought in American Culture. *
Explores history of Marxist thought and activism in the U.S. with special emphasis on uses and effects of Marxism within aggrieved communities of color. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. (General Education Code(s): W.) The Staff
114C. Labor in U.S. Society. *
Examines the history of work and class in U.S. society with particular attention to how race and gender inform the constructions of multiple working classes. Drawing upon primary and secondary materials, the course analyzes the formations of labor unions, regional labor patterns, and the development of the capitalist market economy. The Staff
121C. Mixed Race in America. *
Examines what it means to be of mixed race in America along historical, social, political, and cinematic lines. Theories on racial and identity formation applied to understanding multiracial experiences of various racial groups in the U.S. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
123. Native American Studies.
123F. Native American Women. *
Introduces students to the history of Native North American women's lives. Topics include the impact of colonization and Christianization on Native women, political activism, the role of Native women in tribal politics, and contemporary artistic production. (General Education Code(s): E.) R. Ramirez
123M. Celluloid Natives: American Indian History on Film. F
Examines how American Indian history and culture has been portrayed in Hollywood films, with an emphasis on films that represent Native Americans over the broad spectrum of Native American/white relations. (General Education Code(s): IM, E.) A. Lonetree
123T. Inventing the Savage. *
Examines how colonialism is at the root cause of cultural trauma in Native American communities; how colonialism affects both the colonizer and the colonized; how Native American scholars have theorized cultural trauma; and using novels, how Native Americans create strategies to heal from the negative effects of colonialism. (General Education Code(s): E.) R. Ramirez
123X. American Indian History in the Twentieth Century. S
History of Native peoples of the U.S., from 1900 to present, with emphasis on Indian/white relations and continuing development of federal Indian policy and its impact. Attention also given to the persistence, change, and adaption of Native cultures to historical and contemporary social conditions. (General Education Code(s): E.) A. Lonetree
123Z. Native Americans and Museums. *
Provides an historical overview of the relationship between American Indians and museums. Current issues and practices in museums—primarily those associated with ethics, collecting practices, exhibitions, education/interpretation, and administration/governance—are explored. (General Education Code(s): E.) A. Lonetree
125. African American Studies.
125A. Aspects of African American Culture. S
A seminar examining the dominant and defining characteristics of African American culture, covering such areas as folklore, religion, politics, music, verbal arts, and social ritual, as well as more "everyday" manifestations of the culture. May be repeated for credit. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
125E. Jazz Cultures. S
Explores the meaning of jazz in American culture, particularly the social and cultural forces that have produced different jazz styles and the various ways that social conflicts and ideals have been displaced onto jazz. A prior familiarity with the music itself will be helpful but is not required. (General Education Code(s): E.) E. Porter
125H. Black Feminism. *
Explores elements of African American feminist thought and its articulation in writings, music, literature, and practice/activism in 20th-century U.S. Sexuality and reproduction is a primary theme—especially motherhood, politics of reproduction, and sexual narratives. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment restricted to junior and senior American studies majors. Enrollment limited to 25. (General Education Code(s): W, E.) The Staff
126. Chicano Studies.
126A. Chicana/o Latina/o Culture. S
Explores Chicana/o and/or Latina/o cultures, texts, and/or practices. Topics may include: literature and literacy; music; and popular, folk, and visual cultures. (General Education Code(s): ER.) The Staff
126B. Chicana/o Music. *
Examines Chicana/o music. Topics include corridos and border rebellion, music and social movements, Chicano radio and record industries, Chicanas/os and the emergence of rock and roll, Latin American/Latino music, and contemporary Chicana/o music. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
126C. Chicana/o Literature and Film. *
Examines the formations and contestations of social, political, and cultural identities for Chicanas and Chicanos through a critical study of select Mexican American texts and films. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
126L. Chicana/o Literature. *
Focuses on Latino literature, including traditional and emergent literary forms. Mostly focuses on Latinas and Latinos in the U.S., although course may also highlight the convergences and divergences of U.S. Latino and Latin American literary production. Students may study traditional literary forms, such as poetry or the novel, or more emergent ones, including blogs, graphic novels, and performance. No previous background in Latino literature is necessary, although some familiarity with literary criticism and theory is useful. (General Education Code(s): TA, E.) C. Ramirez
127. Asian American Studies.
127A. Aspects of Asian American Culture. *
Selected topics on Asian American culture, religion, music, foodways, literature, theater, film, and/or art. May be repeated for credit. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
127C. Asian American Literature and Culture: Memories of War. *
Course assumes that war is key element in transpacific formation of Asian America and attempts to examine wars in Asia/Pacific region from Filipino-American through the Pacific, Korean, and Vietnam Wars U.S. has participated in and to ask how war memories have shaped the Asian American experience and reconfigured notion of the homeland. Looks at specific Asian American texts to discuss issues of ethnicity, politics of memory, immigration, and diaspora in respective war context and considers impact of cold war as transpacific structure of ideological determination. Enrollment limited to 60. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
127D. Filipino Americans: History and Culture. *
Examines the history and culture of Filipinos in the U.S. from 1763 to present day within the context of colonial and postcolonial relations between the Philippines and the U.S. Topics include immigration, labor, community, identity, politics, and contemporary issues. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
127E. Asian American Women. *
Examines the intersectionality of race, class, gender, and sexuality in the history and lives of Asian American women from a woman-centered perspective. Topics include immigration, work, family, identities, sexploitation, and political and social activism. Students cannot receive credit for this course and History 189. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
127K. South Asian Americans. *
Examines South Asian migration to the U.S., with specific attention to historical and political contexts of immigration and to (re)configurations of culture, politics, and identity in the South Asian American diaspora. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
141. The Great Book of America. *
The course will feature texts that were conceived as, or have been widely received as, expressions of themes and values that are especially or essentially American. Moby Dick, Walden, Leaves of Grass, and Huckleberry Finn are such books. F. Robinson
142. Melville. *
Lectures on a selection of Melville's major writings, including Moby Dick, Pierre, The Confidence Man, Billy Budd, and selected short works. Students are required to complete two critical essays. F. Robinson
145. Mark Twain and American Culture. *
A survey of Mark Twain's major writings with special attention to biography and historical content. The writer's status as a leading cultural spokesperson is also explored. Satisfies literature major requirement. Students cannot receive credit for this course and American Literature 120B. (General Education Code(s): TA.) F. Robinson
146A. U.S. History and Literature. *
Seminar on American historical fiction, including works by Hawthorne, Twain, Faulkner, Cather, Stegner, Doctorow, and Morrison, and with some attention to relevant theoretical texts. Students are required to submit two critical essays. F. Robinson
150. Mediating Desire. F
From a foundation in semiotics, considers the ways race and gender are constructed, understood, performed, embraced, commodified, and exploited through representations. Uses representations of, by, and for the margins to engage theories of communication, identity, and representation. Creative final projects encouraged. (Formerly Community Studies 152) (Also offered as Feminist Studies 150. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to sophomore, junior, and senior American studies majors or by permission of instructor. Enrollment limited to 100. (General Education Code(s): ER, E.) M. Ochoa
152. Gender, Folklore, and Popular Culture. *
Investigates the ways that folklore and popular culture contribute to dominant understandings of gender and sexuality as well as the ways that they might also offer possibilities for resisting and subverting such representations and constructions. K. Lau
157. Sexual Identities and Communities. W
Examines how gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people negotiate the intersections of their sexual and gender identities with their racial, ethnic, and class identities in the contemporary U.S. Considers the ramifications of these intersections for notions of "gay issues" and "queer communities." The Staff
172. Asian Americans in Film. *
Introduction to the history and relevance of film and video productions within Asian America. Explores reasons why, and ways how, Asian Americans have represented themselves through the visual medium of moving pictures. Emphasis on basic tools of film analysis and appreciation. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
180. Special Topics in American Studies. F,W,S
Highlights important, relevant, and topical themes in American studies and society. By closely examining one topic or theme, students connect larger issues and think across areas of study. Topics include: the prison industrial complex; radical traditions in America; race and cultural exchange; and citizenship in America. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
188. 9/11. *
Considers the events of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent changes in U.S. society and in the country's role across the globe. Focuses on three arenas where these transformations have occurred: politics, culture, popular culture, and racial and ethnic relations. E. Porter
190. Senior Research Seminars. F,W,S
As a capstone, this seminar begins by reflecting on the field of American studies or on a topic that defines it. Students then develop a research project relevant to their emphasis in the major. Focus and topics vary by instructor. Satisfies American studies senior comprehensive requirement. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment restricted to American studies majors. Enrollment limited to 25. R. Ramirez, A. Lonetree
194. Group Tutorial. F,W,S
Provides a means for a small group of students to study a particular topic in consultation with a faculty sponsor. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
195A. Senior Project. F,W,S
For students continuing work on their senior thesis. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
195B. Senior Project. F,W,S
For students continuing work on their senior thesis. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
198. Independent Field Study. F,W,S
Individual study program off campus for which faculty supervision is not in person (e.g., supervision is by correspondence). Up to three such courses may be taken for credit in any one quarter. Approval of student's adviser and certification of adequate preparation required. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
199. Tutorial. F,W,S
Various topics to be arranged. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
199F. Tutorial (2 credits). F,W,S
Various topics to be arranged. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
Graduate Courses
200. Proseminar in American Studies. *
Introduces graduate students to current theories and methods in American studies, to the history of the field, and to the faculty in the department. Required introductory seminar for all students wishing to pursue a designated emphasis in American studies. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 10. E. Porter
295. Directed Reading. F,W,S
Directed reading which does not involve a term paper. Designed for graduate students. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
296. Special Student Seminar. F,W,S
A seminar study group for graduate students arranged between students and faculty member. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
297. Independent Study. F,W,S
Independent study for graduate students who need to establish a research area for their thesis. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
299. Thesis Research. F,W,S
Independent thesis research for graduate students. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
Revised: 8/13/12
