History of Consciousness
2016-17 General Catalog
415 Humanities 1
(831) 459-2757
http://histcon.ucsc.edu/
Lower-Division Courses
1. Introduction to History of Consciousness. F,W,S
Investigates the politics of identity and recognition as the basis for claims about institutional legitimacy and social struggle. Examines such diverse figures as Sartre, Fanon, Bataille, Foucault, Lacan, Levinas, Derrida, Deleuze, Zizek, and Badiou. The Staff
12. Historical Introduction to Philosophy. F
Focuses on moral, metaphysical, and epistemological issues using classical texts along with some contemporary readings on related philosophical problems. Plato, Kant, and Sartre provide the central readings on ethics, while Descartes, Hume, Kant (again), and Wittgenstein provide the central metaphysical and epistemological discussions. Issues of philosophy of language and method are highlighted throughout. (General Education Code(s): TA, IH.) J. Neu
80N. Prophecy Against Empire.
In the core of a London slum, with wars raging all around him, the printer William Blake sounded the trumpet of prophecy. This course channels Blake's war-time revelations, laying bare the antimonies of imperial violence and the prophetic tradition. (General Education Code(s): IM.) A. Sivak
80U. Modernity and Its Discontents. *
Offers an introduction to the idea of modernity from Kant to Freud, Niezsche to Fanon. (General Education Code(s): T4-Humanities and Arts.) D. Marriott
85. Politics and Religion. W
Considers both the religious sources of political ideas and the political sources of religious ideas, addressing topics, such as sovereignty, justice, love, reason, revelation, sacrifice, victimhood, evil, racism, rebellion, reconciliation, and human rights. (General Education Code(s): TA.) R. Meister
Upper-Division Courses
102. Philosophy and Poetics. *
Introduction to the relationship between philosophy and poetics in some major 19th- and 20th-century poets and thinkers. Enrollment restricted to juniors and seniors. Enrollment limited to 30. D. Marriott
111. States, War, Capitalism. *
Survey of seminal work on ancient origins of the state, diverse geo-political systems of war and diplomacy, and consequences of the formation of the world market on the evolution of geo-political systems up to and beyond the wars of today. Enrollment restricted to juniors and seniors. Enrollment limited to 35. G. Balakrishnan
112. Foundations in Critical Theory. F
Concentrates on the Marxist tradition of critical theory, centering on classical texts by Marx and by writers in the Marxist tradition up to the present. Enrollment limited to 150. (General Education Code(s): TA.) G. Balakrishnan
115. Comedy and the Question of the Comic. *
Introduces the concept of the comic; how the concept of the comic has been theorized at times, from antiquity to the 20th century; forms the comic has taken and how it structures our experiences; and theories of the comic. (General Education Code(s): TA.) M. Holohan
118. Jewish Social Movements. *
Jewish social movements of the late 19th and 20th centuries, in Europe (Eastern and Western) and the U.S.: the confrontation between Hasidism and Haskahah, tensions between socialism and Zionism, between religiosity and secularism, the mutual influences among these tendencies. (Also offered as History 185D. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to juniors and seniors. Enrollment limited to 20. (General Education Code(s): E.) The Staff
119. Politics of Recognition. *
Course touches on the philosophical roots of Hegel's text, starting from the pre-World War II rereading of Hegel's master/slave dialectic that became the kernel of postwar thought arising from struggles over capitalism, communism, fascism, racism, colonialism, and feminism. R. Meister
125. Queerness and Race. *
Gives students a grasp of different definitions and uses of the concept queerness in its relationship to race and how it's tied to the politics of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) identity. Enrollment limited to 25. The Staff
136. On Insults. *
What is the role of insult in social and legal life (from play to jokes to ritual to war and from blasphemy to defamation to hate speech)? Emphasizes philosophical, anthropological, psychoanalytic, and legal approaches to the issues. J. Neu
139A. Market Crises and the Future of Capitalism. W
Examines the development and role of late 20th- and early 21st-century financial technologies in modern market crises. Enrollment limited to 40. The Staff
139B. Materialism and Financial Markets. S
Continuation of course 139A. Examines the development and role of late 20th- and early 21st-century financial technologies in modern market crises. Enrollment limited to 40. The Staff
146. Philosophy of Law. *
Exploration of selected problems in jurisprudence: "legal reasoning" and social policy, rules and individual cases, the mental element in the law, punishment and responsibility, causation and fault, liberty and paternalism, etc. (Formerly Philosophy 146.) (Also offered as Legal Studies 146. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) J. Neu
150. Radical Political Theory. W
Provides an introduction to classical and contemporary texts of radical political theory, a body of work that critically examines fundamental premises of politics. Addresses the question "What is the 'political?'" G. Balakrishnan
160. Advanced Topics in History of Consciousness. F
Provides students an opportunity for in-depth analysis of advanced topics within the history of consciousness arena. Course topic changes; see the Class Search for current topic. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
163. Freud. *
The development of Freud's concept of mind. Extensive reading tracing the origins and development of Freud's theories and concepts (e.g., abreaction, psychic energy, defense, wish-fulfillment, unconscious fantasy, dreams, symptoms, transference, cure, sexuality) and emphasizing the underlying model of the mind and mental functioning. (Formerly Psychology 163 and Philosophy 139.) Offered in alternate academic years. J. Neu
180. The Emotions. W
Analysis of particular emotions (e.g., jealousy, boredom, regret) and exploration of general theoretical issues (e.g., expression, control) with emphasis on moral psychology. Admission by interview with instructor. Enrollment restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Enrollment limited to 23. J. Neu
185C. Comparative Religion: A Critical Introduction. S
Introduces the comparative study of world religions and provides critical entry points toward the understanding of its history as a discipline. Special emphasis on the troubled history of imperialism, orientalism, and facile generalizations that have always accompanied the attempt to understand foreign or dead cultures. Enrollment is restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. (General Education Code(s): CC.) M. Diaz-Perez
185T. Marxism and Feminism. S
Critically engages with feminist-Marxist perspectives on social-reproduction. Introduces the foundation of Marxism and feminist-Marxist critique while examining the international feminist struggle historically from the origins of capitalism to the present moment. M. Gonzalez
187. The Emergence of the Avant-garde from Disenchantment to Dada. W
Examines the socio-political and cultural origins of early 20th-century avant-garde movements focusing on the vanguard movement of futurism, the roles played by the disenchantment of the world, and technological rationalization as it relates to warfare and aesthetic production. (General Education Code(s): TA.) M. Moeller
190A. Jewish Socialism in Eastern Europe, 1880-1953. *
Looks at the ongoing debate in Jewish resistance during the Second World War and ends by addressing the status of Jews and Jewish movements in the Soviet Union and Poland after the war. (Also offered as Jewish Studies 190A. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment limited to 25. B. Epstein
199. Tutorial. F,W,S
A program of individual study arranged between an undergraduate student and a faculty member. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
Graduate Courses
203A. Approaches to History of Consciousness. F
An introduction to history of consciousness required of all incoming students. The seminar concentrates on theory, methods, and research techniques. Major interpretive approaches drawn from cultural and political analysis are discussed in their application to specific problems in the history of consciousness. Prerequisite(s): first-year standing in the program. See the department office for more information. (Formerly course 203.) E. Porter
203B. Approaches to History of Consciousness. S
Writing-intensive course based on readings in course 203A. Prerequisite(s): course 203A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 9. G. Balakrishnan
210A. Cultural and Historical Studies of Race and Ethnicity. *
Explores the historical construction of racial and ethnic categories in the Americas, especially the U.S., in interaction with gender, sexuality, class, and nationality. Intended to introduce current work by UCSC faculty and Bay Area scholars and to stimulate graduate student research projects, the course is organized by intensive reading around key questions, followed by presentations by invited scholars. Emphasizes research resources and methodologies. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. The Staff
210B. Cultural and Historical Studies of Race and Ethnicity. *
Writing intensive course based on readings in course 210A. Prerequisite(s): course 210A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. The Staff
211A. French Hegel. *
Introduces the "return to Hegel" in the work of some major 20th-century French thinkers. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
212. Feminist Theory and the Law. *
Interrogation of the relationship between law and its instantiating gendered categories, supported by feminist, queer, Marxist, critical race, and postcolonial theories. Topics include hypostasization of legal categories, the contest between domestic and international human rights frameworks, overlapping civil and communal codes, cultural explanations in the law, the law as text and archive, testimony and legal subjectivity. (Also offered as Feminist Studies 212. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. G. Dent
216. Critical Race/Ethnic Studies. *
Explores foundational and emergent theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of race. Issues examined include the production of race within and across various spheres of human activity and how race has shaped notions of difference and commonality in the past and present. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. E. Porter
217. Critical Human Rights Theory. S
Addresses about 10 of the significant critiques of human rights discourse published in the past decade by authors, such as Moyn, Douzinas, Fassin, Ticktin, J. Slaughter, D. Chandler, Mamdani, Weitzman, Badiou, and Meister. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. May be repeated for credit. R. Meister
222B. Theories of Late Capitalism. *
Writing intensive course based on readings in course 222A. (Formerly Theories of Late Capitalism, Nationalism, and the Politics of Identity.) Prerequisite(s): course 222A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. B. Epstein
230A. Poetry, Language, Thought. *
Introduces the relation between philosophy and poetics in some major 20th-century poets and thinkers. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
230B. Poetry, Language, Thought. *
Writing-intensive course based on readings in course 230A. Prerequisite(s): course 230A, or permission of instructor. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
236. On Insults. *
What is the role of insult in social and legal life (from play to jokes to ritual to war and from blasphemy to defamation to hate speech)? Emphasizes philosophical, anthropological, psychoanalytic, and legal approaches to the issues. Enrollment restricted to graduate students and by permission of instructor. (Formerly Philosophy 290Y.) (Also offered as Anthropology 236. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. J. Neu
237A. Historical Materialism. F
Students read landmark works of classical and contemporary Marxism. Writings from Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Lukacs, Gramsci, Adorno, Benjamin, Sartre, Althusser, Anderson, Jameson, and Zizek are addressed. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. May be repeated for credit. G. Balakrishnan
237B. Historical Materialism. *
Writing-intensive seminar based on course 237A. Students read landmark works of classical and contemporary Marxism. Writings from Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Lukacs, Gramsci, Adorno, Benjamin, Sartre, Althusser, Anderson, Jameson, and Zizek are discussed. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 10. May be repeated for credit. G. Balakrishnan
240. Basic Principles of University-Level Pedagogy (1 credit). *
Provides training for graduate students in university-level pedagogy in general. Under the supervision of the department chair, coordinated by a graduate student with substantial experience as a teaching assistant. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
242A. Violence and Phenomenology: Fanon/Hegel/Sartre. F
Study of the work and influence of Frantz Fanon from a range of viewpoints: existential, phenomenological, psychoanalytic, and political; a variety of genres: film, literature, case history, and critique; and a set of institutional histories: clinical, cultural, and intellectual. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
242B. Violence and Phenomenology: Fanon/Hegel/Sartre. W
Writing intensive course based on readings in course 242A. Prerequisite: course 242A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
243A. Nationalism, Anti-Semitism, and Jewish Resistance in World War II. *
Jewish resistance to Nazism during World War II, in Eastern Europe, and its historical context. Includes the pre-war rise in nationalism and anti-Semitism in Poland and Lithuania, Jewish integration in the Soviet Union, and the consequences for wartime resistance. (Also offered as History 256. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to seniors and graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. B. Epstein
245. Race and Representation. *
Explores how human subjects come to be visually defined and marked by "race" discourse. Covers diverse theoretical literatures on the topic, primarily in visual studies, but also in cultural studies, post-colonial studies, and psychoanalysis. (Also offered as Feminist Studies 245. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. J. Gonzalez
246. Black Radicalism. *
Examines the history of black radical intellectual, cultural, political, and/or social movements. May take the form of a survey of different aspects of black radicalism or may focus on a particular individual, groups, period, etc. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. E. Porter
252. Poststructuralism. *
French poststructuralism, with particular attention to the main philosophical texts of Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault. Other representative theorists as well as critics of poststructuralism are studied as time permits. (Also offered as Philosophy 252. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
256A. Theories of the Visual. *
Study of psychoanalytic theories of the visual including the emergence of psychoanalysis and cinema as parallel discourses and the mobilization of key psychoanalytic concepts—scopophilia, voyeurism, fetishism—in Freudian and Lacanian understandings of the gaze so central to film and photographic theory. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
256B. Theories of the Visual. *
Writing intensive course based on readings in course 256A. Prerequisite: course 256A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
259A. Kant, Lacan, and the Ethics of Psychoanalysis. *
Offers an introduction to Jacques Lacan's "Return to Kant" and the response it provokes as a reading of sadism, politics, and ethics. Specific point of entry adopted for course is Lacan's seminar on "The Ethics of Psychoanalysis." Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
259B. Kant, Lacan, and the Ethics of Psychoanalysis. *
Writing-intensive course based on readings in course 259A. Prerequisite(s): course 259A. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. D. Marriott
261. Modern Intellectural History. W
Survey of 19th- and 20th-century intellectual history that focuses on a cross-section of major works from Hegel to Levi-Strauss. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. G. Balakrishnan
262. Critical Theory After Habermas. *
Examines key works of Frankfurt School theorist Jurgen Habermas, his followers, and critics, on topics such as the public sphere, the theory of communicative action, power and domination, and religion and secularism. Prerequisite(s): Enrollment restricted to graduate students. T. Miller
263. European Philosophies of Difference. S
Survey of European philosophies of difference, tracing the evolution of philosophical concepts and frameworks from Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Bergson, and Heidegger through later 20th-century French post-structuralist, feminist, and Frankfurt School theory. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. T. Miller
264. The Idea of Africa. *
Examines the position of Africa in cultural studies and the simultaneous processes of over- and under-representation of the continent that mark enunciations of the global and the local. Themes include defining diaspora, the West as philosophy, and Africa in the global economy. (Also offered as Feminist Studies 264. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. G. Dent
268A. Rethinking Capitalism. *
Readings include works by speakers at UCSC's "Rethinking Capitalism Initiative." Topics are: (1) financialization versus commodification (how options-theory has changed capitalism); (2) material markets (how this theory performs); and (3) valuation and contingency (how economies make worlds). (Also offered as Anthropology 268A. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. R. Meister
268B. Rethinking Capitalism. *
Course 268A addressed changes in the theory and practice of capitalism as derivatives markets have become increasingly central to it. This course, which can be regarded as either background or sequel, concerns questions that surround recent debates about derivatives from the standpoint of broader developments in law, culture, politics, ethics, ontology, and theology. What would it mean to see questions of contingency and value as a challenge to late-modern understandings of these modes of thought? (Also offered as Anthropology 268B. Students cannot receive credit for both courses.) Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. R. Meister
275. Sovereignties. F
The guiding thought of this seminar is the question of what is, and is not, "sovereign." Exploring a wide range of authors (such as Bodin, Hobbes, Spinoza, Rousseau, Kant, Schmitt, Bataille, and Fanon), this seminar addresses the most salient problems in recent discussions of sovereignty. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. D. Marriott
280. The Emotions. *
Analysis of particular emotions (e.g., jealousy, boredom, regret) and exploration of general theoretical issues (e.g., expression, control) emphasizing philosophical and psychoanalytical approaches to understanding moral psychology. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. J. Neu
285. Topics in Political Theology. W
Readings focus on the early 20th-century rediscovery of political theology; its use in theorizations of the Holocaust; and its return in 21st-centurty debates on empires, war, terror, enmity, reconciliation, fanaticism, human rights, political economy, and global catastrophe. Students cannot receive credit for this course and course 85. Enrollment is restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. May be repeated for credit. R. Meister
291. Advising (2 credits). F,W,S
Independent study formalizing the advisee-adviser relationship. Regular meetings to plan, assess and monitor academic progress, and to evaluate coursework as necessary. May be used to develop general bibliography of background reading and trajectory of study in preparation for the qualifying examination. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
292. Practicum in Composition. *
A practicum in the genres of scholarly writing, for graduate students working on the composition of their qualifying essay or doctoral dissertation. Enrollment restricted to graduate students. Enrollment limited to 15. The Staff
293. Field Study. F,W,S
Research carried out in field settings, based on a project approved by the responsible faculty. The student must file a prospectus with the department office before undertaking the research and a final report of activities upon return. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
294. Teaching-Related Independent Study. F,W,S
Directed graduate research and writing coordinated with the teaching of undergraduates. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. The Staff
295. Directed Reading. F,W,S
Systematic working through a prearranged bibliography which is filed as a final report at the end of the quarter with the signature of the instructor. 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 focusing each quarter on various problems in the history of consciousness. A statement and evaluation of the work done in the course will be provided each quarter by the students who have participated in the course for that quarter, and reviewed by the responsible faculty. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
297. Independent Study. F,W,S
Independent study and research under faculty supervision. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. The Staff
298. Doctoral Colloquium. S
Under the supervision of a History of Consciousness faculty member, students finishing their dissertation meet weekly or bi-weekly to read and discuss selected draft chapters, design difficulties and composition problems. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
299. Thesis Research. F,W,S
Prerequisite(s): advancement to candidacy. May be repeated for credit. The Staff
Revised: 09/01/16
