[*Social Studies 20. Statistics for Social Studies]
Catalog Number: 3643
Mariko Chang
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
An introduction to basic research methods and statistics designed primarily for concentrators in Social Studies. No previous background in statistics is required. Assists students in developing the skills to understand statistical methods used in social science research and to conduct quantitative analyses that address research questions. Also prepares students to do quantitative research for projects such as senior honors essays.
Note: Expected to be given in 2002–03.
*Social Studies 99. Tutorial — Senior Year
Catalog Number: 7501
Judith E. Vichniac and staff
Full course. Hours to be arranged.
Writing of senior honors essay.
Note: Required for concentrators.
*Social Studies 98ax. Development and Modernization: A Critical Perspective
Catalog Number: 5504
Stephen A. Marglin
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
What are the assumptions about human beings and our relationships with one another that underlie the conviction that development and modernization constitute progress, and that the developed West shows the way the rest of the world should/must go? To have economic growth, must people buy a whole package that changes the society, the polity, and the culture along with the economy? This tutorial will provide a framework for thinking about these and related questions (for example, why don’t economic problems fade as we get richer?), both in the context of the history of the West, and in the context of the Third World.
*Social Studies 98bg. The Contemporary American City
Catalog Number: 0913
Gwendolyn Dordick
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
The contemporary American City displays a tremendous diversity. Within any metropolitan area is a heterogeneous assemblage of races, classes, and ethnic groups. Between cities such as Los Angeles and New York, Miami and Boston is considerable variation in social and spatial organization, economic futures, and culture. Through a survey of contemporary accounts of life in cities and their surrounding suburbs, this course will examine diversity within and among American urban centers.
*Social Studies 98bq. Popular Culture: Theories and Practices
Catalog Number: 2209
Lynne B. Layton (Medical School)
Half course (fall term). Th., 1–3. EXAM GROUP: 15, 16
Examines the many theoretical perspectives on popular culture currently debated in academia—Marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic, semiotic. Focusing on one or two popular media as case studies, we will draw on the theories to inform textual analysis and to investigate issues of production and reception.
*Social Studies 98cd. The Politics of Social Policy in the United States
Catalog Number: 8657
Anya Bernstein
Half course (fall term). W., 1–4. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7, 8
Examines social policy in the US and considers competing approaches to developing policy for the 21st century. Compares different perspectives on the nature and purposes of American social policy and explores how American institutions and political culture have shaped the development of social policy throughout the 20th century. Case studies will include welfare, marriage and divorce, health care, education, child care, and Social Security.
*Social Studies 98dg. Democracy and Dictatorship
Catalog Number: 9019
Judith E. Vichniac
Half course (fall term). W., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 9
Considers why certain countries develop and maintain democratic institutions while others do not. Are the answers to be found in sociological preconditions, political culture, or institutional developments? Readings are drawn from classics in political science and sociology. Consideration is given to historical and contemporary cases.
*Social Studies 98di. The Politics of Inequality in Latin America: The Transformation of Political Representation in the Neoliberal Era
Catalog Number: 8597
Steven R. Levitsky
Half course (fall term). M., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 9
This course examines old and new efforts to organize, represent, and control the poor in Latin America. After first analyzing “traditional” patterns of social and political organization such as clientelism, populism, and corporatism, the course examines how changing class structures, economic liberalization, and the decline of corporatism are reshaping patterns of representation. Specific topics include party and party system change; the emergence of “neo-populist” leaders; and the rise of new social movements, NGOs, and other alternative forms of organization. The course asks whether these organizations can fill the representational void created by the weakening of unions and populist parties, or whether labor’s decline will mean a return to more exclusionary, clientelistic, and “neo-oligarchic” politics.
*Social Studies 98dp. Childhood, Culture, and Social Reform
Catalog Number: 6204
Kiku Adatto
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
How has the culture of childhood changed, and in what ways have the boundaries between childhood and adult life shifted? Framing these questions within a historical perspective, this seminar will trace the role of children in public discourse from the Progressive era to the present. Particular attention will be paid to civic and reform movements, the influence of the consumer and popular culture, and the powerful role of visual images in shaping and defining childhood.
*Social Studies 98du. Enlightenment and Its Critics
Catalog Number: 2654
James Schmidt (Boston University)
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
An examination of the vicissitudes of Enlightenment ideals of reason, critique, and autonomy over the last two centuries. It will explore how the arguments of the Enlightenment’s contemporaries (including Kant, Diderot, and Hegel) have been taken up by such twentieth-century social theorists as Max Horkheimer, Theodor Adorno, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jürgen Habermas, and Michel Foucault.
*Social Studies 98dw. Gender and Politics
Catalog Number: 0447
Oona Britt Ceder
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Employing gender as a category of analysis, this course will examine women’s political consciousness and participation from the late eighteenth century to the present. The first part of the course will investigate the political activities and status of women in North America. Cases to be considered include Native American women’s resistance to colonial rule; the role of African-American and white women in the movements for the abolition of slavery and women’s suffrage; and the emergence of Hispanic and Asian women on the U.S. political stage. In the second part of the course, students will evaluate the contribution of gender-based analysis to the study of contemporary political life and issues. U.S. as well as global perspectives will be considered.
*Social Studies 98dy. “The Rise of the West” in Comparative Perspective: The Historical Development of Western Europe and Other Civilizations, AD 500-1700
Catalog Number: 3381
Tom Peter Harsanyi
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Examines the political, social, economic, and intellectual transformation of Western Europe during the medieval and early- modern periods, with comparisons to China and other civilizations (the Islamic world, Japan, Eastern Europe). Considers a variety of theoretical approaches to explain how and why Western Europe gradually emerged as the epicenter of world-wide modernization.
*Social Studies 98ea. Conflict and Cooperation in International Politics
Catalog Number: 0554
Michael J. Hiscox
Half course (fall term). W., 1–3. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
Examines sources of conflict and cooperation among nations in the current international system. Issues covered include the origins and effects of alliances, deterrence, the impact of democratization, the effects of economic interdependence, environmental problems, ethnic conflict and cultural divisions in world politics.
*Social Studies 98ed. Ideology and Critique
Catalog Number: 5106
Christopher J. Sturr
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
An examination of ideology in critical social theories. Course traces the concept from the Enlightenment through classical Marxism, the Second International, Western Marxism, and more recent theorists. Course ends by considering the relevance of the concept for a range of contemporary social-theoretical approaches with a liberatory agenda, including Marxism, feminism, anti-racism, post-colonial theory, and queer theory.
*Social Studies 98ef. The Political Economy of Developing Countries
Catalog Number: 9318
Sylvia Maxfield
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Focuses on the politics of economic reform in recently industrializing countries. The objectives are to master basic concepts of open economy macroeconomics, gain familiarity with a variety of non-OECD country experiences, learn how to evaluate social science research, develop students’ own research skills and build oral presentation capabilities. Student will pick a country to research and report on during the term. Readings include an edited compilation by Frieden, Pastor and Tomz as well as articles by Haggard, Kahler, Stallings, and Keohane.
*Social Studies 98em. Politics, Power and the Digital Revolution: A Skeptical Look at the “New Economy”’
Catalog Number: 6827
Phineas Baxandall
Half course (fall term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
“The Information Revolution” is fundamentally changing society, economy, and politics. The nature and mechanisms of these changes are rarely well specified or critically evaluated. Seminar will look at such questions as whether digital technologies naturally encourage personal freedom and deregulated markets; whether trade in information is fundamentally different than other commodities; whether the nature of identity and culture is changed by the web-based interaction; and whether hackers and code-writers are the new revolutionaries and legislators.
*Social Studies 98ep. Juries, Justice, and Democracy
Catalog Number: 1144
Jeffrey B. Abramson (Brandeis University)
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Does trial by jury suggest a coherent and commendable theory of democratic or popular justice? This tutorial will examine historical and contemporary legal materials that bear on the competence of ordinary persons to do justice as jurors. Issues to be considered are: jury nullification; verdicts according to conscience; the ideals and realities of drawing juries from a “representative cross-section of the population”; the influence of race, gender, and national origin on jury deliberations; unanimous verdicts; and the death penalty.
*Social Studies 98eq. Globalization From Underneath
Catalog Number: 1978
Kiaran Aeveen Honderich
Half course (fall term). Th., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
Places theories of globalization into a conversation with political-economy narratives about the poor in Africa, including ones addressing the history of African poverty, the situation of African women and rural dwellers, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and effects of economic reforms. Considers how the African poor and other marginalized groups are affected by globalization, and what light their situation casts on global structures and processes. How is their relation to the state being affected? Are they best understood as excluded, included or not yet included by globalization?
*Social Studies 98er. From the Shop Floor to the Streets: The History, Politics and Culture of Social Movements in the US
Catalog Number: 6954
Corey Dolgon (Worcester State College)
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
The course examines how social movements shape U.S. history and politics. We start by looking at sociological theories of social movements and then investigate early labor, abolitionist and suffrage organizing. We continue with the “maturing” labor movement, the rise of Communism and Socialism, and the birth of “community” organizing. We’ll also discuss conservative phenomena such as temperance, white supremacy, and “Americanism” movements. We conclude by discussing the “new” movements of the 1960s and the resurgence in both local and global organizing.
*Social Studies 98ck. Community Empowerment and Civic Democracy in the Contemporary United States: Theory, Practice, and Policy
Catalog Number: 9316
Carmen J. Sirianni (Brandeis University)
Half course (spring term). F., 1–4. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7, 8
Analyzes innovations in community organizing, civic engagment, and “policy design for democracy” in a variety of arenas (urban development, environment, health, journalism, social services, education) over the past several decades in the U.S. Examines these in terms of theories of deliberative democracy, social capital, and civil society, as well as debates on the future of the welfare state and regulatory politics. Considers the larger crisis of American democracy and the possibilities of civic renewal.
*Social Studies 98cl. Law and American Society
Catalog Number: 7389
Terry K. Aladjem
Half course (spring term). Th., 3–5. EXAM GROUP: 17, 18
Examines law as a defining force in American culture and society in four dimensions—as it establishes individual rights, liberties, and limits of toleration; as it attempts to resolve differences among competing constituencies; as it sets out terms of punishment and social control, and as a source of informing images and ideological consistency.
[*Social Studies 98cm. American Social Movements]
Catalog Number: 2773
Rebecca Mary McLennan
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 9
Examines social movements in 19th- and 20th-century America using theoretical material and case studies of major social movements. Topics will include how movements arise and evolve, how members determine strategy, the relationship between movements and other modes of politics, and why movements succeed or fail.
Note: Expected to be given in 2002–03.
*Social Studies 98cv. Authoritarianism and Democracy in Latin America
Catalog Number: 5595
Steven R. Levitsky
Half course (spring term). W., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 9
Examines political regimes and regime change in modern Latin America, focusing primarily on the cases of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. Compares different theoretical approaches (including modernization, neo-marxist, cultural, choice-centered, and institutional approaches) to explaining the emergence of democracy in the region, its breakdown in the 1960s and 1970s, and the “wave” of re-democratization in the 1980s and 1990s. Examines contemporary problems of democratic survival and consolidation, analyzing the effects of factors such as the international context, the debt crisis and economic liberalization, state weakness, political violence, and poverty and inequality. Also examines how different institutional structures, such as electoral systems, party systems, and executive-legislative arrangements, may affect the stability and quality of new democracies.
*Social Studies 98dj. The Rule of Law: Social Theoretical Debates
Catalog Number: 7023
Rebecca Mary McLennan
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
How has the advent of corporate capitalism, private and public bureaucracies, and “globalization” affected the operations of formal, calculable legal principles of the kind conceived by Locke and other early liberal theorists? Has the liberal rule of law lost its efficacy and its legitimacy? Does it sustain or undermine the social relations of capitalist mass democracies? Explores the social theoretical debates around the fate of formal law under the conditions of modernity. Among other questions, considers Marxian critiques of formal law; Max Weber’s analysis of law in the age of bureaucratic rationalization; the conservatives’ attack on liberal law (Carl Schmitt and Friedrich Hayek); and the debate between the Frankfurt theorists (Franz Neumann, Otto Kirchheimer, Jürgen Habermas) and Critical Legal Studies (Duncan Kennedy and Roberto Unger) on whether liberal law is determinant and legitimate.
*Social Studies 98dx. Feminist Theory: Equality, Identity, Difference
Catalog Number: 3055
Oona Britt Ceder
Half course (spring term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Course examines main currents of feminist thought. Readings on feminist theories that have their origins in Western social and political thought (Mary Wollstonecraft, John Stuart Mill, Emma Goldman, Simone de Beauvoir, and others), and works by writers who reject the methods of canonical thought and develop new, oppositional forms of feminist theorizing (Irigaray, Audre Lorde, Mary Daly, bell hooks, Gloria Anzaldua, Judith Butler). Through analysis, students will acquire an understanding of the relationship between feminist theories and major traditions of social and political critique.
*Social Studies 98eb. The Politics of International Trade
Catalog Number: 9198
Michael J. Hiscox
Half course (spring term). W., 1–3. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
Examines political conflict over international trade. Major issues covered include the relationship between trade and national security, and the effects of trade on different classes and groups within nations. The seminar will address debates about strategic trade policy and competition between industrial states, the particular difficulties faced by developing economies, regional trade agreements, the role of the WTO, and the use of economic sanctions.
*Social Studies 98ec. Theories of Rights
Catalog Number: 5550
Annabelle Lever
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Are rights inherently individualistic and egoistic, as Marx believed, and as contemporary critics of “rights talk” maintain? Is it possible to talk of rights to welfare, or universal human rights, without extending the concept of a right so far that it becomes meaningless? Are rights absolute, and if not, what is their point? Are rights side-constraints, trumps or thresholds, and what do these metaphors imply about the way rights work and their consequences for social policy ?
*Social Studies 98eg. State Formation and State Collapse
Catalog Number: 3072
Rebecca Mary McLennan
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Examines the theory and history of state formation, and its analytical opposite, state collapse. The course explores how states emerge and dissolve in the international system, examining a variety of perspectives from political science, law, and sociology. The course analyzes the rise of the sovereign state vis-à-vis its competitors; addresses the problem of state collapse; and evaluates possible and impossible solutions to the problem of state collapse, considering arguments from international law and moral theory.
*Social Studies 98eh. Meaning and Politics
Catalog Number: 5363
Melissa Sharon Lane (Cambridge University)
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Examines the question of how to interpret the meaning of texts and actions, and its implications for social science and politics. Examines nineteenth century debates over the nature of the moral sciences, the role of consciousness and value, and the way these debates changed in the twentieth century with the advent of phenomenology and the revival of positivism. Readings from J.S. Mill, Windelband, Dilthey, Durkheim, Weber, Croce, Collingwood, Heidegger, Gadamer, Skinner, and others.
*Social Studies 98ei. The Construction of Race in Society and History
Catalog Number: 5960
Kimberly McClain DaCosta
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Offers a comparative sociohistorical analysis of that peculiar form of ethnicity called “race”. Using a wide range of empirical and theoretical materials, we problematize what is too often considered settled, namely, what constitutes “race”. We explore historical and cross-national variations in the bases of racial division, as well as the mechanisms through which racial domination is (re)produced, including prejudice, discrimination, segregation, ghettoization and violence.
*Social Studies 98ej. Nation, State, and Violence in Twentieth-Century Europe
Catalog Number: 1385
Audrey Helfant Budding
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
During the twentieth century, homogeneous “national” states emerged out of many formerly mixed areas of Europe, at a horrific human cost. Tutorial will explore the unmixing of nations. It will draw on works of anthropology, history, political science, and sociology to illuminate the dynamics of nationalist mobilization, the interaction of nationalism and communism, and the nature of “ethnic cleansing.” Specific topics will include the Stalinist deportations of peoples, the Holocaust, and the post-Yugoslav wars.
*Social Studies 98ek. Globalization, Transnationalism, and Migration
Catalog Number: 2433
Lucia Volk
Half course (spring term). W., 1–3. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7
This course seeks to understand the significant shift in theorizing social groups and behavior patterns as a result of transnationalism, globalization and migration. We will explore both the challenges the new social phenomena pose to traditional research methodologies as well as the problem of building new explanatory frameworks that incorporate movement and change, yet still have explanatory powers for specific localities.
*Social Studies 98en. Housing and Homelessness: Exploring the Importance of Place, Shelter and Home in America
Catalog Number: 9263
Gwendolyn Dordick
Half course (spring term). M., 3–5. EXAM GROUP: 8, 9
Housing is more than bricks and mortar. The places we live provide us—to a greater or lesser extent—personal security and comfort, a social environment and the basis for strong feelings of identity and belonging. This tutorial will examine the material, social and cultural aspects of housing and homelessness in American society. A particular, but not exclusive, focus on the homeless will bring to the foreground important and often taken-for-granted aspects of place, shelter, and home that are true across the socioeconomic spectrum.
Social Studies 98eo. Culture and Society
Catalog Number: 2114
Kiku Adatto
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
The seminar will explore the interplay of culture and society using a wide range of sources and case studies (drawing on anthropology, history, sociology, literature and photography). Among the topics explored will be religion and political rhetoric, the history of manners, the work ethic, advertising, and the rise of America’s image-conscious visual culture.
*Social Studies 98es. Radicalism in Twentieth Century U.S. Culture and Politics
Catalog Number: 3357
Jessica Shubow
Half course (spring term). Th., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
This seminar examines the historical meanings, sources, and impact of political and cultural radicalism in the 20th century U.S. Studying the collective action and thought of populists, anarchists, anarcho-syndicalists, socialists, communists, fascists, nationalists, feminists, identity-based, and queer activists whose activities or aspirations that fall outside or exceed the rules and terms of the electoral political system, we will historically analyze the relationship between cultural and political insurgency, the economy, and the state.