African and African American Studies

Faculty of the Department of African and African American Studies

Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Victor S. Thomas Professor of History and of African and African American Studies (Chair)
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong, Harvard College Professor and Professor of History and of African and African American Studies
Robert H. Bates, Eaton Professor of the Science of Government and Professor of African and African American Studies
Homi K. Bhabha, Anne F. Rothenberg Professor of the Humanities
Suzanne P. Blier, Allen Whitehill Clowes Professor of Fine Arts and Professor of African and African American Studies
Glenda R. Carpio, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and of English (on leave 2007-08)
Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and of Social Studies, Fellow, Dept/Prog (Stip) (on leave 2007-08)
Marla F. Frederick, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and of the Study of Religion
Duana Fullwiley, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and of African and African American Studies
Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher, Jr. University Professor (on leave spring term)
Farah J. Griffin, Visiting Professor of African and African American Studies
Evelynn M. Hammonds, Professor of the History of Science and of African and African American Studies
Jennifer L. Hochschild, Henry LaBarre Jayne Professor of Government and Professor of African and African American Studies, Harvard College Professor
Francis Abiola Irele, Visiting Professor of African and African American Studies and of Romance Languages and Literatures
Biodun Jeyifo, Professor of African and African American Studies and of Literature and Comparative Literature (Director of Graduate Studies, spring term)
Walter Johnson, Professor of History and of African and African American Studies (on leave 2007-08)
Jamaica Kincaid, Visiting Lecturer on African and African American Studies and on English
Michael R. Kremer, Gates Professor of Developing Societies
Michèle Lamont, Robert I. Goldman Professor of European Studies and Professor of Sociology and of African and African American Studies
J. Lorand Matory, Professor of Anthropology and of African and African American Studies
Ingrid Monson, Quincy Jones Professor of African-American Music, Supported by the Time Warner Endowment
John M. Mugane, Professor of the Practice of African Languages and Cultures and Director of the African Language Program
Susan E. O’Donovan, Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and of History
Jacob Olupona, Professor of African and African American Studies and Professor of African Religious Traditions (FAS), Professor of African Religious Traditions (Divinity School)
Tommie Shelby, Professor of African and African American Studies and of Philosophy (Director of Undergraduate Studies)
Kay Kaufman Shelemay, G. Gordon Watts Professor of Music and Professor of African and African American Studies, Associate of Currier House (on leave 2007-08)
James Sidanius, Professor of Psychology and of African and African American Studies (on leave 2007-08)
Werner Sollors, Henry B. and Anne M. Cabot Professor of English Literature and Professor of African and African American Studies (Director of Graduate Studies, fall term) (on leave spring term)
Doris Sommer, Ira Jewell Williams, Jr. Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures and of African American Studies
John Stauffer, Professor of English and of African and African American Studies (on leave fall term)
David Williams, Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart Norman Professor of Public Health in the School of Public Health and Professor of African and African American Studies in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
William Julius Wilson, Lewis F. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor

Other Faculty Offering Instruction in African and African American Studies

Ali S. Asani, Professor of the Practice of Indo-Muslim Languages and Cultures
Vincent Brown, Dunwalke Associate Professor of American History
Orlando Patterson, John Cowles Professor of Sociology
Mark R. Warren, Associate Professor of Education (Education School)

Primarily for Undergraduates

African and African American Studies 10. Introduction to African American Studies
Catalog Number: 0802
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham
Half course (fall term). M., W., (F.), at 11. EXAM GROUP: 4
An exploration of some of the key texts and issues in African American Studies from a range of disciplinary perspectives. Members of the faculty deliver guest lectures in their own areas of specialization.
Note: Required of concentrators in the African American Studies track. Students who transfer into the concentration after their sophomore year may substitute another African and African American Studies course already taken if they satisfy the Director of Undergraduate Studies that it establishes a basic familiarity with the materials covered in African and African American Studies 10. This course, when taken for a letter grade, meets the Core area requirement for Historical Study A.

African and African American Studies 11. Introduction to African Studies - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 9428
Francis Abiola Irele and J. Lorand Matory
Half course (spring term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
This course introduces students to the general outlines of African geography and history, as well as key controversies in the study of African health, social life, arts, and politics. Our aim is to give students a fundamental vocabulary and interdisciplinary methodology for the study of Africa. Throughout, we assume that Africa is not a unique isolate but a continent bubbling with internal diversity, historical change, and cultural connections beyond its shores.
Note: Required of concentrators in African Studies track.

African and African American Studies 12. What is Black Religion?: An Introduction - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 7352
Marla F. Frederick
Half course (fall term). Tu., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
This course offers an introduction to broad themes in the study of African American religion in the US. Using an interdisciplinary approach, we explore the cultural expressions, social/political workings and historic development of what is commonly referred to as "black religion". Given the pre-existing and growing diversity of religious expression in the US, we ultimately ask what (if anything) allows us to hold "black religion" as a distinct category of social meaning?

African and African American Studies 20. Introduction to African Languages and Cultures
Catalog Number: 2048
John M. Mugane
Half course (fall term). M., W., F., at 2. EXAM GROUP: 7
An introduction to African languages and cultures. Explores language use by sub-Saharan Africans to understand, organize, and transmit indigenous knowledge to successive generations. Language serves as a road map to understanding how social, political, and economic institutions and processes develop: from kinship structures, the evolution of political offices, trade relations, to the transfer of environmental knowledge.
Note: This course, when taken for a letter grade, meets the Core area requirement for Foreign Cultures.

African Languages


Language classes are open to undergraduates, graduate students, and cross-registration applicants.

Undergraduate Language Tutorials

*African and African American Studies 90r. African Language Tutorials
Catalog Number: 7010
John M. Mugane
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: Fall: 2
Individualized study of an African language at the elementary level. Contact hours with language coach. Emphasis on written expression, reading comprehension and oral fluency. The following languages are a partial list of those that can be taken: Bambara, Hausa, Igbo, Malagasy, and Zulu. In 2006–07, over 16 sub-Sahara languages were taught in the Department.
Note: For instruction in languages that are not listed, please consult the Director of the African Language Program. Not open to auditors.

Gikuyu

Gikuyu A. Elementary Gikuyu
Catalog Number: 0009
John M. Mugane
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged.
Gikuyu is a Bantu language spoken by Kenya’s most populous ethnic group. The Gikuyu are among Africa’s most recognized peoples because of the Mau Mau freedom fighters who were mainly Gikuyu.
Note: The course is designed primarily for students who have no prior knowledge of Gikuyu; however, students with minimal knowledge of the language may also register for the course. Not open to auditors.

Gikuyu B. Intermediate Gikuyu
Catalog Number: 0010
John M. Mugane and assistant
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged.
Continuation of Gikuyu A. Gikuyu is a Bantu language spoken by Kenya’s most populous ethnic group. The Gikuyu are among Africa’s most recognized peoples because of the Mau Mau freedom fighters who were mainly Gikuyu.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Gikuyu A or the equivalent of one year’s study in Gikuyu.

Gikuyu 101ar. Reading in Gikuyu
Catalog Number: 0017
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Gikuyu B or equivalent.

Gikuyu 101br. Reading in Gikuyu II
Catalog Number: 0018
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Gikuyu 101ar or equivalent.

Swahili

Swahili A (formerly African and African American Studies 121). Elementary Swahili
Catalog Number: 1878
John M. Mugane
Full course (indivisible). Fall: M., W., F., at 10; Spring: M., W., F., at 10. EXAM GROUP: 3
A study of the lingua franca of East Africa at the elementary level. Contact hours supplemented by language lab sessions. Emphasis on written expression, reading comprehension, and oral fluency.
Note: Not open to auditors.

Swahili B. Intermediate Swahili
Catalog Number: 3442
John M. Mugane and assistant
Full course (indivisible). Spring: M., W., at 6. EXAM GROUP: Spring: 9
Continuation of Swahili A. A study of the lingua franca of East Africa at the elementary level. Contact hours supplemented by language lab sessions. Emphasis on written expression, reading comprehension, and oral fluency.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Swahili A or the equivalent of one year’s study of Swahili.

Swahili 101ar. Reading in Swahili
Catalog Number: 8503
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Prerequisite: Swahili B or equivalent.

Swahili 101br (formerly African and African American Studies 121b). Reading in Swahili II
Catalog Number: 7746
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Prerequisite: Swahili 101ar or equivalent.

Twi

Twi A. Elementary Twi
Catalog Number: 0023
John M. Mugane
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged.
Twi is one of the regional languages of the Akan speaking peoples of Ghana, constituting the largest ethnic group in Ghana. Twi, is fast becoming the lingua franca of the country. This course aims to help students acquire the Twi language at the basic or elementary level.
Note: The course is designed primarily for students who have no prior knowledge of Twi; however, students with minimal knowledge of the language may also register for the course. Not open to auditors.

Twi B. Intermediate Twi
Catalog Number: 0025
John M. Mugane and assistant
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged.
Continuation of Twi A. Twi is one of the regional languages of the Akan speaking peoples of Ghana constituting the largest ethnic group in Ghana. Twi, is fast becoming the lingua franca of the country. The Akan people are well known for their art and culture, especially the traditional colorful Kente cloth.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Twi A or the equivalent of one year’s study of Twi.

Twi 101ar. Reading in Twi
Catalog Number: 0026
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Twi B or equivalent.

Twi 101br. Reading in Twi II
Catalog Number: 0028
John M. Mugane
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Twi 101ar or equivalent.

Yoruba

Yoruba A. Elementary Yoruba
Catalog Number: 0029
John M. Mugane
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 9
Yoruba is spoken in the West African countries of Nigeria, Benin Republic, and parts of Togo and Sierra Leone, therefore constituting one of the largest single languages in sub-Saharan Africa. Yoruba is also spoken in Cuba and Brazil. Students will acquire the Yoruba language at the basic or elementary level.
Note: Primarily designed for students who have no prior knowledge of Yoruba. However, students with minimal knowledge of the language may also register for the course. Not open to auditors.

Yoruba B. Intermediate Yoruba
Catalog Number: 0031
John M. Mugane
Full course (indivisible). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: Fall: 18; Spring: 9
Continuation of Yoruba A. Yoruba is spoken in the West African countries of Nigeria, Benin Republic, and parts of Togo and Sierra Leone, therefore constituting one of the largest single languages in sub-Saharan Africa. Yoruba is also spoken in Cuba and Brazil. Students will acquire the Yoruba language at the basic or elementary level.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Yoruba A or the equivalent of one year’s study of Yoruba.

Yoruba 101ar. Reading in Yoruba
Catalog Number: 0033
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged. EXAM GROUP: 13, 14
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Yoruba B or equivalent.

Yoruba 101br. Reading in Yoruba II
Catalog Number: 0035
John M. Mugane and assistant
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Note: Not open to auditors.
Prerequisite: Yoruba 101a or equivalent.

Undergraduate Tutorials

*African and African American Studies 91r. Supervised Reading and Research
Catalog Number: 1269
Tommie Shelby and members of the Department
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Students wishing to enroll must petition the Director of Undergraduate Studies for approval, stating the proposed project, and must have permission of the proposed instructor. Ordinarily, students are required to have taken some coursework as background for their project.

African and African American Studies 97. Sophomore Tutorial: Race and Humanism - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 3022
Duana Fullwiley
Half course (spring term). Tu., Th., 2:30–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
This course examines the place and social function of racial logics in humanist discourse. Drawing on historical, anthropological, and biological examples, students will explore how human particularism and universals often work together to establish both racial distinction and the notion of "the human" more generally. Interdisciplinary in nature, this course will explore diverse case studies that include early 20th-century colonial rule in French West Africa, the philosophies behind the Parisian Negritude movement, the work of the Boasian school of American anthropology, the creation of UNESCO and its statements on race, and the evolution of the American Anthropological Association’s and the American Sociological Association’s statements on race. We will also review the most recent debates on human biological differences, and similarity, in the life sciences in the late 20th and early 21st century with regard to the Human Genome Project, the HapMap, and other key molecular-based studies on human distinction within the field of genomics.

*African and African American Studies 98. Junior Tutorial - African American Studies
Catalog Number: 6272
Tommie Shelby and members of the tutorial staff
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Students wishing to enroll must petition the Director of Undergraduate Studies for approval, stating the proposed project, and must have the permission of the proposed instructor. Ordinarily, students are required to have taken some coursework as background for their project.
Prerequisite: Completion of African and African American Studies 10, or a substitute course approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

*African and African American Studies 98a. Junior Tutorial - African Studies
Catalog Number: 3070
Tommie Shelby and members of the tutorial staff
Half course (fall term; repeated spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Students wishing to enroll must petition the Director of Undergraduate Studies for approval, stating the proposed project, and must have the permission of the proposed instructor. Ordinarily, students are required to have taken some coursework as background for their project.
Prerequisite: Completion of African and African American Studies 11 or a substitute course approved by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

*African and African American Studies 99. Senior Thesis Workshop
Catalog Number: 8654
Tommie Shelby and members of the Department
Full course. Hours to be arranged.
Thesis supervision under the direction of a member of the Department.
Note: Enrollment limited to honors candidates.

For Undergraduates and Graduates

[African and African American Studies 112. Black Humor: Performance, Art, and Literature]
Catalog Number: 1962
Glenda R. Carpio
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., at 1.
This course explores the cultural richness of African American humor through analyses of stand-up, drama, the visual arts and literature from the 19th century onward. Artists include but are not limited to Richard Pryor (and many other important figures in black comedy), the painter Robert Colescott, the artists Kara Walker, writer William Wells Brown, Charles W. Chesnutt, George Schuyler, and Ishmael Reed.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

African and African American Studies 113. Fictions of Race, Facts of Racism: Perspectives from South African and African American Drama and Fiction
Catalog Number: 1503
Biodun Jeyifo
Half course (spring term). Th., 1–3:30. EXAM GROUP: 15, 16, 17
The course will explore works of South African and African American drama and fiction while considering the claim that "race" is a socially constructed fiction. The works to be explored in the course juxtapose the fiction of race with the facts of racism to pose the fundamental question: Can we imagine a world where racism, like "race" will also become fiction? Authors include Baraka, Morrison, Naylor, August Wilson, Gordimer, Nkosi, Fugard, and Coetzee.

[African and African American Studies 117. The Harlem Renaissance] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 1442
Glenda R. Carpio
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
The class examines the flowering of African American literature and art led primarily by African Americans based in Harlem after World War I. Most of the participants in this African American literary movement were descendants from a generation whose parents or grandparents had witnessed the injustices of slavery and the gains and losses that would come with Recostruction after the Civil War. The class examines how African American authors documented this crucial moment in African American history. Writers include but are not limited to Claude McKay, Countee Cullen, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Rudolph Fisher, James Weldon Johnson, Jean Toomer and George Schuyler.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

African and African American Studies 118. African American History from the Slave Trade to 1900
Catalog Number: 7429
Susan E. O’Donovan
Half course (fall term). Tu., Th., 10–11:30. EXAM GROUP: 12, 13
An introduction to African American history and the role black men and women have played in the cultural, economic, and political life of the US. Topics will include the rise of slavery; the American Revolution and the problem of slavery; African American social, economic, and cultural life in the antebellum North and South; the struggle for freedom during the Civil War and Reconstruction; and African Americans in the age of segregation and disenfranchisement.

[African and African American Studies 119. Chinua Achebe and the African World] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 0192
Francis Abiola Irele
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
This course will be devoted to a comprehensive examination of Achebe’s oeuvre, with a view to his vision of Africa, as this emerges from his novels and essays.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

African and African American Studies 121. Please, Wake Up! - Race, Gender, Class and Ethnicity in the Early Films of Spike Lee - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 6238
Biodun Jeyifo
Half course (fall term). Th., 1–3:30. EXAM GROUP: 15, 16, 17
This course will explore how the intersection of race, gender, class and ethnicity in the early cinema of Spike Lee works to give his social vision and artistic temper the qualities now commonly associated with his cinematic style. Race seems to be the central pivot of social identity in Lee’s films, but in this course we will explore his remarkable attentiveness to other indices of identity and subjectivity. We will pay special attention to the tension between Lee’s passionate oppositional politics and his intensely personal, experimental and playful approach to film and its expressive idioms, techniques and styles. Films to be studied include "She’s Gotta Have It," "School Daze," "Do the Right Thing," "Mo Better Blues" and "Jungle Fever".

[African and African American Studies 124. The Poetics of Tradition: African Literature and the Dilemma of Modernity] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 7057
Francis Abiola Irele
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Description forthcoming.
Note: Expected to be given in 2009–10.

[African and African American Studies 126. Philosophical Perspectives on Race and Racism] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 6471
Tommie Shelby
Half course (fall term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Critically examines recent philosophical work on the themes of "race" and racism. Topics for discussion include the following: What is a "race" and do any exist? What does it mean to embrace or reject one’s racial identity? What is racism, and what makes it wrong? How should we, from the point of view of justice, respond to racism and the social problems it causes?
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 128. Black Nationalism]
Catalog Number: 3426
Tommie Shelby
Half course (spring term). M., W., at 11.
Critically examines the family of African American social philosophies generally classified under the broad rubric “black nationalism.” Topics to be explored include the meaning of black collective self-determination; the relationship between black identity and black solidarity; and the significance of Africa for black nationalist ideals. Authors to be discussed include Martin Delany, Alexander Crummell, Edward Blyden, W.E.B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, Stokely Carmichael, Huey Newton, and some contemporary representatives of the tradition.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 130. W. E. B. Du Bois: Social and Political Writings] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 3561
Tommie Shelby
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
An introduction to the writings of Du Bois, with a focus on his social theory and political philosophy. In addition to various journal articles and editorials from The Crisis, texts to be examined include The Philadelphia Negro, The Souls of Black Folk, Darkwater, Black Reconstruction in America, and Dusk of Dawn.
Note: Expected to be given in 2009–10.

African and African American Studies 131. African-American Literature to the 1920s
Catalog Number: 2589
Farah J. Griffin
Half course (spring term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Close readings of major writers in the context of cultural history. I) Literature and folk culture in the slavery period: Phillis Wheatley, Olaudah Equiano, Omar Ibn Said, Victor Séjour, Lydia Maria Child, Fredrick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe, William Wells Brown, Frank Webb, Martin Robison Delany, and Harriet Jacobs. II) “Post-bellum, pre-Harlem”: Charles W. Chesnutt, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Pauline Hopkins, Du Bois, Booker T. Washington, and James Weldon Johnson. We examine diverse genres—from slave narratives, novels and poems to plays, speeches and song lyrics.

African and African American Studies 137. Literature and Its Cultural ’Others’ - America, Africa and the Caribbean, 1950s-80s - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 3258
Biodun Jeyifo
Half course (spring term). W., 1–3:30. EXAM GROUP: 6, 7, 8
In the historic contexts of the civil rights struggles in the United States and the decolonizing liberation struggles in Africa and the Caribbean, this course explores how utopian or emancipatory aspirations in diverse media like literature, popular music, oratory, non-scripted street or community theatre, and popular visual media like poster art, murals and graffiti impact people of different social classes and backgrounds.

[African and African American Studies 140z. The Other African Americans]
Catalog Number: 0300
J. Lorand Matory
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Surveys the history and contemporary experiences of self-identified "mixed-race" groups, as well as voluntary immigrant groups from Africa and the Caribbean, such as Cape Verdeans, Nigerians, Jamaicans, Afro-Puerto Ricans, and Haitians in the US. Students are introduced to arguments central to the social scientific study of modern societies generally, such as the invention of ethnicity, and negotiation of identity, and the social constructedness of race.
Note: Expected to be given in 2009–10.

[African and African American Studies 142. Afro-Latin Society and Politics] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 3844
J. Lorand Matory
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
Survey of non-English-speaking populations of African descent in the Americas.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

African and African American Studies 169. Visualizing Africa - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 6518
Suzanne P. Blier
Half course (fall term). M., 3–5. EXAM GROUP: 8, 9
An examination of the various ways in which Africa historically has been conceptualized and visualized in art and illustrative materials. Emphasis is given to the critical reading of actual works of art and documents. Construction of self and others as seen through images is discussed. The interface between Africa and the Christian and Islamic worlds as well as larger concerns of slavery, colonialism, and contemporary art are examined.

[African and African American Studies 174. The African City] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 6977
Suzanne P. Blier
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
This seminar investigates critical issues in Africa’s rich urban centers. Architecture, city planning, spatial framing, popular culture, and new art markets will be examined.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 185. Perspectives on the African Novel]
Catalog Number: 6764
Francis Abiola Irele
Half course (spring term). Tu., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 18
We examine a representative selection of African novels with a view to grasping the development of the genre from the double heritage of the oral tradition and the literate conventions of the West. The African novel will be studied in relation to the dominant themes-colonialism, social and cultural change, the post-colonial dilemma-and the textual strategies adopted by the novelists in their rendering of the African experience in modern times.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

African and African American Studies 187. African Religions - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 0094
Jacob Olupona
Half course (fall term). Th., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 18
This course is a basic introduction to the history and phenomenology of traditional religions of the African peoples. Using diverse methodological and theoretical approaches, the course will explore various forms of experiences and practices that provide a deep understanding and appreciation of the sacred meaning of African existence: myth, ritual arts, and symbols selected from West, East, Central, and Southern Africa.
Note: Offered jointly with the Divinity School as 3690.

African and African American Studies 188. Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 3590
Jacob Olupona
Half course (spring term). Th., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 18
This course is a comparative and historical survey of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa. It will explore facets of Islam in African history, culture, and society, paying particular attention to Islamic institutions and organizations and the imprints of Islam on verbal and visual arts, religion and cultural identity. We will also focus on topics such as Islam and politics, Muslim-Christian relations, social change, women and gender, and the process of modernization. It will consider the emergence and growth of Islam in the age of identity politics, global Islamism, and religious revivalism.
Note: Offered jointly with the Divinity School as 3698.

[African and African American Studies 189. African Americans and Consumer Culture] - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 0397
Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta
Half course (spring term). Hours to be arranged.
This course looks at African American lives in a culture of consumption.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 190. African-American Families: Politics, Culture, Experience]
Catalog Number: 9440
Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
“The Black Family” has often been at the center of political debates about social policy, including welfare reform and crime. Such debates tend to obscure the particular historical, social, and economic circumstances that shape African American family life and posit a unidimensional black family experience. We explore the diversity of black family life—by class, region, family composition, and gender—and link social structure to how families form, function, and change.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 192x. Religion and Society in Nigeria]
Catalog Number: 8241
Jacob Olupona
Half course (spring term). Th., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 18
The seminar examines the historical development of religion in Nigeria and explores its intersection with ethnic identity, culture, and society in pre-colonial, colonial, and contemporary periods. The course provides an understanding of various cultural tradition, historical events and social forces that have shaped Nigeria’s religious express. Many topical issues will be explored such as indigenous religious culture, Christian and Muslim identities, civil religion, and civil society and democratization, as well as religion and politics in present-day Nigeria.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

[African and African American Studies 193. Religion and Social Change in Black America]
Catalog Number: 8058
Marla F. Frederick
Half course (fall term). Hours to be arranged.
Religion, as experienced in churches and mosques alike, has inspired new meanings of black subjectivity, history, and politics. From protest oriented struggles for civil rights to the personal responsibility calls of the Million Man March, religion has informed how Blacks engage the challenges of everyday life in America. Through ethnography, auto/biography and documentary film, this class examines the influence that the social reality of blackness and the religious expression of faith have had on the day to day existence of people of African descent in the US.
Note: Expected to be given in 2009–10. Offered jointly with the Divinity School.

African and African American Studies 193x. Rags to Riches: Religion and the Quest for the (African) American Dream
Catalog Number: 2040
Marla F. Frederick
Half course (spring term). Tu., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
This course examines the place of wealth and poverty in the African American religious imagination. From Marx and Weber’s discussions of religion and capitalism, to Benjamin E. Mays and E. Franklin Frazier’s articulations of the otherwordly impulse of Black Protestantism, to contemporary anthropological discussions of prosperity gospels-this course explores the complex relationship between Christianity and American capitalism among African Americans. Topics include individualism, Protestantism, race, neoliberalism, class and citizenship.
Note: Offered jointly with the Divinity School as 3699.

African and African American Studies 197. Poverty, Race, and Health - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 5172
David Williams
Half course (spring term). M., 4–6. EXAM GROUP: 9
This course critically examines the health status of the poor, and of African Americans and other socially disadvantaged racial and ethnic groups in the US. Attention will be focused on the patterned ways in which the health of these groups is embedded in the social, cultural, political, and economic contexts and arrangements of US society. Topics covered include the meaning and measurement of race, the ways in which racism affects health, the historic uses of minorities in medical research, how acculturation and migration affects health, and an examination of the specific health problems that disproportionately affect nondominant racial groups.

Primarily for Graduates

African and African American Studies 211. Social Structure and Culture in the Study of Race - (New Course)
Catalog Number: 7733
William Julius Wilson
Half course (spring term). W., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
The purpose of this course is to critically examine current writings and debates on how social structure and culture affect the social outcomes of the African Americans and immigrants in the US. The relevance of these works for public and social policy will also be discussed.
Note: Offered jointly with the Kennedy School of Government as HLE-207. Open to advanced undergraduates with permission of the instructor.

African and African American Studies 218. Topics in African American History
Catalog Number: 9951
Susan E. O’Donovan
Half course (spring term). M., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 7, 8
Explores Afro-American History from the slave trade to 1900. Central themes include black people’s lives and labor in slavery and freedom, black culture, and African American influences on national political discourse, including the changing dynamics of class, gender, and race.

[African and African American Studies 241. Topics in African American Social Science]
Catalog Number: 3668
James Sidanius
Half course (fall term). Th., 2–4. EXAM GROUP: 16, 17
This course provides an in-depth and comprehensive exposure to the theoretical and methodological issues within the social psychology of racism and prejudice research. Approaches will include sociology, political science, and anthropology.
Note: Expected to be given in 2008–09.

Graduate Courses

*African and African American Studies 301. Graduate Seminar
Catalog Number: 3120
Werner Sollors, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and members of the Department
Half course (fall term). Tu., 12–2.
Students are introduced to major themes, debates, and texts in the broad interdisciplinary field of African and African American Studies. We focus on humanities and literary and cultural studies.
Note: Required for all graduates in African and African American Studies in their first year. Ordinarily only graduate students affiliated with the program are permitted to attend.

*African and African American Studies 302. Graduate Seminar
Catalog Number: 7559
Duana Fullwiley and members of the Department
Half course (spring term). Tu., 12–2.
Students are introduced to major themes, debates and texts in the broad interdisciplinary field of African and African American Studies. African and African American Studies 302, in the spring term, focuses on the social sciences.
Note: Required for all graduates in African and African American Studies in their first year. Ordinarily, only graduate students affiliated with the program will be permitted to attend.

*African and African American Studies 310. Individual Reading Tutorial
Catalog Number: 1374
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong 3421, Ali S. Asani 7739, Robert H. Bates 1251, Homi K. Bhabha 4100, Suzanne P. Blier 3472, Vincent Brown 4638, Glenda R. Carpio 4408 (on leave 2007-08), Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta 4182 (on leave 2007-08), Marla F. Frederick 4728, Duana Fullwiley 5767, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2899 (on leave spring term), Evelynn M. Hammonds 4545, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham 3517, Jennifer L. Hochschild 3785, Francis Abiola Irele 4354, Biodun Jeyifo 1001, Walter Johnson 5616 (on leave 2007-08), Jamaica Kincaid 3178, Michael R. Kremer 2112, Michèle Lamont 4634, J. Lorand Matory 3098, Ingrid Monson 1591, John M. Mugane 4776, Susan E. O’Donovan 3962, Jacob Olupona 5608, Orlando Patterson 1091, Tommie Shelby 3863, Kay Kaufman Shelemay 3483 (on leave 2007-08), James Sidanius 5371 (on leave 2007-08), Werner Sollors 7424 (on leave spring term), John Stauffer 1006 (on leave fall term), Mark R. Warren (Education School) 2010, David Williams 5778, and William Julius Wilson 2401
Allows students to work with an individual member of the faculty in a weekly tutorial.
Note: Students may not register for this course until their adviser and the faculty member with whom they plan to work have approved a program of study.

*African and African American Studies 390. Individual Research
Catalog Number: 4046
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong 3421, Ali S. Asani 7739, Robert H. Bates 1251, Homi K. Bhabha 4100, Suzanne P. Blier 3472, Vincent Brown 4638, Glenda R. Carpio 4408 (on leave 2007-08), Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta 4182 (on leave 2007-08), Marla F. Frederick 4728, Duana Fullwiley 5767, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2899 (on leave spring term), Evelynn M. Hammonds 4545, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham 3517, Jennifer L. Hochschild 3785, Francis Abiola Irele 4354, Biodun Jeyifo 1001, Walter Johnson 5616 (on leave 2007-08), Jamaica Kincaid 3178, Michael R. Kremer 2112, Michèle Lamont 4634, J. Lorand Matory 3098, Ingrid Monson 1591, John M. Mugane 4776, Susan E. O’Donovan 3962, Jacob Olupona 5608, Orlando Patterson 1091, Tommie Shelby 3863, Kay Kaufman Shelemay 3483 (on leave 2007-08), Werner Sollors 7424 (on leave spring term), John Stauffer 1006 (on leave fall term), Mark R. Warren (Education School) 2010, David Williams 5778, and William Julius Wilson 2401
Requires students to identify and carry out a research project under the guidance of a member of the faculty. Graduate students may use this course to begin work on the research paper required for admission to candidacy.

*African and African American Studies 391. Directed Writing
Catalog Number: 4587
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong 3421, Ali S. Asani 7739, Robert H. Bates 1251, Homi K. Bhabha 4100, Suzanne P. Blier 3472, Vincent Brown 4638, Glenda R. Carpio 4408 (on leave 2007-08), Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta 4182 (on leave 2007-08), Marla F. Frederick 4728, Duana Fullwiley 5767, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2899 (on leave spring term), Evelynn M. Hammonds 4545, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham 3517, Jennifer L. Hochschild 3785, Francis Abiola Irele 4354, Biodun Jeyifo 1001, Walter Johnson 5616 (on leave 2007-08), Jamaica Kincaid 3178, Michael R. Kremer 2112, Michèle Lamont 4634, J. Lorand Matory 3098, Ingrid Monson 1591, John M. Mugane 4776, Susan E. O’Donovan 3962, Jacob Olupona 5608, Orlando Patterson 1091, Tommie Shelby 3863, Kay Kaufman Shelemay 3483 (on leave 2007-08), James Sidanius 5371 (on leave 2007-08), Werner Sollors 7424 (on leave spring term), John Stauffer 1006 (on leave fall term), Mark R. Warren (Education School) 2010, David Williams 5778, and William Julius Wilson 2401
Requires students to identify a major essay and carry it out under the guidance of a member of the faculty. Graduate students may use this course to begin to work on the research paper that is a requirement of admission to candidacy.

*African and African American Studies 398. Reading and Research
Catalog Number: 0427
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong 3421, Ali S. Asani 7739, Robert H. Bates 1251, Homi K. Bhabha 4100, Suzanne P. Blier 3472, Vincent Brown 4638, Glenda R. Carpio 4408 (on leave 2007-08), Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta 4182 (on leave 2007-08), Marla F. Frederick 4728, Duana Fullwiley 5767, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2899 (on leave spring term), Evelynn M. Hammonds 4545, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham 3517, Jennifer L. Hochschild 3785, Francis Abiola Irele 4354, Biodun Jeyifo 1001, Jamaica Kincaid 3178, Michael R. Kremer 2112, Michèle Lamont 4634, J. Lorand Matory 3098, Ingrid Monson 1591, John M. Mugane 4776, Susan E. O’Donovan 3962, Jacob Olupona 5608, Orlando Patterson 1091, Tommie Shelby 3863, Kay Kaufman Shelemay 3483 (on leave 2007-08), James Sidanius 5371 (on leave 2007-08), Werner Sollors 7424 (on leave spring term), John Stauffer 1006 (on leave fall term), Mark R. Warren (Education School) 2010, David Williams 5778, and William Julius Wilson 2401
Note: Permission of the instructor and the Director of Graduate Studies is required for enrollment.

*African and African American Studies 399. Direction of Doctoral Dissertations
Catalog Number: 8411
Emmanuel K. Akyeampong 3421, Robert H. Bates 1251, Homi K. Bhabha 4100, Suzanne P. Blier 3472, Glenda R. Carpio 4408 (on leave 2007-08), Kimberly Mcclain DaCosta 4182 (on leave 2007-08), Marla F. Frederick 4728, Duana Fullwiley 5767, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 2899 (on leave spring term), Evelynn M. Hammonds 4545, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham 3517, Jennifer L. Hochschild 3785, Francis Abiola Irele 4354, Biodun Jeyifo 1001, Walter Johnson 5616 (on leave 2007-08), Jamaica Kincaid 3178, Michael R. Kremer 2112, Michèle Lamont 4634, J. Lorand Matory 3098, Ingrid Monson 1591, John M. Mugane 4776, Susan E. O’Donovan 3962, Jacob Olupona 5608, Orlando Patterson 1091, Tommie Shelby 3863, Kay Kaufman Shelemay 3483 (on leave 2007-08), James Sidanius 5371 (on leave 2007-08), Werner Sollors 7424 (on leave spring term), David Williams 5778, and William Julius Wilson 2401

Cross-listed Courses of Interest to Students Pursuing the African Track

Anthropology 1600. Watching Us, Seeing Them: A General Introduction to Social Anthropology
[Anthropology 1710. Memory Politics: Truth, Justice, Redress]
*Anthropology 2650a. History and Theory of Social Anthropology: Proseminar
Anthropology 2735. The Anthropology of Science: Methods and Theory - (New Course)
*BPH 322. Study of Epidemiologic and Biological Characteristics of HIV Viruses in Africa
Economics 1393. Poverty and Development
*English 295. Marxism and Postcolonial Studies: Graduate Seminar - (New Course)
[Ethiopic A. Introduction to Classical Ethiopic (Ge‘ez)]
Ethiopic 120ar. Readings in Classical Ethiopic (Ge‘ez) Texts I
Ethiopic 120br. Readings in Classical Ethiopic (Ge‘ez) Texts II
*Ethiopic 300. Ethiopian Semitic Language and Literature
*Folklore and Mythology 90d. African Women Storytellers - (New Course)
Folklore and Mythology 90e. Folklore and Nationalism - (New Course)
Foreign Cultures 46. Caribbean Societies: Socioeconomic Change and Cultural Adaptations
Foreign Cultures 86. West African Cultures
Foreign Cultures 88. The African Experience: Between Tradition and Modernity
French 70c. Introduction to French Literature III: The Francophone World
French 195 (formerly French 277). The African and Caribbean Novel in French: Comparative Perspectives
*Freshman Seminar 25t. AIDS in Africa
*Freshman Seminar 31o. Negotiating Identity in Postcolonial Francophone Africa and the Caribbean
Government 1100. Political Economy of Development
[Government 1197. The Political Economy of Africa]
Government 2162. Perspectives on Political Economy
Government 2227. The Politics and Economics of Africa
Government 2782. State Failure and Civil War
Historical Study A-21. Africa and Africans: The Making of a Continent in the Modern World
Historical Study B-52. Slavery and Slave Trade in Africa and the Americas
[*History 1483. French Colonial Encounters: 1870’s to Present: Research Seminar]
*History 1900. Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa, 630 C.E. to the Present: Reading Seminar - (New Course)
History 1906. West Africa from the Earliest Times to 1800
[History 1907. West Africa from 1800 to the Present]
[*History 1912. Health, Disease, and Ecology in African History: Research Seminar]
[*History 1917. Human Rights in Africa: An Historical Perspective: Research Seminar]
History 2908. Sources, Methodology, and Themes in African History: Seminar
History 2909. Themes in Modern Sub-Saharan African History: Proseminar
*History of Art and Architecture 196. Contemporary Art in Africa
[*History of Art and Architecture 199g. Global Art: Comparative Approaches in Art History & Ethnography]
Literature and Arts B-27. Majesty and Mythology in African Art
[Literature and Arts B-78. Soundscapes: Exploring Music in a Changing World]
Music 201b. Current Methods in Ethnomusicology
[Music 206r. Research Methods in Ethnomusicology: Musical Ethnography]
[Music 208r. Ethnomusicology: Seminar]
Music 209r. Ethnomusicology: Seminar
*Psychology 1950. Intermediate Statistical Analysis in Psychology
*Psychology 2570r. Intergroup Relations: Research Seminar
Social Analysis 52. The Political Economy of Development
*Social Studies 98hj. Colonial Legacies in Postcolonial Africa

Cross-listed Courses of Interest to Students Pursuing the African American Track

Anthropology 1600. Watching Us, Seeing Them: A General Introduction to Social Anthropology
*Anthropology 2650a. History and Theory of Social Anthropology: Proseminar
Anthropology 2735. The Anthropology of Science: Methods and Theory - (New Course)
Economics 1812. The US Labor Market
Economics 1816. Race in America
Economics 2811. Social Economics
*Economics 3810chf. Research in Labor Economics
English 166x. The Postcolonial Classic
English 172d. The American Novel: 1865-1914 - (New Course)
*English 292. Issues in the Study of American Literature: Graduate Seminar
*English 295. Marxism and Postcolonial Studies: Graduate Seminar - (New Course)
*English 298. Literary Theory in the Life of Literature: Graduate Seminar
*English 310hfr. American Literature and Culture: Doctoral Conference
*English 314hf. 20th-Century Literature and Cultural Theory: Doctoral Conference
[Folklore and Mythology 114. Embodied Expression/Expressive Body: Dance in Cultural Context]
Foreign Cultures 46. Caribbean Societies: Socioeconomic Change and Cultural Adaptations
Foreign Cultures 86. West African Cultures
French 195 (formerly French 277). The African and Caribbean Novel in French: Comparative Perspectives
[*Freshman Seminar 45m. The Concept of Race in Science and Medicine in the United States]
*Government 90ef. Black Politics in the Post Civil Rights Era - (New Course)
*Government 2305. American Government and Politics: Field Seminar
[Government 2335. Power in American Society]
Government 2392. American Political Ideologies
Government 2576. Racial and Ethnic Politics in the United States - (New Course)
Historical Study B-39. American Revolutions in the Atlantic World - (New Course)
Historical Study B-52. Slavery and Slave Trade in Africa and the Americas
[*History 1605. Early American Slave Revolts: Research Seminar]
*History 1612. African Diaspora in the Americas: Reading Seminar
*History 1622. Readings in the History of Slavery: Reading Seminar
History 1625. The American Civil War: Waging a War in History and Memory
[History 1629. Empire for Liberty: The US in the Nineteenth Century]
*History 1635. Race and Race Relations Since Plessy: Research Seminar
*History 1653. The Asian American Radical Tradition: Reading Seminar - (New Course)
*History 1656. Harvard and Slavery: Research Seminar - (New Course)
*History 1659. Afro-Asian Encounters in the Modern World: Research Seminar - (New Course)
*History 1667. The Northern Side of the Civil Rights Movement: Research Seminar - (New Course)
[*History 1912. Health, Disease, and Ecology in African History: Research Seminar]
[History 2632. Slavery, Capitalism, and Imperialism in the 19th century United States: Seminar]
[History 2661. Graduate Readings in 20th-Century African-American History: Seminar]
History 2664. Race and African-American Intellectual History: Seminar
History 2665. Topics in the History of Atlantic Slavery: Seminar - (New Course)
*History of Art and Architecture 196. Contemporary Art in Africa
Literature and Arts A-86. American Protest Literature from Tom Paine to Tupac
[Literature and Arts A-88. Interracial Literature]
Literature and Arts B-82. Sayin’ Something: Jazz as Sound, Sensibility, and Social Dialogue
[Moral Reasoning 58. Slavery in Western Political Thought]
Music 194rs. Special Topics: Proseminar
Music 201b. Current Methods in Ethnomusicology
[Music 206r. Research Methods in Ethnomusicology: Musical Ethnography]
[Music 208r. Ethnomusicology: Seminar]
Music 209r. Ethnomusicology: Seminar
Philosophy 132. Marx and Marxism - (New Course)
*Psychology 1950. Intermediate Statistical Analysis in Psychology
*Psychology 2570r. Intergroup Relations: Research Seminar
Religion 1001. Religion and Ethnography - (New Course)
Social Analysis 52. The Political Economy of Development
Social Analysis 66. Race, Ethnicity, and Politics in the United States
[Sociology 60. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity]
*Sociology 98. Junior Tutorial
*Sociology 184. Freedom in America: An Historical Sociology: Conference Course
Sociology 194. Knowledge Production & Evaluation in the Social Sciences: Conference Course - (New Course)
Sociology 204. Sociological Theory: Seminar
*Sociology 209. Qualitative Social Analysis: Seminar
[Sociology 225. Historical Sociology: Studying Continuity and Change: Seminar]
[Sociology 236. Selected Topics in Culture and Inequality]
*Sociology 249. “Race,” Culture, and Social Structure: Seminar
*Sociology 300hf (formerly *Sociology 300). Race, Identity and Inequality
*Sociology 304. Culture and Social Analysis Workshop