United States Studies Minor

The interdisciplinary minor in United States Studies explores the United States and its place in the world. Without losing sight of the inner workings of American society, the emphasis is on connections between Americans and other peoples.

Affiliated faculty: Dawley, coordinator, Adler, Blake, Clydesdale, Fisher, Gray, Nicolosi, Ortiz, Robertson, Sullivan

Courses

Spring 2007 US Studies Core Seminar: "The Multiethnic US and the Making of Americans"

USA301-01/HON301-01
9:00-11:50AM
Ortiz-Vilarelle

This United States Studies Core Seminar takes an interdisciplinary approach to the "making of Americans" by intentionally problematizing the category "American" and raising questions like: What does it mean to "be" American?  Who has been legally entitled to American citizenship?  Who has been entitled to American cultural "identity" and how are those standards determined and maintained over time?  We will study American identity through various aesthetic, cultural, historical, philosophical, spiritual, sociological and political lenses.  A major focus of our work will be exile, immigration, revolution and other historical circumstance of peoples in transit to and from the United States.  We will also pay special attention to “border” or “hyphenated” identities of bi-cultural or cross-cultural experience.  Our course will include individual and group research as well as formal debates and presentation panels on topics such as immigration law and the identity politics of American cultural “heritage”.

Requirements

Five course units:

• one prerequisite
• one required Core Seminar
• three options

No more than two courses may be from the same discipline.

Prerequisites (1 course unit)

Normally, a student is admitted to the minor upon recommendation of affiliated faculty after taking one of the following courses (or other with approval of the coordinator).

• AAS 205/HIS 379: African American History to 1865
• AAS 206/HIS 380: African American History Since 1865
• HIS 230: The United States in World History
• LIT 217: Issues in Multicultural Literature
• LIT 272: American Literature Since 1865
• LIT 280: Literature, Film, and the Art of American Politics
• LIT 316/WGS376: Global Women Writers
• POL 230: International Relations
• SOC 380: Education and American Culture
• WGS 301/HIS 385: Women in America

Required Course (1 course unit)

• USA301: Core Seminar on Global America

An interdisciplinary examination of American society and culture in historical and international perspective. Admission by permission of the instructor.

Options (3 course units)

Students select three options from the following list (or others with approval of the coordinator).

• AAS 222/LIT 282: Contemporary African-American Literature
• ANT 311/WGS 381: Women and Migration
• ANT 335: Global Urbanization
• ANT 3xx: Ethnicities
• HIS 362: Latin American–United States Relations
• HIS 367: Indian-White Relations 1800–1890
• HIS 381: American Cultural History
• HIS 382: United States from the Gilded Age through World War II
• HIS 383: United States Since 1945
• HIS 386: United States Diplomacy in the American Century
• LIT 315/WGS 320: Men and Masculinities
• LIT 334/WGS 360: Literature by Latinas and Latin-American Women
• LIT 375: American Literature 1820–1860
• LIT 376: Modern American Literature
• POL 230: International Relations
• POL 330: American Foreign Policy
• POL 333: America and Vietnam
• SOC 375: Religion and American Culture
• SOC 380: Education and American Culture
• WGS 301/HIS 385: Women in America

Honors Thesis Seminar (2 course units)

In addition to the five course units, minors may be invited to complete a two-semester honors thesis seminar under supervision of a participating faculty member.

• USA401: Honors Thesis Seminar I
• USA402: Honors Thesis Seminar II