200

An introduction to the interdisciplinary study of American cultures, their historical development and contemporary status. Focusing on literary and cultural representations of specific aspects of the American experience, the course will examine the constructed nature of American self-perceptions and of U.S. history. The course contextualizes U.S. cultures within the Americas and the global arena. Particular course emphasis is selected by the instructor.

An introduction to the methodologies of studying American cultures, with a special focus on popular and mass cultures. Particular course emphasis will be determined by the individual instructor, but topics will stress the multiplicity of American cultures. While literary works will make up the majority of class texts, the course will utilize an interdisciplinary approach integrating materials from fields such as history, anthropology, women's studies, ethnic studies, geography, sociology, music, art, among others.

The course will examine the invention, celebration, and meanings of American holidays from the colonial era to the present. Issues to be considered include the ways in which holidays have shaped cultural values and American identity and vice versa; the ways in which holidays have both reflected and shaped views of gender, race, class, and ethnicity; and the relationships between holidays and religious belief, nationalism, consumer culture and political ideology. The course will take a multicultural and interdisciplinary approach.

A survey of North American history that employs the methodology of comparative history to interpret the histories of the United States, Canada, and Mexico within a conceptual framework sensitive to continental similarities and differences. The course takes a thematic approach, and special attention is given to the political institutions and economic structures that have fostered transnational cooperation and continental integration. The social and cultural dimensions of discord and conflict also are examined.

An exploration of the historical construction of American gender, ethnicity/race, and class, their present status, and their literary and cultural representations. Focusing on intersections between these categories of identity, the course will utilize an interdisciplinary approach, integrating materials from fields such as literary studies, history, women's studies, ethnic studies, geography, sociology, music, and art.