AMST 321
Theories of U.S. Power Spring 2014
Division II
Cross-listed PSCI 321
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Class Details

Is it true that the U.S. remains the most powerful country in the world due to the combination of noble values that its citizens hold dear? What does “American Freedom” mean at a time when the U.S. has the highest rate of incarceration in the world? This course is designed to introduce students to different theories of “power” and how it functions in the contemporary world, using the United States as a case study. Beginning at the domestic level, we will explore how the U.S. has remained relatively politically stable despite deep racial divisions and polarizations of wealth. Are residents simply satisfied with their lives? Are they intimidated or physically prevented from seeking change? Or is control maintained in more subtle ways having to do with how we view ourselves and interpret the world? Moving to the international scale, we will analyze whether the United States should be deemed an empire, ways in which the country’s economic and military influence has been justified, and how its position in the global economy and system of states is changing. Throughout, we will question how these forms of domestic and international power may be linked. The course will pair challenging theoretical texts with accessible accounts of historical events and contemporary social processes that exemplify the forms of power under examination. Using texts drawn from history, political science, philosophy, and American Studies, students will develop an understanding of key terms such as class, racial projects, hegemony, governmentality, citizen-subjects, colonialism, the world-system, and transnational states.
The Class: Format: seminar/discussion
Limit: 14
Expected: 14
Class#: 3159
Grading: OPG
Requirements/Evaluation: this is a reading-intensive course; evaluation will be based upon class participation, short weekly reflections, and two essays.
Extra Info: may not be taken on a pass/fail basis
Prerequisites: one AMST course or one course in the Political Theory subfield of PSCI
Enrollment Preferences: preference given to American Studies majors
Distributions: Division II
Notes: This course is cross-listed and the prefixes carry the following divisional credit:
PSCI 321 Division II AMST 321 Division II
Attributes: AMST Critical and Cultural Theory Electives

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