Summer B 2021

SEMINARS

FREEDOM AND CITIZENSHIP IN THE U.S., MON. & WED. 1:00-3:10 AMST UN3931, SEC. 1

Roosevelt Montás

This seminar will examine foundational texts in American political and cultural history. The inherent tension between “freedom” and “citizenship” will serve as the organizing theme. The course is conceived on the model of Contemporary Civilization (CC) and, as in that course, we will focus exclusively on primary texts, the order of readings will be roughly chronological, and the class will be discussion-driven. We will begin with readings from the Puritan settlement of New England and continue with documents surrounding the Revolution, the early republic, the Civil War, Reconstruction, liberalism, the Civil Rights Movement, and contemporary debates about the nature of American national identity and its place in the world.  In addition to the classroom requirements, students will serve about four hours a week at the Double Discovery Center (DDC) in connection with the Freedom and Citizenship Project, which DDC conducts in partnership with the American Studies Program. **This course may be substituted for U.S. Intellectual History HIST 2478, which is required of American Studies majors and concentrators.**

WILLIAM JAMES'S VARIETIES OF RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE, TUES. & THURS. 1:00-3:10 AMST UN3932

Mark Lilla

William James’s Varieties of Religious Experience is a classic in two fields: the history of religious thought and American studies.  This course will be devoted to a careful reading of this work (and several short ones) in order to pose the question: is there a typical American approach to religious psychology?  And, if so, what relation might it bear to larger currents in American thought?