Self, Culture and Society 2 (Section 92)

This course is currently at capacity. Students who currently are on the waitlist will be given priority if places become available.

*Taught Online*  The “Self, Culture, and Society” sequence introduces students to a broad range of social scientific theories and methodologies that deepen their understanding of basic problems of cultural, social, and historical existence. The sequence starts with the conceptual foundations of political economy and theories of capitalism and meaning in modern society. In the second “quarter” of the sequence, students consider the cultural and social constitution of the self, foregrounding the exploration of sexuality, gender, and race and tackle questions about the construction of self and society. The works of Durkheim, Freud, de Beauvoir, Fanon, and others inform investigation of symbolic representation, the strength of social forces, the unconscious, culture, ethics and violence, sexuality, gender, and race. Classes are conducted as discussion seminars, rather than lecures, focused on the texts assigned.  The focus will be on understanding complex arguments regarding the nature of modern social life.