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Course Criteria
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1.00 Credits
The samurai were as important for Japan's historical and cultural transformation as they are misunderstood. This course aims at separating the myth from the reality of the samurai, by examining the history of Japanese warriors and the culture they created, from their lowly origins in antiquity through their rise to hegemony during the 13th through 18th centuries, to their eventual disappearance as a distinct class in the 19th century. We will also examine the evolving image of the samurai warrior and his supposedly rigid moral code of conduct, as it appears in literature and film, from some of the earliest appearances of such images right up to today. Our purpose in examining these images of the samurai is not only to distinguish myth from reality, but also to explore the political purposes such images have been put to in legitimating samurai rule prior to the 20th century, and in informing Japanese views of themselves and non-Japanese views of Japan in the years since. 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course explores the histories and identities of groups that, for a variety of reasons, have not been considered part of "mainstream" Japanese society. Among these are ethnic minorities, such as the Ainu, Okinawans, and resident Koreans, and social minorities, such as the descendants of former outcastes groups who are referred to collectively as the Burakumin. In addition to these groups, we will also explore the nature of groups viewed as outside of the mainstream by dint of the lifestyle they lead or the circumstances that have been forced upon them, such as the yakuza (gangsters), ultra-rightwing activists, residents of slums, and others. Through such an exploration, we will come to challenge the perception, all-too-common both inside and outside of Japan, that Japanese society is homogeneous. We will also look into how this illusion of homogeneity has been constructed, and what the consequences are for those who find themselves marginalized in the process. 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course will investigate political, social, and cultural aspects of World War II in Europe and the Soviet Union. Topics will include the breakdown of the Versailles system, the interrelationship of military and social change, genocide, resistance movements, and the impact of war on European culture. 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course is designed to give students an extensive introduction to issues in the history of the book, including: the origins of writing, the transition from roll to codex, medieval literacy and book technology, the impact of printing, the nature of reading in early modern Europe, and the future of the book in the digital age. 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course will be an analytical and comparative study of the major imperial states of the classical world, specifically Persia(Achaemenid, Parthian and Sassanid), the Athenian Empire, various Hellenistic empires, the Roman Empire and Han China. The bulk of our investigation will center on the ancient Mediterranean but we will be discussing Han China as part of a greater Eurasian perspective, as well as to provide a valuable comparative framework. We will consider issues such as administrative techniques, the role of the military, religion, imagery and iconography, imperial rhetoric, relations with subject peoples, and architecture and urban design. Sources will include literary, epigraphic, artistic and archaeological evidence as well as both modern studies of specific ancient empires and theoretical treatment of empires generally. 1.00 units, Lecture
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3.00 Credits
"There are in fact no masses," writes the cultural critic Raymond Williams. "There are only ways of seeing people as masses." This intellectual and social history course will examine ways of "seeing people as masses" in the United States since the American Revolution. By studying changing interpretations of mobs, masses, and social movements, we will inquire into changing ideas about American democracy, the character of "the people," and ways of communicating with them. Particular topics will include the role of "the crowd" in the era of the Revolution; images of riots, strikes, lynch mobs, theater audiences, and other kinds of collective behavior in the 19th century; criticism of the mass society, mass culture, and the mass media (movies, radio, TV, advertising) in the 20 century; and ideas about the causes and effects of social movements. Course materials will include novels and films in addition to more traditional types of primary documents. This is a core course for the Studies in Progressive American Social Movement 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course explores European culture and politics from 1945 through the present, surveying sources in fiction, memoir, film and the arts. Themes include the problems of reconstruction and memory, Marxism and communism and the social-democracy, civil liberty, sexuality and immigration. The Cold War, the New Left, the invasions of Hungary and Czechoslovakia, the collapse of the Berlin Wall and of the Soviet Union, the welfare state, "Americanization," racism, ethnocentrism and nationalism, all offer instances of cultural and political conflict. This course includes lectures, discussion and a film program. 1.00 units, Lecture
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1.00 Credits
This course covers the life and times of Alexander the Great, a man who was able to subjugate most of the known world, but failed to erect a lasting political structure. When he died at the age of 33 years, he left a vast empire to be torn to pieces by his successors. However, his achievements were more than military, and his colonists built cities in places as far from Greece as modern Afghanistan, creating a new world in which Greek culture flourished. 1.00 units, Lecture
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3.00 Credits
This course is open to students returning to Trinity from study abroad in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cape Town, Trinidad, and Australia, or from study in other regions formerly governed by and influenced by British imperialism. Students planning future study in these locations are also welcome. This course specifically addresses the modern history of British colonialism, immigration to and from the United Kingdom, liberation, racism, imperial decline, and the impact of wider global cultures upon contemporary urban life. Many other influences have also been at work in both the imperial and post-imperial eras. How have the political cultures, demographics, and economics of empire and its downfall transformed the present-day United Kingdom How has the legacy of British rule helped to shape dissent, political struggle, and cultural patterns in territories and amongst peoples of the former empire How have immigrants from these cultures influenced the history of Hartford (once part of the empire), and its present-day life Students will reconsider and reflect upon their mutual and conflicting encounters with the imperial legacy. They will also interact with the Asian, Middle Eastern, African, West Indian, and Irish communities in the city and region. Readings, film, and the arts assist in this examination of student experiences. How does studying abroad alter our critical understandings of Britain's continuing sense of global mission, seen through the lens of the aspirations and perceptions of her former subjects and their descendants 1.00 units, Seminar
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3.00 Credits
This course will examine, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the historical formation of a colonial society and a people we now call "Puerto Ricans" by focusing both on the island and on the immigrant communities in the U.S. We will study the island's history from the ancient, pre-Hispanic era, through some four centuries of Spanish rule (1508-1898), as well as in the almost one hundred years of American colonial rule in the twentieth century. How were "Puerto Rico/Puerto Ricans" constituted as colonial subjects under these two vastly different imperial regimes From slave plantations to hinterland peasant communities; from small towns to modern, industrial cities in the island; from colonial citizens in the island to immigrant, "minority" outsiders in inner-city neighborhoods in the U.S., the historical experiences of Puerto Ricans have forced upon them multiple understandings of who they must be but also allowed them to work out their own, often conflicting, definitions of "Puerto R 1.00 units, Lecture
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