At Brandeis, you are encouraged to learn about a wide variety of human societies, cultures, and countries and about causes and consequences of differences among racial,
ethnic, religious, and other groups. Listed below are a sampling of the Spring 2016 courses that address these issues; we hope that you will consider including some of
them in your studies. They are grouped under “Gender and Sexuality,” “Religion, Race, and Culture,” and “Global Perspectives,” though naturally many of the courses
intersect these groupings. For additional course offerings, please refer to the registrar’s website: www.brandeis.edu/registrar/
Religion, Race and Culture
Global Perspectives
AMST 135A: Photography and American Culture
AAAS 18B: Africa and the West
Looks at how photography has (and has not) shaped
understanding of certain key themes and issues in
American history and culture-and how American
history and culture have (and have not) done the
same to photography. (ss)
Mr. Feeney
T 6:30 – 9:20 PM
Focuses on the relationship between Africa and the
"West" from the time of the ancient Egyptians to the
postcolonial period. It also assesses the dilemma
neocolonialism poses for the West. (nw ss)
Mr. Wendorf
M, W, Th 11:00 – 11:50 AM
ANTH 118B: Culture and Power in the Middle
East
Examines the peoples and societies of the Middle
East from an anthropological perspective. Explores
problems of cross-cultural examination, the notion of
the Middle East as an area of study, and the role of
anthropology in the formation of the idea of the
“Middle East.” (ss)
Mr. Menoret
T, Th 3:30 – 4:50 PM
ENG 78B: Modernism, Atheism, God
Explores European and U.S. literature after
Nietzche's proclamation, at the end of the 19th
century, that God is dead. How does this writing
imagine human life and the role of literature in God's
absence? Approaches international modernism as a
political and theological debate about materialism
and spirituality, finitude and transcendence, reason
and salvation. (hum)
Mr. Sherman
T, F 11:00 – 12:20 PM
FA 177B: Second Nature: On The Nature and
Landscape of Latin America
Through a systematic revision of the concept and
genre of "landscape" in Latin America, the course
will expose students to the basis of Latin American
culture, and will present to them some of the most
important artistic pieces of the regional canon. (ca)
Mr. Falconi
T, Th 5:00 – 6:20 PM
HIST 157B: The Secret Lives of Slaves:
African Americans and the Writing of History
Seeks to understand not only the system but the inner
lives and cultures of slaves within that system. This
course is a reading-intensive seminar examining both
primary and secondary sources on American slaves.
Focuses on the American South but includes sources
on the larger African diaspora. (ss)
Ms. Cooper
T, F 9:30 – 10:50 AM
NEJS 180B Israeli Literature and Film in
Translation
Examines trends and myths in modern Hebrew
literature. Looking at both central, established and
edgy, new stories, poems and films, the course
examines various aspects of the way Israelis talk to
each other and the world, and presents a
multilayered--often conflicting--picture of Israeli
culture through different voices and mediums. (hum)
Ms. Szobel
T, Th 2:200PM-3:30PM
NEJS 194A: Modern Arabic Literature
Provides an introduction to modern Arabic literature
through the study of texts in translation. We will
survey a range of novels, short stories,
autobiographies, poems, plays and films from across
the Arab world, with a focus on the second half of
the 20th century. (hum nw)
Ms. Becker
T, Th 5:00 – 6:20 PM
NEJS 198A: Islam and the West
Explores the major political, socio-economic, and
cultural changes in the Middle East from the rise of
Islam to present times with emphasis on Islam's
encounter with The West. Focuses on common roots
and mutual influences and analysis of
(mis)perceptions as historically constructed cultural
categories and of their legacy in the modern world.
(hum)
Mr. El-Tobgui
M, W, Th 10:00 – 10:50 AM
POL 109B: Southern Politics: Race, Parties,
and Democracy in American History
Slavery and race relations have shaped southern
politics and in turn American national party politics.
We will explore regional and state politics at key
junctures in American history, and conclude with an
analysis of the role of the South today. (ss)
Mr. Herron
Tu, Th 2:00 – 3:20 PM
SAS 150B: Indian Film: The Three Hour Dream
A study of Hindi films made in India since 1947 with
a few notable exceptions from regional film, as well
as some recent films made in English. Students will
read Hindi films as texts/narratives of the nation to
probe the occurrence of cultural, religious, historical,
political, and social themes. (hum nw)
Ms. Singh
W 6:30 – 7:50 PM
AAAS 134B: Novel and Film of the African
Diaspora
Writers and filmmakers, who are usually examined
separately under national or regional canonical
categories such as "(North) American," "Latin
American," "African," "British," or "Caribbean," are
brought together here to examine transnational
identities and investments in "authentic," "African,"
or "black" identities. (hum nw)
Ms. Pugliese
M, W 5:00 – 6:20 PM
AMST 156B: Transatlantic Crossings: America
and Europe
Examines how the United States has interacted with
the rest of the world, especially Europe, as a promise,
as a dream, as a cultural projection. Focuses less on
the flow of people than on the flow of ideas, less on
the instruments of foreign policy than on the
institutions that have promoted visions of democracy,
individual autonomy, power, and abundance. (ss)
Mr. Whitfield
M,W,Th 10:00 AM–10:50 AM
COML/HOI 103A: Crime and Punishment:
Justice and Criminality from Plato to Serial
Examines concepts of criminality, justice, and
punishment in Western humanist traditions. We will
trace conversations about jurisprudence in literature,
philosophy, political theory, and legal studies. Topics
include democracy and the origins of justice,
narrating criminality, and the aesthetic force
mobilized by criminal trials. (hum)
Mr. Sheppard & Mr. Sherman T, Th 2:00 – 3:20 PM
COML 100A: Introduction to Global
Literature
What is common and what is different in literatures
of different cultures and times? How do literary ideas
move from one culture to another? (hum wi)
Mr. Ofengenden
T,Th 3:30 PM–4:50 PM
ENG 142A: Literary Booms: Latin America,
South Asia and Beyond
What makes literature from a certain region trend in
the world market? Does it have to do with style and
talent, or are extra literary factors more important?
This course addresses these questions by reading
fiction alongside secondary literatures that present
various arguments for why trends occur. (hum)
Ms. Kantor
T,Th 5:00–6:20 PM
HIST 66A: History of South Asia (2500 BCE –
1971)
Introduces South Asian history from the earliest
civilizations to the independence of India, Pakistan,
Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Surveys the formation of
religious traditions, the establishment of kingdoms
and empires, colonialism and its consequences, and
post-independence political and economic
development. (nw ss)
Mr. Singh
T, Th 5:00 – 6:20 PM
HIST 115B: The Great Ocean: An
International History of the Pacific
Employs an interdisciplinary approach to history
integrating perspectives from various disciplines to
facilitate an exploration of the Pacific Ocean's history
between 1860 and the present. It will have a
transnational focus and draw from a variety of subdisciplines like immigration, environmental, cultural,
and public health history. (nw ss)
Mr. Linton
M, W 3:30 – 4:50 PM
NEJS 137A: The Destruction of European
Jewry
Why did the Jews become the subject of genocidal
hatred? A systematic examination of the anti-Jewish
genocide planned and executed by Nazi Germany
and the Jewish and general responses to it. (hum)
Mr. Eichler
T, F 12:30 – 1:50 PM
NEJS 185A: Conflict and Consensus in Israeli
Society; Topics in Israeli Social History
Focuses on key topics in the shaping of the Israeli
experience, including Zionist colonization;
absorption of immigrants; shaping Jewish identity,
personal and national, in a secular sense; and
homeland/Diaspora relations. Comparative
perspectives are employed. (hum)
Mr. Troen
M, W 5:00 – 6:20 PM
POL 127A: Ending Deadly Conflict
Examines strategies for ending violent internal
(primarily ethnic) conflicts, with emphasis on
identifying conditions conducive to negotiated
settlements. Case studies are examined in light of
analytical literature. (ss wi)
Mr. Burg
T, F 9:30 – 10:50 AM
POL 184A: Global Justice
Explores the development of the topic of global
justice and its contents. Issues to be covered include
international distributive justice, duties owed to the
global poor, humanitarian intervention, the ethics of
climate change, and immigration. (ss wi)
Mr. Lenowitz
W 2:00 – 4:50 PM
SOC 120A: Technology and Society
Technologies are neither good nor bad, but are
shaped by human interests and values, and shape us
in return. Why and how does this happen, and how
can we create the future we want? (ss)
Staff
M 2:00 – 4:50 PM
Gender and Sexuality
AMST 40A: Women in American History
Examines the private and public experiences of
women-family life, sexuality, work, and activism-as
reflected in historical and autobiographical sources,
fiction, and many films. The diverse experiences of
women of different races, ethnicities, and classes are
highlighted. (ss)
Ms. Powers
T, F 11:00 – 12:20 PM
ANTH 166B: Queer Anthropology: Sexualities
and Genders in Cross-Cultural Perspective
Explores ethnographic approaches to the study of
sexuality and gender in diverse cultural contexts,
such as the US, Brazil, India, Indonesia and Mexico.
Examines how sexuality intersects with other cultural
forms, including gender, race, ethnicity, labor,
religion, colonialism and globalization. (ss)
Mr. Khan
T, F 12:30 – 1:50 AM
CLAS 166A: Medieval Literature: A
Millennium of God, Sex, and Death
A survey of medieval Latin literature in translation,
beginning with the fourth-century church fathers and
ending with the early Renaissance. (hum wi)
Ms. Walker
M,W 3:30 PM–4:50 PM
ENG 197B: Within the Veil: AfricanAmerican and Muslim Women’s Writing
In twentieth-century United States culture, the veil
has become a powerful metaphor, signifying initially
the interior of African-American community and the
lives of Muslims globally. This course investigates
issues of identity, imperialism, cultural loyalty, and
spirituality by looking at and linking contemporary
writing by African-American and Muslim women.
(hum)
Ms. Abdur-Rahman
M, W, Th 11:00 – 11:50 AM
SQS 6B: Sexuality and Queer Studies
Examines cross-cultural and historical perspectives
on sexual meanings, experiences, representations,
and activist movements within a framework forged
by contemporary critical theories of gender and
sexuality. (hum ss)
Ms. Abdur-Rahman
M, W 2:00- 3:20 PM
SQS 145B: Sexuality and Gender in the
Middle East
Explores historical and contemporary debates
regarding the construction and organization of gender
and sexuality in the Arab world, Turkey and Iran. (ss)
Ms. Zengin
T,Th 5:00 PM–6:20 PM
THA 145A: Queer Theater
Explores significant plays that have shaped and
defined gay identity during the past 100 years.
Playwrights span Wilde to Kushner. Examining texts
as literature, history, and performance, we will
explore religion, politics, gender, the AIDS epidemic,
and coming out. (ca)
Mr. Troyanovsky
T, F 11:00 – 12:20 PM
WMGS 168B: Economics of Gender, Health
and Population
Examines issues in gender, health, and population
from an economic perspective. Emphasis on
empirical work and understanding causality. Topics
include the US-European divide in female life
expectancy, the economics of HIV/AIDS, and the
impact of population policies on fertility. (ss)
Ms. Brainerd
T, F 9:30 – 10:50 AM