Undergraduate Catalog
2005 - 2007

 

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

  Africana Studies (formerly African-American
and African Studies--AAAS)

Levels

1000     2000     3000     4000
 

AFRS 1100. Introduction to Africana Studies. (3) Interdisciplinary survey of key issues in the life and history of peoples of African descent and their interaction with other peoples and world cultures; introduction to theoretical foundations in the field of Africana Studies. (Fall, Spring) 

AFRS 1103. The African Experience. (3)  Survey of the history and culture of African people in the context of pre-colonial, colonial, and independent Africa. Focus on socio-political and economic factors. (Spring) 

AFRS 1111. The African American Experience through Civil War. (3) Crosslisted as HIST 2160. Exploration of circumstances that brought Africans to the Americas and their experience during the era of slavery. Emphasis on the political, economic, and socio- cultural systems that maintained slavery in the South and constrained freedom in the North and the responses and struggles of African Americans. Topics include: slavery/slave trading to the Americas; the system of slavery in British North America; free blacks; political compromises sustaining the peculiar institution; and the impact of the Civil War and Reconstruction on the freedom, citizenship, and suffrage of African- Americans. (Fall) 

AFRS 1112. The African American Experience:  Civil War to Civil Rights. (3) Crosslisted as HIST 2161. Prerequisites: AFRS 1100 or AFRS 1111 for majors. Exploration of the African-American experience from the Civil War to the present and the struggle of freed slaves and free people of color in garnering the promises of emancipation and the changing status of African-Americans in American society. Interdisciplinary survey of key eras, issues, debates, and personalities in the African-American experience from 1865 to the present. It is strongly encouraged that students take AFRS 1111 before enrolling in this course. (Fall) 

AFRS 2050. Topics in Africana Studies. (3) Treatment of a special topic. May be repeated for credit as topics vary, with the approval of the department chair. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 2105. Black Images in the Media in the US. (3) Crosslisted as COMM 2120. Examination of African American images projected through electronic and print media, historically and currently. (Yearly) 

AFRS 2106.  Literary Analysis of Black Protest of the 1960s. (3) Selected African-American literary works examined as outgrowths of the 1960s protest movement. Poetry, drama, and nonfiction of period studied. (Spring)    

AFRS 2120.  African American Women.  (3)  Crosslisted as WMST 2120. This course explores how cultural, political, historical and economic factors shape African American women's positions and opportunities in society today.  (On demand)

AFRS 2201.  Introduction to Human Relations. (3) Prerequisite: AFRS 1100. Understanding of self and others in a pluralistic society; analysis of theories of personal growth and interaction within the context of differing multi‑ethnic values, mores and contributions. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 2203. African America Culture I. (3) Exploration of the origins and key aspects of African American culture, including music, art, literature, and dance; focus on understanding the connections between the cultural practices of African Americans and other peoples of African heritage and their impact on the rest of the world. (Spring) 

AFRS 2204. African American Institutions. (3) Ethnographic study of religious, academic, political, economic, and business institutions of people of African descent as developed from their experience in both the old and new worlds through classroom lectures, directed field work, and research. (Spring)

AFRS 2205. African Culture. (3) Survey of Africa's lifestyles and other cultural manifestations with special emphasis on social behavior and traditional institutions as impacted by historical changes and contemporary developments. Research required. (Fall or Spring)   

AFRS 2206. African Literature, Music, and Art. (3) (W)  Survey of socio-cultural context in which African literature, music, and art function; examination of the impact of changes resulting from international dependence and improved communications across continents and cultures; parallels drawn with other regions of the world, particularly the US and Europe. Creative research or community projects required. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 2207. Pan-Africanism. (3) Study of the Pan-African movement; examination of historical and contemporary efforts of peoples of African descent to unite their struggles for human advancement, political independence, and equality in Africa, the US, the Caribbean, Western Europe, and Afro-Latin American. Included in the study are popular movements, leading proponents, and related organizations. (Alternate years)

AFRS 2208. Education and African‑Americans. (3) Examination of the problems and challenges of educating African‑Americans. Topics include: conceptual approaches to education; historical and contemporary overview of education for African‑Americans; the impact of race and discrimination; analysis of existing curricula; and suggested models for a multi‑racial and multi‑cultural education. (Fall)  

AFRS 2215.  Black Families in the United States.  (3) (W) Critical and comprehensive examination of the life of African‑American families in the United States including the historical evolution of black families and their relationship with the political‑economic structures of American society. (Yearly)  

AFRS 2221. Contemporary Africa. (3) Crosslisted as HIST 2211 and INT 2101. Study of Africa from the 1880s to the present. Focus on political and socio-economic changes and Africa's integration into the community of nations. (Fall) 

AFRS 2301. Introduction to African-American Literature.  (3)  Crosslisted as ENGL 2301.  Prerequisite: ENGL 1101 and 1102 or 1103, or departmental permission.  Survey of the major periods, texts, and issues in African-American Literature.  Prerequisite to 4000 level African-American literature courses in English Department. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 3050. Topics in Africana Studies. (3) Treatment of a special topic. May be repeated for credit as topics vary, with approval of department chair. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 3101. Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in the US. (3) Study of values and make-up of American pluralistic society in historical and contemporary context. Focus on the understanding of African American values and the role of ethnicity and race. (Fall)  

AFRS 3150. The African-American Church and Civil Rights. (3) Crosslisted as RELS 3150. Role of the black church in the struggle for human equality. Topics include: Radical, moderate, and accommodationist leadership styles; historical development of the black Church in the South; and its emergence as a foundation for the modern civil rights movement. (Fall)  

AFRS 3179. African American Political Philosophy. (3) Crosslisted as POLS 3172. Prerequisite: 3000 level course on Africa from AFRS, POLS, or HIST. Analysis of competing ideologies in African American political philosophy. (On demand) 

AFRS 3190.  The Political Economy of the Caribbean.  (3) An examination of the manifestations of Caribbean economic problems and policies and Caribbean political development from the post‑war period to the present. (Fall)  

AFRS 3200. Folklore of Africa and the African Diaspora. (3) A study of the relationships among African and African Diaspora folktales, folk beliefs, customs, legends, myths, proverbs, poetry, songs, performance, narratives, symbols, and social practices. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the course will identify parallel tales and verbal and performance arts in the Mother Continent and the Diaspora and also study how geographical environments and historical experiences have impacted new manifestations of African folklore. (On demand) 

AFRS 3210. Black Families in the Diaspora. (3) . Crosslisted as SOCY 3210 and LTAM 3110. This course is designed to acquaint students with historical and contemporary experiences of peoples of African descent in the Caribbean and Latin American countries with specific emphasis on family structure and family relationships. Includes discussion of theories, history, impact of globalization on family structure, roles of women and identity, socioeconomic status and mobility, slavery, colonialism, and capitalism. The course is designed to provide students with a better understanding of the comparative relationships and links between family structures and common life experiences among peoples of African descent in different parts of the world, with specific emphasis on the Caribbean and Latin American regions. (On demand) 

AFRS 3218. Racial Violence, Colonial Times to Present. (3).  Crosslisted as HIST 3218.  This course examines the ways in which African-Americans and Whites used violence both as part of struggles for liberation and freedom as well as repression from the colonial period to the present in the United States.  The focus will be on broader processes of social, political, and cultural change and at efforts to build cooperation. (On demand)  

AFRS 3220. The Caribbean from Slavery to Independence. (3) Crosslisted as LTAM 3220 and HIST 3180. Covering the sweep of history from European/indigenous contact, through the construction of a plantation regime based on African slave labor, and up to the present day, this class explores the spread of colonialism, the dynamics of slavery, and the tumult of abolition and national independence movements.  The Caribbean Sea will be examined as a region, emphasizing the ties uniting the islands and the circum-Caribbean coasts. The region’s past – including empire and imperial conflict, racial oppression and interaction, and international contact – and its legacies will be discussed in relation to political economics, race, and contemporary culture. (On demand) 

AFRS 3230. Poverty and Discrimination in African Diaspora in the Modern Era. (3) Socio-economic roots of poverty and discrimination in African America, the Caribbean, and Afro-Latin America; impact of anti-poverty and anti-discrimination laws and programs. (Fall)  

AFRS 3240. African Americans and the Legal Process. (3)  Crosslisted as HIST 3240. This course explores the unique role law has played in the African American experience, establishing the status of persons of African descent in America.  Students will investigate how the legal history of African Americans has shaped American race relations over the past 400 years by tracing the evolution of race, racism, and racial formations as a function of America’s legal system. (On demand) 

AFRS 3250. Political Economy of African America. (3)  Examination of the problems and issues affecting the economic base and human security of African Americans and their role in the US economy. (Fall) 

AFRS 3260. Slavery, Racism and Colonialism in the African Diaspora. (3)  Crosslisted as LTAM 3260 and HIST 3190. This course is designed to explore how race and racism, slavery, and colonialism served as principal institutions and constructs shaping the experience between Africa and the emerging African Diaspora in the New World. Students will consider how the maintenance of Western social, economic, and political superiority materialized as functions of these three important historical developments. (On demand) 

AFRS 3265.  African Economic Development.  (3) Focus on economic theories, planning, production, and resource allocation strategies, capital formation, foreign aid, and multinational corporations in Africa. (Yearly)  

AFRS 3270. Afro-Latin American History. (3)  Crosslisted as LTAM 3270 and HIST 3181. This course explores the African Diaspora in Latin America ranging from the Caribbean Sea to the Rio de la Plata.  From slavery, to fighting for freedom in the Spanish-American Wars of Independence, to forging new notions of citizenship in twentieth century Brazil, African-descended peoples have an important place in Latin America’s historical past.  According special attention to regions with concentrated populations of African-descended peoples, this course reveals the vibrant history of Afro-Latin America. (On demand) 

AFRS 3280. Blacks in Urban America. (3).  Crosslisted as HIST 3280.  African-Americans have been part of the urban scene since the colonizing of the Americas.  The course will examine the ways in which their presence in cities has both exemplified and contradicted the understanding of both urban development and race relations in America from colonial times to the present. (On demand) 

AFRS 3290. Research Methods. (3) (O) Prerequisite: completion of sophomore‑year courses or instructor's permission. Design of a research project with emphasis on developing sound research skills and methods. (Fall, Spring)

AFRS 3692.  Colloquium.  (3) (W) Prerequisite: Consent of the instructor. A weekly colloquium; research and writing; opportunity for intellectual stimulation, critique and problem solving. Open to majors and non‑majors. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 3895. Independent Study. (1-3) Prerequisite: Consent of the department. Supervised investigation of a problem or subject in the field of Africana Studies. May be repeated for credit. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 3990. Senior Project in Africana Studies. (2-15) Prerequisite: Completion of junior-year courses. Completion of a senior research paper on an academic topic or a community-related written project. Emphasis on mastery of academic skills and content of the field or specific discipline.  (Fall, Spring) 

AFRS 4000. Senior Seminar in Africana Studies. (3) Prerequisites: Completion of junior-year courses. This advanced seminar explores a wide-body of literature selected as the eminent scholarship in the field of Africana Studies. Students will read, analyze, and critique the scholarly literature of the field and prepare written assignments conceptualizing the course readings and discussions. (Fall, Spring) 

AFRS 4050. Topics in Africana Studies. (3) Treatment of a special topic. May be repeated for credit as topics vary, with the approval of the department chair. (Fall, Spring)  

AFRS 4101. Modern African Literature in English. (3) Prerequisite: Junior standing. AFRS 1100 or 2206 for AFRS majors. Topics include: Traditional African and Western literary influences, the culture debate, post-independence satire, decolonization of African literature, apartheid, and women writers. (On demand)  

AFRS 4102. Caribbean Literature in English. (3)  Prerequisite:  junior standing; at least one course in AFRS for AFRS majors. Topics include: loneliness, quest for identity, nationalism, protest, and the use of patois. (On demand)  

AFRS 4103. Warfare, the Military, and Civil Wars in Africa. (3) Prerequisite: 3000 or above course on Africa. Nature and conduct of warfare in ancient and modern times in Africa, including technology and strategy; analysis of events and institutions using military means such as civil wars, liberation and secession movements, the army, and their impact on African societies. (On demand) 

AFRS 4105. Foreign Policy of African States. (3)  Crosslisted as POLS 3169.  Prerequisite: upper-level course on Africa. A theoretical approach to the study of the external and internal factors influencing the development, implementation, and conduct of foreign policy of African States. (Spring) 

AFRS 4106.  Gender and African-American Literature. (3)  Crosslisted as ENGL 4156.  Prerequisites: ENGL 2100 and 2301, or permission of instructor or graduate status.  Exploration of the intersection of gender and African-American Literature, focusing on either Black women writers or Black male writers, or a combination in dialogue. (Alternate years) 

AFRS 4107. African-American Poetry. (3)  Crosslisted as ENGL 4157.  Prerequisites: ENGL 2100 and 2301, or permission of instructor or graduate status. Intensive study of African- American poetry, focusing on one period or traversing several. (Alternate years) 

AFRS 4108. African American Literary Theory and Criticism. (3) Crosslisted as ENGL 4158. Prerequisites: ENGL 2100 or 2301, or permission of instructor, or graduate status. History of an African American approach to literary analysis, including a practicum in modern criticism. (Alternate Years)

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