GU, 3 credits
GenEd U.S. Society courses strengthen students'
understanding of the history, society, culture and political
systems of the United States.
They are intended to teach students how to:
- Interpret historical, analytical and cultural materials, and
articulate their own point of view about those materials;
- Develop observations and conclusions about selected themes in
U.S. society and culture; and
- Analyze the ways difference and heterogeneity have shaped the
culture and society of the U.S.
Select One Course
Economics 0858, Sociology
0858
Should the federal government more forcefully
engage health care issues, or are its current obligations a hidden
time bomb facing the federal budget? Should we be concerned about
the outsourcing of U.S. jobs? Is the minimum wage too low, or will
increases in the minimum simply lead to greater unemployment?
Students will engage these and other pressing issues, write
position papers advocating specific actions that governments or
firms should take, and debating these recommendations. While
economic theory is not the centerpiece of this course, students
will learn enough economic theory to be able to discuss policy in
an informed manner. They will also be introduced to important
sources of "economic" information, from government web sites to
major publications.
American Studies 0847, History 0847>
You live in a country that possesses the
world's strongest military forces. Up through the Vietnam War,
Americans viewed military service in wartime as a basic obligation
for all adult male citizens--the ultimate test of their patriotism
and manhood--but a temporary sacrifice that ceased for most on the
return of peace. Today, the American people have outsourced their
awesome war-making power to a restricted number of men and
women--many of whom consider military service their career. We will
explore the distinctive culture that shapes the composition and
behavior of America's armed forces and probe how it reflects the
strengths and weaknesses of American society.
American Studies 0848, Anthropology 0848, Geography & Urban
Studies 0848, History 0848, Sociology 0848
From the first encounters with Native Americans
to the present, a series of pivotal moments have had an enduring
influence on American society, culture, and politics. In each
class, three modules, will focus on three pivotal moments, such as
King Philip's War, Nat Turner's Rebellion, the Scopes trial, the
Civil Rights movement, the women's movement, the emergence of Elvis
Presley, the sexual revolution, the rise of environmentalism, the
Reagan Revolution, and 9-11. In each module, students will first
place the main subject of the module in context, and then seek to
understand how it changed American society. The last week of each
module will be devoted to a consideration of how the subject of
that module has become part of American collective memory.
Strategic & Organizational Communication 0849, 0949,
Sociology 0849
Social movements range from identity-based
movements (such as the civil rights movement and the gay and
lesbian rights movement) to issue-based movements (such
anti-globalization and animal rights) to ideological movements
(such as the free software movement and the green movement). The
course introduces students to contemporary American social
movements and their counter-movements, dominant strategies and
tactics movements use to communicate with a larger public, and
individual campaigns within the larger framework of social movement
from both theoretical and applied perspectives.
English 0849, 0949, History 0849, 0949, Sociology 0849
Throughout American history individuals and
groups of people, have marched to the beat of a different drummer,
and raised their voices in strident protest. Study the story and
development of dissent in America. How has dissent shaped American
society? In addition to studying the historical antecedents of
dissent students will have first-hand experience visiting and
studying a present-day dissent organization in the Philadelphia
area to investigate connections between the history of dissent and
the process of making dissenting opinion heard today.
Criminal Justice 0853,
0953
Justice agencies--the juvenile justice system,
police, judges and juries in courts, and prisons--are expected to
create justice in response to lawbreakers. These agencies, however,
often operate under enormous political, cultural, social,
organizational and economic pressures. Further, what citizens or
local leaders sometimes want from these agencies may create
challenges and temptations. Thus, just outcomes are sometimes
elusive. Focusing on the period 1925-2025 and largely on
Philadelphia data, students will explore conceptual frameworks in
the sociology of law, research articles, movies, maps, Census data,
historical documents and newspaper archives to help understand
these outcomes.
Urban Education 0854
We are in the midst of vast global change. How
does it impact cities like Philadelphia and the people who live
here? In this course we focus mainly on education in the city, but
this doesn't mean we look only at schools. Globalization is
creating new possibilities for learning: we have instant access to
vast networks of information, migration is bringing rich cultural
diversity to our doorsteps, and we learn in many different types of
schools and communities. But globalization is also creating new
problems that education must address: new kinds of poverty,
increasingly separate lives, mounting intolerance, a digital
divide. This course explores what education in all its form can do
to support the American dream for people in the city, nation, and
the world. Our exploration goes beyond the classroom, linking
academic and community-based learning. The course has a common core
of knowledge and each small section also features a different theme
related to this core. Section themes may include (1) school choice,
(2) immigrants and diversity, (3) technology and the digital
divide, (4) advocacy for excluded groups, and (5) violence and
conflict resolution.
Gender in
America [I/II]
Sociology 0851, Women's Studies 0851
Being a man or a woman means feeling like a man or a woman. People display gender by
learning the routines and expectations associated with being male
or female. How do people learn gender? How does living in a
gendered society lead to differences in power and opportunities
between men and women? How do race, ethnicity and sexuality affect
the way gender is experienced for these different groups? How does
gender acquire such important meaning in terms of identity and
behavior? Using a variety of written materials including novels
that explore gender identity construction, this course looks at how
gender has become such a prominent feature of life in
America.
American Studies 0855, Educational Administration 0855, English
0855
You have decided to go to college. But why? What
role will college and in particular Temple University play in your
life? Reflect on this important question by looking at the
relationship between higher education and American society. What do
colleges and universities contribute to our lives? They are, of
course, places for teaching and learning. They are also research
centers, sports and entertainment venues, sources of community
pride and profit, major employers, settings for coming-of-age
rituals (parties, wild times, courtship, etc.), and institutions
that create lifetime identities and loyalties. Learn how higher
education is shaped by the larger society and how, in turn, it has
shaped that society. Become better prepared for the world in which
you have chosen to live for the next few years.
Justice in America
One of U.S. society's most enduring
conflicts involves the struggle to achieve an acceptable balance
between state power to prevent and control crime, and the rights of
individuals to be free from undue government coercion. Investigate
a variety of criminal justice problems, and ponder questions about
the legitimacy, effectiveness, and fairness of the criminal law
method of social control. Key questions include: How well is
society doing in its efforts to prevent/control crime--the
effectiveness issue? How do those efforts rate in terms of securing
a just balance between the rights of individuals and the coercive
powers of the government--the fairness issue? Are we doing things
right--questions of process/management? Are we doing the right
things--questions of substance/leadership? What improvements should
be made? How can we know/decide?
Philosophy 0824
America once was envisioned by its colonizers as
a new world, as a city upon a hill beckoning to humanity. After
centuries of conquest, enslavement, immigration, and political
struggle, conditions for sustaining this early vision continue to
evolve. Explore the emergence of some of the most distinctive and
influential American voices to inform our national debate about
freedom, the individual, race, democracy, and oppression, as it has
unfolded over the past two centuries. Through consideration of
selected works of some of the most renowned figures to shape the
landscape of American public discourse, we return to face the
question of the promise of America, as it plays out today in the
thought of some of the leading public intellectuals of our
time.
Law SBM 0856, 0956
An intruder rushes into class, hits the
professor in the face with a pie, and runs out. You are asked to
provide a description of the assailant--and now you realize this
was a demonstration of the faultiness of human memory in making
eyewitness identification. Develop your understanding of the
historical, socio-political and ethical context of the U.S. legal
system as you follow the misadventures of a fictional family that
gets caught up in various legal problems. Current events inform
every assignment; you might analyze, for example, the case against
McDonald's brought on behalf of obese children, and then research
legislation known as the "Cheeseburger Bill," prohibiting such
lawsuits. An exciting, multimedia environment makes learning
vivid.
Living for Change: Autobiographies of
Women in Radical Social Movements
Look through the lens of autobiography at
women's participation in radical social movements. Learn
about women's contributions to change in American culture and
gain a better understanding of how gender shapes struggles for
social change. Questions we will explore include: Why did these
women get politically involved? How were their experiences in
social movements shaped by their gender? What is their cultural and
political legacy? Why did they write about their lives? Why do we
read their narratives? Supplementary readings and brief group
presentations by students will provide historical, political and
cultural context for our discussions.
American Studies 0859, History 0859, Philosophy 0859, Political
Science 0859, Sociology 0859
Terrorism, illegal immigration, gay marriage,
religious conflict, political in-fighting, corporate corruption,
racial animosities, civil liberties assaults, media conglomeration,
Wal-Mart goes to China and the rich get richer. America in the 21st
Century is a contentious society. How did we get to this place in
time? Examine what makes American society distinctive from other
advanced industrial democracies as we study the philosophical
origins of America, the development of social and economic
relationships over time, and the political disputes dominating
contemporary American life. The course relies heavily on
perspectives from History, Sociology and Political Science to
explain the challenges facing contemporary American society.
Community & Regional Planning 0857
Have you ever thought about the relationship
people have to their place--home, neighborhood, town, or city? How
about to the environment? Have you ever thought about how people
have shaped the places of our everyday lives--suburban housing
developments, shopping malls, and small towns? And, have you ever
thought about what will happen in the future to the earth's natural
resources--the air, water, and land--as we continue to build and
expand? Explore these kinds of questions that through readings,
lectures, video presentations, and group discussions. Challenge
your mind--and imagination--and open up new avenues of
discovery.
Religion 0876, 0976
The argument is sometimes made that religion in
dense urban spaces is characteristically very different from
religion as it appears elsewhere. A study of religion in
Philadelphia provides numerous ways to explore that idea,
especially since the city encompasses a variety of ethnic and
immigrant groups, encouraging the generation of new and hybrid
forms of religious life that are less possible in smaller
populations. Learn how ideas of toleration and freedom, the urban
environment, and immigration helped to define the role of religion
in the life of this city. Study various religious traditions as
they are manifested in the greater Philadelphia area and look at
the influences religion has had on the fabric of Philadelphia's
history and cultural life including politics, art, education,
journalism and popular culture. You will be visit and write about
various religious sites and institutions.
Sociology 0857, Tourism & Hospitality Management
0857
Explore the complexity and diversity of American
society through the study of sport and leisure. To what extent does
the way we play or spectate sports, the way we plan or experience
leisure time, reflect American values? As we trace a brief history
of the United States through the lens of sport and leisure, we will
observe how concepts of freedom, democracy and equality are tested
through time. Issues of race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability,
and socio-economic class will be prominent, as we observe American
ideals both upheld and contradicted in the context of the way
Americans recreate.
Geography & Urban Studies 0861
U.S. cities in the
twenty-first century face enormous challenges as globalization
shapes flows of people, capital, information, resources, and
ideas/culture in an increasingly interconnected, yet geographically
dispersed world. The course asks: What is globalization? How are
different people's lives in cities shaped by these flows? How do
gender, age, race/ethnicity, class, and citizenship status affect
people's experiences in different urban contexts? How do urban
interventions--from public policy to social movements--advance
social justice across groups, places, and spaces? Topics include
economic and political restructuring, the globalization of
ethnic/racial relations, citizenship and public space, the spatial
dynamics of uneven development, and urban inequalities.
