Syllabi

Course Syllabi

Global Culture, a graduate seminar, by Diane Barthel, SUNY at Stony Brook, Fall 1997.

This course presents an overview of some selected topics from the relatively new field of global culture. Classes will be in seminar form, with students assigned responsibility for introducing the readings, followed by discussion. Students will be expected to do one of the following:
(a) Produce three relatively short (10 page) "reaction papers" to three of the sub-topics and relevant readings. The first of these papers is due Oct. 20, the second Nov. 24 and the third Dec. 15, OR
(b) Produce a major course paper, due Dec. 15, which does one of the following:

All readings are tentative and subject to change.

Introduction and Overview

Sep. 3	Introduction
Sep. 8	Robertson, Roland. 1990. "Mapping the Global Condition: Globalization as the Central Concept," Theory, Culture & Society 7:311-328.
Sep. 10	Arnason, Johann P. 1990. "Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity," Theory, Culture & Society 7:207-236.
Sep . 15	Appadurai, Arjun. 1996. Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization, parts 1-2. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.
Sep. 17	Appadurai, part 3; Friedman, Jonathan. 1990. "Being in the World: Globalization and Localization," Theory, Culture & Society. 7:311-328.

Global Organization and Identities

Sep. 22	Hannerz, Ulf. 1990. "Cosmopolitans and Locals in World Culture," Theory, Culture & Society 7:237-251. Barthel, Diane. 1997. "We are the World: Historic Preservation as Global Professional Culture" (handout).
Sep. 24	Smith, Jackie, Ron Pagnucco and Winnie Romeril. 199_. "Transnational Social Movement Organizations in the Global Political Arena," Voluntas 5(2): 121-154. Boli, John, and George M. Thomas, 1997. "World Culture in the World Polity: A Century of International and Non-Governmental Organization," American Sociological Review 62:171-190.
Sep. 29	Finnemore, Martha. 1993. "International organizations as Teachers of Norms: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and Science Policy," International Organization 47:565-97. Finnemore, Martha. 1996. "Norms, Culture and World Politics: Insights from Sociology's Institutionalism," International Organization 50:325-47.
Oct. 1	Holiday, no class.

Imagining Community

Oct. 6	Griswold, Wendy. 1992. "The Writing on the Mud Wall: Nigerian Novels and the Imaginary Village," American Sociological Review 57: 709-724. Also recommended: Andersen, Benedict. 1991 (1983). Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism (rev. ed.). London: Verso.
Oct. 8	Morley, David, and Kevin Robins. 1995. "Reimagined Communities? New Media, New Possibilities" and "Culture, Community and Identity: Communications Technologies and the Reconfiguration of Europe," in Morley and Robins Spaces of Identity: Global Media, Electronic Landscapes and Cultural Boundaries. New York: Routledge.
Oct. 13	Barthel, Diane. 1993. "Back to Utopia: Staged Symbolic Communities," in The Ethnic Quest for Community: Searching for Roots in the Lonely Crowd, edited by Michael W. Hughey and Arthur J. Vidich, p. 97-112. Gable, Eric. 1996. "Maintaining Boundaries, or ‘Mainstreaming’ Black History in a White Museum," in Theorizing Museums, edited by Sharon Macdonald and Gordon Fyfe. Oxford: Blackwell.

Politics and memory

Oct. 15	Morley and Robins. 1995. "No Place Like Heimat: Images of Homeland" and "Tradition and Translation: National Culture in Global Context," in Morley and Robins Spaces of Identity. New York: Routledge. Smith, Jackie, Ron Pagnucco and George A. Lopez. 1997. Globalizing Human Rights: The Work of Transnational Human Rights NGOs in the 1990s. Notre Dame, Indiana: The Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies.
Oct. 20- 22	Spillman, Lyn. 1997. Nation and Commemoration: Creating National Identities in the United States and Australia . Cambridge University Press. Barthel, Diane. 1996. Historic Preservation: Collective Memory and Historical Identity. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press.
Oct. 27	Yoneyama, Lisa. 1995. "Memory Matters: Hiroshima's Korean Atom Bomb Memorial and the Politics of Ethnicity," Public Culture 7:499-527.
Oct. 29	Zolberg, Vera. 1996. "Museums as Contested Sites of Remembrance: The Enola Gay Affair," Theorizing Museums, edited by Sharon MacDonald and Gordon Fyfe, p. 69-83. Oxford: Blackwell.
Nov. 3-5	Nora, Pierre, et. al. 1996. Realms of Memory: Rethinking the French Past, translated by Arthur Goldhammer. Vol. 1. New York: Columbia University Press.

Art and Access

Nov. 10	Proesler, Martin. 1996. "Museums and Globalization," Theorizing Museums, p 21-44. Schuster, J., and Mark Davidson. 1995. "The Public Interest in the Art Museum's Public," Art in Museums, edited by Susan M. Pearce, p 109-143. London: Athlone Press.
Nov. 12	Fyfe, Gordon. 1996. "A Trojan Horse at the Tate: Theorizing the Museum as Agency and Structure," Theorizing Museums, p 203-228. Fyfe, Gordon, and Max Ross. 1996. "Decoding the Visitor's Gaze: Rethinking Museum Visiting," Theorizing Museums, p. 127-153.
Nov. 17	Zolberg, Vera L. 1995. "The Collection Despite Barnes: From Private Preserve to Blockbuster," Art in Museums, p. 94-109. West, Shearer. 1995. "The Devaluation of 'Cultural Capital': Post-Modern Democrace and the Art Blockbuster," Art in Museums, p. 74-93.

Art and Other

Nov. 19	Riegel, Henrietta. 1996. "Into the Heart of Irony: Ethnographic Exhibitions and the Politics of Difference," Theorizing Museums, p. 83-104. MacKay, Eve. 1995. "Postmodernism and Cultural Politics in a Multicultural Nation: Contests over Truth in the Into the Heart of Africa Controversy," Public Culture, 7:403-432.
Nov. 24	Myers, Fred R. 1995. "Representing Culture: The Production of Discouse(s) for Aboriginal Acrylic Paintings," The Traffic in Culture: Refiguring Art and Anthropology, edited by George E. Marcus and Fred R. Myers, p. 55-95. Hart, Lynn M. 1995. "Three Walls: Regional Aesthetics and the International Art World," The Traffic in Culture, p. 127-150.
Nov. 26	Steiner, Christopher B. 1995. "The Art of the Trade: On the Creation of Value and Authenticity in the Afdrican Art Market," The Traffic in Culture, p. 151-165. Sullivan, Nancy. 1995. "Inside Trading: Postmodernism and the Social Drama of Sunflowers in the 1980's Art World," The Traffic in Culture, p. 256-301.
Dec. 1	Erlmann, Veit. 1996. "The Aesthetics of the Global Imagination: Reflections on World Music in the 1990's Art World," Public Culture 8:467-488. Lee, C.M. 1996. "Staging the New Asia: Singapore's Dick Lee, Pop Music, and a Counter-Modernity," Public Culture 8:488-510.

Global Cities

Dec. 3	Zukin, Sharon. 1996. "Space and Symbols in an Age of Decline," Representing the City: Ethnicity, Capital and Culture in the 21st-Century Metropolis, edited by Anthony D. King, p. 43-59. Sassen, Saskia. 1996. "Whose City is It?: Globalization the the Formation of New Claims," Public Culture 8:251-89.
Dec. 8	Mazrui, Ali A. 1996. "Mombassa: Three Stages Toward Globalization," Representing the City, p. 158-78. Watts, Michael. 1996. "Islamic Modernities: Citizenship, Civil Society, and Islamism in a Nigerian City," Public Culture 8:251-289.
Dec. 10	Amin, Ash. 1997. "Placing Globalization," Theory Culture & Society 14:123-137. Hirst, P. and G. Thompson. 1996. Globalisation in Question. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Global Sociology, a Graduate Seminar by Ian Roxborough, SUNY at Stony Brook, Spring 1997

Aims of Course
From a policy perspective, the aim of this course is to examine a set of questions concerning the future of the United States after the end of the Cold War, both in terms of its role in the global economy and in terms of international politics and military involvement. From a theoretical perspective, the aim of the course is to explore the ways sociologist might think about the domestic determinants of international behavior, and vice versa. As will become apparent during the course, the distinction between "domestic" and "international" is itself problematic and in need of reconceptualization.

Why you might want to take this course
This is a macro course -- obviously! If you want to dip into some macro sociology, this may be what you are looking for. (But one of our central concerns will be with the need to move up and down the macro-micro scale and try to integrate different levels of analysis.) This course should interest anyone with an orientation to historical sociology, political sociology, and economic sociology, though the coverage of these areas is quite selective. There are also a number of theoretical issues that will come up during the semester: structural versus action perspectives, rational actor models, economic and military "determinism" and "autonomy", the construction of identity (around nationalism and ethnicity), definitions of system and unit of analysis as we move up and down the macro-micro scale, etc. No prior knowledge of economics, politics, or history is either required or assumed. But an interest in these topics is required.

What is Global Sociology?
What is global sociology? Who knows? When this term (or its equivalents) is used, the implication is that (at least some) social processes can only be (fully) explained by reference to events and processes occurring "outside" (or "across") the territorial boundaries of the "society" in question. There are two extreme positions here: (1) sociologists study discrete and more or less self-contained "societies". Whether the causal factors are endogenous or exogenous, these "societies" are the largest units of analysis. Comparative sociology consists in comparing societies. (2) There is a single world-system, and what happens in any particular "society" is to be explained (more or less exclusively) by reference to that system and the location of the society in that system. There are several intermediate positions.

In this course we will attempt to steer a middle way by treating as problematic and variable the links between three systems or sets of institutions: (1) societies, with their actors, structures and processes; (2) states; (3) international systems of economic, military, diplomatic, communication and cultural relations.

States, as Theda Skocpol said, are Janus-faced. They look two ways: externally towards other states, and internally towards their own populations. States are positioned at the intersections of international economic, political and military systems on the one hand, and societal social structures on the other hand. In this seminar we will look at the interconnections between "domestic", "internal" social structures and processes and transnational, "global" structures and processes. Generally, we will see how these two levels are linked through state action, though we will also explore other ways in which social processes are "global".

Why I want to teach this course
In addition to the general sociological interest that I believe these issues have, I'm offering this course because it brings together a number of areas where I have a research interest. I think of myself as a historical sociologist with an interest in the sociology of politics, economics and war. I have worked on the domestic politics of adjustment to international economic crisis (in Latin America), and I am currently working on the reformulation of US military strategy in the post Cold War world. So this course brings together a number of my central intellectual interests. As someone who lives in the United States, I am concerned about the long-term future of this country; and, as a sociologist, I think I have some professional expertise that is relevant.

Organization of course
The course will begin with general discussions of some of the central elements of the modern world system, to give us the conceptual tools and empirical background necessary to focus on the current situation. It will conclude with three weeks devoted to a detailed examination of the set of interlocked issues concerning the role of the United States in the new world order. The middle part of the course has two weeks each on economic issues, war, and culture.

Requirements
You may EITHER do a substantial paper at the end of the semester OR you may write five short reaction papers during the course of the semester.

Books to Purchase
P. Kennedy, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, 1988
E. Hobsbawm, Age of Extremes, 1994
P. Gourevitch, Politics in Hard Times, 1986
J. Snyder, Myths of Empire, 1991
John Tomlinson, Cultural Imperialism, 1991
M. Klare, Rogue States and Nuclear Outlaws, 1995
L. Thurow, Head to Head: the coming economic battle among Japan, Europe and America, 1992
Xeroxed copies of articles (and book chapters) for this course are available in the departmental library/reading room.

Part I: Historical Perspectives

week 1	(Mon Jan 27): Visions of the Future Ben Barber, "MacWorld vs Jihad", Atlantic, March 1992 S. Huntington, "The Clash of Civilizations", Foreign Affairs, Summer, 1993 S. Huntington, "The West: Unique, not Universal", Foreign Affairs, Nov/Dec 1996 Study Questions Are the fault lines civilizations and cultures, or are the causes of future international conflict something else?
week 2	(Mon Feb 3): Origins of the Modern World System I. Wallerstein, The Modern World System, vol 1, ch. 1 + 5 I. Wallerstein, The Capitalist World-Economy, ch. 1 + 2 Study Questions What is "systematic" about the world system? Is Wallerstein's theory really about the hierarchical location of states, or is it about the dynamics of a world system? Is Wallerstein's work really a history of capitalism? What does it mean to say that the world system is a capitalist world system? What other kinds of world system might there be?
week 3	(Mon Feb 10): Kennedy thesis P. Kennedy, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, 1988, chaps 1, 4, 5, 7, 8 (320 p.) Study Questions: In one sentence, what is the Kennedy thesis? How can it be tested? What are alternative hypotheses?
week 4	(Mon Feb 17): the Twentieth Century: general trends E. Hobsbawm, Age of Extremes, chapters 1-9 C. Maier "The two postwar eras and the conditions for stability in twentieth-century Western Europe", in C. Maier, In Search of Stability Study Questions: Was there a world crisis in the period 1914-49? If so, what were its defining features?
Week 5	(Mon Feb 24): the Twentieth Century: the Cold War E. Hobsbawm, Age of Extremes, rest of book Study Questions how helpful is Hobsbawm's periodization of the twentieth century? What were the factors leading to the global system that existed during the Cold War? What was the role of conscious planning for the post-War world?

Part II: Polity, Economy, Culture

week 6	(Mon March 3): Domestic politics and international economics
week 7	(Mon March 10): Domestic politics and international economics P. Gourevitch, Politics in Hard Times, 1986 R. Rosencrance, "The Rise of the Virtual State", Foreign Affairs, vol 75, #4, July/Aug 1996 Study Questions: How much control do state managers have over economic policy? How do state managers and corporations interact to produce economic policy?
week 8	(Mon March 17): Wars and domestic social structure J. Snyder, Myths of Empire, chaps 1-4, 8 Study Questions: Is war to be explained in terms of the structure of domestic politics?
Recess	Mon March 24, no class--Spring Vacation
week 9	(Mon March 31): Wars and domestic social structure: the causes of World War I Michael Mann, The Sources of Social Power, vol II, chapter 21 Michael Howard, "Europe on the Eve of the First World War" in M. Howard, Lessons of History D. Kagan, On the Origins of War, 1995, chapter 2, "The First World War, 1914-1918" Michael Howard, "Men Against Fire: The Doctrine of the Offensive in 1914" in M. Howard, Lessons of History Study Questions: Was the First World War a result of accident or miscalculation?
week 10	(Mon April 7): Culture John Tomlinson, Cultural Imperialism Study Questions What role do the media play in the transmission of values/ideas/culture?
week 11	(Mon April 14): culture Johann Arnason, "Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity", Theory, Culture and Society, 1990 Jonathan Friedman, "Being in the World: Globalization and Localization", Theory, Culture and Society, 1990 Study Questions: Are we witnessing a process of globalization in terms of identity and/or material culture?
Recess	Mon April 21, no class--spring recess

Part III: the Future

week 12	(Thursday April 24): US military strategy C. Gray, "Strategy in the nuclear age: the United States, 1945-1991" in W. Murray et al, (eds), The Making of Strategy, 1994 M. Klare, Rogue States and Nuclear Outlaws, chaps 1-4, 7 Institute for National Strategic Studies, Strategic Assessment 1995, chapter 1, 15, 16 Study Questions: What are the threats to peace in the post-Cold War world? What are the threats to U.S. interests in the post-Cold War world? What are the emerging contours of U.S. security strategy?
week 13	(Mon April 28): U.S. economic strategy
week 14	(Mon May 5): US economic strategy L. Thurow, Head to Head: the coming economic battle among Japan, Europe and America, 1992 Study Questions: What are the principal challenges facing the U.S. economy (and society more generally) in the emerging global economy? Does the U.S. have an economic strategy? Should it? If so, what should it be?

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