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Requirements and Curriculum

Note: This information reflects the requirements and curriculum printed in the 2007-08 course catalog.

Requirements

Africana studies involves a critical study of the peoples of Africa and the African diaspora throughout the United States, the Caribbean and elsewhere in the world. Africana Studies examines the histories, cultures, literatures, and religions of African peoples within both national and international contexts. Since the subject matter of Africana studies embraces a wide spectrum of topics and issues, the program is multidisciplinary, with its main thrusts in the social sciences and the humanities. It also provides an excellent opportunity for social science and humanities majors to gain valuable career-related insight into the African and African-American experiences.

Required for a major

135; 147 or 236; 171 or 172; plus four additional courses in the department; and 490 senior project (unless fulfilled in another major).

Required for a minor

135, plus four other courses in the department.

Curriculum

135 African-American History 4 hours
A survey of African-American history from the 17th century to the present. Highlights the issues and struggles of black people in their rural and urban context and places the African experience in America in the larger world, considering, for example, the impact of events outside of America, such as the Haitian Revolution, British emancipation of slavery, and European nationalism. (Same as history 135.) (HB, Hist, Intcl)

139, 239, 339, 439 Special Topics Credit arr.

147 Literature of the African Peoples 4 hours
Modern African writers are some of the most dynamic and innovative writers as they draw from and respond to different literary traditions, such as their own oral traditions and European models. This course serves as an introduction to the various themes and styles of written literature of 20th century Africa. The course will begin with a historical analysis of European colonialism in Africa, using a variety of primary and secondary sources. Representative authors include Tsitsi Dangarembga, J.M. Coetzee, Buchi Emecheta, Chinua Achebe, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Andre Brink, Tayib Salih, and Nawal El Saadawi. Offered alternate years. Prerequisite: Paideia 111. (Same as English 147.) (HEPT, Hist, Intcl, E, W)

155 The Black Family 4 hours
Examination of the development of the black family from historical, sociological and literary perspectives. Includes assessment of the effects of urban poverty on family life. Varying patterns of family life in contemporary black America will be considered. (Same as women’s and gender studies 155.) (HB, Hist, Intcl)

171 History of Africa to 1880 4 hours
Survey of African history from the earliest times to roughly about 1880. The course begins with the historical development of Africa’s still-vital cultural, linguistic, social, and economic systems and moves on to examine the Islamic and Christian impact on these systems through the era of the Atlantic slave trade. The course concludes by discussing the ways in which early European colonialism affected the African past. (Same has history 171). (HB, Hist)

172 History of Modern Africa 4 hours
This course surveys the history of sub-Saharan Africa from the 1880s to the present. The course examines African life under European colonial domination (from about 1880 to about 1960) and under independent states which succeeded colonial governments after 1960. A primary aim of this course is to explore the diversity of human experience in Africa during the colonial and post-colonial periods. The course makes use of several primary documents to portray ways in which men and women have dealt with the challenges of living in 20th and 21st century Africa. (Same as history 172.) (HB, Hist, Intcl)

185 First-year Seminar 4 hours
A variety of seminars for first-year students offered each January term.

221 Anthropology in East Africa: Forces of Culture Change Among the Maasai 4 hours
Like other peoples of East Africa, the Maasai pastoralists of Tanzania and Kenya are experiencing rapid culture change in response to global, national, and local forces. In this course we will study “traditional” Maasai culture and examine the ways in which the Maasai of northern Tanzania are adapting to changing social, political, economic, and environmental conditions. Topics to be explored include the shift from herding to agropastoralism; the tension between traditional and formal modes of education; the declining use of Maa, the mother tongue, in favor of Swahili and English; the adoption of Christianity in place of or alongside traditional religion; changes in coming-of-age rituals; cultural dimensions of health, healing, and the spread of HIV/AIDS; challenges to traditional gender ideology; the Maasai relationship to their environment; and the impacts of ecotourism, cultural tourism, and wildlife conservation programs on the pastoral way of life. From bases near the city of Arusha and the small town of Monduli students will interact with Maasai people in urban and rural marketplaces; in schools, medical facilities, and places of worship; and at Maasai bomas (family compounds) in the bush. We will also visit the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation area in order to explore the tension between pastoralism, wildlife conservation programs, and tourism. (Same as anthropology 221.) (HBSSM, Intcl)

235 Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights Movement 4 hours
This course will examine King’s life and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s through the 1970s. It will include an analysis of his organization, the SCLC, various other civil rights organizations, and the black church, the primary black institution during this period. (Same as history 235.) (HB, Hist)

236 African-American Literature 4 hours
A survey of African-American literature. Primary emphasis will be on literature written since 1920 when the Harlem Renaissance began. Includes authors such as Langston Hughes, Richard Wright, Zola Neale Hurston, Ralph Ellison, James Baldwin, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison and gives attention to theories of race and culture formation. Prerequisite: Paideia 111. (Same as English 251.) (HEPT, Intcl, E, W)

245 Africana Literature 4 hours
A study of one topic in the wide range of literature by Africans and African-Americans. Focuses will vary but will be centered around a particular theme, period, or group of writers. Representative topics include: Africana Women’s Writing, Caribbean Literature, The Harlem Renaissance, South African Literature, The African-American Novel, and Contemporary Africana Fiction. Prerequisite: sophomore standing. (Same as English 240.) (HEPT, Intcl, E)

247 History of Jazz 4 hours
A survey of the history and development of jazz, from the 1890s to the present. Includes origins and early jazz through the modern jazz era. Listening activities focus on the major figures of each historical period. Offered alternate years. (Same as music 247.) (HEPT, Hist, Intcl)

256 The Black Church in the African-American Experience 4 hours
An examination of the history, leadership, and theology of the black church in America with a special attempt to discern whether the black church has been “friend or foe” of black people. Emphasis will be placed on religious leaders such as Richard Allen, Henry McNeal Turner, and Jesse Jackson. (HB, Hist, Intcl)

271 African Diaspora 4 hours
This course explores the global experiences of people of African descent. Students will study the human experiences of Africans in the Indian Ocean World, the Trans-Saharan trade, and the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Geographical areas include Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Particular attention will be given to the web of interrelated histories, social dynamics, political, and economic processes affecting and reflecting world cultures and histories. (Same as history 271.) (HBSSM, Hist, Intcl)

337 Pan-Africanism 4 hours
An introduction to the ideas and movements which developed in efforts to unite African people spread throughout the world by the slave trade The course examines key African and Diasporic African intellectual and ideological responses to enslavement and colonization, and subsequently to economic, social, and political marginalization. The course starts with an exploration of African-American separatist discourse during the Americans’ Revolutionary periods, moves through New World emancipation of slaves, colonization in Africa, and concludes with national movements and liberation struggles in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. (Same as history 337.) (HB, HEPT, Hist, Intcl)

338 Slavery in Comparative Perspective 4 hours
A study of slavery in America, tracing the different attempts to understand the peculiar institution from U.B. Phillips through Blassingame and Julius Lester. Slavery will be viewed from the perspective of both oppressed and oppressors. Offered alternate years. (Same as history 338.) (HB, Hist)

371 Topics in African History 4 hours
In-depth study of a selected topic in African history. Instruction in this course will require students to read and assess monographs by African historians on the topic. Topics may include but are not limited to apartheid in South Africa and Zimbabwe, decolonization, nationalism, environmental history of sub-Saharan Africa. Prerequisite: Previous enrollment in 171 or 172 recommended. (HBSSM, Hist)

395 Independent Study l, 2, or 4 hours

485 Junior/Senior Seminar 4 hours

490 Senior Project l, 2, or 4 hours

493 Senior Honors Project 4 hours
A year-long independent research project. Applications are completed on the “Honors Program” form available at the registrar’s office, requiring the signatures of a faculty supervisor, the department head, the honors program director, and the registrar. Interdisciplinary projects require the signatures of two faculty supervisors. The project must be completed by the due date for senior projects. The completed project is evaluated by a review committee consisting of the faculty supervisor, another faculty member from the major department, and a faculty member from outside the major department. All projects must be presented publicly. Only projects awarded an “A-” or “A” qualify for “department honors” designation. The honors project fulfills the all-college senior project requirement. (W, R)