Professor: Dr. Micah Oelze
Course Website: www.modernushistoryonline.weebly.com Class Meetings: TBA Course Objectives
Modern American Civilization. A weird name for a course on history. If by civilized we mean that everyone in “Modern America” eats with silverware and avoids hate-speech, then we should probably end the course title with a question mark. ¿American Civilization?
But civilization is also a scholarly term for culture that has been made material. Ideas are soldered into steel (architecture), flavors put in a pot (cooking), sounds structured to tell a story (music), and fictions teach us about our own politics and possibilities (literature). So “Modern American Civilization” is actually an attempt to tell the history of the last 150 years through the arts. This means at least two things. First, you will have to learn how to read the arts. Did you ever think that a building’s structure could be reinforce racism? That a trumpet solo could denounce it? Probably not. But learning to read the arts will change that. So our first objective in this class is to learn how to read new types of communication, most especially paintings, jazz music, and installation art. Then we have to figure out how to talk about our findings in a way that has value for us today, as students, as citizens, and—most importantly—as scholars. So our second objective is to use our voices to share our readings with the class in such a way that allows us to better understand the past and more effectively live in the present. We will have all sorts of opportunities to practice this speech: in small groups, as a large class, and even during classroom gameshows. Finally, we need to learn how to write about these things like scholars. That is our third objective. It means you will be writing every week. And I expect this writing to come from your own head, not from ideas you see on the internet. To enable you to do this, we will practice original thinking throughout the semester. By the time you finish this course with me, I want you to have the tools necessary to read, speak, and write like a scholar. Doing so will ensure you perform well in other courses throughout your college career and it will allow you to become a thought leader and credible speaker in your professional life. So scholars, welcome to class. |