Advanced American Civilization
Course:AN33400, Spring 2009
Time & place:Friday 8:00-9:40 and 10:00-11:40 in GÖCS Bldg., Room 204
Instructor:Zoltán Simon ()
Room 118 (: 512-900 / 22069)
Office hours:Tuesday 13:00-14:00 in GÖCS Bldg. 202
Wednesday11:00-12:00 in Room 118,
also by appointment
Description: Building upon the introductory-level knowledge acquired by all English majors in the “American Culture and Institutions” course in their previous studies, this seminar sets out to further deepen students’ understanding of various aspects of American culture and civilization.
Requirements:Most of the class sessions are to be based on the discussion of the topics at hand, introduced and moderated by the instructor and/or a student giving a presentation and being in charge of that topic. This discussion is to be facilitated by way of common and individualized reading materials, visual aids, Internet resources, and realia shared in the classroom. Students will be also required to keep up to date with events in the world as they relate to the Unites States, and report on their findings in class. In addition, each student will give a presentation during the semester on a pre-approved topic. There will be an in-class written examination around the middle of the semester, as well as a final research paper of 8-10 typewritten pages, due by Week 14.
Evaluation: The final grade will be calculated from the grades of the class participation and the presentation (25%), the mid-term test (25%), and the end-term essay (50%). Grade conversions are as follows: More than three absences will result in a “not fulfilled” grade. Grades will be assigned according to the following conversion formulae: 0-60% = fail; 61-70% = poor; 71-80% = average; 81-90% = good; 91-100% = excellent.
Primary Texts:Advanced American Civilization: Course Packet (xeroxed).
Current issues of Newsweek, Time, U.S. News, etc. (electronic or print versions)
Schedule of classes and topics
Week 1 (Feb 13) – Orientation and introduction to the course
Week 2 (Feb 20) – Environment and American cities (conservation and preservation, national parks, recycling, logging, oil in Alaska, endangered species, the Kyoto Accord; current trends in American urban development, (sub)urbanization, urban villages; etc.)
Week 3 (Feb 27) – Civil liberties (America before and after 9/11; background and aftermath; the Patriot Act; Homeland Security, current debates on civil liberties)
Week 4 (March 6) – Guns and the military (gun ownership, gun control and the Second Amendment; the traditions, structure and subculture of the US military)
Week 5 (March 13) – Media and communication (media and politics, the media as “the fourth branch of government”; newspapers and news magazines, syndication, network television, programming on American television; the Internet revolution; Hollywood and its role in America and worldwide)
Week 6(March 20) – Higher education (the structure of American higher education, financing, standardized tests, from Ivy League to community colleges).
Week 7(March 27) – Social issues (class in a classless society; ethnic minorities; the lonely crowd; cultural narcissism; recent demographic and immigration patterns; Native American Indians in the 20th and 21st centuries; multiculturalism, political correctness)
Week 8 (April 3) – Mid-term paper
Week 9(April 10) –Spring break
Week 10(April 17) – Law and crime (patterns of crime in the 21st century; the importance of the legal profession, from the Supreme Court to ambulance-chasers, consumer protection and class-action lawsuits, frivolous lawsuits, “stupid” laws, law enforcement, trials of the century, prisons, the death penalty)
Week 11(April 24) – Economy (agriculture, industry, and services; post-industrialism, “America’s business is business”, globalization and Americanization; Fortune 500, science and technology, the automobile and the IT industries; money matters, the banking system, the importance of consumer credit)
Week 12 (May 1) – Cancelled due to national holiday
Week 13 (May 8) – Political elections (the presidential elections of 2000, 2004 and 2008 as case studies).
Week 14 (May 15) – Religion and politics (the Bible Belt, religious conservatism and fundamentalism; civil religion in American; Fight over Faith; abortion: pro-life vs. pro-choice)
Week 15(May 22) – Everyday life in America, conclusions