American Studies
Director:
Professor Frances Sze-Ling Chew, Biology/American Studies
Faculty:
Professor Carol Flynn, English
Professor Jonathan Kenny, Chemistry
Lincoln Filene Professor Molly Mead, University
College of Citizenship & Public Service
Emeritus Professor Jesper Rosenmeier, English/American Studies
Associate Professor Gerald Gill, History
Associate Professor Deborah Pacini,
Anthropology
Associate Professor Eric Rosenberg, Art and Art History
Associate Professor Alice Trexler, Drama and Dance
Assistant Professor Adriana Zavala,
Art and Art History
Senior Lecturer Edith Balbach, Community Health
Senior Lecturer Jeanne Dillon, American Studies
Senior Lecturer Jean Wu, American Studies
Lecturer Sophia Cantave, English
Lecturer Lisa Coleman, American Studies
Lecturer John Hodgman, American Studies/Entrepreneurial Leadership
Lecturer Ronna Johnson, English/American Studies
Lecturer Joan Lester, American Studies
Lecturer Carmen Lowe, American Studies
The American Studies program offers a bachelor of arts in American Studies. The program has gained recognition for features unique among American Studies programs, especially the interdisciplinary breadth of its faculty, who are drawn from the humanities, arts, social sciences, and natural sciences.
The mission of the Tufts program is to create interdisciplinary models of analysis of life in the United States and/or the Americas. Students enter into a dialogue with a variety of disciplines represented by members of the American Studies faculty and the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies. Students are encouraged to combine intellectual theory and historical analysis with work for social change.
American Studies, nationally and at Tufts, has had a central focus on the role of race, ethnicity, class, and gender in shaping people's experiences in the Americas. American Studies has been increasingly concerned with the ways people of other countries see the United States, and conversely, how people in the United States perceive and represent their neighbors in the Western hemisphere.
American Studies majors are eligible to apply for Ted Shapiro Memorial Awards, which support summer projects designed to achieve personal and academic goals.
Undergraduate Concentration
Requirements
To graduate with a bachelor of arts degree in American Studies, a student must
complete ten credits: American Studies 12-20 Introduction to Interdisciplinary
Studies (one credit); American Studies 81-90 Integrative Seminar (one
credit); History (one credit) at least two-thirds of course content
focused on some aspect of the U.S. or the Americas; four credits that
form a coherent interdisciplinary cluster (see clusters below). The last
three credits are fulfilled by American Studies 109 Senior Special
Project, taken in either the fall or spring semester of the senior year for one
credit, plus two elective credits (course content to integrate course work of
interdisciplinary cluster); or American Studies 199 Senior Honors Thesis, taken
in both semesters of the senior year for two credits, plus one elective credit
(course content to integrate course work of interdisciplinary cluster).
Interdisciplinary Clusters
African American Studies
Area Studies (consult advisor)
Asian American Studies
Comparative Race and Ethnicity
Constructions of Power in Economic and Political Systems
Gender
Individually Designed Cluster (consult advisor)
Latino/a Studies
Local Community Issues
Native American Studies
Nature and Culture
Performance and Representation in the Arts and Humanities
Politics and the Environment
Politics and the Law
Science and Technology
(American Studies 99, 140-149, and 194 may be proposed as part of the interdisciplinary cluster. Courses dealing explicitly with the U.S. experience, and courses such as Economics 5, Psychology 1, Sociology 1, Child Development 1, in which most of the exemplary materials are drawn from American society, may be used to meet this requirement.)
The director and other faculty advisors work closely with students in tailoring individual programs reflecting particular interests and providing a framework for the continued integration of knowledge at more advanced levels. The American Studies program office is located at 110 Eaton Hall. For more information, call 617-627-2311, visit http://ase.tufts.edu/amstud, or e-mail the program coordinator, Sheila.Driscoll@tufts.edu.
Courses
12-20 Introduction to American Studies. An interdisciplinary examination of issues in American society and culture with particular emphasis on questions of race, class, ethnicity, and gender. Particular subject matter will vary from semester to semester. Disciplinary approaches may include the arts, humanities, natural and social sciences, and media studies. Prerequisite: English 1 or equivalent. Members of faculty
12 Race in America. An examination of the meanings of race in modern America, the ways in which racism as a system functions, the root causes and consequences of racist ideologies, and current and future activist approaches to achieving social change. Course material is multicultural in focus, with attention to Native American, Asian American, African American, European American, and Latino/a perspectives. The course is interdisciplinary in approach, and active student participation is an important component. Wu
13 Viewing African-American Dance: Perspectives from Art and Science. (Cross-listed as Dance 70.) Introduction to African-American concert dance in its aesthetic and historical context. Influence of biological determinism, race, and racism on the critical response to dance. Choreographers and companies include Dunham, Ailey, Jones, Dance Theater of Harlem. Trexler and Chew
14 Representing the Environment. Interdisciplinary examination of how visual, metaphorical, and political representations impact perception of the natural environment. Historical, scientific, and multicultural contexts of environmental conflict, ecological degradation, and environmental racism in the Americas are examined through analysis of film, fiction, poetry, and critical essays. Dillon and Lowe
75 American Film Studies. Changing topics in American cinema with an emphasis on examining technical film properties, determinants of national and international film distribution, and issues relating to race, ethnicity, gender, and class. Dillon
81-90 Integrative Seminar. Continuing the exploration of interdisciplinarity begun in American Studies 12-20, American Studies 81-90 focuses more narrowly on the history and methodology of American Studies. The aim of the course is to establish an advanced interdisciplinary framework that will help students integrate their work in different disciplines. Specific topics and readings will vary from year to year. Members of faculty
81 The Constructions of Whiteness: National Formations of Race, 1790-1924. Interdisciplinary examination of the principles of nation building and the constructions of race (particularly whiteness as a social construct) in the United States. Theoretical, historical, philosophical, social, and ideological underpinnings of race in America 1790-1924. Through examination of literary, legal, scientific, psychoanalytic and visual texts students consider how racial archetypes become widely-believed and how knowledge about race is produced and disseminated within the U.S. socio-political framework. Coleman
82 Asian America. Examination of the concepts, peoples, historical and contemporary concerns of Asian America. Origins of Asian America, its 150 years of history, and its racial location in the United States. Lives of contemporary Asian Americans: their identities, cultures, communities, and social issues. The course is interdisciplinary in approach and includes perspectives of both monoracial and multiracial Asian Americans whose ancestries lie in East Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Wu
99 Internships. Internships are available in a wide range of public and private organizations and institutions (e.g., media, museums, social service agencies). Interns are required to work a minimum of twelve hours per week, keep a journal, and meet regularly with the Director of American Studies. Students may take an internship pass-fail; however, to receive a letter grade the student must write a ten-page paper to be submitted to the Director of American Studies.
101 Native American Art: Beauty and Meaning. Examination of the art of indigenous peoples of the United States, incorporating cultural meaning, history, cross-cultural exchange, and creative process. Areas of study include ancient Southwest, pueblos, Dine, ancient Midwest, Atlantic coast, Lakota, and Kwakiutl. Consideration of "traditional," tourist, modern, and pan-Indian contemporary art. Native privacy and sacred beliefs honored. Examination of impact of collectors, archaeologists, anthropologists, art historians, and museum professionals on interpretation of native art. Lester
102 Issues in Native American Studies. Examination of selected issues relevant to Native American peoples in New England and Indian America. Focus on indigenous perspectives and voices, including guest speakers. Topics include stereotypes, relations with archaeologists and anthropologists, history and eurocentrism, spirituality and appropriation, enforced and native-led education, red power, and contemporary political issues including repatriation, federal recognition, sovereignty, gaming, and indigenous representation in the arts. Lester
103 Museums and Native Americans: The Politics of Representation. Conceptual frameworks and methods used to portray Native American peoples in exhibitions from the late 19th century to the present. Attitudes and assumptions of Western museum professionals that contributed to preservation of a precious material legacy but silenced indigenous representation. Contemporary de-centering and reclamation of native voices in tribal and mainstream museums and in the new National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC. Lester
109 Senior Special Project. The Senior Special Project (SSP) will include a preparation of an analytic essay, a research paper, or a project such as an oral history, a life story, a film, or a play. The SSP may also be based, in part, on a documented internship, or on leading an Exploration. The SSP should utilize more than one disciplinary approach and should seek to develop connections and integration among the disciplines employed. Detailed information is available in the American Studies office. Johnson
131 Active Citizenship in an Urban Community: Race, Culture, Power, and Politics. How race, culture, power, and politics shape the history and contemporary issues in Boston's Chinatown. Topics include immigrant experiences and rights, sustainable development, role of "outsider allies," coalition building within a community, creating vision and sustaining commitment to community work. Includes a full year of service within a community organization, where Tufts has had a long history of such commitments. Two semester course. Wu
140-149 Special Topics. Current offerings include Imagining Black Freedom in Haiti (AMER 140), Innovative Non-Profits (AMER 141) , and American Entrepreneurship (AMER 142).
194 Special Topics. Guided individual study of an approved topic. Credit as arranged.
199 Senior Honors Thesis.