American Studies
Facilitators: James Bennett, Religious Studies and Juliana Chang, English
American Studies is an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the United States, past and present. Students approach the study of American cultures through such diverse fields as history, literature, religious studies, art, economics, and environmental studies, and might focus on such topics as popular culture and material culture, ethnic studies and gender studies, empire and globalization. American Studies students analyze America's relations with the rest of the world, the construction and deconstruction of American identities, and changing and competing definitions of America (including critiques of the very name "American Studies").
We encourage students to intentionally craft a four-course cluster around a theme or topic of special interest to them. Such intentional focus will also make it easier for students to complete the reflection paper. Below are suggested possible ways of crafting such a cluster or focus, although students should feel free to develop and define their own individualized cluster topic:
- American Regions (i.e., The West and California, America and the Caribbean, Interregionalism, America and the Atlantic)
- Politics and Activism
- Transnationalism and Globalization
- Colonialism/Postcolonialism
- Historical Periods (i.e., The Colonial Period, The 19th Century, Modernism, Postmodernism)
- Gender and Sexuality
- Race and Ethnicity
Associated Courses
Foundations Courses
(Please note that only the specific Foundation course topics qualify for the Pathway requirements, and only one Foundations course may be applied to a Pathway)
ENGL 2A Imagining History (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 2A American Studies: Popular Culture (effective 9/1/09)
American Politics
GOVT 410 001T American Gov't & Politics Seminar I (American University Washington Semester Program)
Anthropology
ANTH 4 Vanished Peoples and Lost Civilizations (effective 9/1/20)
ANTH 148 Historical Archaeology (effective 1/1/12)
ANTH 157 Family and Culture (cross-listed with WGST 155; effective 9/1/09)
ANTH 170 Women, Gender, and Sexuality (cross-listed with WGST 144; effective 9/1/09)
Art History
*ARTH 140 Photography in the United States (formerly 186; effective 1/1/12)
*ARTH 143 Women's Work: American Women in the Visual Arts (cross-listed with WGST 156; formerly ARTH 188; 9/1/09)
ARTH 144 Race, Gender, and Nation in 18th and 19th Century American Art (effective 9/1/09)
ARTH 145 Perpetual Revolution: American Art in the 20th-Century (effective 9/1/09)
Communication
*COMM 136F Family Melodrama (effective 9/1/16)
*COMM 138A Television History/Theory - Topics Vary (effective 9/1/09)
COMM 166 News and Democracy (effective 9/1/09)
Economics
*ECON 136 20th-Century Economic History (effective 9/1/09)
English
ENGL 31 Survey of American Literature I (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 32 Survey of American Literature II (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 33 Intro to American Literature (effective 9/1/2016)
ENGL 35 Introduction to African-American Literature (cross-listed with ETHN 36; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 36 Introduction to Latinx Literature (cross-listed with ETHN 21; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 37 Native American Literature (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 38 Introduction to Asian-American Literature (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 39 Multicultural Literature of the United States (cross-listed with ETHN 70; (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 39G Multicultural Literature of the United States (effective 2/21/2017)
ENGL 65 Political Literature (effective 5/6/2016)
ENGL 67 U.S. Gay and Lesbian Literature (cross-listed with WGST 34; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 68 Literature and Women (effective 3/25/16)
ENGL 68A American Literature and Women (effective 9/1/21)
ENGL 69 Literature by Women Writers of Color (cross-listed with WGST 15; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 69A Literature by American Women Writers of Color (effective 9/1/21)
*ENGL 106 Advanced Writing ("American Renaissances" topic only; effective 9/1/18)
ENGL 121 American Film (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 129 American Theatre from the Black Perspective (cross-listed as THTR 161 and ETHN 136; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 130 Studies in African American Literature
ENGL 131 Early American Literature (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 132 19th-Century American Literature (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 132G 19th-Century American Literature (cross-listed with WGST 164; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 133 Selected American Authors (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 134 Studies in Contemporary American Literature: The Short Story
ENGL 134G Studies in Contemporary American Literature (cross-listed with WGST 186; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 135 Studies in American Fiction (effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 135 African American Literature (cross-listed with ETHN 130; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 136 Latino/a Literature and Cultural Studies (cross-listed with ETHN 124; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 137 Native American Literature (cross-listed with ETHN 111; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 137G Native American Literature (cross-listed as WGST 110; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 138 Asian-American Literature (cross-listed with ETHN 145; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 139 Topics in American Literature (effective 4/3/17)
ENGL 139G Topics in American Literature (cross-listed with WGST 165; effective 3/25/17)
ENGL 152 LGBTQ Studies: U.S. Perspectives (cross-listed with WGST 136; effective 9/1/09)
ENGL 169 Women, Literature, and Theory (cross-listed with WGST 166; effective 1/1/20)
ENGL 169A Women, Literature and Theory: Race, Sex and Gender (cross-listed with WGST 166; effective 1/1/20)
ENGL 192 American Theatre from Black Perspective (cross-listed with THTR 161)
Environmental Studies & Sciences
ENVS 20 The Water Wars of California L&L (effective 1/19/2016)
Ethnic Studies
ETHN 5 Introduction to the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the United States (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 12 Native Spiritual Traditions (effective 12/21/2015)
ETHN 21 Introduction to Latinx Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 36; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 30 Introduction to African American Studies (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 36 African American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 35; effective 1/1/12)
ETHN 40 Introduction to Asian American Studies (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 65 Drama of Diversity (also listed as THTR 65; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 69 Literature by Women Writers of Color (effective 11/8/2016)
ETHN 70 Multicultural Literature of the United States (cross-listed with ENGL 39; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 95 African American Independent Film Makers (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 96 Race, Class, and Culture Through Film (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 111 Native American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 137; effective 5/12/16)
ETHN 124 Latino/a Literature and Cultural Studies (cross-listed with ENGL 136; effective 5/12/16)
ETHN 130 Black Political Thought in Action (effective 1/1/15)
ETHN 130 African-American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 135; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 132 The History of Hip Hop (cross-listed with MUSC 132; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 134 Black Social Movements (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 135 African Americans in Postwar Film (cross-listed with HIST 185; effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 136 American Theatre from the Black Perspective (cross-listed with ENGL 129 and THTR 161)
ETHN 137 African-American Pursuit of Freedom: By the Ballot or the Bullet, by Bible or the Gun (cross-listed with HIST 155; effective Spring 2021)
ETHN 138 Black Migration in the World (cross-listed with HIST 157, effective 3/31/17)
ETHN 141 Asian American Women (effective 9/1/2009)
ETHN 142 Asian American Communities (effective 9/1/09)
ETHN 145 Asian-American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 138; effective 9/1/16)
ETHN 151 Race, Class, and Gender in the United States (cross-listed with SOCI 153 & WGST 115; effective 3/25/2019)
ETHN 152 Multi-Racial Identities (effective 3/25/16)
*ETHN 153 Minority Politics in the United States (cross-listed with POLI 153; effective 1/1/16)
ETHN 164 Popular Music, Race and American Culture (effective 9/1/18)
ETHN 166 Race & Religion in U.S. (effective 12/22/2015)
ETHN 176 Race & Sex in Modern America (cross-listed with HIST 105 and WGST 174A; effective 3/25/23)
History
HIST 60/160 America's Immigrants (effective 1/1/22)
HIST 65 Parties and Presidents (effective 9/1/20)
HIST 70 The American Revolution (effective 3/25/20)
HIST 71/171 The New Nation: U.S. From Hamilton to Jackson (effective 3/31/17)
HIST 72/172 The Civil War Era (effective 9/1/19)
HIST 75 Natives & Newcomers: Early North America (effective 01/01/2018)
HIST 84 United States Women's History (cross-listed with WGST 57; effective 9/1/09)
HIST 85 US Environmental History (effective 9/1/09)
HIST 96A Introduction to the History of the United States I (effective 9/1/09)
HIST 96B Globalization, Reform, and War: The United States, 1877 to Present (effective 9/1/14)
HIST 105 Race and Sex in Modern America (cross-listed with ETHN 176 and WGST 174A; effective 3/25/23)
HIST 119 Gender, Sexuality & Social Movements in the 20th U.S (effective 9/1/20)
HIST 155 African-American Pursuit of Freedom: By the Ballot or the Bullet, by Bible or the Gun (cross-listed with ETHN 137; effective Spring 2021)
HIST 157 Black Migration in the World (cross-listed with ETHN 138, effective 3/31/17)
HIST 158 Turmoil and Reform: U.S. 1877-1920 (effective 3/25/16)
HIST 165 Parties and Presidents (effective 05/04/2017)
HIST 170 The American Revolution (effective 9/1/15)
HIST 174 Turbulence and Change: America in the 1960s and 1970s (effective 01/09/2017)
HIST 175 Natives & Newcomers: Early North America (effective 01/01/2018)
HIST 176 Contemporary America: 1980 to the Present (effective 04/03/2017)
HIST 177 Gays and Lesbians in United States History (cross-listed with WGST 138; effective 9/1/09)
HIST 181 United States Women Since 1900 (effective 2/6/2012)
HIST 182 Sex and Family in American History (cross-listed with WGST 174; effective 9/1/09)
HIST 184 American Historical Geography (effective 9/1/09)
HIST 185 African Americans in Postwar Film (cross-listed with ETHN 135; effective 9/1/09)
HIST 186 California (effective 9/1/09)
HIST 188S The Making of Modern America: The Progressive Era (formerly HIST 188; effective 9/1/09)
Military Science
MILS 176 US Military History (effective Winter 2016)
Modern Languages
ARAB 185 The Arab-American Experience (effective 1/1/20)
ITAL 185 The Italian-American Experience (effective 1/1/17)
*SPAN 176 Spanish and Latinos in the U.S.: Race, Identity, and Inequalities (effective 1/1/17)
Music
MUSC 20 Music in American Cultures I (effective 9/1/09)
MUSC 21 Music in American Culture II (effective 9/1/09)
MUSC 132 The History of Hip Hop (cross-listed with ETHN 132; effective 9/1/09)
MUSC 134 Popular Music, Race and American Culture (effective 9/1/18)
Peace & Conflict Resolution
SIS 491-001T Foreign Policy & Intn'l Politics Seminar I (American University Washington Semester Program)
Philosophy
PHIL 33/H Ethics and Race (effective 9/1/18)
Political Science
POLI 1 Introduction to U.S. Politics (effective 9/1/09)
*POLI 153 Minority Politics in the U.S. (cross-listed with ETHN 153; effective 9/1/09)
*POLI 154 Women and Politics (cross-listed with WGST 180; effective 9/1/09)
*POLI 163 State and Local Politics (effective 3/25/19)
*POLI 173 Sports & Politics in the U.S. (effective 03/25/18)
POLI 195 Seminar in U.S. Politics (effective 9/1/09)
*POLI 195L Constitutional Theory, Constitutional Politics (formerly 195P; effective 9/1/15)
POLI 195P Seminar in U.S. Politics (effective 9/1/09)
Religious Studies
*RSOC 21 Urban Religion (effective 1/1/20)
*RSOC 51 Religion in America (effective 9/1/09)
*RSOC 51H Religion in America (Honors; effective 12/3/2015)
*RSOC 61 Atheism in America (effective 03/25/18)
*RSOC 91 Native Spiritual Traditions (effective 9/1/09)
*RSOC 111 Inventing Religion in America (effective 9/1/09)
*RSOC 111R RSS: Inventing Religion in America (effective 9/1/09)
*RSOC 128 Religion and Popular Culture (effective 9/1/19)
*RSOC 148R RSS: Religion and the Presidency (effective 5/1/12)
*RSOC 164 Religion, Race and Ethnicity in America (effective 2/3/16)
*RSOC 175 Mapping Living Religion (effective 9/1/23)
*RSOC 184 Race and Religion in the United States (effective 1/2/12)
*TESP 60 Hispanic Popular Religion (effective 9/1/09)
*TESP 65 U.S. Hispanic Theology (effective 9/1/09)
*TESP 109 Hispanic Spirituality: Guadalupe (effective 9/1/09)
Sociology
SOCI 132 Inequality and the American Dream (effective 3/25/2020)
SOCI 150 Immigrant Entrepreneurship and Experiences (effective 01/01/20)
SOCI 153 Race, Class, and Gender in the United States (cross-listed with ETHN 151 & WGST 115; effective 3/25/19)
Theatre and Dance
DANC 62 African American Dance History (cross-listed with DANC 162; effective 9/1/09)
DANC 162 African American Dance History (cross-listed with DANC 62; effective 9/1/09)
THTR 44 Modern American Theatre History: Censorship, Arts Funding and Theatre Unions (effective 9/1/09)
THTR 65 Drama of Diversity (cross-listed with ETHN 65; effective 9/1/09)
THTR 161 American Theatre from the Black Perspective (cross-listed with ENGL 129 and ETHN 136; effective 9/1/09)
THTR 165 History American Musical Theatre (effective 9/1/09)
Transforming Communities
GOVT 417-001T Transforming Communities Seminar I (American University Washington Semester Program)
Women's and Gender Studies
WGST 15 Literature by Women Writers of Color (cross-listed with ENGL 69; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 16 Multicultural Literature of the US (effective 9/1/2016)
WGST 34 U.S. Gay and Lesbian Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 67; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 50 Introduction to Women's & Gender Studies (effective 9/1/09)
WGST 56 Literature and Women (effective 3/25/16)
WGST 57 Women in American Society (cross-listed with HIST 84; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 110 Native American Women Writers (cross-listed with ENGL 137G; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 111 Asian American Women (cross-listed with ETHN 141; effective 2/9/2010)
WGST 115 Race, Class, and Gender in the United States (cross-listed with ETHN 151 & SOCI 153; effective 3/25/2019)
WGST 117 Race, Gender and Politics in the News (effective 9/1/09)
WGST 136 Interdisciplinary Gay and Lesbian Studies (cross-listed with ENGL 152; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 138 Gays and Lesbians in United States History (cross-listed with HIST 177; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 144 Women, Gender, and Sexuality (cross-listed with ANTH 170; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 155 Family and Culture (cross-listed with ANTH 157; effective 9/1/09)
*WGST 156 American Women in the Visual Arts (cross-listed with ARTH 143; 1/1/12)
WGST 164 Studies in 19th-Century American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 132G; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 165 Topics in American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 139G; effective 3/25/17)
WGST 166 Women, Literature, and Theory (cross-listed with ENGL 169/A; effective 1/1/20)
WGST 173 United States Women Since 1900 (cross-listed with HIST 181; effective 3/5/2010)
WGST 174 Sex and Family in American History (cross-listed with HIST 182; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 174A Race & Sex in Modern America (cross-listed with HIST 105 and ETHN 176; effective 3/25/23)
*WGST 180 Women and Politics (cross-listed with POLI 154; effective 9/1/09)
WGST 186 Studies in Contemporary American Literature (cross-listed with ENGL 134G; effective 1/1/12)
* Indicates Course Has Prerequisites