GOVT 86.44 The American Public World

This course explores the role of physical spaces, objects, and landmarks in American public life. We will explore how these places come into existence, shape historical narratives, and reinforce attachment to or alienation from American civil society. Examples will include the Statue of Liberty, the Smithsonian museums and the National Mall, and Monument Avenue in Richmond, VA. This class will combine political theorists like Alexis de Tocqueville, Hannah Arendt, and Jurgen Habermas with modern and contemporary scholarship in history, architecture, and social science. We will devote a portion of class specifically to the question of monuments to the Confederacy and the Civil War and their role in catalyzing mass movements as well as negotiations over physical representations of political history.

Instructor

Schiller

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:SOC

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