32100
Undergraduate Course
WiSe 16/17: Rhetorics of Continuity and Change: A Survey of American Cultural History
Simon Rienäcker
Comments
This course provides an extended overview of American cultural history from the period of British settlement in the 17th century to the Obama presidency and the supposed end of the “American century”. We will read influential texts (speeches, legal documents, essays, etc.) by authors such as John Cotton, Thomas Jefferson, Frederick Douglass, Randolph Bourne, Martin Luther King, Betty Friedan, and Joan Didion. Throughout our readings, we will explore social and political rhetoric as key factors shaping the cultural trajectory of the United States. After a brief introduction to basic methodologies of cultural analysis, students will investigate the rhetorical, structural, and discursive features of the primary texts through close readings. We will also explore select representations from the fields of visual culture, art, and film. In addition, students need to do independent research on a selection of key terms that are essential for understanding the evolution of American public discourse and intellectual history. close
16 Class schedule
Regular appointments
Tue, 2016-10-18 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-10-25 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-11-01 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-11-08 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-11-15 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-11-22 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-11-29 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-12-06 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2016-12-13 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-01-03 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-01-10 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-01-17 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-01-24 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-01-31 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-02-07 14:00 - 16:00
Tue, 2017-02-14 14:00 - 16:00