LITERATURE AND POLITICS

POLISCI 361

This course considers central themes and controversies in American political thinking during the 20th and early 21st centuries. Topics include the development of liberalism from the Progressive Era to the New Deal to the Great Society and beyond; the emergence of new strands of conservatism after World War II and the tensions between those strands; challenges by excluded and marginalized groups to the traditional social and political order; and the revival of concerns about "community" in America. As a topic of study, "American Political Thought" combines philosophy, political theory, history, and practical politics. The course covers a wide variety of texts, ranging from philosophical treatises to newspaper articles, from presidential addresses to works of social science with ultimate goal to become more knowledgeable and more critical students of the American political experience. Not open to students with credit for POLI SCI 566 prior to fall 2017

ILS 253

Representative episodes in the interaction of literature and society, organized either around a set of social institutions and their literary connections or around a set of literary forms and their social connections.

POLISCI 160

Exploration of core problems of political life, such as the nature and limits of obligation, the concept of justice and its political implications, and the relationship between equality and liberty, through a selection of ancient and modern sources. Not open to students with credit for POLI SCI 209 prior to fall 2017

ENGL 548

Study of a topic in literature and politics.

POLISCI 360

The intellectual origins and evolution of American political thought as seen through the lens of leading politicians, novelists and social critics from the Puritans to the Civil War; consideration of the central tensions of American political thought from a contemporary perspective. Not open to students with credit for POLI SCI 565 prior to fall 2017