CSS102F History and the Turn to the Present (FYS)

This course attempts to make sense of contemporary politics, economics, and society through an historical examination of the present. It will discuss contemporary topics such as neoliberalism, nationalism, COVID-19, critical race theory, the forever war, the New Cold War, etc. It will also raise methodological questions on the promises and perils of using history to understand the present.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-CSS
Prereq: None

CSS213 History and the Turn to the Present

This course attempts to make sense of contemporary politics, economics, and society through an historical examination of the present. It will discuss contemporary topics such as neoliberalism, nationalism, COVID-19, critical race theory, the forever war, the New Cold War, etc. It will also raise methodological questions on the promises and perils of using history to understand the present.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-CSS
Prereq: None

CSS220 Sophomore Economics Tutorial: Markets, Welfare & the State

This tutorial takes a topical approach to studying economic ideas and policy. We start with writers who drew either the admiration or ire of Adam Smith. These include the scholastics, mercantilists, and physiocrats. Next, we compare the classical school with competing schools of economic thought from Marxian, utilitarian, and Austrian to neoclassical and Keynesian. Throughout the course, we read radical critiques from the political right and left, touching upon monetarist theory, supply-side economics, institutional, behavioral and evolutionist schools. We see how the policy and economic debates reflect the socio-economic struggles of their time and shed light on the controversies of our own.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U
Credits: 1.50
Gen Ed Area: SBS-ECON
Prereq: None

CSS230 Sophomore Government Tutorial: State and Society in the Modern Age

This tutorial examines the rise and evolution of the modern state. While many of the readings focus on Western Europe and the United States, the course draws on cross-regional comparisons to tease out theoretical propositions, compare historical processes across different parts of the world, and consider different understandings of the body politic. We start by exploring what factors account for the rise and consolidation of the nation state in the Western context, after which we consider how the process of state-building occurred in the Middle East and North Africa and explore some of the challenges the sovereign state model faces outside the European context. We then move on to discuss the emergence of different systems of governance and some of the challenges to the state. We will consider whether there are certain paths that lead to democracy and whether there is something unique about American democracy. We will take into account the challenges posed by modernization and evaluate what factors best explain the rise of communism and fascism. We will then consider how the communist and fascist past impacted the rise of the social democratic model in Europe and compare the European and Japanese approaches to welfare provisions. We conclude by considering yet another model for organizing the political community--the religious state. We will examine when, how, and why the notion of the Islamic state emerged, reflect on the extent to which the concept of an Islamic state challenges Western notions of the nation-state and investigate how the discourse on Islam and the state has changed over time in Indonesia, the largest Muslim majority country.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U
Credits: 1.50
Gen Ed Area: SBS-GOVT
Prereq: None

CSS240 Sophomore History Tutorial: The Emergence of Modern Europe

CSS Sophomore History is an intensive survey of European History from the French Revolution to the present. European history will be considered in terms of many types of history, often from conflicting perspectives -- including political history, economic history, social history, women's history, intellectual history, and psychohistory. Throughout the History Tutorial, emphasis will be placed on developing the students' skills in reading, writing, and debating. One of the astonishing benefits of the CSS sophomore year is that the students' academic skills develop as rapidly as if they were in a beginning language course. The History Tutorial is designed to ground the students in modern European history and also to develop the students' ability and confidence to master related materials in the future.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U
Credits: 1.50
Gen Ed Area: SBS-HIST
Prereq: None

CSS271 Sophomore Colloquium: Modern Social Theory

This colloquium examines a number of competing conceptual frameworks in the social sciences derived from major political philosophers and social theorists, such as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mary Wollstonecraft, Marx, Durkheim, Weber, and Freud.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-GOVT
Prereq: None

CSS320 Junior Economics Tutorial

This is the CSS Junior Economics Tutorial.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-ECON
Prereq: None

CSS330 Junior Government Tutorial: Uprisings and Revolutions in the Middle East: The Arab Spring in Context

The course examines the dynamics of uprisings and revolutions in the Middle East, with a primary focus on the "Arab Spring" and its historical antecedents. Drawing from theories of revolutions, contentious politics, and democratization, the readings examine both general patterns across the region and the political dynamics of individual cases. We will start with a discussion of the nationalist uprisings of the 1950s and the 1979 Iranian Revolution, after which we will examine the deep roots and major explanations of the Arab Spring. We will consider what explains the variation in protests and in government responses, what role different actors played during the uprisings, and what effects historical legacies had on the dynamics of the uprising. We will also attempt to understand what factors led to the militarization of the protests and the descent into civil war in Syria. The course concludes with a discussion of the aftermath, exploring what factors led to the democratic breakdown in Tunisia a decade after the uprising.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-GOVT
Prereq: None

CSS340 Junior History Tutorial: The Historian as Detective

Whodunnit? In many ways, the craft of history is much like the art of detection. Historians arrive on the scene after the "crime" was committed. They look for traces, or clues, left behind. They try not to contaminate the crime scene. They pore over the evidence. They consider both motive and opportunity. They take note of silences. They keep an open mind. They seek the truth. And, as it happens, the professional historian and the professional detective -- in fact as well as fiction -- emerged roughly around the same time. They are like twins separated at birth. Perhaps, if the two are reacquainted, they will learn something useful about each other, and themselves. This course will draw upon classic (and not-so-classic) works of historical reflection, crime detection, and detective fiction to better understand the importance of forensics and method in the discipline of history, the role of history in the art of detection, and how both history and detection shape the emergence of the nation.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-HIST
Prereq: None

CSS371 Junior Colloquium: The Global Authoritarian Turn

This course provides a global history of the rise of political authoritarianism. It does so first by looking at numerous explanations for the crisis that liberalism has experienced since the mid-2010s as demonstrated by Trump's presidency, Brexit and the success of authoritarian movements throughout South America, continental Europe, and Asia. It traces the origins of today's authoritarian turn back to the 1990s, and specifically to the end of the Cold War and the rise of globalization that exploded in myriad sectarian reactions around the world.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-PHIL
Prereq: None

CSS391 Senior Colloquium: Nationalism, Resistance, and Decolonization

This colloquium examines the international politics, theory, and logic of nationalist resistance movements since the beginning of the 20th century. It explores the scholarly works on nationalism and analyzes historical cases to gain a better understanding of why and how national resistance movements often achieved independence from more powerful colonial adversaries through struggle and conflict. The discussions will develop a keener grasp of the politics and logic that inhere in conflicts where the oppressed fight wars of national liberation against their oppressors. This interdisciplinary colloquium intersects international relations, nationalism, conflict studies, and history. This course will improve the students' knowledge about international relations, nationalism, and national liberation movements. It will also hone critical analysis methods.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-GOVT
Prereq: None

CSS401 Individual Tutorial, Undergraduate

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS402 Individual Tutorial, Undergraduate

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS403 Department/Program Project or Essay

Project to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS404 Department/Program Project or Essay

Project to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS407 Senior Tutorial (downgraded thesis)

Downgraded Senior Thesis Tutorial - Project to be arranged in consultation with the tutor. Only enrolled in through the Honors Coordinator.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS408 Senior Tutorial (downgraded thesis)

Downgraded Senior Thesis Tutorial - Project to be arranged in consultation with the tutor. Only enrolled in through the Honors Coordinator.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS409 Senior Thesis Tutorial

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS410 Senior Thesis Tutorial

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F

CSS411 Group Tutorial, Undergraduate

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS412 Group Tutorial, Undergraduate

Topic to be arranged in consultation with the tutor.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS419 Student Forum

Student-run group tutorial, sponsored by a faculty member and approved by the chair of a department or program.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U

CSS420 Student Forum

Student-run group tutorial, sponsored by a faculty member and approved by the chair of a department or program.
Offering: Host
Grading: Cr/U

CSS465 Education in the Field, Undergraduate

Students must consult with the department and class dean in advance of undertaking education in the field for approval of the nature of the responsibilities and method of evaluation.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS467 Independent Study, Undergraduate

Credit may be earned for an independent study during a summer or authorized leave of absence provided that (1) plans have been approved in advance, and (2) all specified requirements have been satisfied.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS469 Education in the Field, Undergraduate

Students must consult with the department and class dean in advance of undertaking education in the field for approval of the nature of the responsibilities and method of evaluation.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: None
Prereq: None

CSS491 Teaching Apprentice Tutorial

The teaching apprentice program offers undergraduate students the opportunity to assist in teaching a faculty member's course for academic credit.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT

CSS492 Teaching Apprentice Tutorial

The teaching apprentice program offers undergraduate students the opportunity to assist in teaching a faculty member's course for academic credit.
Offering: Host
Grading: OPT