2023-2024 Edition

Academic Catalog

College of Social Studies (CSS)

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: History of Welfare Economics

This tutorial addresses the question: What can economics tell us about the impact of economic systems and policies on human wellbeing? We will have two main focuses: (1) How do we define value and measure impacts of consumption and policy on individuals and society as a whole? And (2) How do we assess what is the proper role of government in the economy? We will consider the evolution of thought on these questions as exemplified by classical economists in the 18th and 19th centuries, the utilitarian thinkers of the 19th century, neoclassical economists in the early 20th century, early welfare economists in the 1920s, the "New Welfare Economics" of the 1930s and 40s, and the challenges to welfare economics as a discipline that emerged in the 1950s and 60s. Throughout our examination, we will pay careful attention to the distinction between positive and normative modes of inquiry in economics.
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

This tutorial sequence analyzes the formation of modern European society from the late 18th to the last quarter of the 20th century. Most attention will be placed on Britain, France, Germany and Russia as these countries were shaped by, and responded to, demographic, economic, social, political, and intellectual forces that led to revolutions, political and social reforms, new modes of production, changes in social hierarchies, and new forms of warfare. Much attention will be placed on the social and political consequences of the French Revolution and industrialization, but empire, the origins and consequences of the two world wars (including the Russian revolution and the rise and defeat of Nazism) will also come under extensive discussion, as will the creation of a more stable and prosperous postwar European order. Europe's links to Africa, Asia and the Americas will be discussed in the context of imperialism and the two world wars. In addition to developing knowledge of the most important processes that have shaped the modern world, this tutorial seeks to foster a critical awareness of the varieties of historical narrative, the skills needed to interpret historical primary sources, and the possibilities and limits of history as a tool of social investigation.
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: China in the Global Economy

China is a country that has both transitioned to a mixed-market economy and developed rapidly into a global economic power. As such, the economy displays characteristics of both an emerging market and a developing country. China is a large enough player to design its own institutional infrastructure to support "capitalism with Chinese characteristics." This course examines in detail China's great economic transformation beginning in 1978 in what is often described as a "gradualist" transition to a market economy. In the last four decades, the speed of China's development and its growth rates of GDP are without precedent in history.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-ECON
Prereq: None

CSS330 Junior Government Tutorial: American Political Development

American Political Development (APD) is a both an object of study and a method of political analysis. APD scholars adopt a rigorously historical approach to the study of political authority, in all of its forms, in the United States. They are skeptical of statistical models and the assumption that political outcomes reflect only the intentions of rational political actors. Instead, scholars of APD focus on the deep institutional and structural factors that engender political change over long periods of time. To this end, they study topics like the role and significance of political culture and political ideas, the causes of political stability and political change, and the way in which state institutions shape behaviors and policy outcomes.



This tutorial will introduce you to a field of study that tries to answer big, theoretically-informed questions about the historical trajectory of American politics. More specifically, this seminar will provide a survey of APD-scholarship that explores a variety of different, politically salient subjects. The overarching aim of this course is to provide each of you with an historically informed perspective on questions vital to the health and functioning of American democracy.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-GOVT
Prereq: None

CSS340 Junior History Tutorial: Post-Imperial History, 1945-1990

This tutorial will survey selected themes and subjects in the postwar history of former European colonies and imperial possessions, focusing specifically on the process of decolonization and nation building in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia. The tutorial will consider the legacy of imperialism, the development of nationalism and independence movements, and the challenges posed to newly independent states in the context of the Cold War. It will also analyze the problems of trade relations with the West and the challenge of sustained economic development. The tutorial aims to compliment the sophomore history tutorial (CSS 240) by building on its methods and foundations to broaden the horizon in order to consider the processes of modernization in a non-European setting. Throughout we will be testing the possibilities and limits of post-colonial theory as a tool for analyzing the postwar history of select countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, and former Indochina. The tutorial aims to impart a basic understanding of the postwar history of former European colonies and develop some of the skills needed to write longer research papers.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-HIST
Prereq: None

CSS371 Junior Colloquium: Liberalism and Its Discontents

This course is a continuation of the sophomore colloquium covering several important social and political theories in the post-World War II era. The course will focus on post-World War II philosopher/theorists who have developed compelling large-scale theories about the nature of modern society: Hannah Arendt, Jürgen Habermas, Theodor Adorno (and other Frankfurt School thinkers), Friedrich Hayek, Franz Fanon, and Michel Foucault. The politics of human rights and humanitarianism will also be examined, as will issues pertaining to national borders and sovereignty.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-PHIL
Prereq: None

CSS391 Senior Colloquium: Big Powers and Small Wars

This course examines the international politics, theory, and logic of wars that see big powers wage wars of conquest against smaller powers. It explores and applies scholarly works of theory and analyzes historical case studies to gain a deeper understanding of how and why weaker belligerents can often achieve their political aims when facing stronger adversaries. Students will analyze the contradictions that can make wars of asymmetry difficult for stronger states. The seminar discussions will develop a keener grasp of the politics and logic that inhere in conflicts where the weak fight defensive wars against the strong. This interdisciplinary colloquium intersects international relations, conflict studies history, and theory. This course will improve students' knowledge in international security studies and hone their critical analysis skills.
Offering: Host
Grading: A-F
Credits: 1.00
Gen Ed Area: SBS-ECON
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

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