History

In 1899, Queen Victoria ruled a vast overseas empire, well over half the population could not vote, the Independent Labour party had no MPs, sex between men was a crime and convicted murderers were hung. By 1990, the empire had fallen, all adult men and women had been enfranchised, the Labour party had over 225 MPs, including open homosexuals. This course will examine these profound transformations, paying particular attention to political allegiance, government policy, and social attitudes. 

This course covers the history of war from as far back as the 13th century right up to the height of large-scale, industrialized warfare in World War Two and the global, colonial violence of the 20th century. It does not strive to provide what would end up inevitably being a superficial coverage of all wars in all regions of the world. Rather, different, select periods or conflicts are considered as illustrations to help us explore the central theme of escalation over time and the emergence globally of modern war and violence. This is the spring-only version of the course.

This course traces the evolution of medicine and health in the Caribbean, exploring the broad question "how have different groups which settled in the Caribbean region shaped Caribbean medicine and health?" It examines the interaction of indigenous, African, European and Asian medical practices and policies, and the relationships which developed among these in Caribbean societies. Building on the interdisciplinary nature of the history of medicine, the course evaluates the emergence of medicine and medical science in the Caribbean as spaces of conquest and contest in which power, race, ethnicity and gender collide to influence the development of medicine and health care provision in the region.

Taught by seminars, site visits and museum sessions, this course introduces students to life in medieval and renaissance London. The central themes of royal power, gender, marginality, the Black Death and popular revolt, are studied in class and in the streets of London. Students visit key monuments of medieval London (such as Westminster Abbey), trace the path of rebels in 1381, or handle medieval and early modern artifacts in the Museum of London. Sites, monuments, topography, and artifacts lead to a new understanding of politics, devotional practices, trade, and family life. This course enables students to develop professional networks, and foster an understanding of multi-disciplinary approaches. Through their work with curators, paleontologists, and historians, students evaluate approaches to past objects from various disciplinary perspectives, and demonstrate how historical research can be applied in the environment of museum studies, public engagement, and object analysis.

This course analyzes techno-science as a socio-cultural phenomenon. It offers an introduction to Science and Technology Studies (STS). It introduces students to the multiple ways in which science and technology; individuals and institutions mutually shape one another to the benefit and sometimes detriment of society. This course takes a critical approach to science and engineering. Students think critically but constructively about aspects of science and technology by focusing on different empirical domains such as human enhancement (e.g. Google glasses, Ritalin, Blade runner), disasters (e.g. Fukushima, Hurricane Katerina), the gene revolution (e.g. Monsanto) and the politics of artifacts (e.g. park benches, the UCM building, and nuclear plants) while using a set of principles and approaches from the field of Science and Technology Studies.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program. The course is intended for advanced level students only. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course focuses on the historical development of consumer capitalism, the fundamental elements of contemporary sociological theories of consumer action, and the main issues related to the politics of consumer culture. Emphasis is placed on how theories work in practice, by addressing key contemporary empirical phenomena in the sphere of consumption, with particular attention to social boundaries and social identities, commercial institutions, and the new challenges posed by environmental issues and the process of globalization/localization. The course aims at providing a theoretically informed sociological understanding of contemporary consumer cultures and practices. While adopting an interdisciplinary outlook, it deals mainly with the sociology of consumption, concentrating on contemporary social phenomena of global relevance. The course begins with a discussion of the historical development of so-called consumer capitalism, highlighting the relevance of urbanization, colonialism, changes in social stratification (class, gender) and international commerce. It then focuses on the most important theories of consumer action, considering how economics, sociology, and anthropology have provided several distinctive perspectives on the functions, meanings, and mechanisms of consumption. Finally, the course considers the politics of consumer culture and addresses cultural industries as a vehicle for hegemonic views of the “consumer,” commercially mediated spaces as institutional contexts for a variety of dominant or alternative consumer practices and identities, and the process of globalization/localization that takes place through the global standardization of commodity chains and alternative, locally grounded market circuits.