History

This course focuses on the history of the 1960s in America and connects it to global and American artistic reactions. It studies mediums such as sculpture, painting, text, and performance. The course explores David Hammons and the connection of his work to the history of the civil rights movement in America.

The course deals with themes of Lyon's urban history (by urbanization, space, public squares, housing, architecture, places of worship, trade and commerce, the ways of life of the inhabitants and their relationship with the Rhône and Saône rivers). Comparisons are made with other cities. Finally, the course covers the city’s cultural institutions in charge of transmitting memory and urban heritage (museums, archives, etc.) and includes field study sessions. Through the approach of social history, the course presents the two-thousand-year history of the city, from its origins to the present day, with emphasis on certain particularly decisive moments in the construction of space, the transformations of urban activities, and ways of life.

While the pursuit of happiness is an ideal present in many Western cultures, for the French, happiness takes various forms: a certain joie de vivre, an appreciation of life’s simple pleasures, and an affinity for companionship. Why is it, then, that France is consistently ranked as one of the least happy countries in Europe according to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE)? The French may be known as contentious grumblers who are prone to flights of melancholy and often embroil themselves in gloomy philosophical reflection. And yet, the deeply-ingrained cultural desire to live a full life and find happiness is undeniably a major concern for the French. This course explores representations of happiness in French cultural production, with an emphasis on the city of Paris. Through the study of socio-cultural and historical events as well as critical, literary, and cinematic texts, students explore how the concept of happiness manifests itself in unique ways throughout recent history and in diverse social worlds. From the nineteenth century to the present, happiness has taken many forms: material seduction, consumer delight, everyday bliss, personal independence. The course explores how authors and filmmakers encourage us to reflect on a deceptively simple question: What is happiness and where can we find it? Is happiness to be found in the people and things that surround us, or are we to find it within ourselves?

This course provides an introductory understanding of the processes that shaped the modern Middle East from the turn of the 20th century to today. It seeks to engage with the history of the region from within as it examines themes like colonialism, nationalism, international relations, social and political movements and intellectual trends. The course provides a foundation for more advanced discussions of politics and society in the region.

This course provides an interdisciplinary exploration of the social and political history of Thailand from pre-Ayutthaya (1351-1767) to the Thonburi/Bangkok period (1767-1782) to the modern nation-state of the present time. Emphasis is on the modern era when the country confronted western colonization, and its reactions from within, as well as a series of nationwide reforms, and the process of change and persistence of the nation-state up to the present.