SOC 345 Producing the Past (Not offered 2006-2007; to be offered 2007-2008) (W)*
In response to the apparent rise in individual and collective celebrations of
"traditional community" over the past two decades, this course will examine
how the past is mobilized in order to animate collective identities, address contemporary grievances, and produce events in the present. We will consider the
emergence of modern forms of historical consciousness and writing and interrogate the modalities by which they are produced. Participants will read critical
works focused on a range of cultural settings, all of which consider the production of the past in connection with the following topics: "community," nation,
and religion; collective memory; disciplinary knowledge and power; "tradition,"
race, and gender; genocide and democracy; and constructing objects of inquiry.
Format: seminar. Requirements: full participation, one class presentation, and
two papers.
No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected 19). Open to non-majors.