The "public sphere," one of the core concepts of modern political thought, has taken on renewed significance in intellectual life today. This discussion seminar looks briefly at the evolution of the term, but concentrates on its importance to contemporary politics. Our investigations will center on the character and meanings of public space. We will look at space both as a key metaphor in political theory and as a medium of everyday practical struggle. That is, we'll examine some of the most influential conceptions of public life but we'll also explore the political economies of contemporary cities and the ways groups carve out "turf" through street-level negotiations and conflicts. Specific topics include: the relationship between ideas of citizenship and models of the public; the racing and gendering of spaces (civic, residential, commercial, etc.); urbanity and suburbanization; the kinds of spaces and politics opened and closed by contemporary computing and information technologies; the effects of contemporary processes of globalization on political identity and democratic practices. Authors read include Appadurai, Arendt, Berman, Castells, Connolly, Davis, Foucault, Habermas, Hall, Holston, Mouffe, Virilio, Walzer, Young. Requirements: three 5- to 7-page papers. Prerequisite: prior work in theory or philosophy or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 25. Political Theory Subfield