HIS 336-01 - The European Metropolis

4 credits (Spring)

This seminar takes as its starting point the explosion of large cities in Europe from the mid-nineteenth through the early twentieth centuries. Through the lens of case studies in London, Paris, Vienna, and Berlin, we consider how individuals and communities grappled with the idea and the experience of the metropolis. Our investigations examine political developments, social theory, the visual and literary arts, and consumer culture as we consider themes such as community and alienation, the fluidity of the self, spectacle and entertainment, disease and criminality, race, gender, class, and sexuality. Students develop individual research projects centered in a metropolitan context(s) in or beyond Europe on any theme connected to the class.

Prerequisite: HIS 100 and HIS 236, HIS 237, HIS 238, or HIS 239.
Instructor: Maynard