The following six core courses are required for the Global Cultures major (The same courses are required for Global Cultures minors except the capstone seminar). Course description for History 21 are found on this page.
- History 21 A, B, C (these may be taken out of sequence)
- Global Cultures 103 A, 103 B and 191 (Capstone Seminar)
History 21A, B, C and Global Cultures 103A / 103B should be taken as early as possible in the Global Cultures major, but they are not prerequisites for taking courses in your emphases.
GC 103 A should ideally be taken before GC 103 B but you may take them concurrently or reverse the order if scheduling problems arise. (GC 103 A and B are topics vary courses and so may be repeated for credit if the topic changes).
The Senior Seminar G.C. 191 is best taken in the senior year but may be taken before if it cannot be accommodated into the student's final year's schedule.
2025-26 CORE COURSES
FALL
GLBLCLT 103A: KOREAN SOC & CULTRE (CHOI, C.)
This course surveys social, cultural, and political aspects of contemporary Korea. We will examine and interpret some of the key cultural institutions and social changes including family and gender relationships, the impact of Korean War and national division, rapid industrialization and its legacies, social movement, labor and marriage migration, and popular culture and culture industry. We will also explore the life and society of North Korea and issues of North Korean refugees in South Korea. As part of class activities, we will follow closely some of the current events and interpret them in light of what we learn in class for the purpose of enhancing the students’ critical skills to analyze Korean society. Course materials include scholarly articles, films, and literature.
GLBLCLT 103A: BERLIN TALES (BIENDARRA, A.)
Some of the most thrilling, momentous, and terrible events of European history occurred in Germany’s old and new capital, Berlin. The city’s streets, buildings, memorials, and cultural monuments offer cautionary tales about the folly of nationalist ambition, have inspired sagas of intellectual and physical courage as well as cold testimonials of crime and retribution, and personal records of hope and despair. In this course, we will explore the city of Berlin as it features in literature, film, architecture, and art. While putting a special emphasis on the time since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, we will also gain an overview of the political, social, and cultural developments in Germany in the late 19th and early 20th century. Working with an open definition of “culture,” we will primarily read texts focusing on the urban experience. You can expect to gain an understanding of the complexities of Germany’s post-war histories and the intricate relationship between culture, history, and politics through weekly lectures, teamwork, and class discussions.
The course will be taught in English but is designed as a dual-language class for English speakers and German speakers alike. Students capable of reading in German and wanting to receive German credit should sign up for GRMN 101. They will also have the opportunity to converse in German.
GLBLCLT 103A: CULTR,MONY&GLOBLZTN (LE VINE, M.)
This course examines the fundamental dynamics of cultural production and consumption under conditions of globalization. Rather than focus on jargony post-modern scholarly analyses of culture (although we'll read some of that too), we will attempt whenever possible to examine the sources ourselves--particularly music, film, literature and architecture--and develop our own hypotheses about how crucial issues, such as identity (race, gender, ethnicity, religion) power, politics and economics are inflected by and impact the production and consumption of culture during the last two decades
GLBLCLT 103B: REVOLUTIONARYEUROPE (EVERS, K.)
From the French Revolution to the “velvet revolutions” in 1989 that led to the collapse of the Soviet bloc, revolutions have shaped modern Europe. These European revolutions continue to inform how we think about protest, resistance, civil disobedience, and the use and abuse of violence as a political means. How can revolutions be started? How can they be ended? How can they be prevented? Why do revolutions occur? Questions like this have preoccupied thinkers, writers, and activists like Edmund Burke, Karl Marx, Rosa Luxemburg, Frantz Fanon, Bertolt Brecht, Hannah Arendt, among many others. But a gap opened again and again between the theory (and the promises and the propaganda) and the practice of revolutions. Who were the subjects and agents of the revolution in these narratives (working class, oppressed minorities, students, dissidents)? What revolutionary tactics were proposed, used, and decried? Taking our examples from the rich and varied revolutionary history of modern Europe, we will explore how revolutionary (and anti-revolutionary) narratives have been constructed in European politics, literature, art, and film.
GLBLCLT 191: VIRTUAL COMMUNITIES (LIN, J.)
This capstone explores how storytelling, play, and immersive design can translate global issues into embodied and digital experiences. Students engage in cross-cultural collaboration, strategic storytelling, and creative research to design public-facing projects that center joy, connection, and ethical transformation across media and borders.
WINTER
GLBCLT 103A: ABOLITIONIST WORLDS (HARVEY, S.)
Course description tentative
GLBCLT 103B: PERS EMP AND GREECE (BRANSCOME, D.)
This course surveys the history of the ancient Persian Empire from 550-330 BCE, from the empire’s founding by Cyrus II to the death of the last Achaemenid Persian king, Darius III. Much of what we know about the Persian Empire comes from what ancient Greek authors, such as the historians Herodotus andXenophon, the tragedian Aeschylus, and the biographer Plutarch, had to say about it; when relying on the work of these authors, we are forced to some extent to view the Persians and their empire through a Greek lens. And yet, whenever possible in this course, we will also consider what the ancient Persians themselves thought about their empire. Thus, the readings for the course will not only be Greek literary sources, but also Persian written and visual sources, including inscriptions, seals, coins, and archaeological sites and monuments.
GLBCLT 103B: INTL RELATIONS (MOURAD, G.)
This course explores the culture of international relations, diplomacy, and humanitarian organizations in France and the French-speaking world with an emphasis on oral communication usually through the completion of simulated professional tasks in a professional context. The course is taught entirely in French.
GLBCLT 103B: ECHOES OF EMPIRE (BROADBENT, P.)
European colonial expansion reached its peak between 1880 and 1914 with the conquest and colonization of large regions of Africa and Asia, where European ideas about race, civilization, and cultural superiority were systematically employed to justify imperial rule. This course begins by examining the ideological foundations of this period—often referred to as the era of "New Imperialism"—and explores the systems of governance and administration implemented within colonized territories. Following the collapse of Europe’s empires after the Second World War, decolonization movements significantly reshaped European societies. We will investigate the domestic impact of demographic shifts, immigration policies, cultural identities, and societal debates in Europe. Finally, the course addresses ongoing controversies surrounding Europe’s colonial past and examines how colonial histories continue to inform contemporary politics, memory cultures, and national identities. Through case studies drawn from Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, and France, students will gain insight into how European societies continue to confront—and at times avoid—the complex legacies of their imperial histories.
GLBLCLT 191: TENTATIVE (TBA)
Course description tentative
SPRING
GLBCLT 103A: TENTATIVE (TBA)
Course description tentative
GLBCLT 103B: TENTATIVE (TBA)
Course description tentative
GLBLCLT 191: TENTATIVE (TBA)Course description tentative