school of social science - Hampshire College

SS 144
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT
Michael Ford/Frank Holmquist
The course addresses four major issues: 1) history: What
did precolonial African politics and economics look like? How
and why was European colonial rule imposed? How did
Africans respond? What was the origin and nature of nationalist
ideology, organization, and leadership in the struggle for
independence? 2) current difficuhies: How should we
understand and explain the gathering crises in African politics
and economics? 3) development policy, reform, and recovery:
What are current development policies in different policy
arenas (such as agriculture. industry, and education)? How
successful are they and what changes may be needed to put
Africa on the road to economic recovery? 4) South Mrica:
How did white rule and the chronic South African crisis
develop historically? What were the roles of external and
internal forces? What are the chances for democracy in the
future?
Class will meet for one hour and twenty minutes twice a
week; enrollment limit 35.
SS 169
WOMEN AND THE FAMILY IN CROSS-CULTURAL
PERSPECTIVES, CHINA, KOREA, AND THAILAND
Kay Johnson
This course will explore cross-cultural theories explaining
gender roles, gender hierarchy, and the cultural construction
of gender. We will then examine specific cases from China,
Korea, and Thailand. A variety of disciplinary perspectives
will be used, including anthropology, history, political
science, and literature. Major themes will include traditional
cultural images of women; traditional forms of male dominance
and the role of the state; sources of female power and
influence; women's roles in religion; women's organizations;
impact of socialist vs. capitalist economic development on
women's roles; impact of government family planning policies
on women and families; and the effect of social change and
continuity on women's power and status.
Class will meet for one hour and twenty minutes twice a
week. Enrollment is limited to 25.
SS 170
CHANGING CULTURES, CHANGING LIVES: THE
ASIAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE
Mitziko Sawada
This course will explore Asian immigration of the past
and present focusing in particular on social and cultural
aspects. The framework will be the far-reaching and turbulent
economic, political, and foreign policy changes that have had
diverse and varying impaCts upon this group of immigrants
and their children. How did racism affect their lives? What
factors were important in their sense of identity? Since males
constituted the majority in the early days, what impact did it
have on their social relationship? Did the experiences of
women differ? Are Asians imbued with a strong cultural work
ethic? Readings will be from various fields including history,
literature, anthropology. sociology, and social and literary
criticism. Background in U.S. history is recommended
strongly.
Class will meet twice a week for one-hour and twenty
minutes. Enrollment is limited to 25.
93
ISPRING I
SS 172
CREATING FAMILIES: LAW, CULTURE,AND
TECHNOLOGY
Marlene Fried/Barbara Yngvesson
This course will investigate strategies for acquiring
children, including adoption, surrogacy. and new reproductive
technologies. We will explore the ways in which these
practices-legal, contested. and clandestine-are shaped by
ethics. law, and Uneage in various cultural contexts. Among
the questions to be addressed are the following. What are the
conceptions of mother? of father? of children? of families?
How does women's status affect their relation to reproductive
alternatives? Are women and children property, owned either
by individual men or by the community?
Class will meet for one hour and twenty minutes twice a
week. Enrollment is'limited to 35.
SS 173
ENVIRONMENTS AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR
Donald Poe
This course is designed to introduce students to environmental
psychology, a relatively new but growing area of
applied social psychology. Basically it is the study of the
effects of the built environments on human behavior. Topics
to be discussed include crowding, privacy. territoriality.
cognitive mapping, city living, housing. institutions. and the
special needs of children, the aged, and the handicapped.
Students will have several opportunities to get experience in
collecting data through naturalistic observation in local
settings such as restaurants, bowling alleys, and shopping
malls.
Class will meet for one hour and twenty minutes twice a
week; enrollment is limited to 25.
SS/CCS 186
ECOWGICAL ECONOMICS
Stanley Warner/Ray Coppinger
We will begin with the basic principles of environmental
economics and ecology. as they converge toward a more
unified theory of the relation of humans to the natural world.
In pan our quest will explore the efforts to place values on the
world's resources, endangered species, and human life itself,
working with such concepts as public goods, externalities.
nutrient transfer, carrying capacity. and cost-benefit analysis.
Special paradigms have emerged around sustainable development,
global warming. world population growth. "soft"
energy paths. and indigenous peoples. Key issues of definition,
perception, and context shape the 'objective' understanding of
these global concerns. Our readings will include leading
journal articles in both economics and the ecological sciences.
Class will meet for one hour and twenty minutes twice a
week; enrollment is limited to 35.
SS 205
AMERICAN GOVERNMENT, POWER, POLICY, AND
POLITICS
Robert Rakoff
An introduction to the development of American
political institutions and processes. We will examine the
changing power relations among the branches of the federal
government, and between the national and state governments.
We will focus on those historical periods when major institutional
and policy changes have transformed the political