UVa Course Catalog (Unofficial, Lou's List)
Catalog of Courses for American Studies    
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These pages present data mined from the University of Virginia's student information system (SIS). I hope that you will find them useful. — Lou Bloomfield, Department of Physics
American Studies
AMST 1559New Course in American Studies (1.00 - 4.00)
New Course in the subject of American Studies
AMST 2001Formations of American Cultural Studies (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary field of cultural studies. We will engage critical-theoretical debates on important keywords of society (including nation, race, gender and class) and map the social formations of the US and beyond. In lectures and discussions, this class will explore culture in its many forms, including everyday life, historical memory, and literary and political imaginaries.
Course was offered Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Fall 2009
AMST 2100Introduction to Asian American Studies (3.00)
An interdisciplinary introduction to the culture and history of Asians and Pacific Islanders in America. Examines ethnic communities such as Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, Asian Indian, and Native Hawaiian, through themes such as immigration, labor, cultural production, war, assimilation, and politics. Texts are drawn from genres such as legal cases, short fiction, musicals, documentaries, visual art, and drama.
AMST 2210Arts of the Harlem Renaissance (3.00)
Studies the literature, painting, photography and prints produced by New York artists based in Harlem in the 1920s and 1930s, and examines their relation to concurrent social, cultural, and aesthetic issues.
AMST 2220Race, Identity and American Visual Culture (3.00)
Surveys popular visual material (advertisements, cartoons, films, paintings and photographs) and its representation of race in the united States from 1850 to 1950.
Course was offered Spring 2012
AMST 2300Introduction to U.S. Latino Studies (3.00)
A small lecture course (35) AMST 2300 offers students close study and analysis of significant texts or cultural artifacts that are printed, visual, oral or musical representing the perspective and contributions of the main Latino populations in the United States. These works include, but are not limited to, cultural manifestations from Puerto Rican, Chicano, Dominican, Central American and Cuban American origin.
Course was offered Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2010
AMST 2500Major Works for American Studies (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
Topics vary according to instructor. The goal of the course is to introduce students to interdisciplinary work in American Studies by juxtaposing works across disciplinary boundaries and from different methodological perspectives.
AMST 2559New Course in American Studies (1.00 - 4.00)
New Course in subject of American Studies.
AMST 2711American Environmental History (3.00)
Explores the historical relationship between people and the environment in North America from colonial times to the present. Topics include the role of culture, economics, politics, and technology in that relationship. Prerequisite: first-year writing course (e.g. TCC 101, ENWR 101)
AMST 2753Arts and Cultures of the Slave South (4.00)
This interdisciplinary course covers the American South to the Civil War. While the course centers on the visual arts- architecture, material culture, decorative arts, painting, and sculpture- it is not designed as a regional history of art, but an exploration of the interrelations between history, material and visual cultures, foodways, music and literature in the formation of Southern identities.
Course was offered Spring 2013, Spring 2011
AMST 3001Theories and Methods of American Studies (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
This seminar course will introduce majors to various theories and methods for the practice of American Studies. The three goals of the seminars are (1) to make students aware of their own interpretive practices; (2) to equip them with information and conceptual tools they will need for advanced work in American Studies; and (3) to provide them with comparative approaches to the study of various aspects of the United States. Prerequisites: American Studies Major
AMST 3180Introduction to Asian American Studies (3.00)
An interdisciplinary introduction to the culture and history of Asians and Pacific Islanders in America. Examines ethnic communities such as Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, Asian Indian, and Native Hawaiian, through themes such as immigration, labor, cultural production, war, assimilation, and politics. Texts are drawn from genres such as legal cases, short fiction, musicals, documentaries, visual art, and drama.
AMST 3491Rural Poverty in Our Time (3.00)
This course will use an interdisciplinary format and document based approach to explore the history of non-urban poverty in the US South from the 1930s to the present. Weaving together the social histories of poor people, the political history of poverty policies, and the history of representations of poverty, the course follows historical cycles of attention and neglect during the Great Depression, the War on Poverty, and the present.
AMST 3559New Course in American Studies (1.00 - 4.00)
New Course in the subject of American Studies
Course was offered Spring 2012, Fall 2010
AMST 3641Native America (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
This course will introduce students to deep history of Native North America. Using primary and secondary sources, we will cover such topics as mutually beneficial trade and diplomatic relations between Natives and newcomers; the politics of empire; U.S. expansion; treaties and land dispossession; ecological, demographic, and social change; pan-Indian movements; legal and political activism; and many, many others.
AMST 4500Fourth-Year Seminar in American Studies (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
This seminar is intended to focus study, research, and discussion on a single period, topic, or issue, such as the Great Awakening, the Civil War, the Harlem Renaissance, the Great Depression, or the 1960s. Topics vary.
AMST 4559New Course in American Studies (1.00 - 4.00)
New Course in the subject of American Studies.
AMST 4893Independent Study in Asian Pacific American Studies (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
An elective course for students in the Asian Pacific American Studies minor. Students will work with an APAS core faculty member to support the student's own research. Topics vary, and must be approved by the APAS Director. 
AMST 4993Independent Study (3.00)
Offered
Fall 2013
An elective course for American Studies majors who have completed AMST 3001-3002. Students will work with an American Studies faculty member to support the student's own research. Topics vary, and must be approved by the Program Director. Prerequisite: AMST 3001, 3002.
AMST 4999Distinguished Majors Thesis Seminar (3.00)
This workshop is for American Studies majors who have been admitted to the DMP program. Students will discuss the progress of their own and each other's papers, with particular attention to the research and writing processes. At the instructor's discretion, students will also read key works in the field of American Studies. Prerequisites: admission to DMP.