Comparative Studies
Comparative Studies 1100 Introduction to the Humanities: Cross-Cultural Perspectives
Multiple Sections
Explores the role of literature and the arts in constructing, maintaining, and questioning the values and beliefs of diverse cultures and historical periods; topics vary. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies. Honors version.
*Other sections of 1100 can be found on buckeye link
Comparative Studies 2099 Questions in Comparative Studies
Mo 5:20PM – 6:15PM | Hagerty Hall 451| David Horn
This course offers an introduction to the Comparative Studies major. It is designed to help students to take advantage of curricular, research, and advising opportunities; to manage the particular challenges of independent and interdisciplinary work; to link classroom work to social and political engagement with relevant communities; and to prepare for life after graduation. This course is graded S/U.
Comparative Studies 2101 Literature and Society
WeFr 11:10AM - 12:30PM | Campbell Hall 209 | Katherine Borland
Through readings, films, and extensive class discussion, the course explores the relationship between literature and society. Organized around five novels and five accompanying films, students will read texts from different regions of the world and cultural contexts, addressing their social implications and political conditions. Class discussions will turn on questions of social critique, representations of culture and community, and discourses of social relation and justice. Prereq: Honors standing, and English 1110 (110) or equiv. Not open to students with credit for 2101 (201, 201H). GE lit and diversity global studies
Comparative Studies 2103 Literature and the Self
TuTh 9:35AM - 10:55AM | Mendenhall 125 | Lucia Bortoli
Study of relationships between psychology and literature; analysis of psychological concepts and processes as represented in literature and film of diverse cultures and historical periods. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies.
Comparative Studies 2104 Literature, Science, and Technology
MoWeFr 11:30AM - 12:25PM | Mendenhall 129 | Jason Payne
Study of relationships among literature, science, and technology; analysis of representations of science and technology in literature and film of diverse cultures and historical periods.
Prereq: English 1110 (110) or equiv. Not open to students with credit for 2104H (204H) or 204. GE lit and diversity global studies course.
Comparative Studies 2214 Introduction to Sexuality Studies
TuTh 11:10AM - 12:30PM | Jennings Hall 136 | Martin Ponce
This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary field of sexuality studies by exploring how the category of “sexuality” emerged as a core dimension of human experience and identity as well as a significant site of social regulation and management in modern Western discourses and societies. Engaging with the insights of feminist, queer, critical ethnic, and disability studies, we will bring these histories of sex, gender, and sexuality to bear on a wide range of 20th and 21st-century U.S. issues in which sexuality is crucial. Possible topics include marriage, kinship, and religion; eugenics, miscegenation, and reproduction; race, disability, and immigration; imperialism, militarism, and sexual violence; Two-Spirit, transgender, and intersex; desire, visual culture, and social media; capitalism, globalization, and sex work; and youth, education, and activism. Throughout the term, we will pay special attention to the ways that certain bodies, desires, and relationships are privileged and promoted, while others are devalued and demeaned.
This course fulfills the GE in Social Diversity in the U.S. and is a core course for the Sexuality Studies major and minor.
Requirements: attendance, participation, in-class work, short responses, midterm exam, profile of campus or community organization, presentation, final project.
Comparative Studies 2264 Introduction to Popular Culture Studies
WF 2:20-3:40 | Denney 214 | Joanna Toy
Introduction to the analysis of popular culture texts, with special emphasis on the relationship between popular culture studies and literary studies. Cross-listed in English. GE Cultures and Ideas.
*Other sections of 2264 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 2281 American Icons
TuTh 2:20PM - 3:40PM | Enarson 014 | Cristina Benedetti
Interdisciplinary methods in American studies; emphasis on the plurality of identities in American culture. GE Cultures and Ideas and Diversity: Social Diversity in the US.
Comparative Studies 2301 Introduction to World Literature
TuTh 12:45PM - 2:05PM | Campbell 309 | Ashley Perez
What is “world literature”? Is it the “best of the best” of all the national literatures in the world? Works that people everywhere claim as their cultural inheritance? Is it what we call any literary work once it travels beyond the context in which it was originally written? Does world literature enrich our lives through cultural exchange? And what about the realities of writers in many parts of the world who can only access a significant audience by writing in English or producing works that “travel well” via translation?
We will tackle these questions through our discussion of literatures of the world in their historical and social contexts. We will read twentieth-century texts from the literary traditions of five geopolitical areas: the Middle East; Africa; Asia; Latin and Central America/the Caribbean; and Europe/North America. Student presentations will introduce additional examples of literary texts from different time periods.
In addition to engaged in-class and online discussion, course assignments include short papers and a presentation. All assignments will help you pursue the course goals and participate deeply in a community of learners.
This course meets GE requirements in Literature and Diversity (Global Studies).
Comparative Studies 2322 Introduction to Latino Studies
TuTh 2:20PM-3:40PM | Bolz Hall 434| Paloma Martinez-Cruz
Comparative Studies 2340 Introduction to Cultures of Science and Technology
WeFr 9:35AM-10:55AM | Mendenhall 185 | Nancy Jesser
This class provides an introduction to the field of Science & Technology Studies. Science & Technology Studies, often referred to as STS, is an interdisciplinary field that examines how science and technology are shaped by and shape culture and society. STS brings the sciences, social sciences, and humanities together by asking questions such as: How do we know what we know? What do we mean when we talk about things like facts, objectivity, and scientific methods? How do historical and social contexts shape the production of science, and how does science in turn shape our world, our experiences, and our relationships? As we address these questions, we will familiarize ourselves with critical thought about science and technology, including key historical, sociological, and anthropological theories and case studies. We will learn to think critically about how scientific practice claims access to truth, reason, and universality. Together, we will hone our analytical skills by discussing a broad range of contemporary issues in which scientific knowledge and technological capacity are entwined with the power relations of race, sex, global capitalism, and politics. This course is an experiment in collective knowledge production in which we will all participate, and throughout the course, we will follow the ideas of knowledge, culture, and experimental worlds. These themes organize the course into two units: 1. ways of knowing: science as culture and cultures of science and technology; and 2. Experimental worlds.
Comparative Studies 2341 Technology, Science, and Society
TuTh 12:40PM-1:35PM | CBEC 130 | David Horn
This course explores, from a variety of perspectives, the multiple relations among social and cultural formations, scientific and technical work, and the production and circulation of knowledge. Topics include the everyday life of the laboratory, the shifting boundaries of science and other ways of knowing, the political and ethical contours of scientific and technical work, and the social effects of scientific discourses and technological systems. This class fulfills the GE Cultures and Ideas and Diversity (Global Studies) requirements and the Professional Ethics requirement for the College of Engineering.
*Other sections of 2341 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 2350 Introduction to Folklore
TuTh 12:45PM-2:05PM | Journalism 375 | TBA
A general study of the field of folklore including basic approaches and a survey of primary folk materials: folktales, legends, folksongs, ballads, and folk beliefs. Prereq: English 1110 (110) or equiv. Not open to students with credit for English 2270 (270), or 2350H. GE cultures and ideas course. Cross-listed in English 2270.
Comparative Studies 2367.02 US Latino/a Identity
TuTh 2:20PM - 3:40PM | Enarson Classroom Bldg 202 | Nicholas Flores
This is a writing intensive course that examines the formation and expression of Latino/a identity in the U.S. We will look at the impact of historical experiences, including patterns of (im)migration, socioeconomic and political incorporation on identity formation of major Latino/a groups: Chicano, Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican. We will use social science, as well as visual media, fiction and essays to examine the role of race, class and sexuality in identity construction and cultural expression. We also discuss questions related to the ambiguities and uncertainties related to U.S. Latinos/as: how do different Latino ethnicities at different times make sense of being “ni de aquí, ni de allá” (neither from here nor there)? How has urbanization and changing migrations patterns changed the expression and cultural impact of Latino/a identities? To what degree is there a corporate Latino/a identity? What is the cultural significance of racial and cultural hybridization on these identities, and is there such a thing as an “authentic” Latino/a identity? The course assignments will include an interview/observation exercise looking at Latino/a cultural incorporation in the central Ohio, Columbus area. GE Diversity: Social Diversity in the US; GE Writing and Communication, Level 2.
Comparative Studies 2367.04 Science and Technology in American Culture
WeFr 11:10AM-12:30PM | McPherson 1005 | Sarah Stork
Role of science and technology in contemporary American society; their relationship to human values; sources of concern about their impact; evaluation of selected issues. GE Writing and Communication: Level 2 and Cultures and Ideas and Diversity: Social Diversity in the US. Honors version.
*Other sections of 2367.04 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 2367.07 Religious Diversity in the U.S.
MoWeFr 10:20AM – 11:15AM | Hagerty 071 | Bishal Karna
Exploration of the concept of religious freedom and the position of minority religious groups in American society. GE Writing and Communication: Level 2 and Cultures and Ideas and Diversity: Social Diversity in the US.
*Other sections of 2367.07 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 2367.08 American Identity in the World
TuTh 9:35AM - 10:55AM | Enarson 346 | Leighla Khansari
American culture viewed from inside and from the perspective of foreign cultures, as seen in literature, film, art, music, journalism, folklore, and popular culture. GE Writing and Communication: Level 2 and Cultures and Ideas and Diversity: Social Diversity in the US. Honors version.
*Other sections of 2367.08 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 3360 Introduction to Globalization and Culture
TuTh 2:20PM - 3:40PM | Hagerty 259 | Philip Armstrong
The course introduces students to the histories and principle concepts and themes defining the discourses and practices of globalization. Through weekly readings, lectures, documentaries, and extensive class discussions, the course will cover a range of debates concerning the historical and contemporary meanings of globalization and its intersection with a number of related fields of research, including patterns of migration and trade routes; economics; political sovereignty, the nation-state, and global governance; NGOs and international organizations; cultural exchange, media, and telecommunications; religion; the environment; and global justice movements. We will also situate the weekly readings in relation to a range of material addressing global issues, as well as research sites that offer different ways of situating globalization in both historical and contemporary contexts. In this sense, we will be asking not only “what is globalization?” (Its meanings and thematic concerns. How is it represented historically?) but also “when is globalization?” (What are its origins? How do we begin to write its history?), “where is globalization? (How do we think the relation between the local, regional, and global? What are the geopolitical spaces of the global?), and “globalization for whom?” (Who experiences globalization and in what ways? Which voices speak for and against globalization?).
Comparative Studies 3603 Love in World Literature
MoWeFr 9:10AM - 10:05AM | U Hall 038 | Lucia Bortoli
This course explores diverse formulations, presentations, and engagements with love in fiction, poetry, and visual forms. Underlying nearly every story of human relationships is a particular concept of what love is, and we will seek to articulate this idea, understand its complexity, and compare it to other conceptions in other texts. Through our explorations of literature, we will consider what makes love particular or universal to people and cultures, the extent to which love is described as spiritual as compared to animal, and the extent to which love reflects individual needs and drives or, alternatively, how it develops in response to community and tradition. We will also consider the influence of various notions (e.g., affection, friendship, attraction, sexuality, duty, kinship, community, religion, patriotism, power, and commodities) on how we—and the texts we read—construct love. This course requires engaged participation and demonstrated preparation and will engage students in a range of structures for discussion and collaboration. Assignments include several short response papers, an in-class analysis presentation, and a final course portfolio. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies.
*Other sections of 3603 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 3606 The Quest in World Literature
TuTh 3:55PM – 5:15PM | Hagerty Hall 062 | Elizabeth Marsch
Motif of the quest in world literature; physical and mental journeys as metaphors of personal transformation and salvation. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies.
Comparative Studies 3607 Film and Literature as Narrative Art
MoWe 11:30AM - 12:25PM, Fr 11:30AM-1:35PM | Bioscience 668 | Robert Livingston
Relationships between film and literature; emergence of cinematic art as a form of representation with emphasis on diverse cultural traditions. GE Visual and Performing Arts and Diversity: Global Studies. Honors version.
*Other sections of 3607 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 3608 Representations of the Experience of War
MoWeFr 10:20AM-11:15AM | Mendenhall 129 | Susan Hanson
Representations of war in works of literature, religious texts, and film from diverse cultures and time periods. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies
*Other sections of 3608 can be found on Buckeye Link
Comparative Studies 3645 Cultures of Medicine
WeFr 2:20PM - 3:40PM | McPherson 1035 | Katherine Hendy
This interdisciplinary course explores medical arts and sciences, concepts of illness and disease, and representations of the human body in a range of cultural and historical contexts. Topics include metaphors and images of the body, the meanings and symbolism constructed around pathology (cancer, depression, eating disorders, AIDS), the cultural construction of death, the social consequences of “medicalizing” racial and sexual differences, and the concerns raised by recent medical technologies.
This class fulfills the GE Cultures and Ideas and Diversity (Global Studies) requirements, and satisfies the foundation course requirement for the new Minor in Medical Humanities
Comparative Studies 3661 The City and Culture
WeFr 2:20PM – 3:40PM | Caldwell 137 | Miranda Martinez
Cities are one of humankind’s most richly complex inventions as spatial and cultural entities. In this course, we explore questions like: What make cities? How are cities shaped by global forces, like capitalism and modernity? How can we analyze them? Are there particular identities and cultures that cities foster into being? We will also analyze how distinctions based on race, class, gender, and religion are lived through space. Contemporary urban development in Columbus and other global cities is a major topic, and we will explore how the contemporary language of creative economy and private-sector led spatial development generates topographies of exclusion, and complicates the maintenance of place-based identities for individuals and communities. We also examine how people and communities in cities demand change, and how cities can prefigure a new politics of the possible.
Comparative Studies 3686 Cultural Studies of American Popular Music
WeFr 2:20PM – 3:40PM | Mendenhall Lab 185 | Frank Dipiero
Investigation of the social, political, and cultural contexts of the development of popular musics in the U.S. GE Visual and Performing Arts and Diversity: Social Diversity in the US.
Comparative Studies 3692 Contemporary Social Movements
TuTh 12:45PM-2:05PM | Baker Sys 394 | Franco Barchiesi
The course will discuss and compare contemporary social movements and politics of collective mobilization by focusing on how struggles of peoples of color question conventional ideas and theories of social movements. Particular emphasis will be placed on movements confronting structural racism and anti-blackness in their relations to gender, class, cultural nationalism, anti-imperialism, and anti-colonialism. GE Cultures and Ideas & GE Diversity-Global Studies
Comparative Studies 3903 World Literature: Theory and Practice
TuTh 9:35AM-10:55AM | Campbell 251 | Ashley Perez
What does it mean to study literature in a global context? Is it simply a matter of reading more diversely, opening ourselves to what lies beyond our own national literary tradition? Or does it necessarily entail different priorities and approaches? Does world literature enrich our lives through cultural exchange? And what about the realities of “world” writers who can only access a significant audience by writing in English or producing works that “travel well” via translation? We will tackle these questions by examining theories of world literature and through the practice of reading a variety of literary works. We will also consider topics such as the rise of postcolonial literatures, the influence of prizes (like the Booker and the Nobel Prize for Literature), the impact of globalization, and the role of translation. Class assignments include reflective writing, in-class and online discussion, and one longer paper. Assignments will help you pursue the course goals and participate deeply in a community of learners. This section offers the option of embedded honors. Prerequisites: CS 2301 or CS 3302 or permission from the professor, who enthusiastically welcomes all students interested in a thoughtful exploration of the course topic. Please email perez.390@osu.edu with any questions.
Comparative Studies 4597.01 Global Science and Technology
TuTh 11:10AM – 12:30PM | Baker Sys 394 | Monamie Haines
This seminar explores relations among culture, science, and technology in changing global contexts. It builds on key ideas in the field of Science & Technology Studies, with particular attention to the global histories, circulations, and contexts of science and technology. Science & Technology Studies, often referred to as STS, is an interdisciplinary field that examines how science and technology are shaped by and shape culture and society. STS brings the sciences, social sciences, and humanities together by asking questions such as: How do we know what we know? What do we mean when we talk about things like facts, objectivity, and scientific methods? How do historical and social contexts shape the production of science and technology, and how do science and technology in turn shape our world, our experiences, and our relationships? In this course, we will focus these questions through a central theme of place, power, and the politics of knowledge. We will develop our understanding of how place, power, and the politics of knowledge matter in scientific and technological meaning, practice, and circulation by considering multiple histories, global circulations, and postcolonial and indigenous approaches to science and technology.
Prereq: Completion of a Second Writing course and Natural Science sequence, or permission of instructor. Not open to students with credit for 597.01. GE Diversity: Global Studies and Cross-Disciplinary Seminar.
Comparative Studies 4655 Studies in Ethnography
WeFr 11:10AM-12:30PM | Campbell 243 | Miranda Martinez
Columbus is the fastest growing city in Ohio, and one of the fastest growing cities in the country. How is this growth promoted, and who is benefitting from it? Ethnographers observe people doing ordinary social activities, to capture how policies and spatial arrangements effect how people live, work, and think about the places they call home. This class on ethnography will offer an exposure to the history, theory and practices of ethnographic study by looking at studies of urban communities and urban redevelopment processes. In addition, the class will be organized around a community based collaboration with a local community organization. This will allow students to engage through direct research with the rich tradition of ethnographic observation and analysis.
Comparative Studies 4990 Senior Seminar in Comparative Studies
TuTh 9:35AM-10:55AM | Hagerty Hall 451 | David Horn
This course is the capstone course for majors in Comparative Studies, and its main goal is to develop and refine research and writing skills. We will consider what it means to conduct research, how to go about it, the role of the researcher or research team, and the writing process.
The course is organized as a research and writing workshop. The main task of this course will be to revise and expand an essay that you have previously written (such as a paper that you wrote for a course or a chapter of an honors thesis). This essay will be your starting point for developing an extended research project. You will receive feed-back from your peers and myself throughout the quarter. Materials with guidelines concerning the writing and research process will be posted on Carmen.. Prereq: 3990 (398), and 500 or 4000-level course in CompStd, and Senior standing, or permission of instructor. Not open to students with credit for 598.
Comparative Studies 5189-S Comparative Studies Field School
Mo 2:15PM-5:00PM | Jennings 50 | Cassie Patterson
The Ohio Field Schools course provides an introduction to ethnographic field methods (participant-observation, writing field notes, photographic documentation, audio-interviewing), archiving, and the public exhibition of research for both undergraduates and graduate students. Students will contribute to a team-based, immersive research project designed to document the ways that diverse communities express and preserve a sense of place in the face of economic, environmental and cultural change.
The semester-long, experientially-based course will consist of three parts:
· Introduction to fieldwork (on OSU campus in Columbus)
· A one-week field experience in Scioto County during spring break (where students will reside together on-site)
· Accessioning, digital gallery preparation, and reflection (on OSU campus in Columbus)
Thus, throughout the semester, students will practice all of the skills necessary to construct a permanent record of local expressive culture that will be accessible to future researchers and community members. Participation in all parts of the course is required.
Religious Studies
Religious Studies 2102.02 Comparative Sacred Texts
TuTh 12:45PM – 2:05PM| Arps Hall 012 | Isaac Weiner
This course will cover the sacred texts of a variety of religious traditions and the basic theories and methods for reading religious literature. We will examine texts not only from "mainstream" traditions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism, but also materials from Native American traditions and from new religious movements such as Scientology and Wicca. Students will also be introduced to basic theoretical tools for reading and interpreting sacred texts from multiple perspectives. In addition to lectures, films, and in-class discussions, the class will include field trips to a variety of religious sites in central Ohio. GE Literature and Diversity: Global Studies.
*Students will also need to pick a recitation.
Religious Studies 2670 Science and Religion
WeFr 12:45PM – 2:05PM | McPherson Hall 1046| Nancy Jesser
Do religion and science answer different questions? Does one rely on faith and the other evidence? Are they competing frameworks or do they have more in common than is acknowledged by either?
In this course we will examine the historical connections and disconnections between science and religion through controversies, explicit philosophies, and historical accounts of the development of scientific institutions and values from secular and religious sources.
We will then examine practices (from various cultures) that claim to be or are seen as both "religious" and "scientific."
Lastly, we look at contemporary attempts to reconcile science and religion, re-enchant nature, and bring non-western religious and cultural perspectives to bear on the global practices of science.
GE Cultures and Ideas course. Cross-listed in Philosophy.
Religious Studies 3210 Jewish Mystical Tradition
MoFr 9:35AM-10:55AM | Hagerty 259 | Michael Swartz
Religious Studies 3671 Religions of India
TuTh 12:45PM – 2:05PM | Dreese Lab 369 | Hugh Urban
Since end of the 19th century, the religions of India have had a major influence on American culture, philosophy and spirituality; and in the last twenty years, Indian religions have also begun to capture the American popular imagination, with musicians and entertainers from the Beatles to the Beastie Boys practicing various forms of Hinduism and Buddhism. This course is intended to provide a basic introduction to the major religions of India (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, as well as Indian forms of Christianity and Islam), and to grapple with the complex relationship between religion, culture and politics in Indian history. In the main body of the course, we will trace the complex history of the major religions of India, exploring their various interactions and transformations over the last 4000 years. Finally, in the last portion of the class, we will look at contemporary religious movements, both in Indian and in the West, where Indian religions have become a key element in contemporary New Age and New Religious Movements. In addition to films and guest lectures, this course will also include several optional field trips. Students will be required to write a field observation paper based on a visit to an Indian religious community in the Columbus area.
Religious Studies 3678 Religion and American Culture
TuTh 9:55AM-10:55AM | Ramseyer 110 | Isaac Weiner
This course adopts a thematic approach to studying the complex connections between religion and American culture. In spring 2018, we will focus especially on the intersections of religion with race, law, national identity, and popular culture. We will analyze selected case studies from a variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives. Our conversations will take us from Islam and Mormonism to Scientology and Spaghetti Monsters, from yoga studios and hell houses to football fields and Star Trek conventions, from alien abductees and snake handlers to Oprah Winfrey and Kendrick Lamar. Throughout, we will use these examples to assess different ways of making sense of religion’s complicated place in American culture. In addition to lectures, films, and in-class discussions, the class will include optional field trips to a variety of religious and non-religious sites in central Ohio. This course meets the GE requirement for Diversity: Social Diversity in the United States.
Religious Studies 3679 Pop Culture and World Religion
TuTh 2:20PM-3:40PM | Hagerty 046 | Melissa Curley
This course considers the intimate relationship between religion and vision—seeing and believing—as it plays out in contemporary popular cultures around the world. Focusing on the ways in which religious iconographies and popular visual cultures borrow from one another, we’ll look at a diverse set of materials: from horror movies to comic books, Kanye West to Japanese carnivals, Disney World to hell houses. Together we’ll explore how popular cultures consume the sacred, and how religious people use popular repertoires to formulate questions of ultimate concern.
Religious Studies 3972 Theory & Method in the Study of Religion
TuTh 3:55PM-5:15PM | Mendenhall 129 | David Brakke
Survey of contemporary theories and methods used in the academic study of religion. Prereq: 2370 (270) or 2370H (270H) or equiv. Not open to students with credit for RelStds 4972 or CompStd 4972 (520).
Religious Studies 4875 Gender, Sexuality, and Religion
TuTh 11:10AM-12:30PM | Campbell 243 | Hugh Urban