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African American Studies
The African American
Studies Department is a multidisciplinary program of study that
seeks, through the humanities and social sciences, to explore key
aspects of the Black experience in a systematic and structurally
integrated fashion. Its broad educational purposes are to engender
among all students an intellectual appreciation of Black life in
Africa and the Americas (especially in the United States); to enrich
the Oberlin College curriculum, and increase the relevance of an
Oberlin education to a culturally diverse world. Thus, the Department
strives to provide the student body, in general, with substantive
knowledge of the Black experience and values that maximize possibilities
for racial harmony. The Department is aided in its efforts by the
Afrikan Heritage House, which serves as the College's Black communal
and cultural center.
Curriculum.
The African American Studies curriculum offers extensive study
of the Black experience in a diasporic setting, including but
not limited to, Africa, North America, and the Caribbean. These
offerings are arranged in three categories: introductory, intermediate,
and advanced. All introductory courses are open without prerequisite,
except as indicated in the course description. African American
Studies 101 and other beginning courses may serve as prerequisites
to all intermediate and advanced courses.
Major.
The requirements for the major in African American Studies are
consistent with our view of the field as a multidisciplinary and
area studies program. Major prerequisites are designed to provide
students with a comprehensive understanding of the Black experience
as well as a firm grounding in a single field of study. Both breadth
and depth in the field are to be obtained by majors.
The major consists
of a minimum of 30 hours. In consultation with their major advisor,
students are expected to develop a balanced program of study and
to supplement their work with courses in fields related to their
special needs and interests:
1. As the introduction
to the discipline, African American Studies 101 is required of
all majors and must be taken in the freshman or sophomore year.
2. All majors are
required to take at least one course in each of the three following
subject areas: African, African American, and Caribbean Studies.
3. All majors are
required to take not less than nine (9) hours each from the humanities
and social science divisions, as multidisciplinary training. Students
must also ensure that these courses are drawn from at least four
of the five core fields (i.e., education, history, literature,
politics, and fine arts), with a minimum of three (3) credit hours
in each chosen field.
4. An additional
nine (9) hours, including the Senior Seminar, are to be taken
in a single field of specialization. Specialization is offered
in the following areas: education, history, literature, politics,
and the fine arts (i.e. art, music, theater and dance). Students
are required to show a balance between introductory and advanced
courses in their specialization.
5. All majors are
required to take the Senior Seminar in their junior or senior
year.
6. Up to six (6)
hours of credit may be gained from cross-listed or cross-referenced
courses (such as RELG 284, SOCI 277 and POLT 224), or from approved
cognate courses.
Minor.
A minor in the field consists of a minimum of 15 hours in African
American Studies. In addition to the introductory survey course,
student minors are expected to take at least one course from the
fields of: education, politics, history, literature or fine arts.
All minors are required to take at least one three (3) hour credit
course in each of the three following subject areas: African,
African American, and Caribbean Studies.
Honors.
The honors program offers an opportunity for majors of proven
ability and independence to extend their competence in the field
of African American Studies.
Students have the
option of writing a research paper, completing a special arts
project, or demonstrating advanced pedagogical skills. All honors
work is supervised by a faculty advisor who assists the student
in defining the nature of his/her honors project.
Africa Program.
Study opportunities are offered in the English-speaking countries
of Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania where students are
placed at universities or accommodated in international programs
like those offered by the School for International Training (SIT).
Similar opportunities exist for students proficient in French
at the Universities of Dakar, and Sheikh Anta Diop, in Senegal.
Students on financial aid should consult the Director of Financial
Aid before planning to participate in the program.
Off-Campus Programs
for Credit.
Field work in programs approved by Oberlin College in Africa and
the Caribbean is encouraged. In the United States there is the
long standing Fisk program in Tennessee which allows for the exchange
of students between our two institutions. By approval of the department
students may count a maximum of six hours of such work toward
the major. Prior permission from the department must be obtained
to receive credit.
Transfer of Credit.
Students transferring credits in African American Studies from
courses taken at other institutions may apply a maximum of nine
credit hours toward the major with the approval of the department.
Individual cases for students who transfer into the College after
their sophomore year will be reviewed by the department.
Winter Term.
The African American Studies faculty will sponsor individual projects,
on- or off-campus, in African and African American art, dance,
education, history, literature, politics, and theater.
Private Reading.
Students
may schedule a reading course during their junior or senior years.
No more than one reading course may be taken in any one semester,
nor more than two during the undergraduate program. Normally the
private readings may not duplicate a regularly scheduled course.
African American
Studies Department (afamstud) On-Line.
For more
information on courses, instructors or Afrikan Heritage House
(the cultural center), please visit our home page at: www.oberlin.edu/~afamstud/.
Cross-Referenced
Courses.
The following cross-referenced courses can be used towards the
African American Studies major and minor.
POLT 224. Topics
in Contemporary African Affairs, Ms. Sandberg
RELG 284. The History
of the African-American Religious Experience, Mr. Miller
SOCI 277. Race and
Ethnic Relations, Mr. White
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Introductory
Courses
070. Talking
Book 3 hours
3HU, CD
Second Semester.
This class is a hands-on exploration of spoken/written narrative
within African American visual tradition(s). We will view works
by Carrie Mae Weems, Faith Ringgold, David Hammond, Ill Willie,
Glen Lion, and many more. These artists will serve as models for
the layering of voices gathered and conjured within class projects.
Students will be required to write, perform, compose (visually,
and/or sonically) tapestries of voices carried within. Projects
will range from portraits of self, to portraits of place and time.
Sound equipment will be made available to students enrolled (no
previous experience necessary). Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 12.
072. Blues
Aesthetic: Continuity and Transformation 3 hours
3HU, CD
074. Something
From Something 3 hours
3HU, CD
Second Semester. This course is a 'hands on' exploration
of vernacular visual traditions existing within African American
culture. We will examine design choices/material processes
used to define and describe the specificity of lived experience(s)
within African American culture. Our focus is upon elders
within black communities and the stories that they tell through
their work. These artists will serve as references for assigned
projects designed to reflect the experiences of the individuals
enrolled. Identical to ARTS 056. Enrollment Limit: 12.
Mr.
Coleman
101. Introduction
to the Black Experience 3 hours
3SS,
CD
First and Second
Semester. An interdisciplinary exploration of key aspects of
Black history, culture, and life in Africa and the Americas.
The course attempts to provide students with a fundamental intellectual
understanding of the universal Black experience as it has been
described and interpreted by humanists and social scientists.
Included in the course will be such topics as: the African American
Studies movement, the African heritage of Afro-Americans, Pan-African
relations, racism and sexism, the family, the role of religion
in Black life, class structure and class relations, the political
economy of African American life, and Black political power.
Declared majors are given priority for this course. Enrollment
Limit:
45.
107. Nommo,
A Practicum in Black Journalism 1-2 hours
1-2SS,
CD
116. Literary
Reflection of British Empire and Commonwealth 3 hours
3SS,
CD
118. Ritual
and Performance I: The world according to the Yoruba 3
hours
and their descendants in the New World
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
For full course description see section entitled "Colloquia
for First- and Second-Year Students."
120. The
Caribbean and the Wider World 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
For full course description see section entitled "Colloquia
for First- and Second-Year Students."
131. Traditional
African Cosmology 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
An introductory survey of African philosophical and metaphysical
traditions, including an examination of traditional African
religion, spirituality, applied metaphysics, and cultural patterns.
Enrollment Limit:
35.
141. The
Heritage of Black American Literature 3 hours
3HU,
CD
First Semester.
A survey of black American literature from its inception in
the 18th century to the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s. Phillis
Wheatley, Jupiter Hammon, David Walker, Maria Stewart, and others
up to DuBois and Anna Julia Cooper, including related slave
songs, sermons,
spirituals,
blues, slave narratives and other folk expressions. Preference
for declared majors and department credit students. Consent
of instructor required. Enrollment Limit: 35.
157. Malcolm
X and Martin Luther King, Jr. 3 hours
3HU,
CD, WRi
171, 172. Introduction
to African-American Music 3 hours
3HU,
CD
First (171)
and Second ( 172) Semester. Identical to JAZZ 290, 291 and
MHST 290, 291.
181. Education
in the Black Community 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
The philosophy of a Ghetto Scholar is the sole focus of this
course. This highly creative and very original philosophy
centers on a Ghetto Scholar's use of education to pursue the
concept of GGG (the greatest good, for the greatest number,
for the greatest period). Students are required to think imaginatively,
analytically, and independently as they examine critical issues
facing black and other oppressed peoples. Education is essential
to the attainment of a world that is liberated, peaceful,
and humane. Enrollment Limit:
20.
190. West
African Dance Forms in the Diaspora I 2 hours
2HU,
CD
First Semester.
This course will survey dance movements, forms, and technique
from West Africa, to the New World, through dance performance.
The influence of West African movements on the New World,
will include forms from Brazil, Cuba, and Haiti. This class
will be taught from a traditional West African perspective
and Pan-African world view. Identical to DANC 149.
Enrollment
Limit: 30.
191. West
African Dance Forms in the Diaspora II 2 hours
2HU,
CD
192. West
African Dance Forms in the Diaspora III 2 hours
2HU
194. Blues
Improv 2 hours
2HU,
CD.
First Semester.
The dynamics of this course will involve movement to blues
music as the physical expression of spirituality and emotions.
Basic blues dance forms combined with historical Black vernacular
dance will be the technique through which the improvisational
movements will develop. Each semester class will alternate
between Jazz and Blues concentration. Prerequisite:
AAST 190. Identical to DANC 194. Enrollment
Limit: 30.
195. Jazz
Improv 2 hours
2HU,
CD
Second Semester.
The dynamics of this course will involve movement to jazz
music as the physical expression of spirituality and emotions.
Basic jazz dance forms combined with historical Black vernacular
dance will be the technique through which the improvisational
movements will develop. Prerequisite: AAST 190. Identical
to DANC 195. Enrollment Limit: 30.
Ms. Sharpley
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Intermediate
Courses
Majors are given
priority for enrollment in all intermediate and advanced courses.
202. African
American History Since 1865 3 hours
3SS,
CD
First Semester.
An analysis of African American history from the Reconstruction
Era to the Rise of Black Power. Coverage includes: the Age of
Booker T. Washington, Urbanization, Pan-Africanism, Depression
and War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Resurgence of Black
Nationalism. Enrollment Limit:
50.
203. African
History from Earliest Times to the 19th Century 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
This course deals with the origins of human society in Africa;
the rise of organized social, commercial and political systems;
Egypt and other classical African civilizations and empires; traditional
religions, Christianity and Islam in Africa; the trans-Atlantic
slave trade and its impact on African societies and trading systems;
the under-development of Africa by the end of the slave trade.
Enrollment Limit:
40.
204. African
History 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
The history of Africa from its encounter with colonialism to the
era of independence and neo-colonialism. Coverage includes colonial
systems of governance, African resistance and nationalism, the
independence movement, and the struggle for liberation in Southern
Africa. Enrollment Limit: 35.
207. Seminar:
HIV/AIDS and Development in Africa 2 hours
2SS
Second Semester.
This course is designed to sensitize and provide a frame of reference
through which individual students can better understand HIV/AIDS.
The main focus in this course is to examine the challenges HIV/AIDS
present in Africa in terms of the economic, social and demographic
underpinnings of development. The course will also review and
assess the strategies African countries have taken in the campaign
against HIV/AIDS. Though focused on Africa as a region, the course
will provide students with the building blocks necessary to design
an HIV/AIDS prevention campaign. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 15.
208. Slavery
and Freedom in the Western Hemisphere 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
This course examines the emergence of the African diaspora in
the Western Hemisphere from the fifteenth century onwards. It
focuses on the African historical background; the European contacts
with West Africa, the Americas and the Caribbean; the rise of
the Atlantic socio-economic and cultural complex; the development
of New World economies and societies; the origins and organization
of the slave trade and slavery; slave resistance, emancipation
and the establishment of freedom. Enrollment Limit:
35.
209. Society
and Politics in the Modern Caribbean, 1838-1970 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
This course discusses the modern Caribbean from the emancipation
of the slaves in the British West Indies to the independence and
post-independence periods. It explores the post-emancipation social,
economic and political problems; the introduction of East Indian
indentureship; the later emancipations in the French and Spanish
islands; political and economic
modernization;
the growth of the nationalist movements; independence and neo-colonialism.
Enrollment Limit:
40.
211. Seminar
in Diplomacy: Model Organization of African Unity (OAU) 3
hours
2SS,CD
First Semester.
This course is designed to prepare students to participate in
the Twenty-Fourth Annual National Model OAU in Washington, DC.
In preparation for the model OAU, this class will examine the
origins and policies of the OAU, as well as the history, foreign
policies and domestic policies of the country this class will
represent. There will also be individual and group research
on key selected issues of the 2002 model OAU agenda. The culmination
of this course will be a required trip to participate in the
Twenty-Fourth model OAU in Washington, DC. Class will meet twice
a week. Each meeting will be two hours. Enrollment Limit:
15.
Consent of instructor required.
215. African
American Women's History 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
A general survey of the history of Black women from colonial
times to the present. The course will examine the uniqueness
of the Black female experience through the lens of the intersection
of race, class and sex in American society. The course studies
the lives of Black women from slavery through reconstruction,
northern migration, the Harlem Renaissance, the civil rights
movement, and on to the development of a contemporary Black
feminism. Primarily an historical treatment. The course includes
literature and political commentary from Black women writers
and activists. Consent of instructor required. Enrollment
Limit:
20. Identical
to WOST 280.
219. The
Freedom Movement: Civil Rights and Black Power 3 hours
3SS
CD, WR
Second Semester.
In December, 1955, Mrs. Rosa Parks, by refusing to yield her
bus seat to a white passenger, launched the modern freedom movement
on behalf of all African Americans. This course offers an analysis
of the many singular and communal acts waged by Black people
in the US in pursuit of justice from 1955-1968 and beyond. It
seeks to illuminate the several ways in which African Americans
would wrest greater political, economic, and social control
over their lives in the US South and North. Using a host of
personal testimonies, as well as important secondary works,
this course considers questions of leadership, organization,
tactics, goals, gender relations, politics, and the economic
implications of such a critical moment in African American and
US history. Enrollment Limit:
25.
231. African
American Politics 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
235. Government
and Politics of Africa 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
This course will provide a general overview of colonialism in
Africa and its after-effects. More specifically it will deal
with topics such as: the acquisition of African colonies by
European powers; the slave trade; the colonial policies of the
various European powers; "protonationalism;" constitutional
developments on the Continent, particularly during the period
from 1945 to 1960; African nationalism; the evolution of political
parties and the struggle for independence. Enrollment Limit:
35.
244. Modern
African Literature 3 hours
3HU,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
This course will study a selected array of African writings by
20th century African authors, Chinua Achebe, Ayi Kwei Armah, Amos
Tutuola, Bessie Head, Buchi Emecheta, Wole Soyinka, Flora Nwapa,
Camara Laye and others. Attention will be given to an understanding
of African cultural heritage (i.e., epistemology) which influences
or which is inherent in modern African literature. Muntu and Neo-African
literature by Janheinz Jahn will be of use. Consent of instructor
required. Enrollment
Limit: 15.
245. Modern
African American Literature: 1920-1960 3 hours
3HU,
CD
First Semester.
A survey. The writings will include poetry, fiction and non-fiction,
and will examine the African American literary tradition, theme,
aesthetics and criticisms, and problems of black writers. Special
attention will be given to the literature of the "new Negro Harlem
Renaissance" period of the 1920s and the succeeding decades of
the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. W.E.B. DuBois, Ama Bontemps, Langston
Hughes, Jean Toomer, Claude McKay, Zora Neale Hurston, Jessie
Faucet, Wallace Thurman, Ann Spencer, Georgia Douglas Johnson,
Sterling Brown, Richard Wright, M.B. Tolson, Margaret Walker,
Robert Hayden, John O. Killens, Chester Himes, Ralph Ellison,
Margaret Danner, James Baldwin, and others. Note:
Ten places held for consent. Enrollment Limit: 35.
248. Resistance
and Voice: Literature of the African Diaspora 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
First Semester.
This course is a comparative examination of literature written
by peoples of African descent internationally. The course will
examine the literary expression of peoples of African descent
and Africans in the Americas, Europe, South and Central America.
Using Paule Marshall's discussion of "taking [one's] mouth and
[making] a gun," we will look at the ways in which peoples of
African descent write resistance into their literature in creative
ways. We will read the work of several authors including, Paule
Marshall, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, Ama Ata Aidoo, Dorothea Smartt, Kwame
Dawes, Toni Morrison, Edwidge Danticat, Amiri Baraka, Suheir Hammad,
and Earl Lovelace.
261. "Framing
Blackness": African Americans and Film In 3 hours
The United States, 1915 to the Present.
3 HU
First Semester.
Through an interrogation of Hollywood's construction of Black
images and the development of African American independent cinema,
this class will examine the multifaceted relationship of African
American people to the powerful medium of film. Drawing its title
from Ed Guerrero's book of the same name, "Framing Blackness"
will draw on historical and critical readings as well as film
viewing. The course will also track the rise of independent Black
voice in film and the development of a distinctively Afrocentric
aesthetic in the last forty years. Discussions and paper will
be used for evaluation. Consent of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 35.
264. African-American
Drama 3 hours
3HU,
CD
Second Semester.
Identical to THEA 264.
268. Black
Arts Workshop 3 hours
3HU,
CD
Second Semester.
The Black Arts Workshop combines theory and performance in African
American cultural styles. Readings and discussions encompass Afrocentric
philosophy, history,
religion and
aesthetics, dance, music, visual arts and drama. Classroom exercises
focus on meditation, movement, dance and acting skills. In the
latter part of the semester there is a focus on Black Theater
including scene work. Written work is required. Final projects
are to be creative in nature. Note: May be repeated twice for
credit. Identical to THEA 268. Enrollment Limit:
25.
281. Practicum
in Tutoring 1-3 hours
1-3SS,
CD
First and Second
Semester. Tutors offer academic help to children in schools,
homes, etc. Focus is on academically weak children generally,
and on black children specifically. By critiquing the instructor's
tutorial demonstrations, tutors develop an appreciation and
understanding of the Master Tutor Concept. TB test required.
Obtain and return questionnaires before tutoring. Notes:
Repeatable up to 8 hours. CR/NE grading. Enrollment Limit:
80.
Mr. Peek
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Advanced
Courses
Majors are given
priority for enrollment in all intermediate and advanced courses.
321. Black
Feminist Thought: An Historical Perspective 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
This seminar course will explore and analyze the evolution of
intellectual discourse among African-American women from slavery
to the present. Particular attention will be given to the interplay
of ideas about race and gender and the social and economic position
of black women at various time periods. Sources will include autobiographies,
novels, historical documents, sociological studies, and modern
feminist social critiques. Prerequisite: AAST 220 or consent
of instructor. Identical to WOST 321. Enrollment Limit: 15.
336. Pan-Africanism
Political Perspective 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
After having gained a broad overview of the evolution of political
consciousness on the continent of Africa, students will be expected
to examine in critical detail the more substantive problems posed
by Pan-Africanism. What does Pan-Africanism mean to the different
African peoples of the world? Who have been the significant contributors
to its growth - Nkrumah, Garvey, Nyerere, Fanon, Karenga ...?
What is the OAU in relation to the concept? What are the consequences
of the military takeovers on the continent? What is the future
of Pan-Africanism? Consent of the instructor required.
Identical
to POLT 318. Enrollment Limit: 15.
343. Langston
Hughes and the Black Aesthetic 3 hours
3HU,
CD, WR
346. Contemporary
African American Literature: 1960-Present 3 hours
3HU,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
A survey of African American writings with emphasis on the Black
Arts Movement of the 1960's and the Post Black Arts Womanist Movement
of the mid-1970's-present, and the key writers of these times,
including Amiri Baraka, Hiki Madhubuti, Sonia Sanchez, David Henderson,
Audre Lorde, Nikki Giovanni, Carolyn Rogers, Gwendolyn Brooks,
Alice Walker, John A. Williams, and many others. Consent of
instructor required. Identical to ENGL 352. Enrollment
Limit: 35. Preference given to declared majors and students
taking the course for credit.
347. Going
Away Coming Home: Caribbean Literature 3 hours
3HU,
CD
Second Semester.
Proseminar: General survey of writings in English by West Indian
poets, novelists, playwrights and non-fiction writers. Many different
peoples make up the West Indian populations--Jamaica, Barbados,
Guyana, Trinidad/Tobago, and the smaller islands such as St. Kits
and Nevis--representing some of the most richly diverse societies
in the world. Altogether, in part or whole, as time permits, the
course will include works by C.L.R. James, George Lamming, Merle
Hodge, Kamau Brathwaite, Roger Mais, Louise Bennett, Jamacia Kincaid,
Jean Binta Breeze, Rose Guy, Wilson Harris, Earl Lovelace, John
La Rose, Paule Marshall, V. S. Naipaul, Andrew Salkey, Linton
Kwesi Johnson, Sylvia Wynter, Claude MacKay, Jean Rhys, Michelle
Cliff, Samuel Selvon, and of course Derek Walcott, first West
Indian to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Consent
of instructor required.
Enrollment Limit: 20.
385. Black
Pedagogy 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
Black children possess the inherent ability to score 1400 plus
on the SATs and obtain As in school. This course examines the
philosophy and practices of Honors Teachers. Students explore
analytically and pragmatically a pedagogy designed to help ghetto
children attain excellence in reading, writing, and arithmetic
in spite of racism, poverty, etc. Enrollment
Limit: 20.
388. Black
Tests 3 hours
3SS,
CD
390. Essence
Dance Class 1-2 hours
1-2HU,
CD
Second Semester.
This course is designed to promote and develop creativity in dance
performance through the Black experience. A variety of dance forms
will be used such as: modern, Afro-forms, and black urban vernacular
dances. Students are expected to purchase costumes. Prerequisites:
AAST 101, AAST 190, AAST 191 or DANC 238. Notes: This class
may be repeated for a maximum of four accumulated hours. CR/NE
grading. Consent of instructor required. Enrollment Limit:
15.
391. Dance
Diaspora 2 hours
2HU,
CD
Second Semester.
Faculty directed performance project. Auditions are held during
each semester before enrollment. Notes: This class may be taken
for four accumulated hours. African American Studies majors will
have first priority. Identical to DANC 391. Consent of instructor
required.
Enrollment Limit: 15.
450. Senior
Seminar 4 hours
4SS,
CD, WR
Second Semester.
This course will cover aspects of philosophy, history, methodology
and research methods in the discipline. This is a required course
for all African American Studies majors during the senior year.
Note: Juniors who are majors will be accepted only with
consent of instructor or department chair. Consent
of instructor required.
500. Junior
Honors Project 3 hours
3SS,
CD, WR
Specialized readings
pertaining to a well-defined honors project. Students must be
supervised by a member of the department to identify research
sources. Note: Honors program is by departmental invitation.
Consent of instructor required.
501, 502. Senior
Honors 3-5 hours
3-5SS,
CD, WR
The preparation
of honors theses under the supervision of faculty supervisors.
Note: The Honors Program is by departmental invitation.
Consent of instructor required.
995. Private
Reading 1-3 hours
1-3SS,
CD
Any student who
is interested in undertaking a Private Reading course with a member
of the Department should make arrangements prior to registering
for the course. Consent of instructor required.
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