ENROLL

Colin McLaughlin-Alcock

Through processes like colonialism, oil extraction, and the war on terror, the Middle East forms an important pivot, shaping global political and economic structures. This course will examine how the Middle East has developed in dynamic interaction with the wider globe. Yet, we will resist the urge to treat the Middle East merely as an object of Western intervention. Rather, we will explore how the West and wider globe are also shaped by this interaction. In particular, we will examine how ideas about modernity, secularism, and liberalism—key elements of contemporary Western identity—are shaped through dynamic interconnection with Middle East.

Colin McLaughlin-Alcock

Gentrification, a process of neighborhood-level class displacement, whereby devalued urban areas are redeveloped into trendy hubs, is one of the predominant modes of urban change in the twenty-first century. In this class, we will first develop a general understanding of how gentrification works. Then we will direct ethnographic attention to explore how gentrification takes place in specific contexts around the globe. We will examine how social boundaries, power relationships, and identities are reorganized through gentrification; how class and racial disparity are produced and enforced; how the social meaning of place impacts neighborhood change; and how communities have resisted gentrification.

Prerequisite: The department strongly recommends that Sociology/Anthropology 110 or 111 be taken prior to enrolling in courses numbered 200 or above