Spring 2024 Course List

Is the constitutional order obsolete? Are its institutions broken, by forces such as polarization, geographic districting, the consolidation of wealth and political power, or the concentration of governing authority into an imperial presidency? What even is America- a nation, a state, a creed, or something else? How should that inform our discussions of fraught issues such as immigration? What is or ought to be America's role in the world order? This class is designed as an introduction to some of the key debates in American politics, with a focus on how American institutions and political ideas have developed and connected to current events and questions.

MW 1:30pm - 2:45pm | Sean Beienburg | Tempe Campus | Session C: #29211

This course tells the story of the confrontation between American political principles of liberty, equality, and justice, and the practice of racial injustice throughout American history. We will read and discuss historical primary sources such as the Declaration of Independence, the slavery clauses in the Constitution, the poetry of Phillis Wheatley, and the speeches of Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, Jr., among others. We will also explore musical texts and contexts relating to issues of race in American history. Our goal will be to achieve a greater understanding of how diversity relates to humanity and to learn how to dialogue productively and respectfully with others who may not share our own background or political opinions.

MW 3:00pm - 4:15pm | Adam Seagrave | Tempe Campus | Session C: #29290

In this course students will engage in close study of the French political thinker Alexis de Tocqueville, who is arguably the most thoughtful friend and critic of modern democracy. They will gain a deeper understanding of his mode of thinking, the central questions and problems he focused on, and the context, both European and American, in which he lived and worked. Students will also explore the continued relevance of Tocqueville's oeuvre by considering contemporary works undertaken in his spirit that address some of the challenges facing American democracy today.

W 4:50pm-7:35pm | Dan Mahoney | Tempe Campus | Session C: #25033

A survey of economic thought from classical to modern economics; including classical economics, Marxist economics, neoclassical economics, institutionalist economics, Austrian economics, Keynesian economics, Chicago economics, new institutionalist economics, and public choice.

T/Th 9:00am - 10:15am | Ross Emmett | Tempe Campus | Session C: #29198

Prepares the foundation for students to become active participants, as citizens and leaders, in a liberal democratic society that faces an uncertain future. Provides familiarity with core conceptual tools provided by philosophy, politics, and economics, and an appreciation for the foundation they provide together to address social and political uncertainties we face today as well as in the future. Reliance on any one disciplinary set of tools and skills is useful, of course, but the real challenges of any liberal democracy are met by neither technocratic nor bureaucratic solutions. They require an awareness of the relevance of ethics, politics, and economics, as well as an appreciation for the limitations of each and the necessity of thinking through their interactions.

T/Th 3:00pm - 4:15pm | Thiago Oliveira | Tempe Campus | Session C: #25599

Covers topics of immediate or special interest to a faculty member and students.

T 4:50pm - 7:35pm | Timothy Sandefur | Tempe Campus | Session C: #32057

Allows ASU students from a variety of disciplines to encounter liberal education, classic texts, and Socratic seminars, in an intensive, supportive, and beautiful environment. Explores a fundamental question: How do I live a life of meaning? Students read thinkers ranging from Aristotle, Plutarch, and Cicero to Viktor Frankl, Toni Morrison, and Marge Piercy--and bring to bear their own life experiences--to understand concepts of love, friendship, work, community, citizenship, and identity in relation to living an examined life. Expands these studies through practical experiences of service work, meditation, and film to create a vital cohort and intellectual community. A central assessment for the course, the Organic Reflective Assessment (ORA), is a series of prompts and responses designed to allow students to think about and receive feedback from professors regarding the practice and methods of liberal learning: how to read texts and annotate them, how to ask questions of authors, how to think about one's own life in relation to and using language from classic texts--on the idea that to use existing, perhaps even widely known, language and relate it to our lives is a way to make our ideas known to ourselves and others. Students need to keep up with these responses during the retreat.

 Susan Carrese | iCourse| Session B: #34760

Why are sports important to society? Discover why fans are obsessed with their favorite teams, by taking Sports and Leadership with Professor Jack Doody. Enroll today!

Jack Doody | ICourse | Session A: #34874

The starting point for this class will be the decision of Peter the Great (1672-1725) to move Russia's capital from Moscow to a new city St. Petersburg that would serve as his country's 'Window on the West.' Peter's rule sparked a centuries-long debate about whether Russia's destiny is to be a part of or separate from Europe (and the Western world as a whole). In this course, we will study the works of Russian writers who looked upon Europe favorably, as well as authors who argued that Russia has a special role to play as a counter to the West. Topics that we will cover include anarchism, communism, nationalism, and nihilism. The course will bring us to the present day and an examination of the key tenets of Eurasianism, an intellectual movement popularized by Alexander Dugin, who some observers have deemed 'Putin's philosopher' and a neo-fascist. Throughout the semester we will also explore how philosophers and social critics in neighboring regions discussed Russia, alternatively idealizing or vilifying it.

T/Th 12:00pm - 1:15pm | Matthew Slaboch | Tempe Campus | Session C: #24789

Targeted killings and drone strikes, cyber warfare, and war crimes are all subject to the law of armed conflict (LOAC). In this course, you will explore these issues, and more, focusing on how LOAC is applied on the modern battlefield, including the wars in Ukraine and Israel/Gaza. This class will expose you to the complex legal challenges warfighters often face in armed conflict and how the underlying culture of war influences the application of law on the battlefield.

T/TH 10:30am - 11:45am | Bruce Pagel | Tempe Campus | Session C: #32056

For more information on this and other study abroad opportunities, visit the Global Education Office website at https://goglobal.asu.edu/ This leadership and service workshop, 'on the ground' and 'in the field' in Israel and the West Bank, will continue SCETL's 2019-20 public affairs theme of 'Citizenship and Leadership: America's Civic and Global Challenges' in a global context. We will use tools learned during the academic year to listen and learn from Israelis and Palestinians of divergent views and narratives on religious, cultural, historical, and political issues.

Susan Carrese | Session DYN (5/10- 5/24): #25630

Covers topics of immediate or special interest to a faculty member and students.

F 10:30am - 11:30am| Bruce Pagel | Tempe Campus | Session C: #32480

The lines of difference marking the diverse and fascinating discourses of European cultures before and after the end of Soviet hegemony animate and legitimize the Other Europe. It is no longer possible today to speak of Czechoslovak or Serbo-Croatian literature, or of countries previously known as Yugoslavia. Political changes of the past decade, specifically the memorable events of 1988-1991, have revealed not only the unresolved variations and contradictions within a region once viewed as monolithic; they have also generated the emerging field of Post-Totalitarian Cultural Studies.

T/Th 12:00pm - 1:15pm | Ileana Orlich | Tempe Campus | Session C: #30788