PDF reflects print version of the catalogue (beginning to Economics)Courses of Instruction
American Studies and Ethnicity (AMST)
The terms indicated are expected but are not guaranteed. For the courses offered during any given term, consult the Schedule of Classes.
AMST 101gm Race and Class in Los Angeles (4, Fa) Analysis of race and the economic, political, gender, and social dimensions of contemporary Los Angeles including topics such as residential segregation, economic inequality, and city politics. Concurrent Enrollment WRIT 140.
AMST 133g Religions of Latin America (4) (Enroll in REL 133g)
AMST 135gm Peoples and Cultures of the Americas (4, FaSp) An introduction to cultures and people in the Americas; the social, historical, economic and cultural formations that together make up the Latino/a American imaginary.
AMST 200m Introduction to American Studies and Ethnicity (4, FaSp) Introduction to American studies and ethnic studies. Provides an overview of major theories, concepts, and issues.
AMST 202m Interethnic Diversity in the West (4) Introduction to community, culture, and ethnicity within the Western United States with emphasis on African American, Asian American, and Chicano/Latino cultures and social patterns.
AMST 206m The Politics and Culture of the 1960s (4, Sp) Examines political and cultural change in the United States during the decade of the 1960s.
AMST 220m The Making of Asian America (4, FaSp) Historical, social, and cultural analysis of (East, South, and Southeast) Asians in the United States. Themes examined: immigration, race and gender relations, ethnic culture, community and identity.
AMST 240gm Collective Identity and Political Violence: Representing 9/11 (4, FaSp) (Enroll in ANTH 240gm)
AMST 250gm The African Diaspora (4, FaSp) History, political-economy and aesthetics of the African Diaspora with emphasis on Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe and Africa.
AMST 252gm Black Social Movements in the U.S. (4) This course examines black social movements for freedom, justice, equality, and self-determination. Beginning with Reconstruction, movements include labor, civil rights, radical feminism, socialism, reparations, Black Nationalism, prisoners' rights, and Hip Hop.
AMST 274gm Exploring Ethnicity Through Film (4, FaSpSm) Examination of the constructions of American ethnicity/race in film. (Duplicates credit in former AMST 374m).
AMST 285m African American Popular Culture (4, Sp) Examines history of popular cultural forms such as literature, music, dance, theatre, and visual arts produced by and about African Americans. Concurrent Enrollment MDA 140.
AMST 301g America, the Frontier, and the New West (4, FaSp) Introduction to the interdisciplinary study of American political, cultural, and social life with a particular emphasis on the Western United States as a region. Recommended Preparation: HIST 200, ENGL 263.
AMST 320 Social Construction of Race and Citizenship (4, FaSp) Comparative perspective on the social construction of race and citizenship. Social, economic and political experiences of selected groups in the U.S. are examined.
AMST 330m Jazz and the Political Imagination (4) Explores the changing political meanings of "jazz" throughout the 20th century, from freedom to a threat to civil order, from racial integration to Black liberation.
AMST 328 Asian American Politics (4, FaSp) (Enroll in POSC 328)
AMST 332m Post-Civil Rights Black America (4) Analyzes the political, economic, and cultural experiences of the post-1965 period through an interrogation of contemporary conditions, movements, and responses to power in Black America.
AMST 333 Religion in the Borderlands (4) (Enroll in REL 333)
AMST 336 Re-Viewing Religion in Asian America (4) (Enroll in REL 336)
AMST 342m Law and Identities (4) Examines the complex and contested interaction between the law and racial, gender, religious, ethnic, and sexual identities using historical and contemporary cases.
AMST 348m Race and Environmentalism (4, Irregular) (Enroll in GEOG 350m)
AMST 350 Junior Seminar in American Studies and Ethnicity: Theories and Methods (4, FaSp) Advanced study in interdisciplinary theories and methods for analyzing race and ethnicity in the United States, including a comparative study of topics such as inequality, gender, and class.
AMST 357m Latino Social Movements (4, FaSp) Focuses on the political experience of Latinos in the U.S. Comparative analysis of their political experiences and perspectives, their histories of identity formation, and their political organizations.
AMST 364m African American Art (4, FaSp) (Enroll in AHIS 365m)
AMST 365 Leadership in the Community — Internship (4, FaSp) Eight to 10 hours per week in a community-based internship plus two hour lecture. Theoretical and practical issues associated with community leadership.
AMST 366m Chicana and Latina Experiences (4) (Enroll in SOCI 366m)
AMST 373m History of the Mexican American (4, FaSp) Racial and cultural background of Mexico; immigration and conquest; the Mexican in California and the southwest; the rise of contemporary Mexican-American consciousness. (Duplicates credit in former HIST 472).
AMST 375m Asian Americans: Ethnic Identity (4, FaSp) (Enroll in SOCI 375m)
AMST 376m Contemporary Issues in Asian American Communities (4, FaSp) (Enroll in SOCI 376m)
AMST 377m Legacies of Viet Nam (4, Fa) Examination of 20th century Viet Nam, the country, and "Vietnam," the American war, through the literature, film, and visual culture that have been produced by Americans, Vietnamese, and overseas Vietnamese.
AMST 378m Introduction to Asian American History (4, FaSp) Comparative examination of the social, economic, and political experiences of Asian immigrants and their descendants in the U.S., 1840s-present. (Duplicates credit in former HIST 378).
AMST 379 Arabs in America (4, FaSp) Arab immigration and acculturation in the U.S. from late 19th century to present; emphasis on community formation, race, religion and gender.
AMST 380 American Popular Culture (4, FaSp) (Enroll in HIST 380)
AMST 385 African American Culture and Society (4, Sp) Examines social and cultural issues affecting the past and present lives of African Americans in the United States.
AMST 389m Carceral Geographies (4, FaSp) Focusing on California, interdisciplinary research teams will study why there are so many new U.S. prisons. What is their relationship to shopping malls, gated communities, globalization? Prerequisite: AMST 200.
AMST 390 Special Problems (1-4) Supervised, individual studies. No more than one registration; by petition only.
AMST 392 Undergraduate Research Methods (2, Sp) Examines processes of scholarly research; quantitative and qualitative research methods; faculty mentorship; experiential learning; research proposal writing; careers in research. Sophomore or junior standing in the major. Graded CR/NC.
AMST 395m African American Humor and Culture (4, FaSp) Examination of one of several traditions of African American humor for insights into shifting notions of race, culture, language and identity in and beyond Black America.
AMST 420 Sociology of Violence (4, FaSp) (Enroll in SOCI 420)
AMST 424m Political Participation and American Diversity (4, Fa) (Enroll in POSC 424m)
AMST 428 Latino Politics (4, Fa) (Enroll in POSC 428)
AMST 432m Racial and Ethnic Relations in a Global Society (4, Fa) (Enroll in SOCI 432m)
AMST 442 American Literature, 1920 to the Present (4, FaSp) (Enroll in ENGL 442)
AMST 444m Native American Literature (4, FaSp) (Enroll in ENGL 444m)
AMST 446 Cultural Circuits in the Americas (4, FaSp) How does culture move within and across the Americas? What are the relationships between new global media conglomerates, "national cultural industries," and local cultural practices?
AMST 448m Chicano and Latino Literature (4, FaSp) Development of poetry, essay, short story and novel of the Chicano and Latino peoples of the United States, with particular emphasis on the differentiating characteristics between the multiple cultures that constitute the Latino populations. (Duplicates credit in former ENGL 448m).
AMST 449m Asian American Literature (4, FaSp) Survey of Asian American literature from the earliest time to the present; development of prose, poetry and novel.
AMST 456m People of Color and the News Media (4) (Enroll in JOUR 466m)
AMST 458m Race and Ethnicity in Entertainment and the Arts (4, FaSp) (Enroll in COMM 458m)
AMST 465 Studies in American Art (4, max 8, FaSp) (Enroll in AHIS 465)
AMST 466m The Psychology of African Americans (4, FaSp) Provides an introduction to the study of health, mental health, and social behavior among African Americans.
AMST 475m Blackness in American Visual Culture (4, FaSp) (Enroll in AHIS 475m)
AMST 483 Religion and Popular Culture in the United States (4, Sp) (Enroll in REL 483)
AMST 490x Directed Research (2-8, max 8) Individual research and readings. Not available for graduate credit.
AMST 492 Research Methods in American Studies and Ethnicity (4, Fa) Develop the research proposal and methods for completing a senior honors thesis; for students in one of the four PASE majors.
AMST 493 Senior Honors Thesis in American Studies and Ethnicity (4, Sp) Writing the honors thesis; for students in one of the four PASE majors and PASE Honors Program.
AMST 498 Senior Seminar in American Studies and Ethnicity (4, FaSp) Capstone course for majors, highlighting interdisciplinary study of race and ethnicity in a comparative context. Prerequisite: AMST 200.
AMST 499 Special Topics (2-4, max 8) Special topics in the earth sciences. Field trip required when appropriate to the topic. Departmental approval required.
AMST 500 Introduction to American Studies and Ethnicity (4, Fa) An exploration of themes, theoretical influences, and methodological approaches current in American Studies and Ethnic Studies. Open to first year graduate students in American Studies and Ethnicity only.
AMST 509 Key Topics in Linguistic Anthropology (4, FaSp) (Enroll in ANTH 509)
AMST 510 Readings in Chicano/Latino Studies (4, FaSp) Perspectives from the major debates that have driven the development of the field of Chicano/Latino/a studies across the disciplines.
AMST 520 Readings in Asian American Studies (4, FaSp) Graduate seminar covering critical themes in the interdisciplinary field of Asian American Studies, including perspectives from anthropology, literature, sociology, history, political science, religious studies, cultural studies, women/gender studies and psychology.
AMST 525 Seminar in American Art (4, FaSp) (Enroll in AHIS 525)
AMST 530 Readings in African American Studies (4, max 8, FaSp) Seminar exploring crucial theoretical, methodological and historical issues in the development of African American Studies.
AMST 543 Critical Studies in Whiteness (4, max 8, FaSp) Examines meaning of "whiteness" from historical and other disciplinary perspectives; focus is on how whiteness operates within specific racial regimes to perpetuate inequality.
AMST 552 Archives and Subcultures (4, FaSm) Introduction to the practice of archival research with an emphasis on the literary and historical methods of documenting subcultural groups, particularly racial and sexual minorities.
AMST 554 Readings in Chicano/Latino History (4, FaSp) Readings, analyses, and discussion of various approaches, topics, and genres in the field of Chicano/Latino history.
AMST 560 Readings on Race and Ethnicity (4, FaSp) Exploration of research on race and ethnicity in the United States as it pertains to political, social, economic, cultural and historical issues.
AMST 562 The Practice of Ethnography (4) (Enroll in ANTH 562)
AMST 570 Readings on Los Angeles and Urban Culture (4, FaSp) Exploration of some of the leading scholarship from a variety of disciplines writing about Los Angeles and the Southern California area. Particular emphasis is placed on the intersections of historical, contemporary and cultural issues that inform recent scholarship on Los Angeles.
AMST 572 Quantitative Methods for a Diverse Society (4, FaSp) Diversity and empirical social research; conceptualization, design and measurement; conducting, analyzing and evaluating surveys and experiments; focus on obstacles in the empirical study of diversity.
AMST 580 Readings in Cultural Studies (4, FaSp) Seminar in theoretical approaches to cultural studies, with an emphasis on the analysis of race, gender, sexuality, and class in the U.S.
AMST 585 Topics in Cultural Theory (4, max 8, FaSp) Introduction to key texts on poststructuralism and its theorizing of the body, power, and historical trauma.
AMST 586 Utopia and Dystopia (4, FaSp) How did Marx conceptualize modernity? What is capital? Historical materialism? Dialectical materialism? What roles do race, class, gender, sexuality, territory and the state perform?
AMST 590 Directed Research (1-12, FaSpSm) Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the program.
AMST 599 Special Topics (2-4, max 8) Seminar in selected topics in American studies and ethnicity.
AMST 610 Interdisciplinary Research Seminar in Chicano/Latino Studies (4, max 8, FaSp) Exploration of issues involved in conducting research in the interdisciplinary field of Chicano/Latino Studies and guides students through the design and completion of a journal-quality research paper. Recommended preparation: graduate reading course in Chicano/Latino Studies.
AMST 660 Interdisciplinary Research Seminar in Race and Ethnicity (4) Explores issues of conducting interdisciplinary research in race and ethnicity and guides students through the design and completion of a journal-quality research paper. Recommended preparation: graduate reading course in race and ethnicity.
AMST 670 Interdisciplinary Research Seminar on Los Angeles (4) Introduces students to issues of urban-based research concerning Los Angeles and guides students through the design and completion of a journal-quality research paper. Recommended Preparation: graduate reading course on Los Angeles.
AMST 680 Interdisciplinary Research Seminar in Cultural Studies (4) Explores theoretical approaches to cultural studies as an interdisciplinary field and guides students through the design and completion of a journal-quality research paper. Recommended Preparation: graduate reading course in cultural studies.
AMST 700 Theories and Practices of Professional Development (4, FaSpSm) Offers students a structured environment in which to write their dissertation proposals and focuses on professional development. Completion of qualifying exam. Graded CR/NC.
AMST 790 Research (1-12, FaSpSm) Research leading to the doctorate. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the program. Graded CR/NC.
AMST 794abcdz Doctoral Dissertation (2, 2, 2, 2, 0) Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.