CRN	93033	Distribution	A/C
Course No.	SOC 101
Title	Introduction to Sociology
Professor	Amy Ansell
Schedule	Mon Wed 10:00 am - 11:20 am OLIN 203

Cross-Listed: American Studies, Environmental Studies

The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to the

sociological perspective. Its goal is to illuminate the ways in which social forces impinge on our individual lives and affect human society. Topics covered include: socialization; stratification (class, race, and gender); deviance and social control; politics and government; social institutions such as the family, economy, education, and religion; and social movements and social change.

CRN	93034	Distribution	C/E
Course No.	SOC 120
Title	Inequality in America
Professor	Yuval Elmelech
Schedule	Tu Th 10:00 am - 11:20 am OLIN 202

Cross-listed: American Studies, CCSRE, Gender Studies, Human Rights

Why do some people have more wealth, more power, and receive greater respect than others? What are the sources of this inequality? Is social inequality inevitable? Is it undesirable? Through lectures, documentary films and discussions, this course examines the ways by which socially-defined categories of persons (e.g., women and men, Blacks and Whites, rich and poor, native- and foreign-born) are unevenly rewarded for their social contributions. Sociological theories are used to explain how and why social inequality is produced and maintained, and how it affects the well being of individuals and social groups. The course will focus on two general themes. The first deals with the structure of inequality while studying the unequal distribution of material and social resources (e.g., prestige, income, occupation). The second examines the processes that determine the allocation of people to positions in the stratification system (e.g. education, intelligence, parental wealth, gender, race).

CRN	93035	Distribution	E/G
Course No.	SOC 205 Q Course
Title	Introduction to Research Methods
Professor	Yuval Elmelech
Schedule	Tu Th 1:30 pm -2:50 pm OLIN 202thru 10/2/03 Tu Th 1:30 pm -2:50 pm HDRANX 106 from 10/7/03

Cross-listed: Environmental Studies, Human Rights

The aim of this course is to enable students to understand and use the various research methods developed in the social sciences, with an emphasis on quantitative methods. The course will be concerned with the theory and rationale upon which social research is based, as well as the practical aspects of research and the problems the researcher is likely to encounter. The course is divided into two parts. In the first, we will learn how to formulate research questions and hypotheses, how to choose the appropriate research method for the problem, and how to maximize chances for valid and reliable findings. In the second part, we will learn how to perform simple data analysis and how to interpret and present findings in a written report. For a final paper, students use survey data on topics such as attitudes toward abortion, sexual attitudes, affirmative action, racism, sex roles, religiosity, and political affiliation. By the end of the semester, students will have the necessary skills for designing and conducting independent research for term papers and senior projects, as well as for non-academic enterprises.

CRN	93036	Distribution	C
Course No.	SOC 208
Title	Sociology of Whiteness
Professor	Amy Ansell
Schedule	Mon Wed 1:30 pm -2:50 pm OLIN 202

Cross-listed: American Studies, CCSRE

Is white a color? Is the United States a "white nation"? Does "white skin privilege" still exist? This course aims to answer such questions through a survey of the burgeoning sociological literature on whiteness. Whiteness is often treated as a taken-for-granted norm in the West, an invisibility so pervasive that many whites today consider themselves absolved from race matters. In exploding this idea, special attention will be given to: the unspoken assumptions and distribution of advantages associated with whiteness; the role of whiteness in the making of the American working-class; conceptions of whiteness as a category of racial identification; and conceptions of whiteness as a structural privilege.

CRN	93037	Distribution	C
Course No.	SOC 242
Title	Historical Sociology of Punishment
Professor	Michael Donnelly
Schedule	Tu Th 3:00 pm -4:20 pm OLIN 204

Cross-listed: Human Rights

An analysis of punishment, and the rationales for punishing, in a variety of historical circumstances. Cases are drawn from primitive societies, Puritan New England, 18^th and 19^th century western Europe, the American South, and the recent period in the United States and Great Britain. Comparisons among such disparate cases will suggest broad developmental patterns in punishment, and more specific queries about the connections between culture, social structure, and penal strategies. The case materials also offer a historical perspective on such contemporary issues and controversies as the scope of criminal responsibility, the appropriateness of retribution, the declining concern for rehabilitating offenders, and the rationales for, and uses of, the death penalty.

CRN	93038	Distribution	A/C
Course No.	SOC 304
Title	Modern Sociological Theory
Professor	Michael Donnelly
Schedule	Tu Th 11:30 am - 12:50 pm OLIN 303

Cross-listed: Human Rights

A critical investigation into the development of modern sociological theories in the United States and Europe. The course will examine, among other schools and traditions, functionalism, conflict theory, exchange and rational choice theory, symbolic interactionism, feminist theory, and critical theory. Readings include works by Talcott Parsons, Ralf Dahrendorf, Jon Elster, George Herbert Mead, Erving Goffman, Harold Garfinkel, Dorothy Smith, Michel Foucault, and Jurgen Habermas.

Prerequisite: Sociology 203 or permission of the instructor.

CRN	93161	Distribution
Course No.	SOC 328
Title	Power and Powerlessness
Professor	Amy Ansell
Schedule	Tu 4:00 pm – 6:20 pm OLIN 310

This course examines dynamics of power and powerlessness and how the two serve to maintain inaction in the face of injustice. We will investigate how patterns of power and powerlessness may limit action upon inequalities by preventing issues from arising, grievances from being voiced, and interests from being recognized. We will question the extent to which power may serve to shape conceptions about the nature and extent of the inequalities themselves. Finally, we will examine moments when power relations alter and rebellion emerges, in order to understand the ways in which resistance itself may feed back into patterns of power and powerlessness. Prerequisites: Moderated status in sociology or permission of instructor.