WOMEN, MINORITIES, and SUB-GROUPS IN PRE-MODERN AND MODERN URBAN COMMUNITIES

In the modern west, the nation state was long considered the paradigmatic political entity. But in the post-modern world, the importance of the nation state has declined, and we must get used to thinking about other forms of political and communal organization. This course focuses on the society and culture of one such non-state entity: the city. We shall explore a range of tools, concepts, and methodologies used by historians of cities from early medieval Islam through high medieval Marseilles, early modern Venice, modern Europe, and the contemporary U.S. and Latin America. Topics will include the spaces and roles occupied by women, the “theology” and “ideology” of neighborhood, the role of civic ritual, the politics of streets, collectivity versus individuality, the construction of ethnic and racial identity, the origins of the ghetto, and more. Requirements include one oral presentation, one 5-6 page review essay, and one 4-5 page response paper. For MA and PhD students only.