230580 The US-American City: Visions, Discourses, Representations (S) (SoSe 2009)

The seminar seeks to explore the phenomenon of the U.S.-American city from a variety of different angles. These include

(1) city planning, restructuring, and marketing;
(2) socio-political discourses on the city; and
(3) representations of the city and the urban experience in US.-American literature and the visual arts.

We will cover the period from the mid-19th century up to today. A geographic focus will be on New York, but students may pursue projects on other major U.S. cities.

In addition to the thematic goals of providing an introduction to urban studies and familiarize students with U.S.-American urban history and culture, practical educational goals of this class include practicing the writing different types of texts (abstracts, summaries, essays) on the one hand and the analysis of works of visual art and architecture on the other.

Credit Point Requirements:

To receive 2 LPs, active participation in the discussions and small in-class projects (both short oral presentations in small groups and written assignments) is required. To obtain 3 LPs, students have to fulfill the above requirements as well as write an essay of ca. 5 pages on a topic of their choice (this can be developed out of a previous oral or written assignment from this class).