GOVT 6202 - Political Culture

(crosslisted) AMST 6202, ANTHR 6102, HIST 6202, SOC 6200

Spring. 4 credits. Letter grades only.

R. Bensel.

This course will explore the relationship between popular belief, political action, and the institutional deployment of social power. The class will be roughly divided in three parts, opening with a discussion of how the material world influences the culture of a society. The middle section will connect culture to political ideology, including symbolism and the construction of group identity. The last part of the course will consider ways in which cultural symbols and ideology can be manipulated in order to legitimate government authority. We will then, coming full circle, trace how political regimes can influence the social practices from which culture originates.