The theme of this course is public space!

“Public space” is often space we take for granted as purely accessible, equitable, and uncomplicated. It is, however, often the very opposite. Some of the most heated cultural discussions in contemporary American public discourse—discussions about safety, surveillance, protests, the presence of certain monuments, homelessness, religious expression, architecture— are ultimately ones about public space, about who it belongs to, what function(s) it should fulfill, who it should include or exclude, and what it can or should mean to us.

Public space has been studied in sociology, law, geography, political science, literature, and the arts; scholars have considered it in relation to questions of memory, diversity, identity, militarization, cyber security, neoliberalism, and the mass media, among others.

In this class, you will be asked to frame public space as a highly political and contested sphere. Through op-eds, films, essays, and news articles, we will examine complex discourses and discussions surrounding the public space. In addition to readings, students will learn to craft and defend their own arguments on stances related to these topics. You will write 3 papers: the first is a close-reading essay that analyzes an essay about public space; the second is a paper about surveillance (any topic of your choice); and, the third is a media analysis.

Keep in mind that although the course has a guiding theme, it is nonetheless a very broad one, and it leaves room for lots of options. It is my hope that you will give these papers a lot of thought and really deeply pursue topics of interest to you!