Although many of our readings may focus on a city in ancient Europe, the themes we will explore are relevant today and students are encouraged to draw connections to contemporary issues in discussions. In all of our work, we will continue to think about the implications for our own day, as we seek to define “American” identities in the context of an increasingly urbanized and globalized world. We will approach these questions and others through an examination of the ancient city of Rome and the 20th-century city of Lagos, a city in Nigeria under British colonial rule. What does it mean to become a citizen of a city? How is this citizenship performed? What does it mean to identify as an “urbanite” or “urban citizen?” How have people forged citizenship and identity in response to conquest and colonial oppression? Whose culture should shape citizenship and identity and how? How should we think about the process of self-identity formation in relation to that of shaping one’s identity as a member of an urban community? We will explore the theme of identity formation within the city, including the ways in which concepts of self/otherness inform the ways in which ideas of citizenship are formed.
We will begin by developing a framework within which to consider the concept of the “imagined city” and the ways in which people of different backgrounds are incorporated into the city (or nation). In this section we will consider different representations of the city as a space for building diverse and inclusive communities as we develop methods for thinking about the modern geopolitical city. In addition, it provides and rehearses the reading and writing tools and skills necessary for the successful completion of a senior thesis.Įach section of the course will have different material, but the writing tools studied throughout the year are the same from section to section.Īll freshmen begin with these courses, including those with college credit earned prior to high school graduation. Aimed at high achieving students entering the university as first-term first years, it provides the basic intellectual framework for the social, cultural, political, and material study of the urban environment. This year-long sequence is designed to serve as a foundations course in the four-year University Honors College curriculum. It begins with the study of representations and perceptions of the city, the city in historical context, and the processes that shape the city’s geopolitical manifestations. The Global City introduces ways to think critically about the urban environment and the interdependence between the city and the global world.
Lay the Groundwork Form tight bonds with your peers in a small, year-long course, focused on developing advanced writing skills through intensive study of the urban environment
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