Courses

Prerequisites: no previous knowledge of German required, but some background is strongly recommended. This accelerated survey of German grammar, reading techniques, and dictionary skills is designed primarily for graduate students preparing for reading proficiency exams or wishing to do research in German-language literature. In addition to translation, the course focuses on strategies for extracting general and specific information from German texts (skimming and scanning) and judging their relevance for a specific research purpose. Reading texts take students' fields of study into consideration. Although this course does not satisfy any part of the foreign language requirement for degree candidates, successful completion of the translation on the final exam fulfills the German reading proficiency requirement in most graduate programs. Students are advised that this course is a full-time commitment. Students should expect to study 2 hours every day for every hour spent in the classroom and additional time on weekends. Students who would like to gain speaking and listening skills are advised to enroll in the Intensive Elementary German I and II, or another appropriate German course. The Department of Germanic Languages will assist in selecting the appropriate course. Equivalent to GERM UN1113-UN1114 taught during regular semesters.

Prerequisites: no previous knowledge of German required, but some background is strongly recommended. This accelerated survey of German grammar, reading techniques, and dictionary skills is designed primarily for graduate students preparing for reading proficiency exams or wishing to do research in German-language literature. In addition to translation, the course focuses on strategies for extracting general and specific information from German texts (skimming and scanning) and judging their relevance for a specific research purpose. Reading texts take students' fields of study into consideration. Although this course does not satisfy any part of the foreign language requirement for degree candidates, successful completion of the translation on the final exam fulfills the German reading proficiency requirement in most graduate programs. Students are advised that this course is a full-time commitment. Students should expect to study 2 hours every day for every hour spent in the classroom and additional time on weekends. Students who would like to gain speaking and listening skills are advised to enroll in the Intensive Elementary German I and II, or another appropriate German course. The Department of Germanic Languages will assist in selecting the appropriate course. Equivalent to GERM UN1113-UN1114 taught during regular semesters.

This intensive program provides one year of German in one six-week session. The course enables students to understand, speak, read, and write in German about a range of subjects (such as: family activities, studies, work and home life, as well as travel, economics, and current events) and helps them develop an understanding of German speaking cultures. Classes are conducted in German and supplemented with written homework and audiovisual materials. Assignments and activities are diversified to integrate undergraduate and graduate students’ academic and personal interests. The program draws on the German heritage of New York City (museums, Goethe Institut, restaurants, etc.). Students are encouraged to attend German-language films and musical performances. Students have many opportunities for informal conversation. Upon successful completion of the course (with a minimum grade of B), students should achieve novice high to intermediate low proficiency (ACTFL scale). Final grades are based on frequent oral and written tests, writing assignments, a project on German culture in New York, and a final examination (written and oral). Students are advised that this course constitutes a full-time commitment. The workload of this course is very intense and students will be expected to spend 4-6 hours studying every day outside of class and additional time on weekends. The Department of Germanic Languages will assist in selecting the appropriate course. Equivalent to the combination of GERM UN1101 and UN1102 taught during the regular semesters.

If prior knowledge of German, a placement exam is required. Students should contact Jutta Schmiers-Heller (js2331) to schedule a test or if they have other questions about the course.

Prerequisites: Equivalent to GERM UN2102 Topics cover areas of German literature, history, art, and society. Students also read a German drama. Assignments and activities are diversified to integrate undergraduate and graduate students’ academic and personal interests. Intermediate-high to advanced-low proficiency (ACTFL scale) in speaking, listening, reading, and writing German is expected upon successful completion (with a minimum grade of B). Prepares students for advanced German, upper-level literature and culture courses and study in Berlin. Students are advised that this course is a full-time commitment. Students should expect to study 2 hours every day for every hour spent in the classroom and additional time on weekends. Students planning to study in Berlin in spring are advised to complete GERM S2102 in the Summer Session. The Department of Germanic Languages will assist in selecting the appropriate course. Equivalent to GERM UN2102 taught during the regular semesters.

Prerequisites: Equivalent to GERM UN2102 Topics cover areas of German literature, history, art, and society. Students also read a German drama. Assignments and activities are diversified to integrate undergraduate and graduate students’ academic and personal interests. Intermediate-high to advanced-low proficiency (ACTFL scale) in speaking, listening, reading, and writing German is expected upon successful completion (with a minimum grade of B). Prepares students for advanced German, upper-level literature and culture courses and study in Berlin. Students are advised that this course is a full-time commitment. Students should expect to study 2 hours every day for every hour spent in the classroom and additional time on weekends. Students planning to study in Berlin in spring are advised to complete GERM S2102 in the Summer Session. The Department of Germanic Languages will assist in selecting the appropriate course. Equivalent to GERM UN2102 taught during the regular semesters.

Equivalent to Greek 1101 and 1102. Covers all of Greek grammar and syntax in one term to prepare the student to enter Greek 1201 or 1202. This is an intensive course with substantial preparation time outside of class.

Equivalent to Greek 1101 and 1102. Covers all of Greek grammar and syntax in one term to prepare the student to enter Greek 1201 or 1202. This is an intensive course with substantial preparation time outside of class.

Capitalism shapes every aspect of our daily lives. Thinkers on both the left and the right of the political spectrum agree that capitalism structures our economic, social, and political relationships. Yet, there is little agreement as to the definition of capitalism and its normative implications. The definition and interpretation of capitalism differs across time and space, always evolving in response to challenges, crises, and contradictions. The aim of this course is to provide students with analytical tools to think critically and historically about the concept of capitalism. By studying how philosophers, economists, and political theorists have defined and described the concept of capitalism throughout its history (from the early seventeenth century to the present), students will be provided with a set of terminologies and analytical frameworks that enable them to interrogate the various dimensions of capitalism. The readings in the course are selected to illustrate the fact that capitalism has always been controversial. We will read texts authored by both proponents and critics of capitalism. We will explore how various canonical figures have thought about private property, markets, money, economic growth, injustice, inequality, alienation, and socialism.

This lecture examines how the American presidency evolved into the most important job on earth. It examines how major events in US and world history shaped the presidency. How changes in technology and media augmented the power of the president and how the individuals who served in the office left their marks on the presidency. Each class will make connections between past presidents and the current events involving today's Commander-in-Chief. Some topics to be discussed: Presidency in the Age of Jackson; Teddy Roosevelt and Presidential Image Making; Presidency in the Roaring ‘20s; FDR and the New Deal; Kennedy and the Television Age; The Great Society and the Rise of the New Right; 1968: Apocalyptic Election; The Strange Career of Richard Nixon; Reagan's Post Modern Presidency; From Monica to The War on Terror.

This course charts the expansion of U.S. military power from a band of colonists to a globe-girdling colossus with over 2.1 million personnel, some 750 bases around the world, and an annual budget of approximately $754 billion — almost half of federal discretionary spending, and more than the next nine nations combined. It introduces students to the history of American military power; the economic, political, and technological rise of the military-industrial complex and national security state; the role of the armed services in international humanitarian work; and the changing role of the military in domestic and international politics. A three-point semester-long course, compressed into six weeks; visit bobneer.com for a complete syllabus.

As a population, Latino, Latina, Latine, and Latinx peoples have been prominent in the public sphere in popular culture, the media, and especially around discussions of immigration. Though individuals with a tapestry of Spanish-Indian-African ancestry (who may be described as “Latinas/os” “Hispanics” or “Latinxs” today) explored the lands of present-day Florida and New Mexico long before English colonizers reached Plymouth Rock, Latina/o/x communities are continually seen as foreigners, immigrants, and “newcomers” to American society. This course aims to place Latina/o populations in the United States within historical context. We begin by asking:  Who are Latinas/os in the U.S. and how did they become part of the American nation-state?  Why are they identified as a distinct group? How have they participated in American society and how have they been perceived over time?  The course will familiarize students with the broad themes, periods, and questions raised in the field of Latinx History.  Topics include conquest and colonization, immigration, labor recruitment, education, politics, popular culture, and social movements.  The course emphasizes a comparative approach to Latinx history aiming to engage histories from the Southwest, Midwest, and Eastern United States and across national origin groups—Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Dominicans, Central Americans, and South Americans. This class is taught in mostly the modern period (after 1750) within United States history so it can count toward the history major or concentration. Where the course points may be applied depends on a student’s field of specialization within their major or concentration. The course can also count toward the Global Core requirement, which is reflected on the Columbia online registry.  The class can, moreover, serve as three elective points toward degree progress or as non-technical elective credits. Finally, the course is regularly cross-listed with both the Center for the Study of Ethnicity and the Institute for the Study of Human Rights as well as with American Studies.