Course Info

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Course Info for AMST - 116 - 01, Fall 2026
Class number: 3403 Title: Intro AMST Political Economy Department: American Studies
Career: Undergraduate Component: Seminar Session: Regular
Instructor's Permission Required: No Grading Basis: Regular Units: 1.00
Enrollment limited to 19 Current enrollment: 19 Available seats: 0
Start date: Tuesday, September 8, 2026 End date: Wednesday, December 23, 2026 Mode of Instruction: In Person
Schedule: MW: 11:30AM-12:45PM, LIB - 181 Instructor(s): Camp, Jordan
Prerequisite(s): None
Distribution Requirement: Meets Humanities Requirement
Note: 11 seats reserved for first year students, 3 for sophomores. If you are a rising junior or senior and have not yet taken AMST 116, please contact the professor to be enrolled in this course.
Course Description:
This course introduces key questions, frameworks, and methodologies of American Studies through the lens of political economy. This perspective analyzes power at the intersections of economics, politics, and culture. The course begins by examining competing theories about the political economy of U.S. capitalism. Students will carefully read core texts throughout the semester about topics such as: capital, class, colonialism, climate change, gender, gentrification, immigration, poverty, space, the state, social reproduction, and war. By the end of the course, students will have developed a method for understanding how political economy enables American Studies scholars to comprehend challenges in and beyond the territorial boundaries of the United States.