SOC 3040 - Nonwestern World

This course uses the evolution of modes of production as a key to gaining a meaningful understanding of the cultures of Africa and Asia. Its conceptual framework is the ageless struggle of humankind to (1) come to terms with nature (cultural evolution), (2) come to terms with one another (social evolution), and (3) raise consciousness (the evolution of “universalizing” values). This enables the student to compare and contrast African, Asian, and “Western” cultures; to analyze the impact of these cultures on one another; and to understand the “indivisible nature of the human condition.”

Credits: 4 hours

When Offered: Fall, Spring