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College of Arts and Sciences

Southern Studies Courses

Spring 2023 Course 


SOST 101-001 – TTh 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Dr. Matthew Simmons) 
SOST 101-002 – MW 2:20-3:35PM (Instructor Dr. Rodney Taylor) 
The Literary South 
This course will introduce students to important literary texts of the American South, ranging from European contact through the 21st century. We will also emphasize the interplay of Southern literary output with and in reaction to important historical and political trends. Within the Carolina Core, this course meets the Aesthetic and Interpretative Understanding learning outcome in that students will be able to interpret the literature of the American South, which will help them understand the human condition as it is expressed through literary output. 
CAROLINA CORE AIU CREDIT


SOST 298-001 – TTh 10:05-11:20am (Instructor Dr. Christine Sixta-Rinehart) 
Topics in the American South: Southern Military History 
This course covers military activity from 1754 to 1865. Officially starting with The French and Indian War and ending with the Civil War, this course examines military history from the South's perspectives. The course will explore the lived experience of war and the pivotal role of Southern leadership in several United States’ wars. Focusing on the social military history, this course will explore how southerners both experienced and led during times of war. 


SOST 301-001 - TTh 8:30-9:45AM (Instructor: Dr. Jennifer Gunter) 
Intro to Southern Studies: 1580-1900 
This course explores the history and culture of the American South from the colonial period to the advent of the Jim Crow racial hierarchy. Using studies that focus on the American South produced by scholars representing a variety of academic disciplines, this course seeks to unpack the fundamental phenomena that shaped the region and facilitated its “uniqueness.” In particular, this course raises questions about the intellectual, cultural, social, political, and economic forces that distinguished the region from other parts of the nation. Paying close attention to overlapping and interrelated social constructs, this course looks to art, religion, folklore, literature, and historical narratives and events in order to uncover the origins of “the South” that dominates the American imagination.


SOST 302-001 – MW 2:20-3:30PM (Instructor Dr. David Marquis) 
Intro to Southern Studies: The 20th Century 
This course will examine the ideas, political movements, economics, and people that shaped the South in the 20th century through an interdisciplinary lens.
CAROLINA CORE GLD/GHS CREDIT 


SOST 405-001 TTH 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Birgitta Johnson)
Topics in Southern Studies: Black Sacred Music 
*Crosslisted with MUSC544 & AFAM398) 
This course provides a socio-cultural history and survey of the Black sacred music tradition from its sound culture sources in West Africa to its emergence in African American oral culture. Emphasis will be placed on the philosophical underpinnings of Black sacred music, the social and political forces that led to the development the Black Church and various styles of the sacred music developed within this context in the United States. Also this course will note the often overlooked impact of gospel music and African American church music traditions on the development of rhythm ‘n’ blues, rock ‘n’ roll, soul, and disco as well as gospel music’s current presence internationally. Sacred genres under review and discussion will include: the spirituals tradition, hymns, anthems, gospel hymns, jubilee quartets, male quartets, classic gospel, modern gospel, contemporary gospel, urban contemporary gospel, holy hip-hop/Christian rap, and/or praise and worship music/contemporary Christian music (CCM).


SOST 500-001 TTH 2:50-4:05pm (Instructor Dr. Mindi Spencer) 
Topics in the American South: Southern Discomfort: Public Health and the American South 
The American South possesses a unique health and disease profile that has contributed to the idea of Southern distinctiveness. Throughout history, the South has experienced regional disparities that have largely gone unresolved, even with the public health revolution. The purpose of this 3-credit course is to investigate these topics through lecture, film, and guided readings. Each interdisciplinary lecture will cover a different aspect of health in the South, ranging from an examination of the endemic diseases of the antebellum period to the current HIV/AIDS crisis. We will also spend time discussing the ethical implications of the pellagra and 
Tuskegee experiments and the lasting impact these experiments had on health-related research.


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