Course time: Tuesdays & Thursdays 1:30-2:45 pm                                                                        Course location: Robinson Hall A105

Instructor Email: kheitz@masonlive.gmu.edu                                                                                             Office Hours: Tuesdays 12pm-1:15pm, or by appointment                                                                     Office: Robinson Hall A, Room 253B

Course Description

It is has become a cliché to claim that today we live in a globalized world. But what exactly does that mean? In this course we will explore globalization as a set of connected social, economic, political, and technological processes. While these processes can be linked in a variety of ways, here we will link them through “culture” – shared (or not) ways of being, feeling, knowing, and communicating. From how we work, play, travel, consume, and communicate, globalizing structures and processes are part of the everyday lived experience of all people … albeit with differences and inequalities that vary greatly according to region, economic class, race/ethnicity, gender and many other factors. Instead of using reductive moral judgments to evaluate globalization as either “good” or “bad,” in this course we will consider globalization in terms of the rise and spread of capitalist modes of production, with particular attention to how inequalities and unevenness are constructed, experienced, and resisted through globalizing forces.

Although most of this course is focused on the period since the 1970s, we will approach that period with an awareness of its historical contexts by first considering a brief history of globalization since early modern times. We will then explore the nature of contemporary global capitalism, and spend the rest of the course examining a selection of spaces of the contemporary intersection of globalization and culture. Topics include: global cities and urban spaces, globalization and militarization, global mega-events, cultures of labor, tourism, global mobility of people, consumption and identity, and virtual worlds. In doing so, we will not only critically interrogate the connections and contestations of globalization and culture, but also consider ethical considerations and how our actions in the present affect our collective future.