Undergradute Courses
For Course Scheduling Information and Availability, please see the OSU Master Schedule.To plan ahead, take a look at the AAAS Five Year Projection of Undergraduate Course Offerings
121 African Civilizations to 1870
Exploration of the political, social, and economic history of pre-colonial African civilizations, using a variety of interdisciplinary approaches and materials.
122 African Civilizations, 1870 to the Present
Exploration of the political, social, and economic history of the colonial and independent African countries, using a variety of interdisciplinary approaches and materials
154 Introduction to African American Literature
Survey of the literature of African descendants in the United States from 1750 to 1915.
201 Introduction to African- American and African Studies
Introduction to the impact of broad historical forces such as colonization and capitalist slavery on race relations; the interdependence of ideology and social structure.
208.20 African Performing Ensemble Cross-listed in Music
This course will provide students with performance experience, skills, and techniques on selective African musical instruments, with initial emphasis on percussion instruments and music/dance forms of West Africa.
218 Black Urban Experience
Examination of contemporary black urban experience focused on the impact of persistent residential segregation, increasing class polarization, and the global force of hip hop culture.
230 The Black Woman: Her Role in the Liberation Struggle
The political role of the Black woman in the struggle for Black freedom; examination of changing laws and customs affecting the status of Black women.
243 Race and Ethnicity in the Americas
Introduction to race and ethnicity in the US; how race and ethnicity have shaped American culture social thought, social institutions, and inter-group relations.
244 Survey of African and African-Derived Music in the Western World (AXM/Music)
An introduction to traditional African music and its role in the history and development of African American music with its concomitant socio-political milieu. This course will survey Black music from the l 7th century to the present.
251 Introduction to African Literature
An assessment of the oral prose tradition and written prose of African literature; specific emphasis placed on student reading from primary sources.
254 Themes in African American Literature
Survey of themes in the literature of African descendants in the United States from 1915 to the present.
255 African -American Life through Autobiographies
The experiences of black people in America as revealed in autobiographies of African - Americans.
261 Black-White Behavior
A survey of the social significance of important behavioral elements affecting Black-white relations
271 Contemporary Black Drama
A literary analysis and discussion of plays by Black playwrights in recent times
288 Bebop to Doowop to Hiphop: The Rhythm and Blues Tradition
Examines the aesthetic and historical evolution of Rhythm and Blues: Black music tradition including Bebop, Rock and Roll and Hophop redifining American popular culture post WWII.
294 Group Studies
Topics selected by individual professors.
303 Language, Race and Ethnicity in the U.S.
Objective examination of the relationship between language, race and ethnicity in the context of varieties of English used by minority ethnic and racial groups in the U.S
310 Perspectives on the African Diaspora
Study of historical processes, key figures and ideas, and cultural expressions of the worldwide dispersion of people of African descent from different times places.
323.01 History of African Americans in the Age of Slavery
Origins of modern slavery; its development in the U.S.; the evolution of African American life and culture from 1619 to the end of the Civil War.
323.02 History of African Americans from Emancipation to the Present
The rise of debt peonage among Blacks; the formation of the northern ghetto; the Civil Rights Movement and beyond.
326 Black Americans and the Legal System
An examination of the role of the legal system in the social and the political dynamics of Blacks in the American society.
327 Introduction to African Politics
Examination of dynamics of nation-building in African countries in transition from colonial dependencies to modem nation-states.
338 African Territories as Nation-States: Selected Case Studies
Case studies of selected African territories gaining independence in the aftermath of the Second World War.
342 Music, Religion and Ritual in Africa
Survey of variety and interaction of musical and religious expressions in selective African societies, focusing on traditional contexts and contemporary Christian and Islamic examples.
342H Music, Religion and Ritual in Africa
This honors course explores the various ways in which religious experience and ritual performance are integrated with music in selective societies and cultures of Africa.
345 African American Thinkers
Designed to acquaint students with race, gender, class, nationality, and other ideologies embedded in American political and social institutions.
350 History of Modern Africa
General survey of political, economic, and social developments in colonial and post-independence Africa. (Cross-listed in History)
351 Caribbean Literature in English
A consideration of prose, poetry and drama written by Caribbean authors focusing on Caribbean literature in English within the framework of black literature
361 Psychology of the Black Experience
An analysis of personality theories commonly applied to Black Americans and the Black experience.
367.03 African American Voices in U.S. Literature (English)
Discussion, analysis, and writing about issues presented through the diverse voices of African American literature.
367.04 Black women Writers: Text and Context (Women's Studies)
Writing and analysis of Black women's literary representation of issues in United States social history.
376 African American Art
The study of African American artists and their effects on art movements.
378 History of Jazz I
An in-depth study of the periods, trends, major performers/composers, styles and influences of jazz from its beginnings through the swing era.
379 History of Jazz II
Continuation of 378 from Bop through current styles African Political Systems: A Comparative Analysis
451 Black Experience in Caribbean, African, and African - American Literature
Exploration of the themes, attitudes, and parallels in Black Literatures of Africa, the United States, and the Caribbean; emphasis on negritude and Pan-Africanism.
460 Political Thought in African Literature
A study of political thought of selected African novelists in the 20th century.
485.01 Southern Africa: Society and Culture
A study of the social and cultural development in Southern Africa, and the environment
485.02 South Africa: Study/Travel Abroad
A study tour of Southern Africa to accompany 485.01
485.03 West Africa: Culture and Society
A chronological and interdisciplinary exploration into the cultures and societies of West Africa with a particular focus on the Gold Coast / Ghana.
485.04 Study/Travel Abroad to West Africa (Ghana
This course examines conflicts arising from West Africa's role in the slave trade and its post-colonial condition and discourse.
493 Individual Studies
Exploration of relevant subject as individually designed by student and professor.
495 Community Development in Urban African American Districts: Field Research and Seminar
A service-learning course that draws on the principles of experiemential learning by immersing students in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs.
504 Black Politics
Economic, political and social constraints on the developments of Black political power; the effort made by Black people in recent times to organize for effective political action.
505 Language and the Black Experience
Introduction to the structure, history, and use of distinctive varieties of English used by and among many African Americans in the U.S.
527 Pan-Africanism and Nationalism
Pan-Africanism and nationalism in the development of Africa
530 African Political Systems: A Comparative Analysis
A comparative examination of problems of nation-building and nation integration faced by selected African nations in the postcolonial period.
541 Islam in Africa
An examination of the history and spread of Islam in Africa and its impact on African social, economic and political institutions.
545 Intersections: Approaches to Race, Gender, Class, and Sexuality
Examines intersections of race, gender, class, and sexuality in various sites within American culture (e.g. legal system, civil rights discourse, social justice movement, etc.)
551 Selected Topics in African American and Related Literature
Topics selected will relate to specific interests of enrolled students, who will develop an intensive analysis of the-topic of their choice.
555 Topics in African American History
Selected topics in African American history from the origins of slavery to the present. cross-listed in History.
555.01 Topics in African American History I
Selected topics in African American history from the origins of African American, culture and slavery to emancipation
555.02 Topics in African American History II
Selected topics in African American history from emancipation through segregation, and the Civil Rights Movement to the present.
561 Topics in African American Psychology
The study of different dimensions of African American and African psychology. Various topics
565 Slavery in the Atlantic World
This course will investigate the dispersion of Africans in the Americas and will examine systems of unfree labor and slave trading throughout the Atlantic World.
571 Black people in Media Production
The historical background of Black drama in the media; development of new models for monitoring programming, and the writing and production of drama.
575 History of South Africa
An examination of political and social developments in South Africa from the 19th century to the present
581 Philosophy in Contemporary African Literature
Discussion of African social and political thought as presented by selected African novelists.
582 Studies in African -American Literature
Studies in African -American Literature
584H Literature and Modern Experience in Africa
A comprehensive view of the dominant thematic directions of African literature in the European languages, and their formal realization in aesthetic and symbolic terms.
591 Workshop in Creative Writing
Literary productions by students on themes related to the Black experience.
595 Theorizing Race: Undergraduate Seminar
Introduction to issues of "race," consideration of the historical emergence and development of ideas of "race" and of racist practices, along with their contemporary formations.
