Bachelor of Arts in American Studies - Social and Literary Movements

DePaul University

The Social and Literary Movements concentration focuses upon two areas of study: major cultural products by the principal novelists, philosophers, poets, political and religious thinkers, historians, artists, musicians and intellectuals in American history and major cultural movements which have shaped the world view and attitudes of literate Americans in American history. In the first area of focus, a heavy emphasis will be given to individual creative work, its form and content, its specific antecedents and influences as well as its later impact, and the cultural and philosophical implications of the document itself. The relationship between each work and larger trends of the period, both cultural and social, will also be explored. In the second field of study, the focus will be upon broader cultural movements which are diffused through the larger literate society, which include major cultural documents as well as popular expressions of these ideas, beliefs and attitudes. Thus, the focus here is on the cultural reception and diffusion of ideas, the relation between innovative movements and mainstream belief systems and attitudes, and the nature and direction of cultural exchange.