WCSU Undergraduate Catalog 2021-2022 : Macricostas School of Arts & Sciences

Non-Western Cultures

All NWC courses are listed as social and behavioral sciences general education electives.

NWC 103 Chinese Culture 3 SH
A historical-cultural approach to the study of China. Topics include: the land, people, and language systems of China; the evolution of Chinese world views; thought and religions; economic and political institutions; art and literature; family structure and social life. Every semester. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC 104 Japanese Culture 3 SH
A historical-cultural approach to the study of Japan. Topics examined include geographic influences, major social structures, political and economic trends, education, religion and values. Every semester.

NWC 105 Cultures of India 3 SH
A historical-cultural approach to the study of India. Course content emphasizes geography, socio-economic and political trends, and examines social values, religious traditions, cultural diversity, change and continuity of village life, urbanization and modernization. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC 107 Middle Eastern Culture 3 SH
A comprehensive historical-cultural approach to the study of Middle East cultures, illustrating the use of various social science concepts in gaining an understanding of the religion of Islam and Islamic culture; the role of Arabic language and literature; geography and politics; the various social classes, including the role of women; the influence of foreign powers; and the origins and development of regional movements, conflicts and crises, including the Arab-Israeli conflict. Every semester. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC/AAS 109 Equatorial African Cultures 3 SH
A multidisciplinary approach examining the geographical, historical and sociopolitical aspects of contemporary equatorial Africa (including East and West Africa). Topics discussed include early state formation, colonial policies, “traditional” vs. “modern” societies, and political and economic development problems. Spring semester.

NWC 110 Vietnamese Culture 3 SH
This course takes a multidisciplinary approach by examining the geography, language, history, religion, culture and social life of Vietnam. Topics to be analyzed include the land and people of Vietnam, Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, women’s role in traditional and modern Vietnamese societies, traditional world views and healing methods, the resistance and wars against China, France, and the United States and their effects in shaping the socioeconomic life and cultural patterns of the Vietnamese people. Every semester. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC 112 Korean Culture 3 SH
This course adopts a historical-cultural approach to the study of Korea, illustrating how the new concepts of the various social sciences enable us to better understand an unfamiliar culture in the world-historical context, and thus to reexamine the received views of Asia in general as “irrational,” “stagnant,” and unable to develop modern science and economic systems. The course focuses on Korean society, culture, politics, national security, economy, and history, and places Korea in East-Asian and world history, to get a more balanced picture of the locality and the world. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC/AAS 113 Southern African Cultures 3 SH
Multidisciplinary approach to the study of the Republic of South Africa and its neighbors. Includes ethnography, history, economic development, the growth of Apartheid, the spreading of the South African problem to its contiguous countries and current political and foreign policy implications. Fall semester.

NWC/HIS 114 Asia and the West 3 SH
Traditionally, world history textbooks have discussed the era beginning with the sixteenth century as the European “age of discovery”: a time in which Europe conquered unknown lands across the globe. But is it possible to conceive of Asia, literally or metaphorically, also discovering the West? This course will attempt to answer this question by examining the enlightenment conditions under which a binary difference between Asia and the West was produced. We will examine Western and Asian imperialisms, nationalism, colonialism, religious tolerance and intolerance, and literature in the ongoing relationship between Asians, Europeans, and North Americans. Through debate and class discussion, literature, and film, we will also subject the notion of stable “Asian” and “Western” identities to critical historical scrutiny. Competency: Intercultural (IC).

NWC/HIS 115 Latin American and Caribbean Civilization 3 SH
This course examines the development of Latin America and the Caribbean as overlapping, though distinct regions, from before the Spanish Conquest of America to the present day. Many of the units consider a specific historical episode or era, while also posing a broader question concerning how these regions are understood in the United States. Major themes include the Conquest, Afro-Brazilian culture, popular politics in the 20th century, revolutions and revolutionary iconography, art and literature. Classroom discussion centers on the political, social and cultural elements that characterize Latin America and the Caribbean. Competency: Intercultural (IC).