Political Science LC-A (POLA)

This learning community will examine today's diverse patterns of governmental authority and legitmacy around the world and will consider ongoing attempts to improve community life by challenging the patterns that have been handed down to us.

This class examines American political, social and economic institutions in a cultural context focusing on the media's role in affirming - and in some cases subverting - the social order. In addition to studying historical, legal and political documents, we will consider more popular texts, including advertisements, films, popular literature and music.

This learning community will explore various aspects of American society and politics as seen through film. We will focus on films that have touched upon some of the most serious social problems that continue to confront the United States, and use them as an inroad to understanding the structure of American politics.