SSI1 194 | Technologies of Power

This course focuses on the changing forms and mechanisms of power, coercion, and control. Students consider the workings of power, from the interpersonal physical violence of the Classical world through developments in surveillance and technology that have transformed control from a question of physical strength to more subtle and pervasive systems of dominance. The course considers how dominance and ideology interact: What does a culture's manifestation of power say about its beliefs and values? How do different forms of coercion and control reflect or affect human nature? How do systems of dominance shape individual and collective experience? How does power intersect with categories of identity such as gender, race, religion, etc.? How does power negotiate the relationships between the individual and society? Students consider these and other questions about human nature, society, and technology across multiple eras and societies. Affiliate department: English.