Course content and class availability are subject to change. All NYU in London students are required to register for Issues in Contemporary British Politics and Culture (see Sociology). Permission of NYU in London's Director required for exemption; in order to be exempt, students must register for at least 17 credits without ICBPC. Please contact academic.director@nyu.ac.uk if you qualify
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Africana Studies
Professor T. Bressey
Introduces students to the tools of cultural criticism and theory, with
particular emphasis on black culture, urban environment, and black people’s
relationships to a variety of social and cultural institutions and practices.
The latter may include the mass media, class and poverty, the police, urban
development, education, music, art, and sports.
Professor Primorac
Deals with the history of Pan-Africanism and its impact on the modern world. Focuses on the major themes of Pan-Africanism, including those of African unity, black rebellion against colonialism and racism, black diaspora, and black culture. Also considers the relations between Pan-Africanism and such movements as nationalism, Marxism, and Afrocentricity.
Africana Studies (The School of Oriental and Africana Studies,
University of London)
These courses are only open to students accepted on the special
NYU in London Africana Programme. Students on the programme must
choose 2 courses from the following list:
Professor Dabiri
The aim of the course is to introduce students to cultural dimensions in Africa, and to ways of approaching the study of culture in Africa. It focuses on three overall themes: orality, performance and identity, exploring ways in which these find expression primarily (though not exclusively) through language, religious belief, music, literature, nationalism, and popular culture. After presenting a general theoretical framework for the study of the themes, it concentrates on specific cultural contexts, illustrated with "case studies". Students are also encouraged to do further reading within other culture areas of Africa and the African Diaspora.
Professor G. Furniss
This course provides students with knowledge of the diverse literatures composed
and written in indigenous languages of Africa, as well as of the general issues
relevant to the study of this literature. The languages covered include Swahili
(East Africa), Hausa and Yoruba (Nigeria and West Africa), Xhosa (Southern
Africa), and Somali (Horn of Africa). The literature is discussed largely
according to major genre types, such as poetry and song, oral narratives, and
written prose literature. No knowledge of these languages is required for the
course.
Professor K.Osei-Nyame
The course familiarizes students with a selection of the varying perspectives
from which African experience has been perceived, analyzed, and interpreted,
primarily by Africans and persons of African descent, both on the continent and
in the diaspora.
Professor L. Marten
An introduction to thinking about the human faculty of language within a
specifically African context. The course focuses on issues of language within
the framework of human society at all levels, and not so much on language as a
structural entity. Topics include the general characteristics of human language;
the description of the languages of Africa; the question of language and
cultural contact in Africa; and the contemporary issues of language and sociopolitics in Africa.
Professor K. Osei-Nyame
The course examines not only the common concerns but also the diverse
traditions, as a result of historical, social, and cultural imperatives, that
have informed the literature produced by African writers. Topics include
colonialism; the question of language; race and identity; nationalism and
literature; modernity; exile; and the politics of gender in the African context.
Art History
Professor B. O'Looney
Re-cycling or re-using buildings is one of the most important subjects in the built environment. It is an area in which there have been some remarkable successes in recent years both in America and in Europe: impressive and much loved public buildings have been given new life by progressive architects and developers, helping ensure that our towns and cities retain their individual character. Unlike international modern buildings, historic buildings are strong markers of the industry, aspirations, local materials and resources of a particular place. Recycling old buildings is crucial so our architectural and social history can be read in the townscape that surrounds us.
A course about recycling old buildings presents an opportunity to explore some basic themes in the built environment – architecture history, environmental issues and the rise of the conservation movement in the 19th and 20th centuries. Buildings are responsible for 50% of our carbon emissions each year, and more than half of a building’s energy footprint is expended in the relatively short spell of its construction. Re-using our redundant historic architecture for new purposes has obvious positive benefits for the planet. Equally, upgrading historic buildings in use, like our housing stock, is environmentally smarter that demolishing parts of our cities and starting again with new structures.
The locations and nature of industrial production has changed across the world. Most western cities have a surfeit of industrial spaces and buildings lying empty, often in their centres. This course will first cover the story of the development of industrial architecture from the 18th century onwards and look at how these robust, proud and often highly decorative structures can accommodate new uses. Based in London, we will have the opportunity to visit a number of key examples of re-use where we can see first-hand how industrial history, modern technology and the changing use of our city centres combine to form this essential story in contemporary urbanism.
Professor M. Douglas-Scott
A survey of British painting, sculpture and architecture of the 17th through 20th centuries. Museums, galleries, churches, palaces and stately homes in and around London will be visited to examine and critique major works.
Professor G. Stamp
British architecture is studied, from the Roman remains to the Post-Modern ITV Studios in London. Architecture, urban systems, preservation, and planning issues will be studied. While examining the past and present, the future of architecture will also be explored with an emphasis on the importance of renovating and refurbishing old buildings. There will be site visits in and around the City.
Professor E. Diestelkamp
London, like New York is a rich and complicated city. Unlike New York however, it has been continuously occupied for just under 2000 years. Almost every epoch of London’s history can be detected in the city’s architecture and distinctive streetscape.
This course is designed to work in three ways. Firstly it is an opportunity to learn about London’s architecture and art by physically exploring it. Secondly this class is an introduction to sketching and keeping a travel notebook, a basic and useful skill that any liberal arts student should have an experience of. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, this course teaches how to ‘read’ a town or city. The ability to visually make sense of European built-environment should really help in understanding the architecture of New York City and, of course, town and cities throughout the United States, and anywhere else.
Professor J. Beckett
London is the center of the British art world. This course will examine painting and sculpture of the 20th century with an emphasis on work after World War II. Recent art in Britain will be studied with trips to the museums, galleries and installations of significant new work. The format of the course will stress active visits to collections. Artists likely to be included are Henry Moore, Ben Nicholson, Lucien Freud, Francis Bacon, Anthony Caro, Richard Hamilton, David Hockney, Gilbert and George, Damien Hirst, and Rachel Whiteread.
Professor M. Douglas-Scott
London has some of the richest collections of renaissance art in the world. Students in this course will be brought into direct contact with a large variety of artefacts to be found in museums and galleries such as the National Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the British Museum as well as the British Library. Works by Van Eyck, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Durer and Holbein will be examined alongside those of less well-known artists. Rather than provide a standard chronological narrative of European Art History c. 1400- c. 1600, focus will be placed on subject areas such as the altarpiece and the private devotional image, the renaissance portrait, graphic practices, print culture, the materials and functions of sculpture, myth and allegory, the cabinet of curiosities, the concept of the ‘Renaissance’ itself. These topics will not be organised around traditional national or regional ‘schools’ considered in isolation from one another but instead interconnections will be explored between the development of different types, technical processes and cultural practices across the Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy. A special case will be made of the English Renaissance, in order to place it within the wider European context through additional visits to Westminster Abbey and Hampton Court.
Biology
Professor V. Wells
Prerequisite: High School Chemistry
Students registering for this course must also register for the Laboratory section
Introductory course mainly for science majors designed to
acquaint the student with the fundamental principles and processes
of biological systems. Subjects include the basics of chemistry
pertinent to biology, biochemistry and cell biology, genetics and
molecular biology, anatomy and physiology, neurobiology, ecology,
population genetics, and history and classification of life forms
and evolution.
Professor V. Wells
Taken in conjunction with the Principles of Biology I lecture.
Laboratory exercises illustrate the basics of experimental biology, molecular
biology, and biochemistry as well as the diversity of life forms and organ
systems.
Business (Leonard N. Stern School of Business)
Prof. L. Mistelis & Prof. A. Raymond
Every professional business person must be aware of how legal systems work and effect business decisions. Furthermore, the interaction between Law and Business is multidimensional involving international, ethical, and technological considerations. In this course, students examine how key areas of business law, including contracts, torts, and business organizations, influence the structure of domestic and international business relationships. Students actively participate in legal studies designed to enhance business skills such as analytical thinking, written communication, oral presentation, conflict resolution, and team work problem-solving.
Professor D. Nitzsche
Prerequisites: C22.0103, V31.0002 or V31.0004, C10.0001 (corequisite), and sophomore standing.
A rigorous course developing the basic concepts and tools of modern finance. Basic concepts of return and risk are explored in detail with a view to understanding how financial markets work and how different kinds of financial instruments are valued. These instruments, including equities, fixed income securities, options, and other derivative securities become vehicles for exploring various financial markets and the utilization of these markets by managers in different kinds of financial institutions to enhance return and manage risk. The course includes a segment on the use and application of computer-based quantitative technology for financial modeling purposes.
Professor D. Bourne
Investigates the nature, functions, and responsibilities of the management of organizations. Develops an analytical approach to the identification, structuring, analysis, and solution of organizational problems. Introduces the student to organizational policies and structures, functional areas, and production processes (including resource allocation, measurement and evaluation, and control), leadership style, and organizational adaptation and evolution. Teaching methodologies include lectures, case analysis, and class discussion.
Professors M. Cohen & V. Mitchell
This course carries an additional fee of £20 to cover the cost of course materials.
Evaluates, from the management point of view, marketing as a system for the satisfaction of human wants and as a catalyst of business activity. Deals with the subject at all levels from producer to consumer and emphasizes the planning required for the efficient use of marketing tools in the development and expansion of markets. Concentrates on the principles, functions, and tools of marketing, including quantitative methods. Utilizes cases and projects to develop a problem-solving ability in dealing with specific areas.
Professor J. Beasley
Designed to give students a better understanding of how firms can gain competitive advantage from their operations function. Typically this requires the firm to achieve, at a minimum, cost, quality and ecological parity; responsiveness and adaptability to customer needs and desires; rapid time to market; process technology leadership; and sufficient and responsive capacity. A problem-solving framework is developed that enables students to undertake managerial and technical analysis that should result in the desired competitive advantage. Both service and manufacturing case examples are utilized.
Professor D Edelshain
The class focuses on the nature of financial management from a number of
perspectives including the national, the corporate and the individual, but
particularly the corporate. You will become familiar with the financial system,
including that relating to banking, though there will be little overlap with
courses that deal with the functioning of financial markets. The importance of
behavioural finance will also be stressed during the course.
Chemistry
Professor D. Urch
Prerequisite: V25.0102 College Chemistry II or its equivalent
Students registering for this course must also register for the Laboratory section
An introduction to the chemistry of organic compounds, the course is
presented in the functional group framework incorporating reaction mechanisms.
Topics include structure and bonding of organic materials, nomenclature,
conformational analysis, stereochemistry, reactions of aliphatic and aromatic
hydrocarbons, and spectroscopy (IR, NMR, UV/visible, and mass spectroscopy).
Professor D. Urch
Prerequisite: V25.0104 College Chemistry II or its equivalent
Taken in conjuction with Organic Chemistry I Lecture
Provides training in the basic techniques of the
organic chemistry laboratory, including crystallization, distillation,
extraction, and other separation techniques such as column chromatography and
gas chromatography. Experiments involving the synthesis of organic compounds
are introduced as well as those performing qualitative organic analysis.
Cinema Studies (TISCH School of the Arts)
Prof. P. Drummond
Students registering for this class must also register for the Screenings section.
This course carries an additional fee of £20 to cover the cost of course materials.
This course provides an exciting and challenging introduction to British
Cinema, studying the rich and varied relationships between the society and
its films. It is organised in four main parts, offering an Introduction to
Film Studies; a look at National Identity and the Cinema in relation to
England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole; case studies in
key authors Mike Leigh and Ken Loach; and approaches to narrative and genre.
Classes are accompanied by a weekly film screening in our own private cinema
at the British Film Institute just across the Square.
Prof. P. Drummond
Students registering for this class must also register for the Lecture section.
Communications Studies (The Steinhardt School)
Professor D. Thussu
A review of theories and evidence of cultural and political transformations in culture underway in the era of media proliferation, multinational conglomerates, and cyberspace. The role of international flows and national differences.
Creative Writing
Professor E. Sweeney
Beginning workshop in creative writing designed to explore and refine the
student’s individual writing interests. This course may include fiction and/or
poetry and creative non-fiction.
Dramatic Literature
Professor J. Pascal
This course carries an additional fee of £125 (exact amount subject to change) to cover the cost of theatre tickets. Students registering for this course must also register for the theatre visits section.
The course examines radical modern drama in Britain today. It comprises theatre visits to fringe venues to discuss current movements in avant-garde theatre. We will also explore the effect of war, major art movements, dance and music on theatre in Britain and mainland Europe. Through the examination of Expressionism, Surrealism, Political Theatre in the US, the Soviet Union, Germany and Britain. Our work is to chart the major waves which have influenced the modern stage. As well as theatre visits, we will look at DVDs of films which use theatre techniques to deepen understanding of crossover influences. For example we will look at British music-hall and how theatre and film cross-over with the use of dramatic techniques. We will look at theatre satire and how it was used by such artists as Charlie Chaplin to lampoon fascism in the Great Dictator and by Joan Littlewood with Oh What A Lovely War! We will also look at Ivan Szabo’s Mephisto to debate the moral dilemma of the artist in Nazi Germany.
Assessment will be by five essays on theatre and films we have seen together with issues we have discussed plus the writing of a small play. Intended for students of theater, directing and/or playwriting.
Professor J. Pascal
This course carries an additional fee of £125 (exact amount subject to change) to cover the cost of theatre tickets. Students registering for this course must also register for the lecture section.
Professor N. Jones
Cross-listed with V41.9133 (English)
Students registering for this course must also register for the theatre visits section.
This course carries an additional fee of £230 to cover the cost of theatre tickets.
This course, designed to introduce students to the range of 20th-century drama staged in the contemporary London theater scene, presents a wide variety of British, American, and multicultural works currently playing. Students analyze the history of the modern theatre in London. Emphasis is placed on comparative interpretation of texts and the dramatic performances of works.
Professor N. Jones
Cross-listed with V41.9133 (English)
Students registering for this course must also register for the Lecture section.
Professor M. Hattaway
Cross-listed with V41.9412 (English)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Theatre Visits section.
This course carries an additional fee of £110 to cover the cost of theatre tickets.
This course provides an introduction to the dramatic work of Shakespeare and his
contemporaries. Students read and attend representative comedies, tragedies, and
histories, their selection to be determined by the plays actually in production
in and around London, particularly at the Barbican, New Globe, and Stratford to
which at least one excursion will be made. Special attention will be given to
the playhouses and the influence they had on the art of the theatre, actors'
companies, and modes of production and performance. Lectures and discussions
will focus on the aesthetic quality of the plays, their relationship with the
audiences (then and now), the application of the diverse attitudes and
assumptions of modern critical theory to the Elizabethan stage, the contrasting
structures of Shakespearean and non-Shakespearean drama, the new emphasis on
selfhood and individuality, and the major themes of hierarchy, order, and
justice, the conflict of Nature and Fortune, the role of Providence, the ideals
of love, and the norms of social accord. Opportunities will be given to
investigate the interrelations of the plays and other arts, including film,
opera, and ballet.
Professor M. Hattaway
Cross-listed with V41.9412 (English)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Lecture section.
Prof. P. Drummond
Cross-listed with H36.0012 (Cinema Studies, Tisch)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Screenings section.
This course carries an additional fee of £20 to cover the cost of course materials.
This course provides an exciting and challenging introduction to British
Cinema, studying the rich and varied relationships between the society and
its films. It is organised in four main parts, offering an Introduction to
Film Studies; a look at National Identity and the Cinema in relation to
England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole; case studies in
key authors Mike Leigh and Ken Loach; and approaches to narrative and genre.
Classes are accompanied by a weekly film screening in our own private cinema
at the British Film Institute just across the Square.
Prof. P. Drummond
Cross-listed with H36.0012 (Cinema Studies, Tisch)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Lecture section.
Economics
Professor Verry
Identical to C31.0010 Prerequisites: V31.0002 and V63.0121 (Calculus I).
Examines the manner in which producers, consumers, and resource owners acting through the market determine the prices and output of goods, the allocation of productive resources, and the functional distribution of incomes. The price system is seen as a network of interrelated decisions, with the market process serving to communicate information to decision makers.
Professor Hannah
Identical to C31.0012 Prerequisites: V31.0001, V31.0002, and V63.0121.
Study of aggregate economic analysis with special attention paid to the determination of the level of income, employment, and inflation. Critically examines both the theories and the policies associated with them.
Professor Gareth Myles
The course is designed to explore global policy issues using the tools of
economic analysis. The course involves a combination of lectures, exercises
classes, and student presentations. Some of the material is quantitative but the
focus is on comprehension not calculation.
Professor McMahon
Prerequisite: V31.0001, Economic Principles or V31.0005, Introduction to Economic Analysis
Money supply; banking as an industry; banks as suppliers of money; the Federal Reserve System and monetary control; monetary theory; and contemporary monetary policy issues. By the end of this course, students should be able to understand the main elements of the financial system; outline and give a detailed justification of the main goals of monetary policy; assess the relative merits of different countries' monetary policy institutions; critically discuss a whole range of current monetary and economic issues; understand the foundations of European Monetary Union and its current challenges.
Professor TBA
Prerequisite: V31.0001, Economic Principles and V31.0002, Economic Principles II
This course focuses on international trade in goods, services, and capital. It serves as an introduction to international economic issues and as preparation for the department’s more advanced course in V31.0324. The issues discussed include gains from trade and their distribution; analysis of protectionism; strategic trade barriers; the trade deficit; exchange rate determination and government intervention in foreign exchange markets.
English
Professor C. Bloom
This course cannot be taken for English major credit.
On Christmas Day, 1764 Horace Walpole published The Castle of Otranto, the very first Gothic novel. The Gothic flourished especially in the nineteenth century, creating a whole vocabulary of new creatures and landscapes and two of the great books of the genre: Frankenstein And Dracula. This course concentrates on the great works of Gothic which are central to an understanding of literature, film, early Romanticism and popular culture. Specialising on the works of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries we will also explore how those texts were reinvented for film and what new elements were added in the twentieth century.
Using a selection of texts and using a variety of approaches from the historical to the post modern and the feminist to queer theory we will explore the multifarious levels of meaning in Gothic texts as well as looking at narrative strategies and a variety of themes including the political and revolutionary, the erotic and the exotic, the Promethian and the undead, the role of religion, the role of women, the Wandering Jew and the ‘mock’ medieval.
Professor Leya Landau
This course will study a variety of texts as works written at particular times in the history of London, and as each evoking particular physical, familial, cultural, and social worlds. While it is not implied that London be seen as representative of British culture, the texts will be approached in their relation to issues such the definition of the modern metropolis as a labyrinthine city of Babylon, the influence of metropolitan culture on Modernism and Modernity, assimilation versusmulticulturalism, immigration, and the effects of new modern spaces on individuals.
Professor N. Jones
Cross-listed with V30.9133 (Dramatic Literature)
Students registering for this course must also register for the theatre visits section.
This course carries an additional fee of £230 to cover the cost of theatre tickets.
This course, designed to introduce students to the range of 20th-century drama staged in the contemporary London theater scene, presents a wide variety of British, American, and multicultural works currently playing. Students analyze the history of the modern theatre in London. Emphasis is placed on comparative interpretation of texts and the dramatic performances of works.
Professor N. Jones
Cross-listed with V30.9133 (Dramatic Literature)
Students registering for this course must also register for the Lecture section.
Professor M. Ferguson
This course will examine the major British novels of the 19th Century in the
context of their setting in London and British culture. The course will include
visits to London sites presented in the works that will be read. Readings
include such major novelists as Dickens, Thackeray, Wilde, Woolf, and others.
Professor M. Hattaway
Cross-listed with V30.9412 (Dramatic Literature)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Theatre Visits section.
This course carries an additional fee of £110 to cover the cost of theatre tickets.
This course provides an introduction to the dramatic work of Shakespeare and his
contemporaries. Students read and attend representative comedies, tragedies, and
histories, their selection to be determined by the plays actually in production
in and around London, particularly at the Barbican, New Globe, and Stratford to
which at least one excursion will be made. Special attention will be given to
the playhouses and the influence they had on the art of the theatre, actors'
companies, and modes of production and performance. Lectures and discussions
will focus on the aesthetic quality of the plays, their relationship with the
audiences (then and now), the application of the diverse attitudes and
assumptions of modern critical theory to the Elizabethan stage, the contrasting
structures of Shakespearean and non-Shakespearean drama, the new emphasis on
selfhood and individuality, and the major themes of hierarchy, order, and
justice, the conflict of Nature and Fortune, the role of Providence, the ideals
of love, and the norms of social accord. Opportunities will be given to
investigate the interrelations of the plays and other arts, including film,
opera, and ballet.
Professor M. Hattaway
Cross-listed with V30.9412 (Dramatic Literature)
Students registering for this class must also register for the Lecture section.
European Studies
Professor H. Yanacopolus
This course has been cancelled for Fall 2009
This course counts for the social science distribution requirement for European Studies Majors/Minor. It also counts toward the Regional Specialization requirement of the International Relations Major, Dept of Politics.This course does not count for regular Politics major/minor credit.
This course explores the unique social space occupied by Civil Society in Europe, and the role of civil society organizations in governance – the process by which governments and non-governmental groups contend to steer, control and influence issues at all levels of politics. Such groups include NGOs, charities, community and faith groups, social movements and trade unions and are generally non-profit groups working to benefit the marginalized, socially excluded and poor. The course traces the roots of the concept of civil society over two centuries of European political philosophy, and analyzes its crucial role in the fundamental changes sweeping contemporary Europe – from the key role of civil society organizations in the democratic transformations of eastern and central European states over the past quarter century, to their role in the increasingly complex (social, economic, ethnic, national, regional) dynamics of western Europe and the European Union.
Gallatin School of Individualized Study
Professor D. Feldman
Cross listed with V93.9452 (Sociology) and V57.9452 (History)
To provide an understanding of the main immigration trends in Britain, France and Germany since 1850 To provide an understanding of the problems attending the social and political integration of immigrants in contemporary Western Europe To compare the experience and understanding of immigration in Europe with the experience and understanding of immigration in the United States To examine the ways in which the memory of immigration is represented in literature and contemporary culture.
History
Professor O'Hara
This course has been cancelled for Fall 2009
This lecture course provides a general history of Britain from the later eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries. It begins with the rise of liberal political ideas, notably the development of utilitarianism and political economy. In the light of this, we explore a number of social and cultural themes in the period 1800-1850, including urbanization, poverty, welfare, the Irish famine, and public health, all of which can be seen as having a pronounced political dimension. Following this, we will study the 'high' Victorian period, and examine the culture of respectability and self-help, the expansion of the British Empire, changing attitudes to gender, and the impact of Darwinian thinking on British society. We conclude by looking at the late Victorian and early Edwardian period in the light of these imperial, racial and sexual anxieties.
Professor D. Judd
Exploration and analysis of the political, social, and economic development of
African nations south of the Zambezi River from 1700 to the present. Focuses on
South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Mozambique.
Professor S. Inwood
The course examines the growth and importance of London from the Roman invasion of 43 AD to the present day. Students will learn about London's changing economic and political role, and will understand how London grew to dominate the commerce, industry and culture of England. They will find out how London became the biggest city the world has ever known, and how it coped (or failed to cope) with the social and environmental problems created by its enormous size. Each week (unless there is a field trip) there will be a lecture and a discussion in which you will be able to present ideas and information gathered from lectures and from your weekly reading. There will also be four walking tours of parts of London which relate to the period we are studying at a particular time.
Professor A. Crozier
Covers the impact of World War II, the postwar division of Europe, the onset of the cold war, the economic recovery and transformation of Western Europe, Stalinism in Eastern Europe, the 1960s and events of 1968, the origins and development of the European community, and the cultural and intellectual life of European nations in this period. Ends with a discussion of the Eastern European revolutions of 1989 and their significance, together with the reunification of Germany, for the future of the continent.
Professor D. Feldman
Cross listed with V93.9452 (Sociology) and K20.9101 (Gallatin)
To provide an understanding of the main immigration trends in Britain, France and Germany since 1850 To provide an understanding of the problems attending the social and political integration of immigrants in contemporary Western Europe To compare the experience and understanding of immigration in Europe with the experience and understanding of immigration in the United States To examine the ways in which the memory of immigration is represented in literature and contemporary culture.
Honors
Professor E. Thielemann
Cross-listed with V53.9995 (Politics)
This is an Honors Course. Students wishing to take this course must have a GPA of 3.65 or higher.
This course critically investigates European integration, the operation of the EU as a political system and European policies. The course explores the origins, development, institutions, major policies, policy-making, current problems and matters of controversy of the European Community / Union. The major approaches applied to explain integration as well as the complex operation of the EU as a political system are described and discussed. The political and economic logic behind different national perspectives on European integration are examined.
Journalism & Mass Communication
Professor M. Wolf
Note: Students in this course must also register for the Methods and Practice Theatre visit on Thursday evenings.
This course carries an additional fee of £150 to cover the cost of theatre tickets. Students should also be prepared to pay up to £150 for extra tickets while in London as part of the Methods & Practice course.
Using the cultural life of London as its focus, this course aims to enable students to report on the diversity of cultural and artistic activity in the British capital in eight main areas—film, photography, literature, architecture, music, visual arts, travel, and London in literature. Several forms and techniques will be explored through lecture, discussion and assignments, including: news reports, interviews, reviews (film, literature, theater), feature stories, essays, and commentaries. During the course, students will learn not only about London's cultural landscape but they will be encouraged to examine it in various journalistic and literary forms. Weekly theatre visits are a key component of this course.
Professor M. Wolf
Note: Students in this course must also register for the Methods and Practice: Reporting the Arts Lecture.
Professor T. Fenton
Designed to interrogate the impact of various forms of media on "society" and
various notions of society on "media." Students consider conventional and
unconventional media in Britain—from the London Times to movies to fashion
magazines—in an effort to interpret British culture. The key question is not "Is
this text 'good'?" but "What does this text mean?"
Law & Society
Professor G. Slapper
This course has been cancelled for Fall 2009
Cross-listed with V53.9335 (Politics)
Critically examines the relationship between law and political and social movements such as the civil rights movement, the women's movement, and the labor and environmental movements. Emphasis on law as a political process and legal remedies for racial and gender discrimination and class action torts. Deals with the politics of rights and the limits and possibilities of law as a process for social change.
Mathematics
Professor A. Bijura
Prerequisite: a grade of C or better in V63.0121 or equivalent.
Systems of linear equations. Gaussian elimination, matrices, determinants, and
Cramer’s rule. Vectors, vector spaces, basis and dimension, linear
transformations. Eigenvalues, eigenvectors, quadratic forms.
Professor D. Larman
Prerequisite: V63.0122, V63.0123, and V63.0124 or equivalent.
First- and second-order equations. Series solutions. Laplace transforms.
Introduction to partial differential equations and Fourier series.
Professor D. Larman
An introduction to the mathematical treatment of random phenomena occurring in the natural, physical, and social sciences. Axioms of mathematical probability, combinatorial analysis, binomial distribution, Poisson and normal approximation, random variables and probability distributions, generating functions, Markov chains applications.
Metropolitan Studies
Professor M. Hrebeniak
Drawing upon literature, film and music, this interdisciplinary course draws a partial but energetic map of London as its social frontiers (sexual, racial, financial, moral) shift inside a major juncture of the City’s history. It appraises London as a cultural imagination of synthesis: an act of mind as well as of physical geometry; a space of simultaneities, convergences, encounters which constantly fragment, disperse and mesh into new coherences. As preparation, we will address how London has traditionally been experienced and configured in the work of Pepys, Blake, Dickens, Dore and de Quincy via fusions of the Romantic and Gothic, in order to describe and transform its space. The modern era will see an engagement with projections from the likes of Debord, Benjamin, MacInnes, Pinter, Antonioni and Sinclair, through the sensitising of the pedestrian consciousness to the geographical terrain and its unstable signs, symbols, and mythologies. The course also considers the local effects of international countercultures, contemporary re-presentations and dramatizations of ancient continuties, new manifestations of the barbarian outlaw, the cultural politics of a new aristocracy of power.
Professor Y. Evans
An urban centre for nearly two millennia, London has both shaped and been shaped by processes stretching over ever widening geographical scales, to claim its place within a select network of cities that are said to command contemporary globalisation. This course explores London’s evolving global reach, examining its role in key economic, social, political, cultural and spatial processes and identifying the effects that these have in turn had in its own urban life and landscape. The course briefly documents London’s establishment as an outpost of the Roman Empire in early history to its rise as the politico-administrative heart of the British Empire, to focus on London’s emergence as a global city. Largely oriented by the work of Human Geography scholars, the course examines the unravelling of London’s global connections through concepts such as urban space and place, globalisation, spatial division of labour, networks and flows, migration, transnationalism and multiculturalism.
The course is based on a mix of lectures and student-led seminars, and also includes a guided city walk and a museum visit. Lectures by the course convenor address the key themes of the weekly programme. Students are required to read designated texts for the week ahead. In seminars, students present and discuss their findings from different learning activities (readings, field walk, museum visit, their personal experience of London, lectures). Students are expected to participate actively in learning activities, especially seminars, and their participation constitutes one assessment component.
Middle Eastern Studies
Professor H. M. Segal
Cross-listed with V53.9540 (Politics)
Historical-political background of the Middle East and its contemporary social and political problems, including the impact of the West; religious and liberal reactions; conflict of nationalisms (Arab, Iranian, Turkish, and Zionist); and revolutionary socialism. Specific social, political, and economic problems—using a few selected countries for comparison and analysis—including the role of the military, the intelligentsia, the religious classes, the legitimation of power, urban-rural cleavages, bureaucracy, and political parties.
Philosophy
Professor A. Price
Examines fundamental questions of moral philosophy. What are our most basic values and which of them are specifically moral values? What are the ethical principles, if any, by which we should judge our actions, ourselves, and our lives?
Physics
Professor K. Whitehead
Students registering for this course must also register for the Laboratory and Recitation Sections
This course begins a two-semester introduction to physics (lecture and laboratory-recitation) intended primarily for preprofessional students and for those majoring in a science other than physics. Topics include kinematics and dynamics of particles; momentum, work, and energy; gravitation; circular, angular, and harmonic motion; mechanical and thermal properties of solids, liquids, and gases; heat and thermodynamics.
Professor G. Wilson
Taken in Conjunction with the General Physics I lecture and recitation.
Professor S. Zochowksi
Taken in Conjunction with the General Physics I Lecture and Lab.
Politics
Professor S. Kelly
Introduction to the politics and society of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Traces the political and social development of the historic countries of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales; the growth of British hegemony and imperialism; the politics of decline and decay; and the promise of rebirth. Studies contemporary political institutions and processes that have undergone massive transformation over the past 50 years. Examines the continuing conflict and terrorism in Northern Ireland and dynamics of change in the Thatcher era and beyond.
Professor A. Fagan
Introduction to the politics of Eastern and Central European countries. Considers political, social, and economic developments in these countries during the post-Versailles period. Subjects include the communist takeover at the end of World War II, uprising during the de-Stalinization era, and the collapse of communism at the end of the 1980s. Also deals with contemporary issues, including the process of democratization.
Professor H. Segal
Cross-listed with V77.0750 (Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies)
Historical-political background of the Middle East and its contemporary social and political problems, including the impact of the West; religious and liberal reactions; conflict of nationalisms (Arab, Iranian, Turkish, and Zionist); and revolutionary socialism. Specific social, political, and economic problems—using a few selected countries for comparison and analysis—including the role of the military, the intelligentsia, the religious classes, the legitimation of power, urban-rural cleavages, bureaucracy, and political parties.
Professor E. Thielemann
Cross-listed with V28.9502 (Honors)
This is an Honors Course. Students wishing to take this course must have a GPA of 3.65 or higher.
This course critically investigates European integration, the operation of the EU as a political system and European policies. The course explores the origins, development, institutions, major policies, policy-making, current problems and matters of controversy of the European Community / Union. The major approaches applied to explain integration as well as the complex operation of the EU as a political system are described and discussed. The political and economic logic behind different national perspectives on European integration are examined.
Professor G. Slapper
This course has been cancelled for Fall 2009
Cross-listed with V62.9335 (Law & Society)
Critically examines the relationship between law and political and social movements such as the civil rights movement, the women's movement, and the labor and environmental movements. Emphasis on law as a political process and legal remedies for racial and gender discrimination and class action torts. Deals with the politics of rights and the limits and possibilities of law as a process for social change.
Psychology
Professor J. De Fockert
Prerequisite: Students should already have taken Introduction to Psychology.
Introduction to theories and research in some major areas of cognitive psychology, including human memory, attention, language production and comprehension, thinking and reasoning.
Professor T. Chamorro-Premuzic
Introduction to theories and research about the social behavior of individuals, such as perception of others and the self, attraction, affiliation, altruism and helping, aggression, moral thought and action, attitudes, influence, conformity, social exchange and bargaining, group decision making, leadership and power, and environmental psychology.
Professor N. Kirkham
Prerequisite: Students should already have taken Introduction to Psychology.
Introduction and overview of theoretical issues and selected research in developmental psychology. Focus on infancy through adolescence. Lectures interweave theory, methods, and findings about how we develop as perceiving, thinking, and feeling beings.
Professor K. Lowenthal
The kinds, dynamics, causes, and treatment of psychopathology. Topics include early concepts of abnormal behavior; affective disorders, anxiety disorders, psychosis, and personality disorders; the nature and effectiveness of traditional and modern methods of psychotherapy; and viewpoints of major psychologists past and present.
Social and Cultural Analysis
Additional Africana studies courses available through the School of Oriental and Africana Studies, University of London. To jump to this section, please click here.
Professor T. Bressey
Introduces students to the tools of cultural criticism and theory, with
particular emphasis on black culture, urban environment, and black people’s
relationships to a variety of social and cultural institutions and practices.
The latter may include the mass media, class and poverty, the police, urban
development, education, music, art, and sports.
Professor Primorac
Deals with the history of Pan-Africanism and its impact on the modern world. Focuses on the major themes of Pan-Africanism, including those of African unity, black rebellion against colonialism and racism, black diaspora, and black culture. Also considers the relations between Pan-Africanism and such movements as nationalism, Marxism, and Afrocentricity.
Professor M. Hrebeniak
Drawing upon literature, film and music, this interdisciplinary course draws a partial but energetic map of London as its social frontiers (sexual, racial, financial, moral) shift inside a major juncture of the City’s history. It appraises London as a cultural imagination of synthesis: an act of mind as well as of physical geometry; a space of simultaneities, convergences, encounters which constantly fragment, disperse and mesh into new coherences. As preparation, we will address how London has traditionally been experienced and configured in the work of Pepys, Blake, Dickens, Dore and de Quincy via fusions of the Romantic and Gothic, in order to describe and transform its space. The modern era will see an engagement with projections from the likes of Debord, Benjamin, MacInnes, Pinter, Antonioni and Sinclair, through the sensitising of the pedestrian consciousness to the geographical terrain and its unstable signs, symbols, and mythologies. The course also considers the local effects of international countercultures, contemporary re-presentations and dramatizations of ancient continuties, new manifestations of the barbarian outlaw, the cultural politics of a new aristocracy of power.
Professor Y. Evans
London’s significance as an urban center rests on its place within a worldwide network of cities and nation-states. In this course, we investigate London’s evolving transnational connections by asking the questions: what role has London played in global economic, cultural and political processes? How have these processes in turn shaped the social organization, everyday life, and spatial fabric of the city? This course addresses these questions in both historical and contemporary contexts. Specifically, we examine London’s evolving global connections and their inscription into the city’s social, economic, political, cultural, and spatial landscapes. Drawing upon a diverse range of social scientific methods, from ethnography to political economy and sociospatial analysis, the course explores a range of substantive topics that include (a) the historical constitution of London as an imperial center; (b) the legacies of Empire and colonialism within London’s social fabric and built environment; (c) the political economy of urban restructuring under deindustrialization and reindustrialization; (d) London’s interconnections with other major contemporary cities, such as New York and Tokyo, and other European cities; (e) international migration flows into and out of London and their impact upon the city’s social fabric and cultural life; (f) the city’s role as a site for the production of new, globally influenced and circulating cultural forms in music, the arts and literature.
Sociology
Professor C. Bloom and others
Required of all students enrolled at NYU in London. Permission of the director required for exemption; in order to be exempt, students must register for at least 17 credits without ICBPC. Please contact david.ruben@nyu.ac.uk if you qualify.
No grade. Pass/Fail only.
This course will introduce students to the context of life in modern Britain through a series of talks by prominent figures in British society. The main objectives of the course are to give students access to those at the top of British politics and culture; to make students aware of the unique characteristics of British culture and to examine the reasons for the far-reaching changes in British society over the last thirty or forty years. It is important for NYU undergraduates who are studying abroad to study the socio-political context of that country as part of their experience abroad. This course will begin to explore important social and political issues that Britain has handled differently than the United States.
Professor D. Feldman
Cross listed with K20.9101 (Gallatin) and V57.9452 (History)
To provide an understanding of the main immigration trends in Britain, France and Germany since 1850 To provide an understanding of the problems attending the social and political integration of immigrants in contemporary Western Europe To compare the experience and understanding of immigration in Europe with the experience and understanding of immigration in the United States To examine the ways in which the memory of immigration is represented in literature and contemporary culture.
