SOAN 233 - Sociology of Culture

FDR: Social Sciences (SS4)
Credits: 3

The study of culture can be understood as encompassing an entire way of life for a society. This can include how we think and act, what we believe, what we value, how we see ourselves in relation to others, and how a multiplicity of symbols and sign systems structure our everyday lives. This course will pursue a sociological investigation of what “culture” is, and how it manifests itself as the production of shared meaning and collective knowledge. With attention to the unique experiences and perspectives specific to Gen-Z, this hybrid lecture/seminar course will investigate the forces that organize 21st century life: how the economy, politics and laws, communication technology and media, and the evolving status of various social institutions broadly construct the reality of lived experience. In this course students will engage with theoretical and empirical scholarship, discussion and writing assignments, as well as audio/visual news and social media content with the aim of learning to identify, decode, and interpret culture and the structural mechanisms that facilitate its production.