STS.040 A Global History of Commodities
CI-H | HASS-H | 3-0-9
Spring 2024: Wed/Fri 9-10:30am
Instructor: Professor Kate Brown
Do you want to know why the dietary proteins in most Americans’ bodies come from corn? Did you ever wonder about how the banana in your breakfast bowl got there—why you are eating the Cavendish banana and not another variety? Have you ever thought about why people with less money live in one part of the city and wealthy people in another part of town? If so, this course might be for you.
In this course, students will redesign the board game Monopoly to correspond to the way people really did buy and sell real estate in the past. Game day will determine who gets to buy property and where! The main assignment for the course will be to produce a short film that traces the history of one commodity in one country. The course ends with a film festival showcasing the students’ work.