Spring 2024 Courses
SOST 101-001 – TTh 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Dr. Matthew Simmons)
The Literary South
This course will introduce students to important literary texts of the American South,
ranging from European contact through the 21st century. We will also emphasize the
interplay of Southern literary output with and in reaction to important historical
and political trends. Within the Carolina Core, this course meets the Aesthetic and
Interpretative Understanding learning outcome in that students will be able to interpret
the literature of the American South, which will help them understand the human condition
as it is expressed through literary output.
CAROLINA CORE AIU CREDIT
SOST 201-001 - TTh 1:15-2:30PM (Instructor: Dr. Matthew Simmons)
Intro to Southern Studies: 1580-1900
SOST201 is an interdisciplinary exploration of the development of the American South as a distinctive sociocultural, political, and economic region from the days of Spanish colonial exploration of La Florida through the end of the Confederate States of America. While the course title suggests the years 1580 and 1900 as our start and end, the course will actually be shifted back about forty years before those dates—from the Hernando de Soto’s exploration of what is now the South (1539-1542) to the South’s 1865 defeat in the US Civil War. The course will emphasis the interconnected development of the South’s economics, demographics, politics, and cultural identity(-ies) throughout the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. As a part of our tracing these developments, we will situate the South as a global phenomenon, exploring the region’s relationship with the rest of America, the Caribbean, Latin America, west Africa, and Europe. We will look at the South through history, literature, political theory, and economics to understand how the region came to occupy a mythological place in the American mind. Finally, we will use our reflections on the preceding three centuries to ask if the South’s 1860-65 experiment in secession and independence was a tragic inevitability, an ignominious choice, or something else. Both because of South Carolina’s major role in the development of the South and the fact that we are at the University of South Carolina, we will give special attention to our state throughout the course.
CAROLINA CORE GHS CREDIT
SOST 202-001 – MW 2:20-3:35PM (Instructor Dr. Emily Allen)
SOST 202-002 – MW 3:55-5:10PM (Instructor Dr. Emily Allen)
Intro to Southern Studies: The 20th Century
This course will examine the ideas, political movements, economics, and people that
shaped the South in the 20th century through an interdisciplinary lens.
CAROLINA CORE GLD/GHS CREDIT
SOST 298-001 – TTh 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Dr. Emily Allen)
Topics in the American South: Popular Musics of the US South
An investigation of popular musics in the U.S. South from the nineteenth century to the present day. Various genres will be discussed within their sociocultural contexts, including Southern identities, technology, economics, media, and other factors.
SOST 298-002 – TTh 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Dr. Christine Sixta-Rinehart)
Topics in the American South: Southern Military History
This course covers military activity from 1754 to 1865 and examines military history from the South's perspectives. The course will explore the lived experience of war and the pivotal role of Southern leadership in several United States’ wars.
SOST 405-001 – TTh 8:30-9:45AM (Instructor Dr. Mark Smith)
Topics in Southern Studies: The Old South
This course introduces students to the society, economy, and political culture of the antebellum American South. Southern society is analyzed from the perspectives of masters, slaves, yeomen, and women. The course is divided into six, thematic parts. The first, Introducing and Characterizing the Old South, examines how historians have conceptualized the region and assesses whether it is best described as a premodern or modern society. The second part addresses the Worlds of the Slaveholders. Examined here are slaveholders and their plantations, the construction of the South's defense of slavery, and an assessment of the meaning of southern honor. Part three of the course looks at the Worlds of the Yeomen and Poor Whites. It defines the yeomen, examines yeomen and poor whites on the southern frontier, and considers the sometimes violent nature of their world. Part four of the course analyzes the Worlds of the Slaves. Here, we examine the slave community and slaves' resistance to their enslavement. We also consider the importance of religion to slaves' identity and we look in detail at the operation of the slaves' economies. Section five of the course looks at southern Women's Worlds and considers the plantation mistress and the construction of white and black womanhood. The last section of the course examines Worlds of Trade, Worlds of Markets. In addition to considering the profitability of slavery, this part of the course also looks at the nature of the Old South's slave trade. The course concludes with a brief examination of why and how the South fought the Civil War.
SOST 500-001 – TTh 2:50-4:05PM (Instructor Dr. Mindi Spencer)
SOST 500-J10 – 100% Web Asynchronous (Instructor Dr. Mindi Spencer)
Topics in the American South: Southern Discomfort--Public Health in the American South
The American South possesses a unique health and disease profile that has contributed to the idea of Southern distinctiveness. Throughout history, the South has experienced regional disparities that have largely gone unresolved, even with the public health revolution. The purpose of this 3-credit course is to investigate these topics through lecture, film, and guided readings. Each interdisciplinary lecture will cover a different aspect of health in the South, ranging from an examination of the endemic diseases of the antebellum period to the current HIV/AIDS crisis. We will also spend time discussing the ethical implications of the pellagra and Tuskegee experiments and the lasting impact these experiments had on health-related research.
Winter 2023-24 Course
Winter Session runs from 26 December 2023--15 January 2024. More about the session can be found at the Graduation and Retention Network (GARNET) website.
SOST 500 (Instructor Dr. Ebony Toussaint)
Topics in the American South: History of Health Services in the American South
This course is designed to introduce you to data visualization by “Mapping the South”. This course is designed to enable you to examine healthcare and health services in the American South. You will study health services in the American South including hospitals, healthcare providers, and home/ community health. This includes not only hospitals and healthcare providers, but health insurance as well. You will be able to describe historic diseases and emerging public health challenges. When you complete this course, you will know how to use maps to tell a story, the story of health services in the American South. Storytelling is a powerful way to learn from the past and visualize a better future!
Fall 2023 Courses
SOST 101-001 – TTh 10:05-11:20AM (Instructor Dr. Matthew Simmons)
SOST 101-002 – MW 2:20-3:35PM (Instructor Mr. John Kinard)
The Literary South
This course will introduce students to important literary texts of the American South,
ranging from European contact through the 21st century. We will also emphasize the
interplay of Southern literary output with and in reaction to important historical
and political trends. Within the Carolina Core, this course meets the Aesthetic and
Interpretative Understanding learning outcome in that students will be able to interpret
the literature of the American South, which will help them understand the human condition
as it is expressed through literary output.
CAROLINA CORE AIU CREDIT
SOST 298-001 – TTh 2:50-4:05PM (Instructor Dr. Ebony Toussaint)
Topics in the American South: The Gullah-Geechee Experience
Students will explore the historical, social, and political importance of Gullah Geechee
Culture in the American South through various works by Gullah Geechee artists and
scholars. The purpose of this 3-credit course is to increase awareness about Gullah
Geechee culture. Students will be able to describe who Gullah Geechee people are,
their language, and the many ways they engage in storytelling. Students will examine
educational and cultural preservation activities. Students will critically appraise
different means of Gullah Geechee storytelling: song, art, literature, theater, and
film. This course culminates with a FREE trip to the Penn Center on St. Helena Island.
SOST 201-001 - TTh 1:15-2:30PM (Instructor: Dr. Matthew Simmons)
Intro to Southern Studies: 1580-1900
SOST201 is an interdisciplinary exploration of the development of the American South as a distinctive sociocultural, political, and economic region from the days of Spanish colonial exploration of La Florida through the end of the Confederate States of America. While the course title suggests the years 1580 and 1900 as our start and end, the course will actually be shifted back about forty years before those dates—from the Hernando de Soto’s exploration of what is now the South (1539-1542) to the South’s 1865 defeat in the US Civil War. The course will emphasis the interconnected development of the South’s economics, demographics, politics, and cultural identity(-ies) throughout the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. As a part of our tracing these developments, we will situate the South as a global phenomenon, exploring the region’s relationship with the rest of America, the Caribbean, Latin America, west Africa, and Europe. We will look at the South through history, literature, political theory, and economics to understand how the region came to occupy a mythological place in the American mind. Finally, we will use our reflections on the preceding three centuries to ask if the South’s 1860-65 experiment in secession and independence was a tragic inevitability, an ignominious choice, or something else. Both because of South Carolina’s major role in the development of the South and the fact that we are at the University of South Carolina, we will give special attention to our state throughout the course.
CAROLINA CORE GHS CREDIT
SOST 202-001 – MW 3:55-5:10PM (Instructor Dr. David Marquis)
Intro to Southern Studies: The 20th Century
This course will examine the ideas, political movements, economics, and people that
shaped the South in the 20th century through an interdisciplinary lens.
CAROLINA CORE GLD/GHS CREDIT