Imagining the End: Neoliberalism and the Arts
AMST 244Z
Winter 2026
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
HIST 244Z, LAST 244Z |
Many of us now like to paraphrase the philosopher Frederic Jameson when he argued that it has become "easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism." As the recent deluge of post-apocalyptic movies and documentaries about melting glaciers makes clear, this is an accurate statement. Yet while most of us imagine how neoliberal capitalism will bring about the end of the world, others try to imagine the end of the status quo. Since neoliberalism became the global hegemonic system, artists of all kinds have been imagining ways we can survive and (perhaps) overcome it: think about the songs of Tracy Chapman or Residente, the street art of Keith Haring or Lady Pink, the movies of Chloe Zhao or Alejandro González Iñárritu, or the writings of Ursula Le Guin or Roberto Bolaño. This course explores how engaged art from the 1970s to the present has responded to -- and fought against -- neoliberal hegemony in the United States, Latin America, and beyond. Through the arts, we will explore the nightmares of global collapse and the dreams of a new egalitarian and sustainable society. In addition to analyzing movies, poems, short stories, songs, and street art, we will read theoretical and historical studies that help us understand how neoliberalism shapes contemporary culture and makes art into one of the few areas in which dissent can be expressed. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS AMST |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Student Option |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (American Studies) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
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Mark Fisher, CAPITALIST REALISM; Garry Gerstle, THE RISE AND FALL OF NEOLIBERALISM; Alma Guillermoprieto, THE HEART THAT BLEEDS; Naomi Klein, THE SHOCK DOCTRINE; Shoshana Zuboff, THE AGE OF SURVEILLANCE CAPITALISM
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Examinations and Assignments:
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Short Essays and Response Papers |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
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| Instructor(s): Saba,Roberto Times: .MTWR.. 10:00AM-12:00PM; .MTWR.. 02:00PM-05:00PM; Location: TBA |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 15 | | SR major: 3 | JR major: 3 | | |
| Seats Available: 8 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 3 | JR non-major: 2 | SO: 2 | FR: 2 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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