In our 36th episode of the Madness Chronicles, we’ll look at the madness of what your kid can study in college. Remember, madness is a state of being mentally ill, severely, extremely foolish behavior, and a form of frenzied or chaotic activity. Let’s take a look at the madness in the Big Ten schools where sports rule.
We’ll start with the University of Illinois, the Fighting Illini! If your kid is in Education, how about EDU-202 Social Justice, School & Society. It examines the nature of justice and the dynamics of a pluralistic society to derive a conception of social justice. Or say they are an English major try ENGL 277-Gender in Gaming. It examines the history of gender in video games, focusing on how movements like internet bullying, doxing, and trolling emerged as the coordinated effort to consolidate and maintain video games and geek culture as the domain of masculinity and whiteness. Did you get that?
Moving east to Bloomington, Indiana, we find the home of the Hoosiers of Indiana University. Send your child here for such courses as GNDR-G 304-Constructions of Masculinities. The syllabus says it is an interdisciplinary examination of what constitutes (and has historically constituted) masculinity. Designed to illuminate the contested underpinnings of masculinity. Or if they’re into cooking, perhaps take ANTH-E 337-Food, Sex, and Gender. Explores how food reflects and creates gender and promotes and expresses sexuality.
In what might surprise you, the University of Iowa, home to the Hawkeyes, offers course AFAM 2800-African American Women, Health, Hair, and Sexuality. It says from the exotic to the erotic, African American women’s bodies have been constructed to fulfill a variety of personal and cultural fantasies and social functions that are killing us softly. Not sure what that means?
On to Ann Arbor and the Michigan Wolverines. Your student could enroll in AAS 347-Urban Inequality in America. The class delves into these questions of inequality in America by focusing on how space and place have come to play an integral role in shaping poverty and disadvantage in the U.S. Or if that doesn’t float their boat, try WOMENSTD 434-Eco/Queer/Feminist Art Practices. This class investigates ecofeminist, queer ecological, and global feminist environmental justice art in visual art, sculptural practice, creative writing, performance, dance, somatic movement, and more. Now that was a mouthful.
In East Lansing, we find Michigan State University home of the Spartans. Here your little one can study ANP 859-Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change. Here they research gender, ecology, and environmental studies-methodological and fieldwork issues from a feminist perspective in international and intercultural contexts. I am not exactly sure what that is, but I am sure there are job vacancies galore for one so trained.
If that precious one of yours chooses to be a Golden Gopher and heads to the frigid University of Minnesota, they won’t disappoint. They can take CSCL 3405-Marx for Today. The course provides students with an introduction to Marxist theory, with particular attention to its relevance for the contemporary world. Northwestern University is undoubtedly a fine school. There your rising star can study AFAMST 339-Unsettling Whiteness. They will learn about the historical, political, and cultural formation of whiteness in Western modernity visible and narratable for commentary and analysis.
I know this is fun, but we can’t hit all the Big 10, which you know, of course, actually has 14 schools. We’ll close with a couple hard to pass by. Ohio State offers ANTHROP 3334-Zombies: The Anthropology of the Undead, Penn State provides AMST 226-Critical Approaches to Hip-Hop, and if they become a Cornhusker, the University of Nebraska offers HIST 336-Saints, Witches, and Madwomen.
The result of following these courses of study is rearing it’s ugly head right about now in 2020 America. My best advice would be don’t make the little one’s bedroom into an office just yet… they may catch you on the rebound about $100,000 later.
May we wake from this madness before it’s too late. I wish you good health, and until next time, have fun, enjoy life, and watch out for the madness amongst us. It’s 2020, and it’s getting out of hand.