North American History and Institutions

The first part of the program addresses issues concerning the history and politics of the United States, including the welfare state, the development of modern conservatism, Congress and presidential powers, and national security. Following the study of American political history, as well the main interpretations that changed over time, these issues will help us for a better understanding of American politics today. The monographic part of the course reflects on a case study concerning Central Park. A green island in the heart of Manhattan, the park was designed in 1856 by landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux as a public park for ordinary people. Since its origins it has represented, symbolically and concretely, that idea of ​​wilderness inserted in urban reality which was inspired by the philosopher Henry David Thoreau, forerunner of civil disobedience and ecological thought. A project based on enhancing the beauty of the environment and implemented to ease the tensions of the big city, tensions that have often turned into riots, the urban unrest that has marked the conflict between different social groups, communities and classes in the history of American cities. From the protests against the war in Vietnam to Occupy Wall Street, the story of a park becomes a lens for understanding the hidden mechanisms of social history, not only in New York but throughout the United States. To carry on the course we will use movies, documentaries, websites, and the resource American Historical Newspapers in our digital library.