Jerome L. Himmelstein                  Professor of Sociology at Amherst College

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Courses:

Foundations of Sociological Theory (Sociology 15): Sociology emerged as part of the intellectual response to the French and Industrial Revolutions. In various ways, the classic sociological thinkers sought to make sense of these changes and the kind of society that resulted from them. We begin by examining the social and intellectual context in which sociology developed and then turn to a close reading of five important social thinkers: Marx, Tocqueville, Durkheim, Weber, and Freud.

Development of Sociological Theory (Sociology 18): This course examines the basic schools of sociological theory and how they have developed in critical relation to each other and to the classics of sociology. Among the theories we examine are structural-functionalism, rational choice theory, microinteractionist theories, conflict theory, cultural sociologies, critical theory, feminist theory, and poststructuralism.

The American Right (Sociology 41): Since the 1980s, the Right has been the dominant force in American politics. This course will examine the Christian Right within a framework of sociological ideas about the social bases of political conflict. We will look at the movement's history, ideology, organizations, and leaders. We shall then examine the changing significance of religion and religiosity in American politics, with a focus on the idea of "culture wars." This will require us to look closely at the differences between how political elites of all ideological persuasions address morally charged issues and how both conservative Christians and other Americans think about these issues. Finally, we shall examine the ways Americans have come in conflict with each other over abortion, gay rights, sex education, and similar issues.

Drugs and Society (Sociology 43): This course presents a sociological framework for studying the ways in which societies both encourage and restrict the use of psychoactive drugs. For Spring 2004, after familiarizing ourselves with the very different ways we think about alcohol, tobacco, prescription drugs, and illegal drugs, the course looks in depth at several important contemporary issues: (1) the growing medical use of drugs to treat depression, anxiety, ADHD, and host of other maladies; (2) the increasingly popular idea that drug addiction and alcoholism are diseases, in particular brain diseases; (3) the continuing "war" by the U.S. government against (certain) drugs, criticism of the drug war, and the emergence of alternative ways of controlling marijuana, cocaine, and opiate use (especially in The Netherlands).