AP/SOSC 4655 6.00

Cultures Of Violence

Crosslisted: AP/CRIM 4655

This course examines the microsocial and macrosocial forms of violence. The course explores how violence operates as a form of social control rather than as a psychological impulse or biological drive. Myths and misconceptions about violence are measured against criminological, cultural and sociological theories of violence. The course examines numerous manifestations of violence including: theories of violence, violent crime, state violence, patriarchal violence and the cultural underpinnings of violence. The course analyzes violence based on four main thematic sections: (1) the origins of violence; (2) criminal violence; and (3) the relationship between competition, conflict and the normalization of violence; and (4) war.