我们不仅日复一日受到“全球化”这个术语的轰炸，还得将全球化视为我们这个时代的完美转形；但是，“全球化”究竟是什么意思呢？在经济、社会和文化等各层面，它如何影响世界各地人们的生活？当代的变迁要如何与其它年代的变迁相比较？这些变迁是正面的、负面的，或仅仅是无法避免的？最后，“全球化”此一概念如何在帮助我们建立对当代世界了解的同时，又不知不觉地扭曲了这项认知？本课程从简介史上的“世界体系”（包括以亚洲和欧洲为世界中心的体系）揭开序幕，接着探索当代转型的本质，包括经济、媒体暨资讯技术、人口迁移，和消费习惯的转型，研究重点放在世界各地一般人的日常生活上，不是凭空臆测。研讨主题涵盖计算机对矽谷和西藏流亡者的日常影响、美国和爪哇乡村蓝领劳工的窘境、奈及利亚境内掀起的孟买电影热、日本的饶舌音乐制作、法国外来移民生活的文化复杂性。本课程不只要探求全球化发生的各种形态，还希望了解其对全世界的独特影响。


要求

此为密集讨论的课程 (Communications Intensive，CI)，出席与参与是必要的，若旷课两堂以上，即予扣分 (每两堂课以字母评等一次)。

各堂指定的课程资料必须事先预习准备。

书面作业包括：

1. 5 页长报告一份 (占总分 20%)
2. 7 页长报告一份 (占总分 20%)
3. 10 页长的期末专题研究报告一份，自选主题，可变更 (占总分 40%)

学生另须根据各自的专题研究发表 10 分钟的口头报告。(口头报告和课堂参与表现合计占总分 20%)

Everyday we are bombarded with the word "global" and encouraged to see globalization as the quintessential transformation of our age. But what exactly does "globalization" mean? How is it affecting the lives of people around the world, not only in economic, but social and cultural terms? How do contemporary changes compare with those from other historical periods? Are such changes positive, negative or simply inevitable? And, finally, how does the concept of the "global" itself shape our perceptions in ways that both help us understand the contemporary world and potentially distort it? This course begins by offering a brief overview of historical "world systems," including those centered in Asia as well as Europe. It explores the nature of contemporary transformations, including those in economics, media and information technologies, population flows, and consumer habits, not through abstractions but by focusing on the daily lives of people in various parts of the world. This course considers such topics as the day-to-day impact of computers in Silicon Valley and among Tibetan refugees; the dilemmas of factory workers in the US and rural Java; the attractions of Bombay cinema in Nigeria, the making of rap music in Japan, and the cultural complexities of immigrant life in France. This course seeks not only to understand the various forms globalization takes, but to understand its very different impacts world-wide.


Requirements

This is a Communications Intensive (CI) class. Attendance at class and participation is essential. If you miss more than 2 class sessions without permission of the instructor, your grade will be lowered (a letter grade for every two classes).

Course materials must be read for the assigned day in class.

Written assignments include:

1. One 5 Page Paper (worth 20% of grade)
2. One 7 Page Paper (worth 20% of grade)
3. A final 10 page research paper on a topic of the student's own choosing which will be revised (worth 40% of grade)

Students will also give a brief 10 minute oral presentation based on their individually-researched papers. (The oral presentation combined with class participation will constitute the final 20% of your course grade.)