POLSCI 118CNS · also PUBPOL 118CNS
War and the American Experience through Literature
John F. HillenNotable faculty
Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, 2005 to 2007. Source
Description from DukeHub
This seminar explores how war has shaped, and been shaped by, the American imagination, tracing the nation's evolving understanding of conflict, strategy, and national security through its literature. From the Revolution to the post-9/11 era, students examine how soldiers, citizens, and writers have wrestled with questions of security, identity, sacrifice, and the moral costs of power. Through novels, poetry, memoirs, and political writings, the course investigates how American institutions, from the military to the press, reflect and contest the nation's political ideals and its role on the global stage. Students consider how stories of war illuminate the enduring interplay between politics, strategy, and the American role in world affairs.
Skills
- writingdescription: "poetry" and 1 more
AI-resilient: 2 of 5
- No: Physical, lab or field work
- No: Live work with people
- Yes: Judgment someone is accountable for · "strategy"
- No: A craft you practice with your hands or body
- Yes: Small, in-person format · seminar, 14 seats per section
The checks lean on Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025), which found generative AI applies least to physical work and hands-on work with people. A signal, not a promise. How the score works
More in POLSCI
- Police, Prisons and Politics POLSCI 109CNS
- Dangerous 21st Century POLSCI 111CNS
- Politics in the Family POLSCI 115CNS
- Climate Change: A Political Economy Perspective POLSCI 128
- Politics and Economics POLSCI 146
- Introduction to Political Philosophy POLSCI 175D