Study Abroad in Stellenbosch: Courses

Students follow 3 courses in total. Course 1 is mandatory for all students. The two remaining courses are selected from Courses 2 to 8. Please note that as some courses run concurrently, only certain combinations of courses are possible. Each course is worth 2 credits, giving a total of 6 credits. A minimum of 5 students must register for a particular course in order for it to be presented. A maximum of 100 students can be accommodated in Option 1.

Course Selection: Select 1 course from each week.

Week 1
Course 1: Introduction to South Africa’s Political History (Mandatory course for both Option 1 and 2)

Week 2
Course 2: Bio-Diversity: Plants for the People in the Western Cape
OR
Course 3: Apartheid and After: Representations of South Africa in Art and Media
OR
Course 4: HIV and Aids: A South African Perspective
OR
Course 5: Growth, Unemployment and Inequality in South Africa: Past and Future Challenges

Week 3/4
Course 4: HIV and Aids: A South African Perspective
OR
Course 6: Apartheid and After: Negotiating Identities in Literature and Film
OR
Course 7: Challenges for Democratic Consolidation
OR
Course 8: Ethics, Science and Culture in Philosophical Perspective

Course 1 (Mandatory)
SSA 202/302 (2)
Introduction to South Africa's Political History
During this course, you will be introduced to South Africa’s unique 20th century history, and the interplay between the country’s political, social and economic issues. In particular, the focus is on South African identities, and how these were and continue to be shaped by the country’s past. At the root of the apartheid project was a sustained attempt to manipulate social identities. Almost 50 years of social engineering cannot be dismissed easily, and continues to influence the future of our democracy. Understanding how the past impacts on the present allows us to better understand the issues and challenges currently facing the country. We therefore commence by exploring South Africa’s political history, focusing on the apartheid era and the transition to democracy. A field trip to Robben Island will contribute to making this history come alive. An assessment of the process of reconciliation following the 1994 elections provides the bridge to a discussion of the project of nation-building, including the debates around national identity construction.

Course 2
SSA 203/303 (2)
Bio-Diversity: Plants for the People in the Western Cape people in the Western Cape
During this course, you will be introduced to South Africa’s incredible biological diversity, with special focus on the plants of the Cape Floristic Region. After a solid theoretical and practical introduction to the diversity and richness of this flora, the focus will shift to the role and responsibility of people in conserving and benefiting from these botanical riches. This leads on to a full day of exploration of the benefits currently being reaped from commercialization of indigenous plants for especially the cut flower industry. Indigenous plant use by local people, especially traditional healers, constitutes the final topic of discussion, and will be followed by a visit to traditional medicinal markets. The course will close with verbal presentations by students on topics researched during the course of the module.

Course 3
SSA 204/304 (2)
Apartheid and After: Representations of South Africa in Art and Literature
In this course we will track major developments and changes in South African art and media from the Union years (1910-1948), through the Apartheid era (1948-1994) and after (1994-present). The point of this broad historical perspective is not so much to provide a condensed history of South African art and media, as it is to explore the relationship between South Africa’s turbulent socio-political landscape and its visual culture. In particular, we aim to explore the notion of national identity as it manifested and still manifests in art and visual culture. The first part of the course deals with the concurrent rise of Afrikaner and African nationalism in the early 20th century, and the role of visual culture in the construction of these competing national identities. The second part of the lecture series deals with the years of the ‘struggle’, when the dominant white construct of nation came into conflict with the rising tide of militant African nationalist aspiration. The final part of the series looks at ‘new’ South African nationalism, and the often conflicted art and media it produces.

Course 4
SSA 207/307 (2)
HIV and AIDS: A South African Perspective
This course aims to nurture and develop the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes in students as leaders and future professionals to manage HIV prevention and care in the workplace, both locally and abroad. This course will aim to develop a global understanding of HIV and AIDS through a South African experience of the HIV epidemic.

Course 5
SSA 206/306 (2)
Growth, Unemployment and Inequality in South Africa: Past and Future Challenges
South Africa is a developing country marked by severe inequalities. While in many aspects its economy reflects that of a developed nation, the exorbitant unemployment rate and the large number of people living in absolute poverty are characteristic of low-income countries. This course first attempts to shed light on South Africa’s unique path of economic development: what were the causes of such an unequally divided society? The post- Apartheid government has made multiple attempts to eradicate poverty and redress inequality. We discuss the successes and failures of these policies. Finally, we look to the future, and discuss the scenarios that could either lift South Africa to highincome status or allow it to become another ‘African failure.’

Course 6
SSA 208/309 (2)
Apartheid & After: Negotiating Identities in Literature and Film
This course focuses on the way in which literature and film in South Africa registered and reflected the social and political conflicts and tensions of the Apartheid years, and how, since the first democratic elections in 1994, these cultural products have served—and continue to serve—as a means of questioning and negotiating identity, not only nationally, but also at the level of the community and the individual. Over the course of the week we will engage with two novels, a range of classic and contemporary South African poetry (also in the form of lyrics), as well as three films: one from the apartheid era and two more recent South African productions.

Course 7
SSA 210/310 (2)
Challenges for Democratic Consolidation
This course builds on some of the issues introduced in Course 1. Its focus is on contemporary South Africa – a society in transition, characterized by elements of both change and continuity. We explore some of the most urgent policy challenges currently facing the country (including the high crime rates, poverty and social delivery), asking questions about the violent nature of crime in South Africa, and the government’s plans and policies for combating poverty and improving service delivery. The impacts of half a century of social engineering do not disappear overnight, and so we further investigate the politics of identity, race and nation-building. In particular, we explore government’s efforts to promote a sense of unity, and the tensions between national unity and multiculturalism. We also look at the identities of particular groups in South Africa – such as the Coloured and Xhosa communities, which will include an exploration of the role of tradition in South Africa today. In light of the 2010 Soccer World Cup, we specifically focus on sport as a driver of national identity. Finally, we also take a look at the role the South African state plays in Africa and internationally, with specific focus on the tension between the different identities it tries to project at regional and international levels, and between domestic and foreign policy priorities. The overarching question will be, given the immense challenges, what are the prospects for the future of democracy in South Africa?

Course 8
SSA 211/311 (2)
Ethics, Science and Culture in Philosophical Perspective
This course examines a number of key problems in contemporary ethics, politics and culture. Students are introduced to important questions and debates relating to our understanding of science, evolution, complexity, biomedicine, happiness and social justice. Beginning with an exploration of the implications of our evolutionary origins on our understanding of ethics, the focus then shifts to the nature of modern science and its impact on our culture. In light of the insights developed here, we then look at some of the specific moral problems that are called up by recent developments in biomedical technology. Moving away from ethics as applied to particular questions, we then consider the disruptive implications of the acknowledgement that we live in a complex world for how we conceive of ethics on all levels of our human existence. This is followed by an inquiry into the problem of happiness in philosophy and in contemporary psychology and economics. Against the background of this inquiry, we then reflect on the moral principles for distributing benefits and burdens, rights and obligations within society: happiness, need, merit or fairness?

Service Learning

The Service Learning option is a separate program. This course runs for 5 weeks. The aim of the program is to provide students from abroad with the opportunity to demonstrate and develop their global citizenship through service-learning. They will develop an understanding of the historical background and current issues impacting on community life and problems in South Africa and experience it first hand through service to a South African community while earning academic credits.