Prerequisite: None

Exam Type: In Class

This course will examine the political and legal history of the U.S. Constitution with an eye toward considering how ordinary people have fought to participate in the acts of constitutional amendment and interpretation and on the role of the Constitution in American life and culture. As this year, 2026, marks the 250th anniversary of the first written constitutions in the United States, we will pay particular attention to the place of constitutionalism itself in American life. Readings will focus on constitutional conventions, alternative constitutions, constitutional amendments, U.S. Supreme Court cases, as well as the constitutional objectives of political movements across history and across the political spectrum.

Note: This course is cross-listed with the History Department at FAS.