Course Schedule and Catalog

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: SOCRATES: THE MAN AND HIS PHILOSOPHY ***** This discussion-style seminar will consider how Socrates practiced philosophy, how Plato represented Socrates and Socratic philosophy in writing, and what effect Socrates had on Athens and his fellow Athenians. Readings will consist mainly of Plato's Socratic dialogues, with emphasis on the Apology and Gorgias. In addition to papers, each participant will make one presentation and lead one discussion. ***** Also offered as CLAS 101. ***** Enrollment limited to 15. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Yunis

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: LANGUAGE, GENDER AND SEXUALITY ***** This course examines the role that gender, biological sex, and sexuality play in the language varieties that people use. We will see that although all cultures have specified gender roles, and all cultures mark gender through language varieties, those differences are not, I promise, what you think they are. ***** Course offered Spring. ***** Instructor(s): Niedzielski.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: LITERATURE AND DEMOCRACY ***** Course examines how writers respond to the developments and problems of democratic societies. Topics include: civil disobedience and just dissent; the civil war and the extension of the franchise; cruel and unusual punishment exercised by governments; and the relationship between privacy and individuality. Requirements: two essays and one class presentation. ***** Also offered as HUMA 110. ***** Instructor(s): Wihl.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: FROM KAFKA TO THE HOLOCAUST: DISCOURSE IN ALIENATION ***** The beginnings of modernity have to be seen in the context of the sociopolitical and intellectual upheavals at the end of the 19th century. Whereas extreme reactionism eventually led to fascism, progressive literature advocated artistic experimentation as manifested in a discourse of alienation (expressionism, dada, Kafka). Holocaust literature reflects the ultimate clash between progressiveness and reactionism. The primary readings will be from Wedekind, Trakl, Kaiser, Hesse, Remarque, Brecht, Celan, Werfel. Taught in English. ***** Also offered as GERM 121. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Weissenberger.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: HISTORY THROUGH GERMAN CINEMA ***** The course presents an overview of German history via contemporary German feature films from World War I, through the Weimar and Nazi periods, the postwar years as a Divided Germany into East and West and finally a look at the new generation in Post-unification Germany. Taught in English. All films are subtitled in English. ***** Also offered as GERM 122. ***** Instructor(s): Eifler.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE CREATIVITY OF FRANCOPHONE CINEMA: CHALLENGING THE HOLLYWOOD EMPIRE ***** A fundamentally non-commercial conception of cinema inherited from France allows Francophone directors to voice their otherwise silenced cultures. The 12 recent Francophone movies selected expose students to unconventional Western or non-Western images. Taught in English. All films subtitled in English and screened during class. ***** Also offered as FREN 123. ***** Enrollment limited to 15. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: LAW, MORALITY, AND SOCIETY ***** A historical introduction to central themes of legal and political thought in the Western tradition from Immanueal Kant to John Rawls, this freshman seminar provides an overview of trends and controversies in modern political thought and society. Topics discussed include "civil rights", "morality", "liberalism", "natural law", "political theology", and "freedom". Taught in English. ***** Also offered as GERM 124. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Emden.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: BETWEEN RESISTANCE AND COLLABORATION: INDIVIDUALS RESPONDING TO NATIONAL SOCIALISM ***** Focus on individuals' behavior in Nazi Germany/Austria. Issues of ideology and ethics as Germans and Austrians faced them between 1933-1945. Reflection on values such as courage, civil disobedience, and human rights in today's global society. Taught in English. ***** Also offered as GERM 125. ***** Instructor(s): Kecht.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE LEGEND OF KING ARTHUR IN THE MIDDLE AGES ***** In the 1100's people began writing down stories of Arthur, Guinevere, Merlin, and the Knights of the round table using sophisticated techniques of literary composition. Today, these stories count among the great writings of Europe. This course examines the spectrum of medieval stories and histories of Arthur that arose in England, France, and Germany from the beginning to the age of printing, plus some recent revivals. ***** Also offered as GERM 126 and MDST 126. ***** Instructor(s): Westphal.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: IN THE MATRIX: ON HUMAN BONDAGE AND LIBERATION **** Using the film "The Matrix" as a point of reference, this course presents celebrated explorations of servitude and emancipation -- from religious mysticism to Marxism and artistic modernism. Texts by Lao Tzu, Farid ud-Din Attar, Plato, Freud, Marx, Baudelaire, J.S. Mill, Proust, de Beauvoir, Malcolm X, Marcuse, Baudrillard. Course taught in English. ***** Enrollment limited to 15 first-year students only, except by permission of the instructor. ***** Also offered as FREN 127. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Wood.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE CULTURE OF WAR ***** Focusing on the experience and representation of war in German and European literature, theory, and visual arts. Covers the period from 17th-20th century. Special emphasis on the First World War. Not for the faint-hearted, topics included: destruction, ruins, refugees, massacres, terrorism, victims, spaces of battle, the logic of war. Taught in English. ***** Also offered as GERM 128. ***** Instructor(s): Emden.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: LITERARY LOVE AFFAIRS, LOVE AND PASSION IN EUROPEAN LITERATURE ***** Love-stories are usually about a young man who seeks the ideal girl, finally gets her, and becomes as good a Philistine as others. Students examine this philosophical wisdom by reading stories and theoretical texts about love and passion by European authors from the time of Shakespeare to the present. ***** Enrollment limited to 15. ***** Also offered as GERM 129. ***** Instructor(s): Steiner.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: NO HAPPY ENDINGS: TRAGEDY IN LITERATURE AND FILM ***** Tragedy stages the sufferings and fall of a hero. It excites pity and fear. Why, then, do we take pleasure in tragedy? This course explores the importance of tragedy in Western culture through a reading of plays by Sophocles, Shakespeare, Racine, and Ibsen. Films include works by Robinson and Schlondorff. ***** Also offered as FREN 131. ***** Instructor(s): Shea.

Department: History

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE ARAB-ISRAELI CONFLICT ***** Seminar traces the history and politics of the Arab-Israeli conflict, delving into both Palestinian and Israeli understandings of the past and present using books, documentaries, and films. The course seeks to understand how and at what costs Israeli and Palestinian nationalism's have been constructed and analyzes U.S. involvement in the conflict. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Also offered as HIST 144. ***** Instructor(s):Makdisi

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: LATIN AMERICAN SHORT FICTION (EMPHASIS ON BORGES AND CORTAZAR) ***** Readings of classic works of short fiction by modern Latin American masters, with special emphasis on the stories of Jorge Luis Borges and Julio Cortazar. Close reading, interpretive essays. Taught in English. Open to first-year students only. ***** Also offered as SPAN 150. ***** Enrollment limited to 15. ***** Instructor(s): Kauffman.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: FRESHMAN SEMINAR: THE HERO AND HIS COMPANION FROM GILGAMESH TO SAM SPADE ***** How does presentation of heoric action illustrate the basic values of society? Historical sources including ancient texts, modern mystery stories, and two "western" movies, show the development of a style of community service linking heorism with alienation. The extent to which women participate will be traced. ***** Also offered as HIST 151. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Instructor(s): Maas

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Distribution Group: Distribution Group I

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE HISPANIC ESSAY ***** Readings (in English translation) from major modern Spanish and Spanish-American essayists, including Miguel de Unamuno, Jose Ortega y Gassset, Maria Zambrano, Jose Marti, Jose Enrique Rodo, Alfonso Reyes, Victoria Ocampos, Gabriela Mistral, Jorge Luis Borges, and Octavio Paz. Close reading and appreciation of essays will be the focus of discussion, presentations, and short interpretive papers. Taught in English. ***** Open to first-year students only. ***** Also offered as SPAN 152. ***** Not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Kauffman.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: JEFFERSON & THE ORIGINS OF THE REPUBLIC ***** Examination of the most talented of the U.S. Founding Fathers and how he helped define the country's revolutionary ideals, diplomacy, and politics, as well as its public lands, domestic architecture, religion, practice of slavery, and education. Includes readings, discussions, and essays. ***** Also offered as HIST 160. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005.

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE USES OF THE PAST ***** Seminar analyzes how selected historical events are interpreted at different times and contexts. Sources include history books, novels, movies, court cases and political debates. Specific events studied will vary according to student interest from ancient times to the present. ***** Also offered as HIST 161. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Course not offered 2004-2005. ***** Instructor(s): Quillen

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: THE WORLD OF THE ARABIAN NIGHTS ***** Seminar on the social and cultural world of the stories of the 1001 nights. Readings and discussions reveal how they became famous in Europe and a source for western images of the Islamic World. Source materials range from translations and similar stories from different traditions to modern movies and TV shows. ***** Also offered as HIST 168 and MDST 168. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Instructor(s): Sanders

Department: Humanities Division

Grade Mode: Standard Letter

Course Type: Seminar

Credit Hours: 3

Description: ROPE AND FAGGOT - TERROR & AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY ***** From the Murder of James Byrd. From the early 1880's to 1978, lynch mobs murdered nearly 5,000 African-Americans Terror and black responses to it have shaped nearly every aspect of African American history. Seminar examines black society, politics, gender, and culture in the 20th century America against the backdrop of racial violence. **** Also offered as HIST 176. ***** Limited enrollment. ***** Instructor(s):Byrd