Spring 2013 First-Year Writing Seminars

AMERICAN STUDIES 1140 SEM 101

Common Ground: Education Beyond the Ivory Tower

Become a more engaged member of the Ithaca community! This course offers students a meaningful civic interaction as part of their writing experience. Specifically, Cornell students will meet at regular intervals (during the normal class time) with a class of seniors at Ithaca’s New Roots Charter School where we will engage in critical discussions about our community and social values. Considering the role of education in constituting community, we will engage such texts as those by Orwell, Barber, Freire, Ravitch, and King. Writing assignments and projects relating to local issues will draw on experiences of both classes. Ideally, students will broaden their perspectives about what constitutes community while developing a greater comprehension of textual material, as well as verbal and written skill in considering that material rhetorically.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. x-listed w/ Writ 1400 and Engl 1140 16747

FOR HS MEETINGS, ALLOW TIME TO LEAVE CAMPUS BY 12:55 PM.

ANTHROPOLOGY 1131 SEM 101

Language, Mind, and Culture: Identities and Representations

How does our language affect the way we view the world? How do we use language to categorize ourselves and other cultures and peoples? How are these different identities represented in the public discourse (film, music, literature, popular culture)? How do these representations change over time? We will address these issues using an interdisciplinary approach from anthropology, linguistics, sociology, and semiotics, and discussing historical and contemporary examples from literature, music, and film that deal directly with issues of identity. Writing assignments will include responses to readings, personal narratives, creative point-of-view narratives, and critical essays.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Michael Carpentier 16592 Kurt Jordan

ANTHROPOLOGY 1145 SEM 101

Anthropology of the Classics: Reading the Canon as Ethnography

The ancient Classics and Great Books can be read as accounts of alien worlds. In this class, we will read these texts through an ethnographic lens and interpret them to write about what life was like in the societies in which they were originally composed. We will look at writings and interpretations in this genre by others who have tried alternative ways of reading these texts from long ago. We will practice writing ourselves about the societies revealed in ancient Classics from the Greek, Chinese, Indian, Christian-Judean, and Islamic traditions. The mainstay of the course is in our interpretive work, and we will be guided by interpretive methods, and informed by the textual history of these books, and how they became Great.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Magnus Fiskesjo 16581

ANTHROPOLOGY 1155 SEM 101 Cultures, Representation, and Power

In newspapers, on the internet, through films, or in museums we are told what to believe about other people and cultures. In this course, we will examine anthropological approaches to representation and will ask questions such as: Is objective representation possible? Who has the power to represent? Why are some forms of representation more powerful than others? We will read anthropological texts and newspaper articles, analyze video clips, and discuss a broad range of issues including race, medical sciences, people and their personal belongings, migration, and technology. Writing assignments will include opinion pieces, essays based on the students’ empirical research, and critical analyses of articles. Students will learn to be more aware of their subjectivity and to use it to make their writing more persuasive to others.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Inga Gruss 16574 Kurt Jordan

ARCHITECTURE 1901 SEM 101

Occupying Places: The Politics and Performance of American Public Space

The Occupy Wall Street Movement has brought the concept of public space to the forefront of a national conversation about capital, privilege, and American democracy. This contemporary debate will launch our discussion of the historical origins and cultural purposes of a variety of public spaces—from parks and cemeteries to parkways and sidewalks. Readings range from an architectural history of skateboarding to a geographer’s consideration of national monuments; all consider spaces as agents of civic identity and community life. To complement our readings we will be making site visits to Ithaca’s own Commons, parks, cemeteries, and gorges. Writing assignments will ask students to incorporate their personal use and embodied observations of these sites into their historical understanding of the politics of public space.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Josi Ward 16580 Aaron Sachs

ART HISTORY 1140 SEM 101

Picturing the Pagan Pantheon in Italian Renaissance Art

In the visual landscape of the Italian Renaissance, gods, goddesses, and heroes from classical mythology are a ubiquitous presence. They dance across canvases, adorn the interior spaces of palazzos, and frolic through books, prints, and drawings. Whether used as political symbols or as models of good (and terrible) behavior, the pagan pantheon enjoyed a special place in the imagination of artists and their patrons. We will analyze and contextualize works of art created during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries by artists such as Botticelli, Mantegna, and Raphael, for patrons including Isabella d’Este and the Medici. You will utilize visual analysis, primary sources, and secondary studies in order to construct written arguments that take into consideration social, political, and historical contexts of the works in question.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Vikki Ehrlich 16577 Maria Fernandez

ASIAN STUDIES 1101 SEM 101

Representations of Womanhood in Traditional China

This course offers students guided study to a selection of Chinese cultural materials, including historical records, literary works, expository essays, and film, which provide insights into Chinese conceptions of womanhood in traditional China. Students in this course will develop their critical reading and academic writing skills through discussion and essay assignments in which they analyze the conceptions of womanhood reflected in these contexts and explore their implications for gender identity and relations in Chinese and world cultures. Assigned readings are in English. No prior knowledge of Chinese and/or Chinese culture is required or expected.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Ding Xiang Warner 16578

AFRICANA STUDIES AND RESEARCH CENTER 1813 SEM 101 Pan-African Freedom Fighters in Their Own Words

This seminar will examine autobiographical writings and advocacy statements and speeches by selected freedom fighters from Black America, Africa, and the Caribbean. Through written and oral communication, students will explore the ideas, values, activities, and impact of individuals such as W. E. B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, Amy Jacques Garvey, Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, African American women in the Civil Rights Movement (including Ella Baker, Septima Clark, Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, Angela Davis), Nelson Mandela, African women in the South African Anti-Apartheid Struggle (including Winnie Mandela, Ruth Mompati, Mavivi Manzini, Albertina Sisulu), and Bob Marley. Video and film presentations will augment reading, discussion, and writing assignments.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Locksley Edmondson 16579

AFRICANA STUDIES AND RESEARCH CENTER 1829 SEM 101 Martin Luther King, Jr. in History and Memory

It has been almost forty-five years since the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Since his assassination, he has been remembered in a variety of ways, such as street signs, national holiday celebrations, parks, libraries, schools, and statutes. This writing seminar will explore changing perceptions of Dr. King. Through study and student written evaluation of a variety of sources, such as biographies, his sermons, commentaries, photos, art, and sculpture, we will assess how and why we have selected to remember Dr. King. To what extent was he a “Dreamer,” a “Drum Major for Freedom and Justice,” and/or a “Redeemer of the Soul of America”? And how have these ideas been conveyed over time?

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Robert Harris 16593

ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY 1640 SEM 101 Flock and Awe: Extreme Ornithology

In this course, you will learn about some of the extreme attributes and behaviors exhibited by a wide variety of avian species. How can the tiny Arctic Tern migrate 44,000 miles in a year? How does the male Great Bowerbird use optical illusions to trick females into mating? Why did the Muscovy Duck evolve a 20cm-long corkscrewing penis when most bird species have no penis at all? By examining multimedia accounts and scientific papers, we will seek answers to these questions. You will incorporate previous research with evolutionary and ecological theory to develop your own hypotheses to explain these bizarre traits. You will participate in the review process by critiquing previously published papers as well as those of your peers. Finally, you will develop your own research ideas in an attempt to explain any example of extreme ornithology that interests you. Through all of these assignments, you will develop and sharpen your science writing skills.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Dan Baldassarre 16591 Irby Lovette

NEUROBIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR 1220 SEM 101 The Senses: Perception Across Species and Cultures

This writing-intensive seminar focuses on the six senses we use everyday (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell, and proprioception). The senses, incorrectly thought of as uniform and unchanging, vary widely between individuals, across species, and through time. How can we explain that peasants in the ninteenth century heard bells differently than we do today, though our ear structure is exactly the same? How can mantis shrimp—a “lower animal”—see more colors than we can? What is proprioception, and how is it relevant to both war veterans and spiders? Readings are drawn from biology and history, and do not require previous knowledge of either field. Over the course of the semester, frequent written assignments will help students communicate more effective and clearly through their writing.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Paul Shamble 16601 Ron Hoy

CLASSICS 1531 SEM 101 Greek Myth

The course will focus on the stories about the gods and heroes of the Greeks as they appear in the works of ancient Greek literature. We will read a selection from Greek authors, inquiring into the relationship between myths and cultural, religious, and political realia of the society in which they were shaped and perpetuated. Alongside the primary texts, we will read a number of recent scholarly works on the subject. We will start by discussing myths in general terms (theories, basic concepts) and will proceed toward the analysis of individual stories and cycles. This fascinating material will serve as a vehicle for improving students’ written communication skills. Assignments will include preparatory writing and six essays focusing on our readings and discussions in class.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Lindsay Sears-Tam 16563 Michael Fontaine

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 101 Writing Across Cultures: Science and Literature

If science and literature offer competing accounts of reality, their overlap might force something to change—whether that something is science, writing, or reality itself. In this class, we will identify ways both disciplines are changed by their intersection. We will read a number of texts where science meets literature, including those by Octavia Butler, Charles Darwin, Samuel Delaney, Philip K. Dick, Sigmund Freud, and Mary Shelley. In their own writing, students will explore questions such as: What does science gain when it attempts to become literature? Why, when it becomes more “scientific,” does literature so often also become strange? How does scientific literature—and genre “science fiction” specifically—differ across cultures? How do these texts handle race, gender, sexual identity, politics, and history?

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Diana Hamilton 16564 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 102

Writing Across Cultures: Translational Americas—Reading Between the Signs

As the adage goes, translation is treason. Literary translation, in particular, is often seen as an impossible undertaking, doomed from the start to fail. This class will begin from the assumption that translation is possible and will explore the conditions of that possibility through close examination of wide-ranging materials. Most primary readings will be drawn from twentieth-century and contemporary Latin American poetry and literature, including works by César Vallejo, Haroldo de Campos, Cecilia Vicuña, and Roberto Bolaño. Students will be asked to place primary texts, along with other media, in conversation with major theoretical considerations of translation and the translator’s task. Among other emphases, writing assignments will challenge students to build clear, well-supported arguments. All required reading will be in English.

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Rebecca Kosick 16565 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 103

Writing Across Cultures: Music in Black and White—Cuba, Brazil, and the U.S.

From jazz, to son, to bossa nova, the racial identity of music in the Americas is often a complex issue. This class will expose students to different musical genres of Cuba, Brazil, and the U.S. and will examine the ways in which music has become racially and, in some cases, nationally identified. In addition to listening to musical repertoires, we will refer to a range of texts, including excerpts from magazines and periodicals, travelogues, poetic reflections on music, writings in ethnomusicology and music history, scholarly articles, and music biographies, in order to probe questions concerning the themes of racial and national authenticity of music. Through writing assignments, students will cultivate critical thinking skills while confronting the notion of music as racial and national property.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Ryan Dreher 16566 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 104 Writing Across Cultures: Literature Between Languages

This course explores English-language literature in the past thirty years that incorporates vital elements of other languages. We will be looking at writers who depict the experience of immigrants adapting to new languages, those who dramatize conflicts between people who speak different languages, and those who construct new languages altogether, while keeping their work exciting for English-language readers. Students who know languages other than English are encouraged to explore non-English literature through independent projects. Authors we will study include Junot Diaz, Helen DeWitt, Brian Friel, Cathy Park Hong, Jessica Hagedorn, and Cecilia Vicuña. Writing assignments will emphasize the varied ways in which language can be used to make persuasive arguments, and also introduce students to the language of college essay composition.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Meredith Talusan 16567 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 105

Writing Across Cultures: Writing the City—Poetics and Politics of Walking

Walking through a city is almost like skimming a book or browsing the web. In this course, we will ask what strolling characters do on the pages of novels and short stories. Is the literary walker an aimless observer or a subversive activist? What does walking have to do with rhetoric or historical memory? How do literary meanderings relate to concepts of urban planning and social belonging? What can students of writing learn from ambulatory narratives? With literary and theoretical readings by authors such as Walter Benjamin, Virginia Woolf, and W. G. Sebald, we will investigate poetic possibilities that the associative form of walking opens. The writing exercises will develop students' argumentation skills and their ability to analyze effects of literary form.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Kaisa Kaakinen 16568 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 106

Writing Across Cultures: Speaking in Tongues—Language and (Post) Coloniality

This course thinks about language and postcolonial literature from Africa, Asia, North America, and the Caribbean. Reading texts that deliberately transgress linguistic borders, we will inquire into questions of identities and nationalism while exploring how language is central to both imperial domination and its postcolonial aftermath. We explore how the use of nonstandard language in literature becomes a source of experimentation, resistance, and community consolidation. Authors read might include Rushdie, Roy, Ngugi, Fanon, Chamoiseau, Dabydeen, and Cha. While thinking about how language carries identity, politics, power, and history, students will learn to use it more consciously in their own writing. In the process, they will practice rhetorical and critical thinking skills through in-class writing exercises, reading responses, close readings, and longer research papers.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Kavita Singh 16569 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1109 SEM 107 Writing Across Cultures: Poetry’s Image

Where do we get our images of poetry, and of poets? Along with the images we find in poems themselves, how do poetry and poets figure in fiction and film, in philosophy and popular culture? How do such figures inform the images in poems, poetry's image? In what senses is poetry a "liberal art"? What is its relation to "self," to language, history, and politics, to other disciplines and discourses? This course will explore such issues in a wide range of short texts in both verse and prose, in fiction, film, and other media. The course’s focus on “poetry image” will encourage students to make the connection between such self-reflexive practices in the texts they’re reading and viewing and the texts they themselves produce in their own writing. Authors that we will study include Plato, Wordsworth, Poe, Dickinson, Baudelaire, Whitman, Rimbaud, Stein, Breton, Stevens, Neruda, Borges, Wittgenstein, Celan, Rich, Brathwaite, Waldrop, Collins, Swenson, and Bolaño.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Jonathan Monroe 16570

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1133 SEM 101

Studies in Literary Theory: At the Limits of Language—Ecstasy, the Sublime, Difference

Why do words sometimes fail us? How do we write what must not be thought or what cannot be known? This seminar traces a series of conversations on the limits and inadequacies of language in and across religion, philosophy, literature, and the arts. Topics range from Judeo-Christian theology, early modern mysticism, and eighteenth-century aesthetics to the legitimation crisis of language and reason in twentieth-century thought. Students will develop academic writing and close reading skills through critical engagement with a wide variety of challenging texts. These include poetry (Rumi, Hölderlin, Mistral), prose fiction (Kafka, Borges), and excerpts from works of criticism and philosophy (Horace, Kant, Benjamin, and Derrida among others) as well as examples from the visual arts.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Daniel (Bret) Leraul 16602 Tom McEnaney

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE 1133 SEM 102 Studies in Literary Theory: Literature, Thought, Reality

What can literature teach us about the nature of truth and reality? This course will investigate this question from a number of angles, ranging from problems concerning consciousness and “the ghost in the machine,” to how literature imagines radical alternatives to social reality. We will look at a variety of different methods of approaching these questions, including experimental modernist novels, nature poetry, anarchist writing, and philosophy of mind. Authors to include Faulkner, Beckett, Frost, Kant, Ryle, Marx, Bakunin. Writing assignments will focus on developing close reading skills and formulating strong arguments.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Tatiana Sverjensky 16603 Tom McEnaney

DEVELOPMENT SOCIOLOGY 1205 SEM 101

The Power of Narrative: How Language Shapes our Environment

How do decisions on issues such as climate change, deforestation, and poverty get made? Rather than objective, scientific knowledge, it is often compelling narratives based on simple notions like the “balance of nature” and “sustainable development” that have most powerfully structured how we think of and respond to environment and development issues. In this course, we will explore how language, rhetoric, and storytelling are used not merely to describe reality, but also to shape it—often to serve particular interests. Using a discourse analysis approach inspired by authors like John Dryzek and Donna Haraway, we will examine several contemporary debates in the popular and policy literature. Students will critique, as well as learn to write in, various genres including policy briefs, research reports, and op-ed pieces.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Edmund Oh 16616 Charles Geisler

DEVELOPMENT SOCIOLOGY 1206 SEM 101

Visual Sociology: Critical Thinking and Everyday Images

Picture this! Daily life is filled with images that we encounter, consume and create, and that help define our social positions and aspirations. Whether we engage with visual images through games, comics and films, or in news media, we are constantly exposed to social messages that often go unexamined. This course provides an opportunity to explore and write about the narratives of the image, starting with familiar thematic areas that produce rich imagery in every society, such as gender, family and “the other”. Readings and assignments encourage students to map concepts, to write drafts, to produce creative and persuasive essays, and to apply basic sociological research principles in order to broaden and express their understanding of social trends and forces.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Emme Edmunds 16625 Lindy Williams

ENGLISH 1105 SEM 101

Writing and Sexual Politics: Toni Morrison—Flow, Layering, and Rupture

Narrative needs the movement of flow, the depth of layering, and the surprise tied to rupture. In her first novel, Toni Morrison uses the idea “eruptions of funk” to connect narrative rupture and social rupture. Through Morrison’s novels, we will dive into the role of flow, layering, and rupture in the writing process. We will start with the novel Beloved and the 1998 cinematic adaptation. As we move backward to Tar Baby, one of her earlier novels, and forward to her latest works Home and A Mercy, the flow between the novels will be as striking as the acts of rupture.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Margo Crawford 16571

ENGLISH 1105 SEM 102

Writing and Sexual Politics: Oscar Wilde

“I was a man who stood in symbolic relations to the art and culture of my age,” Oscar Wilde once announced in a characteristically immodest, yet accurate appraisal of his talent. He would be pleased to know that he is now still making curtain calls more than a century later due to his legendary wit, his exuberant celebration of style and paradox, and his pivotal role in the history of modern gay identity. We will explore his work in a variety of genres, including his comedies, poems, essays, letters, and his one novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. We will also discuss and write about his re-emergence in recent films and plays such as Todd Haynes’s Velvet Goldmine and David Hare’s The Judas Kiss.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Ellis Hanson 16572

ENGLISH 1105 SEM 103

Writing and Sexual Politics: The Erotics and Politics of Food

A daily necessity and a sensual indulgence, food has long been a potent and polarizing figure in political and aesthetic debates. In Plato’s Symposium, the setting for a philosophical discussion of love is the most decadent of feasts. And the language of desire permeates the political arguments of such contemporary writers as Michael Pollan and Alice Waters who argue for the extraordinary qualities of everyday meals. This course will investigate the language of food, including cookbooks, novels, and memoirs by such writers as Alice B. Toklas, M. F. K. Fisher, and Isabel Allende. Writing assignments will include recipes and informal blog posts as well as multi-draft essays, all designed to hone close reading skills and encourage the development of complex theses and cohesive arguments.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Elizabeth Blake 16573 Ellis Hanson

ENGLISH 1105 SEM 104

Writing and Sexual Politics: Love Stories

“Am I in love?—Yes, since I’m waiting,” writes Roland Barthes. A central paradox of love is that while love conventionally denotes a union of two persons, that union is often experienced as a gap, as something deferred in time. Love is at once a togetherness and a distance, and this enigma has remained a favorite theme in all kinds of literature. In this course, we will read a number of texts that deal with different types of love in works by Shakespeare, Emily Brontë, and other authors: first love, unrequited love, lost love, “Platonic” love, God’s love (agape), as well as intergenerational love. Note that this is a writing-intensive seminar; assignments will include at least six final essays and one class presentation.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Ben Tam 16575 Ellis Hanson

ENGLISH 1105 SEM 105

Writing and Sexual Politics: Sluts, Spinsters, Drag Queens

What do sluts, spinsters, and drag queens have in common? They expose the excesses and deviations in the spectrum of human sexuality, thereby drawing attention to the dubious status of what is concerned to be “normal.” Students will learn how to analyze, discuss, and write about a wide range of cultural objects from an eighteenth-century epistolary novel to the musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch to a Japanese-Canadian graphic novel to the reality show, RuPaul’s Drag Race. We will also explore how cultural critics and philosophers have addressed questions of gender and sexuality. Learning how to think critically is imperative and what will be emphasized is that writing is a form of thinking.

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Christine Yao 16576 Ellis Hanson

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 101

Writing Across Cultures: Underworlds and Afterlives

How can we speak with the dead? What does it mean to be part of an underworld? Many works of literature take up precisely these questions, attempting to speak to and out of the places of death. We’ll begin by looking at how Homer and Dante imagine journeys to the underworld. And we’ll continue to explore, across different cultures and across history, the possible relationships between death and “subcultures” or “undergrounds.” By considering poetry, novels, stories, and films, we'll discover how art itself can have an afterlife, drawing us out of our daily moment and into an underworld. These issues will be starting points for response papers and longer essays. The course will develop critical vocabularies and methodologies for writing about literary and cultural phenomena.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Aaron Rosenberg 16582 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 103

Writing Across Cultures: Metamorphosis, Identity, and Change

A convict assures his parole board that he’s “not the man he used to be.” We sometimes tell friends that we’re not “feeling like ourselves.” These phrases suggest that we are capable of becoming something other than what we currently are, and they raise a pressing question: are we defined by who we are, who we were, or who we are becoming? In this course, we’ll talk about various types of identity categories, including gender, race, religion, and species, and how they are influenced by notions of transformation. The course will cover texts as diverse as Ovid’s Metamorphosesand HBO’s series True Blood, and students will be encouraged to approach writing itself as a process of transformation.

MWF 01:25–02:15 p.m. Bernadette Guthrie 16584 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 104

Writing Across Cultures: Cartel Literature

What is cartel literature and where does it come from? Who is allowed to write it and what happens when it becomes dangerous to write it? How can cartel literature help us think about gender, race, and class systems in the larger superstructure of globalization? We’ll begin to answer these questions by engaging such texts as Lost City Radio by Daniel Alarcon, excerpts of 2666 by Roberto Bolaño, Murder City by Charles Bowden, as well as various photo essays and articles from Mexico, El Salvador, the U.S., Libya, Lebanon, and China. Students are expected to build on key concepts and themes throughout the course. Essays will be critical in nature and there will be one creative project toward the end of the semester.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Daniel Pena 16585 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 105

Writing Across Cultures: Consumable Corpses

“Meat is like pornography,” says Melinda Vadas, “before it was someone’s fun, it was someone’s life.” In our rapidly globalizing world—where illegal foods become black market delicacies, and video games spark romantic realities—what pleasures and dangers lie in consuming the unfamiliar? In this seminar, we will map out global intersections of consumption; from the titillating literature that paved the way for the transatlantic slave trade, to tours of murder sites; from cookbooks to hip hop; from capitalism to zombies. Following discarded bodies as they are digested and reanimated, we will consider “corpses” not just as dead organisms but also as entire mythologies of race, technology, politics, sexuality, and play. Essays, blogs, and analytical responses will provide innovative outlets for our analysis.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Christian Howard 16586 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 106

Writing Across Cultures: Literature of the Arab Spring

What does “the Arab Spring” even mean? Should we be using the same ubiquitous term to describe the overthrow of Gaddafi in Libya as the ouster of Mubarak in Egypt? What instigated these political movements? In this class, we will examine the literature of some of the Arab countries included in the term “Arab Spring” to contextualize and humanize these complicated political movements. We’ll read novels such as Yacoubian Buildingand In the Country of Men as well as other short stories, poems, and essays. We will also continue to read current news articles and analysis. Through informal and creative writing assignments as well as persuasive essays, students will develop their own unique interpretations of both Arab literature and Arab politics.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Aisha Gawad 16587 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 107

Writing Across Cultures: Far From Heaven

For those who believe in God, and those who do not, the world can seem far from heaven: a place of evil, sin, misery, and despair. In this course, we will read, discuss, and write about authors who imagine such a world in often dazzling, violent, and rich prose. They will include Flannery O’Connor and Graham Greene. There will be frequent writing exercises and assignments encouraging you to see your writing in new ways, to become more aware of your habits and abilities, and to test these. Class will be centered around lively discussions and close engagement with the words on the page.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Owen Boynton 16588 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 108

Writing Across Cultures: Far From Heaven

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Owen Boynton 16589 Elizabeth Anker

ENGLISH 1111 SEM 109

Writing Across Cultures: My Mother Killed Me, My Father Ate Me

This first-year seminar studies the work of international writers and film directors who challenge the mainstream portrayal of parents and parenthood: an ordinary woman commits a suicide in an Austrian village, a South African professor accused of sexual harassment faces the rape of his daughter, a Russian mother and her daughter-in-law have the same face. Within this parental narrative, we will, in discussion and writing, examine the nature of voice and speechlessness, presence and absence, violence, language, memory, and beauty. The class will focus on close reading and thoughtful imaginative dialogue with the artists and their characters. The authors include J. M. Coetzee, Peter Handke, David Albahari, and Gjertrud Schnackenberg. We will also view, discuss, and write about films by Andrej Tarkovsky, Andrej Zviagintsev, and Pedro Almadovar.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Valzhyna Mort Hutchinson 16590

ENGLISH 1127 SEM 101 Shakespeare from Stage to Screen

Shakespeare has been more popular than any other dramatist—or screenwriter—for more than four hundred years. He is the most quoted poet in the English language, and his dramatic works are the most frequently performed and filmed. What accounts for this enduring appeal? What about the plays has made them at once so permanent and so adaptable? This class will give students the opportunity to work closely with a few of Shakespeare's plays: a total of four or five over the course of the semester. We will look to the playtexts themselves as material and inspiration for the extensive writing we will do. But we will also consult films and performances, even trying out some performance in the classroom.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Molly Katz 16633 Barbara Correll

ENGLISH 1127 SEM 102 Shakespeare from Stage to Screen

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Kaylin Myers 16634 Barbara Correll

ENGLISH 1127 SEM 103 Shakespeare from Stage to Screen

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Matthew Ritger 16635 Barbara Correll

ENGLISH 1134 SEM 101 Memoir and Memory

In this course, we’ll read memoirs and examine how authors construct their public, written selves. We'll consider how an author's self-presentation affects how we interpret the experiences, insights, and knowledge presented in each text; we'll also consider how the writing's style affects how we understand the author's personality and motives. Readings may include Tobias Wolff'sThis Boy's Life, Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior, and Nick Flynn's Another Bullshit Night in Suck City; we may also read some poems. Together, and writing frequent essays, we'll explore why and how people write about themselves—for self-exploration, political or social change, purely to practice a form of art, or other reasons—and we'll investigate how writing shapes lived experience.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Michaela Brangan 16636 David Faulkner

ENGLISH 1134 SEM 102 Memoir and Memory

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Nancy Quintanilla 16637 David Faulkner

ENGLISH 1134 SEM 103 Memoir and Memory

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Kenneth Morrison 16638 David Faulkner

ENGLISH 1134 SEM 104 Memoir and Memory

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Ruoji Tang 16639 David Faulkner

ENGLISH 1134 SEM 105 Memoir and Memory

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Clayton Pityk 16640 David Faulkner

ENGLISH 1140 SEM 101

Common Ground: Education Beyond the Ivory Tower

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. x-listed w/ Amst 1140 & Writ 1400 16748

FOR HS MEETINGS, ALLOW TIME TO LEAVE CAMPUS BY 12:55 PM.

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 101 The Mystery in the Story

What makes a story, and what makes it a mystery story? In this course, we'll study and write about the nature of narratives, taking the classic mystery tale written by such writers as Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, and Raymond Chandler as typical of intricately plotted stories of suspense and disclosure that have been written and filmed in many genres: Greek tragedy, horror tales by Poe and Shirley Jackson, psychological thrillers by Ruth Rendell and Patricia Highsmith, neo-noir films such as Memento and Fight Club, and postmodern mystery parodies such as those of Paul Auster and Jorge Luis Borges. We'll look at the way they hold together, the desire and fear that drive them, and the secrets they tell-or try to keep hidden.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Laurel Lathrop 16594 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 102 The Mystery in the Story

SPRING 2013 FIRST-YEAR WRITING SEMINARS

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Lauren Schenkman 16595 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 103 The Mystery in the Story

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Adam Price 16596 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 104 The Mystery in the Story

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Claire Whitenack 16597 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 105 The Mystery in the Story

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Christopher Drangle 16598 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 106 The Mystery in the Story

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. David Aichenbaum 16599 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1147 SEM 107 The Mystery in the Story

MWF 01:25–02:15 p.m. Brad Zukovic 16600 Stuart Davis

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 101

American Voices: Contemporary African-American Literature and Culture

This course will examine contemporary African-American literature and culture. Through aesthetic, generic, and contextual approaches, we will consider how African-Americans are defining themselves and our contemporary world. We will pay particular attention to questions of race in contemporary American life and African-American cultural production as well as how race intersects with others' markers of identity such as gender, sexuality, and nationality. Texts for the course will include: Toni Morrison's Beloved; Essex Hemphill's Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men ; Paul Beatty's White Boy Shuffle; Spike Lee's Bamboozled; Elizabeth Alexander's American Sublime; Barack Obama's "A More Perfect Union"; and, a range of Hip-Hop tracks.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Dagmawi Woubshet 16617 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 102

American Voices: Indians in/as American Literature

What role did Native peoples play in shaping American literature? How does that literature reflect—or reject—their influence? To answer these questions, this course will explore both Euroamerican- and Native-authored texts from the colonial period through the nineteenth century. We will examine how these literatures both contest and create one another through their portrayals of Native history, identity, tradition, land, and sovereignty. Throughout, we will engage with the claim that Native peoples were not mere subjects in American literature; their writings were a constitutive element of that literary heritage. Brief readings and extensive discussions will inform response papers and analytical essays. Students will be introduced to new authors—Apess, Jemison, Schoolcraft—and to new ways of reading familiar ones like Franklin, Melville, and Hawthorne.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Daniel Radus 16618 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 103

American Voices: New Asian-American Narratives

In this course, we will look at a variety of newer, less “canonical” Asian-American voices. We will engage questions of race, representation, and diaspora as we investigate the complexities of contemporary Asian-American narratives in literature. Students will also have the opportunity to analyze the landscape of Asian-American representation (or its absence) in media and in the public sphere. Possible texts include: Blood and Soap by Linh Dinh, Migritude by Shaijla Patel, and selected stories and poems by Nam Le, Jennifer Chang, Karen Tei Yamashita, and others. Students will develop their analytical and argumentative writing skills, drafting and revising 5-6 critical essays that will be based on both the literary texts and the media element of the course.

MWF 01:25–02:15 p.m. Sally Mao 16619 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 104

American Voices: Gods, Ghosts, and Heroes from Asian Folklore

Whereas Eurocentric texts often salute the giants of Europe’s cultural canon (Homer, Shakespeare, etc.), Asian Anglophone writers have access to the canons of both Europe and Asia. We’ll observe characters of dual heritage coping with historical injustices and present-day realities by drawing upon Asian tales and traditions; examine how diaspora affects interactions between first- and second-generation immigrant characters; investigate whether course texts preserve or subvert ancient stories and values; and appraise whether canons and folklores are static or ever-expanding, elitist or populist. In contemplating the effects that authors’ choices have upon us, we’ll learn to consider the effects that our writing decisions have upon our readers, and to value clarity, coherence, and precision. Texts include novels by Amy Tan, Frank Chin, and Monique Truong.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Jungmin Kim 16620 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 105 American Voices: Paranoid Fictions

This course aims to define paranoia in a literary and historical context, focusing largely on novels, short stories, film, television, and other media from the 19th and 20th centuries. Potential works include Herman Melville’s Benito Cereno, selections from Kafka and Borges, Thomas Pynchon’s The Crying of Lot 49, Paul Auster’s City of Glass, The Manchurian Candidate (1962), The Big Lebowski, episodes of The Twilight Zone, and various pieces of wartime propaganda. Using these texts, we will investigate and write critically on patterns of suspicion, the problematics of “knowing,” and the disintegration of selfhood as they appear as phenomena in recent literary history.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Nicholas Friedman 16621 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 106

American Voices: American Radicalism

From the Declaration of Independence to the Declaration of the Occupation of New York City, America’s political movements have written their own literature. This course will explore protest literature’s long history from Uncle Tom’s Cabin to Native Son. We will study the work of patriots, abolitionists, American Indian rights activists, feminists, and socialists. We will, like the figures we study, experiment with different forms to express our ideas. Students will write essays and give presentations on such authors as Henry David Thoreau, Sojourner Truth, Herman Melville, and Richard Wright.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Alex Black 16622 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 107

American Voices: The History of African American Literature

Arthur Schomburg once wrote that the African American “must remake his past in order to make his future.” The texts we study in this course will reflect, and will help us reflect, on the individual and collective histories of bondage and freedom that together make up American history. This course will cover over two hundred years of African American literature that looks back to move forward. Our authors, who may include Frederick Douglass, Pauline Hopkins, August Wilson, and Toni Morrison, will use writing to reckon with the past. And so will we. Students will write essays on and conduct research related to the course material.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Alex Black 16623 Kevin Attell

ENGLISH 1158 SEM 108

American Voices: Monumental America—Memory, Memorial, and Nation

John Quincy Adams famously observed, “Democracy has no monuments. It strikes no medals; it bears the head of no man upon its coin; its very essence is iconoclastic.” Yet nearly two hundred fifty years after America’s founding, monuments and memorials surround us every day—but how often do we stop to consider their place in our culture? This seminar will explore the relationship between nation and monument, asking: how do monuments unite and how do they divide while telling narratives of national union? Readings will be drawn from a variety of literary, historical, and theoretical sources, as well as materials from visual culture, and a series of critical writing assignments will allow students to engage with the course’s themes and readings.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Jillian Spivey 16624 Shirley Samuels

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 101 Great New Books

Great literature in English goes back several centuries, but some of it is being written right now. What are the great new books, and how do we know? What issues arise, and why? What role do reviews, prizes, book clubs, and movie adaptations play in establishing the appeal and prestige of new literature? These are some of the questions we'll explore as we read, discuss, and write critical essays about several of the most acclaimed books published in the last twenty years. Our readings will include works in a range of genres, from novels and memoirs to poetry and graphic novels.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Stevie Edwards 16604 Charlie Green

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 102 Great New Books

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Emma Perry 16605 Charlie Green

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 103 Great New Books

MWF 01:25–02:15 p.m. Alexander Chertok 16606 Charlie Green

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 104 Great New Books

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Benjamin Garcia 16607 Chalrie Green

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 105 Great New Books

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Emily Rials 16608 Charlie Green

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 106 Great New Books

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Charlie Green 16609

ENGLISH 1167 SEM 107 Great New Books

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Fredric Bogel 17095

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 101 Cultural Studies: The Doctor is In

On the hit TV show House, the misanthropic physician tells his staff “treating illnesses is why we became doctors. Treating patients is what makes most doctors miserable.” In this course, we will look at how doctors and patients analyze and write about medical treatment. Texts may include William Carlos Williams’s “The Doctor Stories,” James Herriot’s All Creatures Great and Small, and excerpts from Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creatures by Olivia Judson. We will view selected episodes of House and Grey’s Anatomy and will examine podcasts and newspaper articles related to medicine. While we will primarily write analytical essays, assignments may include more creative endeavors such as writing an advice column entry and creating a podcast.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Kristie Schlauraff 16610 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 102

Cultural Studies: What is an Author?

How do we imagine or understand the individuals behind the books we read, and what kind of relationship can we have with them? In this course, we will examine many conceptions of authorship, from anonymous bard to individual genius to creative collaborator. We will also look at how critics, philosophers, and writers have dramatized the author-reader relationship, with an eye toward the tendency to depict the author as tyrannical, detached, or artificial. This course will promote writing as a method of active reading: by considering these issues through a series of academic papers, students will be able to reflect on how literary study can create a space for uniting reading and writing. Readings may include works by Wordsworth, Barthes, Foucault, Woolf, Calvino, and D. F. Wallace.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Stephen Thompson 16611 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 103 Cultural Studies: Zombies!

The Zombie virus is spreading! Zombie film and literature is becoming increasingly mainstream, and this course will revel in this popular pandemic. Beginning with the roots of zombie myth in Haitian voodoo, we will explore the zombie's development into the infectious, hyperviolent ghouls of George Romero films and beyond. We will read the zombie novel World War Z, short stories, parts of The Walking Dead graphic novel, and of course several films including Night of, Dawn, and Shaun of the Dead. Writing assignments will range from formal academic essays to oral presentations and at least one short story. Participation in (and writing about) the Humans v. Zombies campus-wide game will also be encouraged. High tolerance for violence will be vital: come prepared for gore!

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Matthew McConnell 16612 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 104

Cultural Studies: It Is Black In Outer Space

Come explore the grim dystopias, zombie apocalypses, and celestial creature worlds of science fiction. This writing seminar will look at science fiction through the lens of African-American media and discourse. Texts will include fiction (Octavia Butler’s Kindred and Samuel Delany’s Dhalgren), poetry (Tracey K. Smith’s Life on Mars), and film (Attack the Block). Our exploration and critique of these materials—through class debates, writing assignments, and creative projects—will center on race. What is Afrofuturism? In what ways do extraterrestrial "others" raise the issue of diaspora? How does science fiction reflect, comment on, and shape questions of internationalism in this world? We will critique and answer these questions through journals entries, formal essays, and even creative projects.

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Kimberly Williams 16613 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 105 Cultural Studies: Dark Humor

What’s so funny about death, war, and existential despair? Dark humor gives a comic treatment to morbid or taboo concepts, from cannibalism to the destruction of the human race. In this course, we’ll look at examples of dark humor from many periods and genres—including works by Jonathan Swift, Samuel Beckett, Flannery O’Connor, Kurt Vonnegut, and David Foster Wallace, movies such as

Dr. Strangelove and Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, and the stand-up comedy of Richard Pryor. In a series of argumentative essays, students will analyze these works, exploring questions such as how dark humor differs from “nondark” humor, and to what extent it allows authors to provide cultural commentary that would be impossible through more serious means.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. John Searcy 16614 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1168 SEM 106

Cultural Studies: Crisis! Catastrophe! Collapse!

Why are we so attracted to stories of disaster, and what can these stories teach us about our deepest fears and our most powerful coping mechanisms? We will examine and compare various representations of crisis and catastrophe—including terrorist attacks, environmental calamities, outbreak narratives, and financial collapses—asking how narratives about real and imagined crises help us negotiate the smaller-scale anxieties of everyday life. We’ll view films by Stanley Kubrick, Roland Emmerich, and Alain Brigand, and we’ll read fiction by Don DeLillo, Cormac McCarthy, and Margaret Atwood. Frequent writing assignments will discuss what makes these stories of crisis so compelling and how they help us understand a world that often seems on the verge of collapse.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Seth Perlow 16615 George Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 101 Short Stories

What is the difference between an anecdote and a short story or a memoir and a short story? How does the short story separate itself from the prose poem, the myth, or the parable? What can a short story do that no other art form can do, including cinematic narrative? This course will focus on the reading and analysis of short stories derived from a range of cultures and time periods, with some emphasis on English-language stories, particularly those from the North American continent. Writers may include but not be limited to: Tobias Wolff, Alice Munroe, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Willa Cather, Edgar Alan Poe, Nikolai Gogol, Eudora Welty, Louise Erdrich, Haruki Murakami, Denis Johnson, Margaret Atwood, Donald Barthelme, Flannery O'Connor, Edith Wharton, Raymond Carver, Joyce Carol Oates, and Anton Chekhov. There will be a research component and some workshop discussion of student work.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Danielle Morgan 16641 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 102 Short Stories

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Samuel Nam 16642 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 103 Short Stories

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Caroline Zeilenga 16643 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 104 Short Stories

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Mandy Gutmann 16644 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 105 Short Stories

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Lena Krian 16645 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1170 SEM 106 Short Stories

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Lauren Harmon 16646 Ishion Hutchinson

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 101

British Literature: Bearing the Brontës

Literary theorist Roland Barthes famously wrote that “To give an Author to a text is to impose upon that text a stop clause . . . to close the writing.” How might we instead “open up” literature through a richer understanding of the multifaceted relationships among author, text, characters, and reader? How do we imagine our own roles as readers and writers? This course will examine these questions through works by, for, and about the literary siblings Anne, Charlotte, and Emily Brontë. Pairing the Brontës’ novels with a diverse array of films, music, and visual art, we will explore how issues of authorship, narration, collaboration, and adaptation inform the texts we read.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Kaelin Alexander 16626 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 102

British Literature: Coming of Age in the 19th Century

This course focuses on representations of coming of age in nineteenth-century British literature. We will investigate the Victorian preoccupation with childhood as well as the ideals of adult subjectivity at a time when scientists and philosophers were reconsidering human development. We will explore not only conflicting notions of childhood, but also the extent to which childhood prefigures an adult’s place in the world. Students will gain experience with reading influential and recent criticism, and writing in response. Readings may be chosen from such works as: Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre; Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland; Charles Dickens, Great Expectations; Rudyard Kipling, Kim.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Elisha Cohn 16627

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 103

British Literature: Stories of Creation and Apolcalypse

Recent attention to the Mayan prophecy for 2012 and the constant production of blockbuster disaster films remind us that myths of origin and apocalypse traditionally bookend our understanding of the world. In this course, we will explore how stories of creation and cataclysmic end times are examined, represented, and revised in English literature. In particular, we will consider the lasting influence of the Genesis accounts of the Garden of Eden and the Fall, the myth of Prometheus, and the Apocalypse and Millennium of Revelation. Through in-class discussions and multi-draftexpositoryessays,wewilldevelopskillsinclosereadingandcriticalthinking.TextsmayincludeJohnMilton’s ParadiseLost, Lord Byron’s Cain, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Percy Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Jane Kim 16628 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 104

British Literature: Self, Nation, and Empire

What is the relationship between “self,” “nation,” and “empire”? This course will approach the British novel from the perspective of writers who have a thorny, complex relationship to Britain: James Joyce, Joseph Conrad, Virginia Woolf, E. M. Forster, and Salman Rushdie. How does British imperialism shape the way other people and places are represented in the English literary imagination? And how does that literary imagination in turn complicate the politics of British imperialism? Through various kinds of writing assignments—from weekly Blackboard responses to multi-draft analytical essays—we will seek to understand how the novel form accommodates differences in personal and national identity.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Christiine Suwendy 16629 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 105

British Literature: Blasphemy in Modern Literature

An “obscene” portrait of the Virgin Mary sparks a political uproar. Cartoons picturing Muhammad outrage millions, leading to international demonstrations and violence. A man named Jesus is crucified for the blasphemous crime of calling himself God. Why is blasphemy so threatening, so powerful? Why does it disturb yet compel us? This seminar will investigate how blasphemy works as both subject matter and style. In literature by writers like James Joyce, Mina Loy, and Salman Rushdie, and in other media including film and comics, we’ll encounter provocative portrayals of things that many hold sacred. We’ll analyze and write about what happens when great writers dare to combine the sacred and the profane, bringing God and worldly things—sexuality, the human body—too close for comfort.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Steven Pinkerton 16630 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 106

British Literature: Growing up Modern

Is it true that “human character changed” in the early twentieth century, as Virginia Woolf famously claimed? What do the stories a society tells about childhood, youth, and education reveal about its collective fantasies, fears, and desires? In this course, we will read late-nineteenth and early twentieth-century narratives about youth and education (with a particular focus on experimental British prose fiction) for what they can tell us about life in a period of startling technological change, political upheaval, and war. We will also develop our analytical and expressive skills by composing short responses and polished critical essays. Our readings may include texts by Woolf, Oscar Wilde, Sigmund Freud, James Joyce, Joseph Conrad, and Jean Rhys, among others.

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Benjamin McCormick 16631 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1191 SEM 107

British Literature: Vindicating the Villain—Literature’s Exoneration Project

Judas. Grendel. Dracula. These are some of literature’s most infamous villains. While viewing these characters as evil-doers seems to be a cut-and-dried issue, some modern authors have begun composing parallel texts designed to redeem even the most damnable characters in literary history. Indeed, while John Gardner encourages readers to view Grendel as an adolescent experiencing existential crisis, Andrew Lloyd Weber presents Judas as a tragic hero striving to preserve his people. In this class, we will explore British literature through the scope of "Flipped Perspective" as we revisit classic tales of good and evil from non-traditional viewpoints. Writing exercises will include analytical and creative essays and in-class assignments. Proposed texts include: Neil Gaiman’s Bay Wolf, Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Jesus Christ Superstar, Fred Saberhagen’s The Dracula Tape.

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Katie Compton 16632 Elisha Cohn/ Amanda Goldstein

ENGLISH 1270 SEM 101

Writing About Literature: The Detective Novel and Film

Beyond the smoking gun and the femme fatale, do detective novels have more to say? Can entertainment legitimately address social issues? And can popular fiction be as complex as ‘high brow’ literature? In this class we shall explore the ways in which detective novels and films are often a Trojan horse for intricate literary forms and contents. Specifically we shall look at the ways in which they make commentary on questions of gender, race, class, law and justice, the delicate balance between order and freedom, and age-old questions of familial versus civic duties.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Mukoma Wa Ngugi 16655

First-year students may enroll only if they have taken one First-Year Writing Seminar, scored a "4" or "5" on the Princeton AP examination, received a "700" or better on the English Composition or CEEB tests, or received a “7” on the IB English Lit exam.

ENGLISH 1270 SEM 102

Writing About Literature: Doubling, Disguise, and Desire in Drama

Theatre is never more theatrical than when it doubles itself—in strategically paired characters, in plays about playing, in tales of vindictive intrigue, in parallel plotlines, in confusions of gender and identity, in reflections on its own dark or joyous origins. Beginning with Euripides’

The Bacchae, this course will explore such doublings and the frenzies they entail, reading comedies and tragedies by such playwrights as Shakespeare, Thomas Middleton, Oscar Wilde, Bertolt Brecht, Alan Ayckbourn, Jean Genet, and Suzan-Lori Parks, and viewing them, when possible, in live or filmed performance. And we’ll write a lot.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Stuart Davis 16656

ENGLISH 1270 SEM 103 Writing About Literature: Poetry

What can reading poetry teach us about good writing and critical thinking? This writing seminar deals with a variety of poetry, from the Renaissance to contemporary musical lyrics, in order to make students better readers and writers. We will work collectively in a seminar setting to 1) learn about the formal aspects of poetic texts; 2) improve writing skills; 3) develop habits of critical thinking; 4) learn how to write critical papers; 5) talk about what is at stake in reading a poem and doing critical analysis.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Barbara Correll 16657

ENGLISH 1270 SEM 104

Writing About Literature: The Great Pleasures of Short Fiction

In this course, we will closely read a variety of nineteeth- and twentieth-century short fiction, from Poe’s unforgettable tales of horror to Nabokov’s dazzling metafictional puzzles, from Melville’s mysterious antebellum Manhattan to Woolf’s and Joyce’s high modernist gems. Over the semester we will observe the wide variety of styles and shapes that short fiction can assume, and we will focus our critical lenses on what literary effects are achieved by our authors’ formal and narrative techniques.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Kevin Attell 16658

FRENCH 1112 SEM 101

Homebound and Vagabond: A Survey of Inner and Outer Spaces

From the provincial wanderer to the Parisian stroller, from treading the streets to treading water, from cities to interiors, and from nature to furniture, the course will explore the combined aesthetics of inner and outer spaces throughout the works of French writers such as Rousseau, Baudelaire, and Sartre. Some of the central questions will be: what are literary differences between open and closed spaces, between a passerby and a homebody? How do these differences inflect the representations of time, style, margins, and identity? What can be mapped within the borders of a book? The course is intended to develop students’ ability to practice close reading on different sorts of artistic supports.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Morgane Cadieu 16659 Kathleen Long

FRENCH 1113 SEM 101

Deceit, Desire, and the Dynamics of Self

How do we form our conceptions of self, and how might storytelling—through fantasy, through fiction, through film—provide insights into the ways in which we construct our identities? What does it mean for the self to “come into being” in a fictional text? Through an investigation of “autofiction” (autobiographical fiction) and avant-garde cinema, we will discuss the fictionalized representation of “selves,” questions of “authenticity” and desire, and the role of memory in our imaginary (self) representations. Readings may include works by Proust, Montaigne, Rousseau, Ben Jelloun, Sarraute, and Duras, critical and philosophical texts, and films by Varda, Resnais, Dulac, Truffaut, and Buñuel. Writing assignments will encourage students to question, analyze and think critically about literature and cinema.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Emily Kane 16660 Kathleen Long

GERMAN STUDIES 1104 SEM 101

Dreams of Reason: Enlightenment Projects and Projections

This course will be populated by a diverse company of truth-seekers, ghost-seers, pleasure-hunters, and freedom-freaks. During the Enlightenment, reason, conceived as a project of self-emancipation, flourished alongside irrational enthusiasms of all kinds. We will engage with texts by canonical Enlightenment thinkers such as Kant and Rousseau, as well as the fictions, music, and paintings of artists such as Hoffman, Mozart, and Goya. From this basis we will proceed to study contemporary critiques of the Enlightenment, and explore the promises and liabilities its projects carry for us today. The Enlightenment practice of critical questioning will guide our development of analytical and argumentative skills through writing.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Johannes Wankhammer 16661 Douglas Brent McBride

GERMAN STUDIES 1108 SEM 101 After Communism What Time?

How does literature create a sense of time? How do past, present, and future interact in the literature of former Soviet Bloc countries? Why should we read these works after European Communism has been declared politically unviable? This course addresses the structure of time in post-communist German literature. We will investigate philosophical ideas about time and history and, with attention to historical context, explore the relationship between these literary temporal structures and subjective experience after the so-called “fall of Communism” in 1989. Writing assignments, culminating in a portfolio, will bring literary analysis into meaningful contact with historical and philosophical conceptions of time.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Katrina Nousek 16662 Douglas Brent McBride

GERMAN STUDIES 1109 SEM 101

From Fairy Tales to the Uncanny: Exploring the Romantic Consciousness

As cultural productions, literary texts not only reflect certain values of the culture that produces them, but also reinforce and perpetuate these values, influencing the reader/listener to judge and respond to the world in certain ways. As educative texts with implicit or explicit lessons, fairy tales have been a primary expression of such cultural values and thus a primary tool in shaping cultural identity. Beginning with selections from the Brothers Grimm, we will examine the features and functions of fairy tales and the persistence of fairy-tale elements beyond their nineteenth-century beginnings. We will pay particular attention to their transformation during German Romanticism, with its fascination with

the paranormal, the supernatural, and the uncanny. The emphasis of the course is on improving writing skills.

MWF 02:30–03:20 p.m. Douglas McBride 16664

GERMAN STUDIES 1109 SEM 102

From Fairy Tales to the Uncanny: Exploring the Romantic Consciousness

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Carl Gelderloos 16665 Douglas Brent McBride

GERMAN STUDIES 1170 SEM 101 Marx, Nietzsche, Freud

A basic understanding of Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud is a prerequisite for participating in critical debates in the humanities and social sciences. Our seminar will explore key terms in the revolutionary models of critical analysis these thinkers pioneered: historical materialism, post-metaphysical philosophy, psychoanalysis. This will mean articulating points of contrast as well as convergence. Discussions and writing exercises will focus on texts that created the discursive framework for critiquing society and culture today. Our method will proceed from the premise that critical reading, thinking, and writing are inseparable moments in the same operation of critique. The question that guides that method will be: Do alternative ways of thinking exist in opposition to the ones we view as natural, inevitable, or universal?

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Anna Horakova 16667 Douglas Brent McBride

GERMAN STUDIES 1170 SEM 102 Marx, Nietzsche, Freud

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Nathan Taylor 16668 Douglas Brent McBride

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 101 Power and Politics: Bombing

The military practice of aerial bombardment is just about a hundred years old and showing no signs of decline. Even as the United States withdraws from ground wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is likely to continue bombing—by unmanned aerial vehicles (“drones”) and in “humanitarian interventions,” such as Libya. This course examines the history of (and ongoing controversies about) bombing through primary historical and legal documents, fiction, film, and political analysis. Students will undertake a wide variety of writing styles, from opinion pieces to movie and book reviews to political-science essays. Possible readings include documents on the laws of war, writings by pioneers of air power such as Giulio Douhet, novels such as Slaughterhouse Five and Catch-22, and statements of current U.S. military policy.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Matthew Evangelista 16669

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 102

Power and Politics: Ethnography of Crime and Punishment

Between the early 1970s and 2000, the incarcerated population in the United States grew eight times over. During this period, the “tough on crime” approach led the United States—with five percent of the world’s population and twenty-five percent of the world’s prison

population—to merit the dubious distinction of being the world’s leading jailor. In the last few years, however, the pendulum has begun to swing away from the long-prevailing punitive perspective. Conservatives now speak about the desirability of being “right on crime” and liberals stress the importance of being “smart on crime.” The days of being “harsh on crime” may now be numbered. In this seminar, we trace this history exploring the reasons for the beginning shift in punishment regimes. Students will observe drug court and attend discussion sections in prison, which will provide material for observations/ethnographic writing. The reading texts will offer contentious perspectives on current public policy debates and students will be asked to engage with the arguments of the texts through close analytical writing.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Mary Katzenstein 16670

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 103 Power and Politics: Utopia

Utopias are imaginary visions that paint an idealistic picture of what that society might be. In some cases ("dystopias"), these visions are forbidding predictions of what society will become. In this course, we will read widely, devouring both utopias and dystopias, in search of the fundamental principles that shape societies. As we discuss these readings, you will be asked to design a utopian society, choosing how you would structure power, arrange economic production, create architectural forms and their spatial connections, harness and exploit technology, ensure compatibility with the natural environment, socialize the young, and incorporate religious belief. When you are finished constructing your utopian vision, we will ask you to explain how we might create that society, given where we are now.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Richard Bensel 16671

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 104

Power and Politics: The Politics of Gender in Bollywood Film

How are changing gender norms in India reflected in mainstream and independent Indian film? This course seeks to understand the multiple representations of women across the spectrum of Hindi movies, ranging in both time and popularity. Various movies will be assigned to the class, and students will also read gender theory and film critiques to build arguments about the role of females in the films. A secondary component of the course will be discussing the role of gender in these films in their appropriate socio-political context. This will bring the understanding of the films to a deeper level, not only as pieces of art as themselves, but as representations of the greater social and political changes of the times. Students will be expected to write critiques and analyses of the films and readings with an emphasis on making strong and coherent arguments.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Triveni Gandhi 16672 Ron Herring

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 105

Power and Politics: The Politics of Political Participation in the United States

Millions of Americans participate in politics every day. Many Americans vote, but they also contact representatives, contribute funds to those elected or seeking office, sign petitions, and engage in a host of other activities scholars classify as political participation. Drawing on the political participation literature including Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam, Voice and Equality by Verba et al., and Mobilization, Participation, and Democracy in America by Rosenstone and Hansen, this course will clearly define political participation, reveal who votes in the United States, and assess the factors determining the likelihood of an individual casting a vote. Writing assignments will ask students to write short critical summaries of assigned material as well as to conduct original research on a topic related to political participation.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Casey Radostitz 16673 Michael Jones-Correa

GOVERNMENT 1101 SEM 106

Power and Politics: Radical Approaches to International Development

From LiveAid to the World Bank to Madonna’s latest adoption, international development often takes the form of wealthy countries giving money, goods, or technical assistance to poor countries. This course seeks to complicate the narrative about international development by introducing alternative approaches not often seen in policy and popular culture. What is the role of local knowledge in the development process? What if underdevelopment is an inevitable part of globalization? What can post-colonial and other critical theories tell us about development? Students will use these alternative approaches to develop skills in critical thinking, critiquing, and constructing persuasive arguments around the question: what is the best way to alleviate poverty and human suffering world-wide, and what is the role of the “West” in the process?

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Erin Hern 16674 Tom Pepinsky

HISTORY 1141 SEM 101

Witchcraft in the Early Modern Atlantic World

This seminar examines how European beliefs about witchcraft and magic were exported to Africa and the Americas in the period 1500–1800. We will explore how non-European concepts of the supernatural and magical intersected with European ideas during the initial stages of European colonial expansion. We will read a range of documents, including transcripts from witch trials, treatises about witchcraft, and books written by historians that interpret the historical meaning of witchcraft. Students will write a range of papers that aim to answer the following types of questions: Were witches figments of the European imagination? Why were the people accused of witchcraft more often women than men? Why did Europeans believe that Native Americans or Africans were likely to be involved in witchcraft?

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Duane Corpis 16675 n/a

HISTORY 1159 SEM 101 The Ancient Spartans

Who were the ancient Spartans, why were they so fascinating to their contemporaries, and what explains their appeal to modern audiences? We will address these questions and others through selections in translation of ancient authors such as Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, Plato, and Aristotle. Written assignments will require students to evaluate the worth of these writings as sources for Spartan history and to articulate clear, concise, and critical arguments about peculiar features of Spartan society. Topics include the relationship between war and society in ancient Sparta, the freedom of Spartan women, slavery, the Spartans’ severe system of education, and, of course, the history of the 300.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. David Blome 16676 Barry Strauss

HISTORY 1163 SEM 101

Numb: A Modern History of Pain

Anesthesia for surgery. Epidurals for childbirth. Aspirin for headaches. Have morphine, ether, and aspirin changed the meaning of pain in human life? Is the existence of pain necessary—or even desirable? This seminar poses the question of whether the human experience of pain is universal, or culturally specific. In addition to charting important biomedical interventions, we will consider the role of society and politics in determining who experiences pain, when, where, and why. We will explore the limits of the eradication of pain through contemporary debates over patient’s rights, pharmaceutical patents, euthanasia, and torture. Students will write a research paper on a topic of either historical significance or contemporary relevance. Breaking down the stages of research and writing, this seminar will aim to make academic writing painless.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Quentin Pearson 16677 Tamara Loos

HISTORY 1164 SEM 101

Madness Chafed by Reality: Photography, Culture, and the U.S.

From the earliest daguerreotype portraits to the images of tortured prisoners at Abu Ghraib, the desire to look has captured the American imagination and helped to define the course of U.S. culture. But what is it that photographs really tell us? We will examine how scholars, intellectuals, and critics have thought about images, and we’ll look at images ourselves. We’ll investigate connections between technology, progress, and cultural critique through photographs of the nation and its people—farmers, fashion models, immigrants—and the explosion of digital images. Though we’ll read carefully, it is through class discussion and individual writing that we’ll interpret and reinterpret the evidence of our eyes. Finally, each of us will spend the semester working towards a final photo-essay, made up of images of our own choice, an essay that strives to put into practice the critical lenses we’ve explored in the service of making a broader argument about “America.”

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Daegan Miller 16679 Aaron Sachs

HISTORY 1165 SEM 101 Comparative “Chineseness”

This course will examine how China, the Chinese people, and Chinese culture are perceived in various places from the nineteenth century onwards. We will explore these notions by looking at China’s self-image, its representations in the West, and by the perceptions of the overseas Chinese, particularly from the peoples of Chinese descent in Southeast Asia and the United States. Readings include studies on identity, race and culture, and first-hand accounts, such as manifestos, missionary writings, governmental accounts and writing by the overseas Chinese. Writing assignments include personal narratives, comparative analyses, argumentative papers, and a final essay.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Oiyan Liu 16680 Eric Tagliacozzo

HISTORY 1166 SEM 101

Historical Trauma, Historical Memory

Historical traumas leave ruptured societies in their wake. Some of these societies strive to heal their wounds and seek justice through the law, reparations, memorials, and preserving the historical record, while others avoid confronting their pasts or choose revenge over reconciliation. Through a comparative analysis of American slavery, the Holocaust, and apartheid, this course will analyze the ways in which responses to historical traumas shape the construction of historical memories—the dominant memory of the past that informs a collective identity. While developing a writing process and style that combines clarity with elegance, students will also explore whether cultivating a more "truthful" historical memory and promoting an open dialogue about a traumatic past are productive means to substantively and meaningfully work through a historical trauma.

MW 08:40–09:55 a.m. Mari Crabtree 16681 Nick Salvatore

LINGUISTICS 1100 SEM 101

Language, Thought, and Reality: How to Build a Language

Hundreds of languages have been created for practical or artistic purposes, from existing material or from whole cloth. But to be legitimate they must be speakable, or at least believable. We will explore the linguistic tools necessary to compose a language, from sounds to words to sentences and full texts. We will also examine the history of constructed languages—which have succeeded, which have failed, and why? The ultimate goal will be for each student to begin constructing a new language of their own and to justify its linguistic validity and its practical or artistic merit.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Edward Cormany 16704 Michael Weiss

LINGUISTICS 1100 SEM 102

Language, Thought, and Reality: Linguistics and (Pre-)History

How do linguists use language as a tool to discover prehistory? In addition to the more obvious sources of historical data (documents, physical remains, etc.), scholars often make use of linguistic data in constructing theories about (pre-)historical events and patterns. In this class, we will examine and write about four basic questions. First, how do linguists uncover earlier stages of linguistic history? Second, what kinds of inferences can be legitimately drawn from linguistic data for (pre-)historical investigation? Third, how can we distinguish between plausible and implausible uses of linguistic data? Fourth, what role does ideology play in shaping or misshaping historical reconstruction? Some particular topics that may be covered: The Indo-Aryan invasion hypothesis; Ancient Macedonian; The peopling of the Americas and pre-Columbian contact; Egyptian influence in Africa.

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Michael Weiss 16705

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1101 SEM 101

Aspects of Medieval Culture: “The Forest Primeval” from Philosophy to Folklore

What is a forest? An idyllic paradise? Troll territory? A locus of resources? Home? In this class, we will take a multi-angle approach to reading forest ecosystems and cultural imagination in Europe and North America. Beginning with the early Middle Ages, we will encounter forests in texts such as philosophic writing on “spiritual wilderness,” Celtic nature poetry, and Otherworld romances. We will then discuss the forest in folklore and balladry, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We will conclude with selected works of writers such as Thoreau, Muir, and Lopez, through which we will examine what might be the role of literature in current environmental discussions. Film and music, such as Princess Mononokeand Sibelius’ Tapiola will supplement literary readings. Writing assignments will include short analyses, longer research papers, creative writing, and weekly journal entries.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Danielle Cudmore 16706 Samantha Zacher

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1101 SEM 102

Aspects of Medieval Culture: Reading in the Middle and Digital Ages

In an age of “new media,” the ways we read, and interact with, texts seem to be undergoing rapid changes and deep transformations. In such an environment, what can we gain from considering “really old media,” like medieval manuscripts? A lot! This course will survey the history of how people made, read, and used texts from the early Middle Ages through the Reformation. Drawing on Cornell’s Rare Book and Manuscript Collections, scholarly essays, and our collective experiences with digital media, we will strive to think and write about old books and old documents in new ways. Writing assignments will include formal descriptive analyses of medieval manuscripts and comparative analyses of medieval and modern modes of reading.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Joel Anderson 16707 Andrew Hicks

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1101 SEM 103

Aspects of Medieval Culture: Saints at War—Battling the Devil in the Middle Ages

Spiritual struggles, in which the heroic Christian fights supernatural devils or human aggressors in order to maintain faith, are common in stories about saints in the Middle Ages. These clashes, which range from beguiling temptation to verbal abuse, and are combatted by saintly steadfastness and miraculous agency, help make these stories worth analyzing as literary and cultural documents rather than simply moral lessons. This class will examine a broad range of medieval saints' lives, from the late Roman Empire’s “lives” of St. Perpetua and St. Antony, through later accounts to Chaucer's period and beyond. Class discussions will seek to draw out major themes and historic issues in order to develop the skills for writing informal responses, close readings, and critical essays.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Ruth Mullett 16708 Samantha Zacher

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1101 SEM 104

Aspects of Medieval Culture: Writing the Ruin of Empires

Crisis. Collapse. Even the ultimate decline of Western civilization. You find this story told everywhere, from newspapers to The Colbert Report. But, authors in the West have been writing narratives of decline for as long as they have been writing at all. Our question in this course is not really why great civilizations fall, but rather why we have always been so interested in predicting it. We will therefore attend especially to those imaginative properties which inhere to narratives of decline. We examine a range of ancient and medieval texts, setting them in conversation with contemporary works of art—literary, cinematic, pictorial—in order to understand the aesthetic and rhetorical function of such cultural pessimism. Assignments include informal responses and critical essays.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Zachary Yuzwa 16709 Charles Brittain

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1103 SEM 101

Legends, Fantasy, and Vision: From Utopia to Dystopia—Medieval Fantasies and Modern Hells

“It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking 13.” George Orwell’s 1984, one of the best-known works of dystopian literature, is just one addition to a long tradition of writing about the perfect society. Beginning with selections from Cicero’s De Republica and moving through such medieval utopian works as Dante’s Paradiso and the Rule of St. Benedict we will grapple with presentations of the ideal society. With this foundation, we will move into more modern dystopian literature, such as Yevgeny Zamyatin’s We and Scott Phillip’s Rut. Formal writing assignments, including creative writing and peer-review, as well as class discussion will strengthen students’ critical thinking and writing abilities.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Hannah Byland 16710 Andy Galloway

MEDIEVAL STUDIES 1103 SEM 102

Legends, Fantasy, and Vision: There and Back Again—The Medieval Origins of Tolkien’s Quest

J. R. R. Tolkien tops many lists as the greatest author of the twentieth century, a distinction that often dwarfs his role as a long-time professor of Anglo-Saxon literature at Oxford. This class will explore how Tolkien’s interest in and scholarship on medieval literature and languages informed his fiction writing. Readings will include selections from The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, as well as some of his shorter works and essays. These texts will be read alongside important medieval works such as selections of Old English poetry, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Old Norse poetry and sagas, and the Finnish Kalevala. This course will hone students’ writing and analytic skills through class discussion, writing exercises, and formal papers.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Rachel Grabowski 16711 Oren Falk

MUSIC 1701 SEM 101

Sound, Sense, and Ideas: Music and American Nationalism

Music has been used in countless ways to express an idea of what “America” is or what it could be. In this class, we will listen to several kinds of music, write about that music, and read what other writers have to say about music and American nationalism since 1900. Is there a “distinctly American” musical style? What does it even mean to desire such a style? How have different communities in the U.S. made nationalist claims for particular kinds of music? Artists and genres will include Duke Ellington, Aaron Copland, Parliament-Funkadelic, folk music, Charles Ives, the blues, and Bruce Springsteen.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Ben Piekut 16714

MUSIC 1701 SEM 102

Sound, Sense, and Ideas: Music as Counterculture

How do people use music to make political or ideological statements? What is the relationship between culture and personal identity? The history of twentieth-century music is full of shifting allegiances, re-appropriations, and radical breaks, but what changes did they effect, and how did these changes come about? This course examines the role of radicalism and subversion in twentieth-century music and culture. We will explore concepts like “avant-garde” and “counterculture,” asking how they relate to mainstream society. You will learn how to structure and write essays, developing your ability to argue persuasively and think critically about a range of sources, including manifestos, letters, interviews, autobiographies, cultural criticism, fiction, and music itself.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Caroline Waight 16715 Ben Piekut

NEAR EASTERN STUDIES 1930 SEM 101

Powerful Words: Reading Ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians

When writing arouses admiration, awe, or pity, it can move people to act. Such texts surround us and include forms developed millennia ago in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Students will learn to recognize how ancient scribes communicated (with gods and men), educated, lamented, persuaded, and animated. Course readings (in translation) include the Epic of Gilgamesh, Tale of Sinuhe, teachings, law codes, propaganda, magic spells, correspondence, and philosophical musings in both prose and poetry. Influence on the Hebrew Bible and Koran will become apparent, as will the awareness that contemporary culture resonates with ancient meanings. Understanding these early, artful writing techniques will become meaningful as students develop their own to communicate their reactions and interpretations to other students and the instructor.

MWF 10:10-11:00 Chris Monroe 17053

NEAR EASTERN STUDIES 1967 SEM 101 Law, Society, and Culture in the Middle East

An exploration of the nature of the classical Islamic judicial system and notions of justice. Class discussions will be based upon the close reading of historical materials, including legal documents, judicial opinions, and court cases (all in English translation!), which will form the basis of writing assignments. Themes to be treated will include the marital regime, relations between parents and children, gender, slavery, the intergenerational transmission of property, the status of non-Muslims, crime and its punishment, law, and the public sphere.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. David Powers 16687

PHILOSOPHY 1110 SEM 101

Philosophy in Practice: Managing Life and Death—Contemporary Issues in Biomedical Ethics

Human beings are unique in their ability to exercise control over matters of life and death. This ability presents us with some difficult ethical questions. Is abortion morally wrong? What about manipulating genes so that our babies are smarter, prettier, or stronger? What should we think about euthanasia, suicide, surrogacy contracts, and human cloning? In this course, we will read and critically evaluate some of the most influential writers on these and related topics with an eye to mastering the skill of critical, argumentative writing.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Jordan Thomson 16722 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1110 SEM 102

Philosophy in Practice: Pregnancy, Pornography, and Prostitution

Is abortion morally permissible? What about the practice of commercial surrogate motherhood? Should prostitution be decriminalized? This course will introduce students to some philosophical issues of special concern to feminists. It is also designed to introduce students to writing in philosophy. We’ll read essays on pornography, rape, and the use of coercion in population control. Throughout, we’ll pay attention not just to the arguments our authors make, but to the manner in which they make them. Some ways of writing are better than others. We’ll read philosophical writing of the highest quality, identify features that make it excellent, and attempt to make those features characteristics of our own writing.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Shruta Swarup 16723 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1110 SEM 103

Philosophy in Practice: Technology, Society, and Politics

One of the defining features of twenty-first century life is the pervasiveness of technology. The ever-increasing encroachment of technology into our everyday lives is often justified by appeal to its benefits. But does technological advancement always make our lives better? Are political freedoms imperiled by advanced technology? Can technological progress change what it is to be human? This course examines the ways in which the ever-growing dependence of modern society on technology and technological advancement affects our conception of ourselves and the societies in which we live. We will explore these issues through texts by authors such as Karl Marx, Martin Heidegger, Ray Kurzweil, and Phillip K. Dick, and films such as Steven Spielberg's Minority Report and Terry Gilliam's Brazil. Course assignments will

include weekly reading and film responses, short writing exercises, and a series of six papers, spread over the length of the semester, which focus on specific course themes.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Colin McLear 16724 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1110 SEM 104 Philosophy in Practice: Art and the Mind

Charles is watching Paranormal Activity and he’s freaking out. His palms are sweaty, his heart is racing, but he doesn’t run away. What exactly is going on in Charles’ mind? If he feels fear, why doesn’t he leave? This seminar on the philosophy of art will look deeply into Charles’ mind as well as into our own minds. How do we respond to fiction? How is it possible to enjoy horror? What is it like to look at a picture? And what role do our responses play in fixing the value of art? You will evaluate answers to these questions in your own writing. Your writing will engage with readings by historical philosophers such as David Hume as well as contemporary philosophers such as Kendall Walton.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Nicholas Silins 16725

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 101

Philosophical Problems: The (Ir)Rationality of Religious Belief

Is belief in God ever rational? We will seek to answer this question by critically examining some recent and not-so-recent philosophical arguments about the rationality of religious belief. Related topics include the nature of faith, the relationship of religious belief to other kinds of belief (e.g., scientific, perceptual), and the relevance of wide-spread religious disagreement in the world to the rationality of religious belief. A central goal of this course is to develop the ability to write philosophy well—that is, the ability to provide clear, reasoned argument which successfully communicates the thoughts of the author. But such writing is often a by-product of engaged and critical reading. So not just writing well but reading well will be a central theme in this course.

MWF 12:20–01:10 p.m. Nathaniel Bulthuis 16729 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 102

Philosophical Problems: The Philosophy and Science of a Mind-Boggling World

Physicist Arthur Eddington claimed that there are two sorts of tables: tables we all know, and physicists’ tables that are not so much solid as nearly all empty space. What are things really like? What are you really like? If we’re physical beings governed by physical laws, how can we have free will? Or are we not all physical? Can there be non-physical things? In this course, we’ll consider these and other questions about everyday things that we take for granted. We’ll consider writing from scientists, philosophers, and fiction authors. Through writing and editing short papers, you’ll learn to assess complex arguments, to produce clear arguments of your own, and to carefully edit your work—skills useful in any discipline.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Ian McKay 16730 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 103

Philosophical Problems: Of God, Humans, and Morality

This course deals with philosophical attempts at answering various questions about morality (and related issues) that are widely discussed by philosophers and non-philosophers alike. Examples include: Does morality depend on the existence of God? And do we have good reasons for believing that God exists in the first place? Or is morality a matter of varying social conventions? What is the relationship between morality and self-interest? Is the morally good life the best life for one to live? Writing assignments will ask students to explain and critically respond to the arguments presented in the readings, which will be drawn from both classic and contemporary texts. The assignments will help students improve their ability to write in a clear, organized, and persuasive way.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Andrea Viggiano 16731 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 104 Philosophical Problems: The Virtues

What does it mean to be a good person? According to some philosophers, a good person is a virtuous person—someone who possesses moral virtues like courage, honesty, and charity. What are these virtues, exactly? And why would we want to be virtuous in the first place? We will consider these questions through readings from contemporary philosophical discussion, as well as classic texts from Plato, Aristotle, and Thomas Aquinas. Writing assignments will focus on analyzing and evaluating the arguments of others, as well as clearly and carefully formulating arguments of your own.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. David Zettel 16732 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 105

Philosophical Problems: Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Incredulous Stares

As a discipline, philosophy is famous for addressing problems that transcend and challenge our commonsensical view of the world. This course is an introduction to that tradition. Our aim is to carefully investigate some of the most intellectually stimulating (and outrageous) puzzles and arguments that philosophy has to offer. For instance, we'll consider questions such as: Am I rational? Can consciousness be scientifically explained? Does the existence of evil prove that God cannot exist? This course is designed to teach clear, cogent writing by first fostering the ability to think clearly about challenging and intriguing issues. To do this, we'll read a variety of largely contemporary sources. There will be several different types of writing assignments: e.g., formal papers, analyses, and reading responses.

MWF 02:30–03:20 p.m. Stephan Mahaffey 16733 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1111 SEM 106

Philosphical Problems: Philosophy through Science Fiction

Could a robot think? If so, would it count morally? Are we ourselves much different from robots? In particular, do we really have free will? Must time travel involve paradox? Could we be in the Matrix? We will explore such questions both through contemporary philosophical texts and through science fiction stories and films such as The Matrix, Blade Runner, Minority Report, and The Time Traveler’s Wife. In the process, we will learn how to write clear, straightforward, well-argued prose.

TR 10:10–11:25 a.m. Karen Bennett 16734

PHILOSOPHY 1112 SEM 101

Philosophical Conversations: The Paradoxes of Socrates

No one can harm a good person. No one does evil except out of ignorance. The unexamined life is not worth living. These are some of the famous “doctrines” of the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates. To ancient eyes these doctrines seemed strange, paradoxical, and even perverse; they seem to contemporary eyes no less so. How did Socrates interpret these doctrines? Are these interpretations plausible? How did he argue for them? Are these arguments persuasive? This course will develop and discuss answers to these and related questions. The focus will be on Socrates as he is portrayed in dialogues written by his greatest student, Plato. Writing assignments will develop the skills of precision and clarity of expression as well as those of analysis and argument.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Clifford Roberts 16741 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1112 SEM 102

Philosophical Conversations: God, Death, Morality, and the Meaning of Life

Does God exist? If not, is everything permitted? What are we morally obligated to do (if anything)? Should we donate money to help the distant poor? Is it OK to eat animals? Anyway, what’s the point of it all? What is the meaning of life? This class will examine these and related questions. Readings will be drawn from classic texts by Plato, Hume, Russell, Singer, and others. Assignments will ask students to explain and to critically respond to the main arguments in the readings. By grappling with the work of great philosophers, students will improve their ability to write clearly and persuasively.

MW 07:30–08:45 p.m. Adam Bendorf 16742 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1112 SEM 103

Philosophical Conversations: Theories of the Self

In 1641, Descartes wrote: “I do not yet have a sufficient understanding of what this ’I‘ is.” What is the “I,” the self, the soul? And why does it matter that we try to answer this question? In this course, we will explore some answers to this question, taking Plato and Descartes as our starting points. We will also explore what follows from these answers, and why they matter. Through intensive writing exercises we will cultivate the main virtues of philosophical prose: plainspokenness and clarity, the ability to argue persuasively, and the ability to raise deep questions.

TR 02:55–04:10 p.m. Theodore Korzukhin 16743 Ted Sider

PHILOSOPHY 1112 SEM 104

Philosophical Conversations: Theories of the Self

In 1641, Descartes wrote: “I do not yet have a sufficient understanding of what this ‘I’ is”. What is the “I”, the self, the soul? And why does it matter that we try to answer this question? In this course, we will explore some answers to this question, taking Plato and Descartes as our starting points. We will also explore what follows from these answers, and why they matter. Through intensive writing exercises we will cultivate the main virtues of philosophical prose: plainspokenness and clarity, the ability to argue persuasively, and the ability to raise deep questions.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Theodore Korzukhin 16744 Ted Sider

PERFORMING & MEDIA ARTS 1107 SEM 101 Theatre of the Absurd

Dramatic absurdity is not merely nonsense or silliness, says Martin Esslin: “Absurd is that which is devoid of purpose....Cut off from his religious, metaphysical, and transcendental roots, man is lost; all his actions become senseless, absurd, useless.” This course traces the development and legacy of absurd drama—with all its humor, violence, and horror—tying the works of Samuel Beckett, Eugène Ionesco, and others, to philosophical and aesthetic movements of the early- to mid-twentieth century. With an emphasis on in-class discussion and peer editing, this course helps students develop the particular skills required to write about performance while fostering the ability to produce coherent, concise, persuasive prose in the form of critical arguments.

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Teresa Knight 16682 David Feldshush

PERFORMING & MEDIA ARTS 1110 SEM 101 Doing it in Public: Sex, Theatre, and Performance

Is sex always a private matter? What happens when sex is performed in public? This course asks: How does sex in theatre and performance contribute to our understandings of identity, power, and what it means to be “public” and “private”? Grounded in a study of dramatic literature and theatrical spectacles, including the Obscenity Trials of Oscar Wilde, Lillian Hellman’s play The Children’s Hour, and the musical Spring Awakening, this course interrogates how representation of sex in theatre and performance contribute to and challenge prevalent understanding of intimacy, and in particular where, when, and how it should and should not be staged, by whom and for whom. With an emphasis on in-class discussion and peer editing, this course helps students develop the particularskill required to write about performance while fostering the ability to produce coherent, concise, persuasive prose in the form of critical arguments.

MWF 09:05–09:55 a.m. Stephen Low 16683 David Feldshuh

PERFORMING & MEDIA ARTS 1111 SEM 101 Performance and Perversion

In what is probably a false etymology, the word "obscene" evokes the space of the theatre, suggesting something too lewd or offensive for the stage. By revealing the bodies of slain characters only after their deaths, the ekkyklêma of the ancient Greek theatre protected the spectator from unsightly gore; theatrical sex typically "begins" with a blackout, or with the amorous characters exiting the stage. Through the psychoanalytic concept of perversion, this seminar examines performance practices which emphatically invert such conventions. In our discussion of writings by Augustine, Freud, de Sade, and Artaud, and the work of extreme performance artists such as Abramovic and the Vienna Actionists, we’ll explore what is at stake in staging the unstageable. Course work will emphasize close reading, and developing clear, effective argumentative writing.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Andrew Bielski 16684 David Feldshuh

PSYCHOLOGY 1140 SEM 101

Perception, Cognition, and Development: Multiscale Cognition—Introduction to the Brain, Networks, and Complex Systems

How do minds emerge from the firing of simple neurons? What does the magnitude of wartime casualties have in common with Netflix’s business plan? Why does a roadmap mimic the structure of the brainstem? This course will explore how the structural properties of the human brain are found in our creations, including music, business, and technology. To start, we’ll explore how cognitive systems operate within and outside of our skull. Evidence from ant colonies and corporations will highlight how distributed systems can make complex decisions without the need for complete information. Readings from technology and economics will show how distributed systems can create predictable statistical patterns. Students will have ample time to synthesize findings from disparate fields into several writing assignments for popular and academic audiences.

MWF 11:15–12:05 p.m. Jordan DeLong 16749 James Cutting

PSYCHOLOGY 1140 SEM 102

Perception, Cognition, and Development: The Power of Story-Telling—Cognitive Accounts

We communicate through stories. It is not only narratives and movies; we construct stories around gossip, news, or a simple phone call. Anthropologists claim that stories are—cross-culturally—fundamental to our lives. Cognitive scientists claim that the human mind is a literary mind that comprehends the environment through stories. What aspects of our cognitive system make the story so irresistible? What in the composition of a narrative is so compelling that we can’t give up before finding its resolution? Through close reading and writing, the students in this class will get acquainted with cognitive accounts for our ability to detect story patterns in practically any chain of events. Writing assignments will apply cognitive theories to excerpts from literary and film narratives discussed in class.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. Catalina Iricinschi 16750 James Cutting

SPRING 2013 FIRST-YEAR WRITING SEMINARS

ROMANCE STUDIES 1102 SEM 101 The Craft of Storytelling: Decameron

All of us tell stories for a variety of reasons—to entertain, to console, to teach, to persuade—to discover and explore both our inner lives and the world we inhabit. Stories are one of the prime ways in which we make sense of a world that is not always propitious. They serve as instruments by which we seek to shape our future. In this seminar, we shall consider how the craft of storytelling helps us face the task of living: the love and the happiness and the community we seek, the virtues we espouse, our talents and our vulnerabilities. Our principal reading (in English translation) will be a masterpiece of European literature, Giovanni Boccaccio’s Decameron (ca. 1350–52), which showcases one hundred stories told by ten young Florentines fleeing the Black Death of 1348. Students will write both analytic and personal essays.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Marilyn Migiel 16685

SOCIETY FOR THE HUMANITIES 1110 SEM 101 Reporting from Hell

When you’re being bombed, hunted down, or otherwise persecuted, can you objectively report on what’s happening? Is your on-the-spot report on hell superior to testimony you give years later? Is an eyewitness report superior to that of an historian? Is a filmed report superior to a written one? We will address these and related questions through analytic discussion and writing about the legendary Edward R. Murrow's radio broadcasts during the Blitz of London in World War II, written accounts by Jewish children trapped in the Holocaust, and a report smuggled out of a Soviet labor camp for women political prisoners. We will also examine documentary films, oral testimony of Holocaust and Soviet camp survivors, and (if time permits) Internet reports on some recent hells.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Sidney Orlov 16686

SPANISH 1112 SEM 101

The Politics of Spanish Painting

In some way, every great painter has revolutionized the act of seeing. With this assumption in mind, we will study the legacy of major Spanish painters of the past few centuries by understanding this revolutionary act in political terms. We will consider painting as a repository

for social, economic, and political concerns, and in doing so attempt to write criticism or art history in new ways. We will pair paintings with literary, philosophical, or critical texts in order to broaden our understanding of “the visual” and its political implications. Painters studied will range from El Greco and Velazquez, to Caravaggio and Goya, to Picasso and Dali, among others. Writing tasks such as argument summaries and reading responses will help students prepare for longer, more complex essays, culminating in a portfolio.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Becquer Medak-Seguin 16688 Kathleen Long

SPANISH 1117 SEM 101

Figurations of Disgust: Culture Consumption and the Monstrous in the Caribbean

Since the origins of the Modern era, the figure of the savage monster has been used as a rhetorical device both to legitimate and to indict practices of colonialization and neo-colonialization in the Caribbean. Representations of the monstrous other, often as a fearsome cannibal, are not representations of fact. Rather these representations have become a legal, religious, pictorial, and literary trope, one whose metamorphoses have been inextricably linked to the constitution of a European archive of knowledge on the Caribbean and its inhabitants. Authors discussed will include, but will not be limited to R. F. Retamar, A. Césaire, and G. Lamming. Student activities will include oral presentations, written response exercises, and essays based on topics pertinent to the literary, visual, historical, and critical texts discussed in class.

MWF 10:10–11:00 a.m. Ricardo Arribas 16689 Kathleen Long

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY STUDIES 1119 SEM 101

Sound Studies: The Sonic Dimension of Science, Technology, and Medicine

The study of sound offers a new way to understand how humans, culture, and society are entwined with and co-produced by science, technology, and medicine. In this seminar, we will examine listening practices and key technologies such as the phonograph and stethoscope which have revolutionized technical fields, and we will examine the history of various sonic technologies such as the phonograph, electronic music synthesizer, and iPod to see how sound has been used in different areas of science technology and medicine. Because sound is experienced in a non-literary manner, it is particularly interesting to write about sound. Among other writing projects, we will examine how words get translated into meanings that correspond to sounds and specific sonic experiences.

MW 02:55–04:10 p.m. Trevor Pinch 16690

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY STUDIES 1123 SEM 101 Technology and Society: Sound Cultures

How are the realms of the social, aural, and technological interwoven in our everyday lives? How are cultural understandings of sound embedded within and informed by technologies of sonic recording, manipulation, production, and listening? In this course, we will explore these questions through reading and writing about the social construction of technology as well as the cultural history and socio-political theory of sound. We will also conduct critical listening and reflection exercises based around specific technologies, including Auto-Tune, contact microphones, and “Mosquito” social control devices. Through writing, students will engage critically and creatively with authors including Emily Thompson, Tia DeNora, Trevor Pinch, Friedrich Kittler, and Jonathan Sterne.

TR 08:40–09:55 a.m. William Marshall 16745 Trevor Pinch

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY STUDIES 1126 SEM 101 Science and Society: Science, Medicine, and Politics

From public health policies regarding screenings for breast cancer to restrictions on the use of chemicals in industrial processes and consumer products, biomedical research forms a central aspect of contemporary political debates in the U.S. and in many political spaces around the world. In such debates, people often argue that science should provide the basis for policymaking because it is objective. But what exactly does this mean? What counts as solid scientific evidence, and why have different countries so often come up with such different policies based on scientific research? This course gives participants tools and opportunities for thinking critically about science and its place in contemporary policymaking, nation-building, and governance, and to examine historical shifts in research systems. In addition to cases from the U.S. and

Europe, we’ll pay special attention to postcolonial contexts in India and Africa. Writing will be a key tool here—we will use short writing

SPRING 2013 FIRST-YEAR WRITING SEMINARS

Europe, we’ll pay special attention to postcolonial contexts in India and Africa. Writing will be a key tool here—we will use short writing assignments to dig into passages from our readings, and build upon these through paper proposals and drafts in order to develop well-honed writing skills.

TR 11:40–12:55 p.m. Alexis Walker 16751 Stephen Hilgartner

WRITING 1380 SEM 101

An Introduction to Writing in the University

This writing seminar is designed for students who need more focused attention in order to master the expectations of academic writing. The course emphasizes the analytic and argumentative writing and critical reading essential for university-level work. With small classes and with weekly student/teacher conferences, each section is shaped to respond to the needs of students in that particular class.

MW 10:10–11:00 a.m. Jessica Sands 16752

By permission only. This course is appropriate for students who struggled in their fall FWS. If you think you will benefit from intensive work on academic writing, contact Joe Martin (joe.martin@cornell.edu) or come to 174 Rockefeller Hall to discuss your writing and enrolling in WRIT 1380. “S/U” grades only.

WRITING 1380 SEM 102

An Introduction to Writing in the University

MW 11:15–12:05 p.m. Tracy Carrick 16753

WRITING 1380 SEM 103

An Introduction to Writing in the University

MW 01:25–02:15 p.m. Joe Martin 16754

WRITING 1380 SEM 104

An Introduction to Writing in the University

TR 10:10–11:00 a.m. Kelly King-O’Brien 16755

WRITING 1380 SEM 105

An Introduction to Writing in the University

TR 11:15–12:05 p.m. Joe Martin 16756

WRITING 1380 SEM 106

An Introduction to Writing in the University

TR 01:25–02:15 p.m. Jessica Sands 16757

WRITING 1400 SEM 101

Common Ground: Education Beyond the Ivory Tower

TR 01:25–02:40 p.m. Darlene Evans 16746

FOR HS MEETINGS, ALLOW TIME TO LEAVE CAMPUS BY 12:55 P.M.