Spring 2018

A broad survey, covering some 8,000 years and focusing on the material culture of the ancient world in a historical and social context.

Examination of the ways that different nations and cultures have remembered the Vietnam War or the American War as it is called in Vietnam. (Duplicates credit in former AMST 377)

Examines the relation between U.S. national culture, race, and popular culture.

Examines political and cultural change in the United States during the decade of the 1960s.

Introduction to an interdisciplinary study of American political, cultural and social life with a particular emphasis on the Western United States as a region. Recommended preparation: HIST 200, ENGL 263

The lives of prominent Greeks, Romans and others in their ancient historical and biographical contexts and in modern reevaluations through various written and visual media.

Tragedies and comedies of the ancient world; later influences.

A broad introduction to the great works of Western culture from antiquity to 1800.

A comparative study of the Asian aesthetic heritage of poetry, painting, music, and drama; of literary themes, trends, and myths.

Introduction to works of major women writers from the Middle Agesto the 20th century in their literary, social, and cultural contexts.

Studies of the presence and influence of Zen Buddhism and Taoismin Asian literature, with a focus on China and Japan.

Study of the structures through which we shape our experience in religion, philosophy, literature, music, and the visual arts, and of competing theories of interpretation. Students may not take this course on a P/NP basis.

An issues-based introduction to critical theory in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, especially as it relates to philosophy, art, design, and visual culture.

A critical history of art, design, visual culture, and visual theory since 1960, addressing through a postcolonial/decolonial lens the concepts and practices of "global" art.

Exploration of dance as an art form in its artistic, political, and socio-cultural climate. Studies of the continuum of dance within its historical context.

An introduction to and overview of the contemporary cinemas of East Asia: China (Hong Kong, the People's Republic, and Taiwan), Japan, and Korea.

Introduction to the civlization, art and literature of pre-modern China through the lens of the cultural products of identity.

The history of Korean literature and culture from the ancient to the modern era. Recommended preparation: HIST 105g.

A study of emotional intelligence through literature, history and the arts with a focus on anger, happiness, love and empathy.

Close study of Shakespeare's plays and poems to introduce his language, stagecraft, literary "genius," social and literary contexts, precursors and rivals, and legacy.

Intensive reading of major writers to 1800.

Intensive reading of major writers, 18001950.

Intensive reading of representative writers.

Study of literary modes of narrative and their uses in medical understanding, character formation, social identity, and relations between mind and body.

Historical survey of the traditions of lyric poetry from Shakespeare to the contemporary, examining the genre's multiple forms of literary, visual, and aural expression.

Literary travel using novels to explore regional culture and unify the study of literature, history, geography, politics and social studies.

Examination of legal problems and concepts in English and American literature. Recommended preparation: CORE-102 or ARLT-100; WRIT-140.

Study of poetry written in English since 1945, with special emphasis on the last two decades.

Literary studies in the relationship between fiction and drama and their adaptation as films.

Introduction to issues in visual and popular culture, focused on critical and historical interpretation of words and images in comic books and graphic novels.

An exploration into how genocides and episodes of mass violence have been thought about, remembered and expressed in France and the Francophone world. Conducted in English.

Surveys the work of German intellectuals, writers, artists, and scientists in U.S. exile during the time of the Nazi government in the 1930s and 1940s.

Interpretation and analysis of works of the imagination, exploring language, thought, and cultural traditions in relation to one another. (Satisfies GE-B, Humanistic Inquiry) Open only to Freshmen.

Critical appreciation of various forms of human expression, evaluating works of literature, philosophy, and the arts to enable informed opinions about ideas and values. Offered by a professional school.

Early Europe, c 400-1500, with a focus on Europe's diverse communities, cultural interactions among them, dealings between conquerors and conquered, and european contacts with non-Europeans.

Political, intellectual, and cultural developments in Europe,1300-1815. Renaissance and Reformation; absolute monarchy,scientific changes, and Enlightenment; French Revolution andNapoleon.

Japan from the earliest times to the present; social, cultural,and political dimensions.

Introduction to the history and the study of the Middle East from ancient to modern times.

A thematic approach to California history from precontact to present; focus on peoples, environment, economic, social, and cultural development, politics, and rise to global influence.

Analysis of the Divina Commedia and other works. Conducted in English. (Duplicates credit in former ITAL 450)

Major ideas, personalities, and movements in Jewish history from antiquity to the present in light of the interaction of the Jews with the general culture.

History and contexts of anti-Semitism, racism and other discourses about difference examined through religious, national and cultural forms in Europe and in the US.

Investigates contemporary conflicts in the discovery of the ancient world. Students will ask essential questions about the power of discovering and showcasing specific narratives.

The emergence of new languages, spoken and signed, in socio-historical situations, where linguistic input is degraded and insufficient to support the ordinary language acquisition process.

Explores philosophical treatments of the problem of the meaning or purpose of human life. (Duplicates credit in former PHIL 155)

How does science differ from pseudo-science? When is it rational to accept a scientific theory? And do such theories provide genuine knowledge of reality?

Explores various conceptions of morality and what makes actions right or wrong, together with the implications of these views for concrete ethical issues.

Key works that have shaped the European and American cultural inheritance, with a special focus on the nature of love.

Explores multiple religious traditions of the Mediterranean as networks that emerge within and among the landscapes, cultures, and politics of this highly interconnected geographic space.

Focus primarily on works of Buddhist literature written in a variety of genres. Introduction of basic teachings that link Buddhist traditions across time and space.

Exploration of the senses and the technologies of pleasure in India, relating this material to some fascinating examples of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist literature.

Comparative analysis of biblical works and how they were employedby various writers in major works of Western literature.

Examines Christianity in the second century including theology, ethics and identity.

Russian cultural identity from its beginnings until today. The Eastern Orthodox tradition, its traumatic confrontation with Western culture, and their continuous interaction.

Tolstoy's major works in the context of his ethical views.Readings and lectures in English.

Theories of feminism; historical, social and cultural perspectives of the women's movement in America, Europe, and in developing countries; men's roles in the feminist movement.