HUHC Seminars

Each semester HUHC offers exciting educational opportunities in varying disciplines. HUHC seminars are small, discussion based courses, taught by professors from around the university, who are invited to come teach their dream course. Like Culture & Expression, these seminars often tend toward either greater multidisciplinary or greater particularity in the definition of the topic (see listings and descriptions of recent and future seminars below.) With class sizes limited to no more than 20 students, they are special opportunities to learn by sharing the enthusiasm of professors who are working on well-defined topics in their areas expertise. In some instances seminar credit may count toward a major or minor with departmental approval.

Choose a Semester: Spring 2010 Fall 2009 Spring 2009 Fall 2008 Spring 2008 Spring 2007 Fall 2007 Spring 2006 Fall 2006 Spring 2005 Fall 2005 Spring 2004 Fall 2004 Spring 2003 Fall 2003 Spring 2002 Fall 2002

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Spring 2010

HUHC 020A (H1): RING CYCLES IN LITERATURE (AND OPERA AND FILM)
Professor John DiGaetani
T/R 2:20pm – 3:45pm
24196 BRESL 202

This course will read and discuss Ring cycles in literature, opera, and film. We will especially look at Wagner’s ring and Tolkien’s Ring to examine similarities and differences. We will also look at their literacy and musical implication and how cycles affect other works of art like opera ad film and how literacy allusions function as a technique. By the end of this course, the students will be able to improve their abilities to read, listen, understand art, and analyze it. We will also examine misogyny, misandry, and misanthropy as they appear in literature. Among the authors to be discussed in this course are: Sophocles, James Joyce, Theordor Adorno, D.H. Lawrence, Friedrich Nietzsche, Giambattista Vico, and Thomas Mann.

HUHC 020B (H1): INTERNATIONAL SECURITY
Professor David Frinquelli
MWF 9:05am-10:00am
21038 BRESL 206

At 5:30 am Mountain Time on July 16, 1945, a spectacular light illuminated the early dawn over a part of the New Mexico desert known as the Jornada del Muerto – the Journey of the Dead Man. Upon witnessing this momentous event, J. Robert Oppenheimer famously remarked, "I am become death the destroyer of worlds." Once the dust had literally settled following the Trinity test those present finally realized just what they had wrought. The steel tower from which the weapon was suspended had been completely vaporized. The desert floor had been turned to glass in a 600 ft. radius from ground zero. And the greatest implement of peace had been created. Some might take issue with the preceding sentence and with good cause. Political scientists have debated the effect of nuclear weapons on peace and war since the weapons were first used over Japan. The study of international peace and conflict involves many such controversial issues, made such by the very theoretical nature of the field. The goals of this course are to survey contemporary political science research on international security and provide students with the analytical tools necessary for examining security policy debates. Topics to be examined include sources of peace and war, grand strategies, military doctrines, arms races, military alliances, military occupations and insurgency and credibility. In lieu of exams, students will be required to write two papers based on their own interests within the field.

HUHC 020C (HA): THE EDITORIAL BOARD: THE ART OF FORMING OPINIONS WHEN EVERYONE ALREADY HAS ONE
Professor Lawrence Levy
M/W 4:25pm – 5:55pm
23287 BRESL 202

In a collaborative and interactive environment, students will come to understand the ethics, principles, practices and interpersonal relations that are crucial to the production of editorial opinions in a variety of media. Students will sharpen their skills and understanding through a blend of traditional lectures (including professional and political guests) and hands-on interviewing, researching, debating and writing. Ultimately they will learn to prepare convincing, intellectually honest and well-written editorials. This is a “reality-based” laboratory – taught once a week for three hours -- in which the class becomes the opinion-setting editorial board of a newspaper or other media outlet. During the course, students will “play act” the roles of editorial board members, including the editor who decides the board’s consensus on an issue. To take advantage of the Honors college format, students from other classes could assume roles of public officials and be questioned or debate issues that the "board" would decide.

HUHC 020D (H1): EASTERN EUROPEAN LITERATURE AND CINEMA: FROM THE COLD WAR TO THE PRESENT
Prof. Alexandar Mihailovic
TR 12:45-2:10
21039 BRESL 202

In this course we will examine contemporary literature and cinema from the Europe, viewing them as powerful tools of dissection that expose the difficult intricacies of life in a region where the past is never truly past. In the hands of Eastern European artists, historical and cultural revisionism becomes either a target of a moral critique or an instrument for visualizing untested possibilities for a viable future, ones that transcend the simplistic visions of economic globalism and shifting allegiances among the superpowers of Russia, the US, and China. The cinematic and literary texts will be drawn from the Slavic nations of post-Communist Europe, and will include iconoclastic writers and film directors such as Tatyana Tolstaya, Dorota Maslowska and Ilya Khrzhanovsky. We will also consider the exiled artist’s more detached yet no less poignant perspective on political events, as exemplified by the work of the Bosnian writer Aleksandar Hemon and the Czech Milan Kundera.

HUHC 020E (H1): ENDS UNFOLD, BECOMING STRANGE": FROM DARWINISM TO EVO-DEVO TO THE SINGULARITY--EVOLUTIONARY CULTURES AND HUMAN NATURE
Professor Louis J. Kern, History
T/R 9:35-11:00
22827 BRESL 206

The course will move from Darwin's theory of evolution as expressed in Origin of the Species (1859) and its sources to Ray Kurzweil's theoretical work on the Singularity (2005). It will consider the influence of evolutionary theory on a broad range of ideas affecting Western cultural development--economic and political theory and organization, anthropological and social constructs, social ethics (especially Social Darwinist ideology), psychology, eugenics, and the visual arts. The primary goal of the course will be to establish a foundation for an understanding of the intricate narrative of the mutual influences of biological evolution and the diverse forms of cultural evolution. Considerable attention will also be given to the relationship between past evolution as it has affected the development of human nature as compared to that of other animal species, particularly as reflected in forms of social behavior and sexuality. Some consideration will be given as well to the potential direction of future human evolution.

HUHC 020F (H1 ) NAKED WITHOUT SHAME: THE EVOLUTION AND CULTURAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE HUMAN BODY
Professor Daniel Varisco
T/R 2:20-3:45
22828 DAVSN 017

This seminar will examine the human body, both its evolutionary significance in the history of human sexuality and its cultural construction as a marker of social and sexual identity. The course will comprise a comparative analysis of primate mating strategies, current theories about the role of sexual selection in hominid evolution, archaeological evidence about body representation from prehistoric and early Near Eastern sites, and the cultural construction of the human body as a societal symbol and identity marker in ethnographic perspective. The pedagogical purpose of the course is to introduce the student to the historical diversity of representing the human body as a culturally constructed social symbol. The focus will be on cross-cultural attitudes about nudity, body adornment and alteration. A central question is the extent to which the body symbolizes attitudes about gender relations and socially sanctioned sexual practices. The course will conclude with discussion of the moral implications of current representation of the human body in popular culture.

HUHC 020G (H1): THEATRE OF THE 1960S
Professor Cindy Rosenthal
T/R 2:20 – 3:45
22843 BRESL 206

The decade of the 1960s is characterized by wide-ranging cultural experimentation, and tumultuous change. Radical, avant-garde theatre and performance was often at the center of the political turmoil of the 1960s – there was a powerful spirit of “groupness” and a fervor that was born out of the Civil Rights Movement and anti-Vietnam War activism, which was reflected in how and why plays were written, the ways actors lived and worked together, and where performances were produced – theatre frequently exploded out of buildings and into the streets. The focus of this course will be the dramatic works, the key players, and the cultural and political theories of the 1960s – many of which explored the blur between art and life that continues to inspire experimental art and artists today. “The times they are a changin’” and “the personal is political” were well-known, influential refrains of the period where art became known as a form of activism, but there continues to be a thrill and an attraction associated with the zeitgeist of the ‘60s, as in the excitement surrounding the current revival of HAIR on Broadway. Because of our proximity to New York’s experimental theatre, film, dance, and art scenes there will be ample opportunities to experience the legacy of the ‘60s first-hand for our research, writing, and group creative work in the course.

HUHC 020H, H1: Health, Illness, and the Ways We Understand Them
Professor Theresa Horvath,
T/R 11:10-12:35
24635 BRESL 206

Illness is a universal life experience. Yet the experience of being sick is shaped as much by culture and social life as by the nature of the illness and the extent of the disability. This course will examine the way the subjective experience of being sick and the expectations of the individual, the family, and the larger society shape the way people seek care and “get well”. Using a variety of materials including fiction, autobiography, essay, memoir, film and poetry, we will explore how the disciplines of anthropology, sociology, psychology, religion, literature and art address medical themes involving life choices, loss, death and the experience of being sick.

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FALL 2009

The Queer Subject in French-Language Film
Professor David Powell, Romance Languages and Literatures

Of Human Bondage:  Human Trafficking and Globalization
Professor Linda Longmire, Global Studies and Geography

The Problem of Genocide
Professor Johan Ahr, History

Can Civic Literacy Save Democracy from Itself?
Professor Eric Lane, Law School

When the Past Isn’t Dead:  From Freud to Obama
Professor Shari Zimmerman, English

Embodiment and the Creative Process
Professor Robin Becker, Drama and Dance

Climate Change and Global Warming: Physical Principles and Sustainable Energy Supplies
Professor Flavio Dobran, Engineering

Mind Games: The Psychology of Performance
Professor Steven Frierman, Physical Education and Sport Sciences

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SPRING 2009

May Day: Performing a Politics of Resistance and Rebellion
Professor Lisa Merrill, Speech, Communication, Rhetoric and Performance Studies
Professor MaryAnn Trasciatti, Speech, Communication, Rhetoric and Performance Studies

Language and Mind
Professor Herb Seliger, Comparative Language and Literature

East Africa through Literature, Art and Film
Professor Arthur Dobrin, School for University Studies

History and Memory in the 20th Century
Professor Sally Charnow, History

Growing up Is Hard to Do:  Adolescents in Literature, Design, and Film
Professor Robert Sargent, English

Debating Darwin:  A Social History of the Creation vs. Evolution Controversy
Professor Daniel Varisco, Anthropology 

Combinatorial Game Theory
Professor Gillian Elston, Mathematics

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FALL 2008

The 2008 Race for the Whitehouse
Professor Meena Bose, Kalikow Professor of Presidential Studies, Political Science

America’s Constitution
Professor Eric Lane, School of Law

Character and the Good Life
Professor Ira Singer, Philosophy

Philosophy of Food: Discourses and Practices of Edibility
Professor Ralph Acampora, Philosophy

Twentieth-Century Creativity and the Female Artist
Professor Susan Lorsch, Department of English

America Viewed from the Musical Stage
Professor Jim Kolb, Drama Department

Baseball Management: Management Innovation in Professional Baseball
Professor Richard Puerzer, Engineering Department

Poetry on the Edge: The Latin American Avant-Garde
Professor Miguel-Angel Zapata, Romance Languages and Literatures

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SPRING 2008

Transforming Love’s Body: Science, Medicine, and Technology and the Evolution of Modern Sexuality
Professor Lou Kern, Department of History

Free Will
Professor Anthony Dardis, Philosophy Department

America’s Constitution
Professor Eric Lane, School of Law

The Politics of Comedy: Comic Freedom and Subversive Laughter from: Aristophanes to Borat
Professor Pellegrino D’Acierno, Comparative Language and Literature

The U.S. Supreme Court: The Evolution of its Power and its Impact on our Daily Lives
Professor Glen Vogel, Department of Accounting, Taxation and Legal Studies

Consumer Behavior Across Countries
Professor Boonghee Yoo, International Business

The Artist’s Practice
Professor Peter Plagens, Department of Art History and Fine Arts

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SPRING 2007

History and the Holocaust: Art, Memory and Representation
Professor Stanislao G. Pugliese, History Department

Reading Orientalism: How the West and Middle East View Each Other
Professor Daniel Varisco, Anthropology

Challenges in American Foreign Policy
Professor Bernard Firestone, Dean, HCLAS, Department of Political Science
Professor James Klurfeld, Department of Political Science

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FALL 2007

Haunted America: The Dark Side of the American Dream
Professor Paula Uruburu, Department of English

Neighborhoods, Watersheds and Public Health: Understanding Environmental Health through Service Learning in Urban Settings
Professor Margaret Hunter, Engineering

The American Dream: The Modern City and Its Suburbs
Professor Robert B. Sargent, Department of English

Defense and Foreign Policy in Post 9/11 America
Professor David Frinquelli, Department of Political Science

Six Great Paintings
Professor Laurie Fendrich, Department of Art History and Fine Arts

Truth (and Lies)
Professor Peter Fristedt, Philosophy Department

Christian Mysticism
Professor Phyllis Zagano, Department of Religion

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SPRING 2006

Fundamentals of Forcasting
Professor Irwin Kellner, Zarb School of Business

The American Revolution through British Eyes
Professor James Levy, School for University Studies

Bodies and Machines: Physical Culture, Technology, Body Image, and the Nature of the Human
Professor Louis Kern, Department of History

Statistics in Baseball
Professor Richard Puerzer, Department of Engineering

Debating Darwin: A Social History of the Creation vs. Evolution Controvers
Professor Daniel Varisco, Department of Anthropology

Daughters of Decadence
Professor Paula Uruburu, Department of English

Challenges in American Foreign Policy
Professor Bernard Firestone, Dean HCLAS, Department of Political Science
Professor James Klurfeld, Department of Political Science

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FALL 2006

Sexual Difference and Narrative
Professor David Powell, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures

The Democratization Process: Building and Sustaining Democracy in the 21st Century
Professor Tina Mavrikos-Adamou, Political Science

The Russian Idea and the West
Professor Igor Pustovoit, Comparative Languages and Literatures

History and Memory in the 20th Century
Professor Sally Charnow, Department of History

The Trouble with Artists
Professor Laurie Fendrich, Department of Art History and Fine Arts

Extraordinary Chemistry of Ordinary Things: Plastics and Polymers
Professor Ronald D’Amelia, Chemistry

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SPRING 2005

The Experience of Modernity
Professor Pellegrino D’Acierno, Comparative Languages and Literatures

Food and Culture
Professor Kasmir, Anthropology Department

Evolutionary Psychology
Professor William Sanderson, Psychology

American Gothic, American Grotesque
Professor Paula Uruburu, Department of English

Literature of the American Musical
Professor Richard Pioreck, Department of English

Love and Its Cousins
Professor J. Stephen Russell, Dean, HUHC, Department of English

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FALL 2005

The Double in Fiction and Film
Professor Susan Lorsch, Department of English

Women in Modern Europe
Professor Sally Charnow, Department of History

Are We Alone? Astrobiology and the Search for Extraterrestrial Life
Professor Stephen Lawrence, Department of Physics

Mapping the Nation: Cartography, Census, and Survey in Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Britain
Professor Adam Sills, Department of Geography

The Lost World, or Dancing on the Volcano: The Weimar Republic and the Creations of Modernity
Professor Neil Donahue, Comparative Languages and Literatures

Leadership, Morality, Success and Failure in Business
Professor Luke Ng, Zarb School of Business

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SPRING 2004

Business Ethics and Society
Professor Tara Radin, Zarb School of Business

Intellectuals and Exile: From Socrates to Said
Professor Stanislao G. Pugliese, Department of History

Behind the Mask: Creating a Literary Identity
Dr. Paula Uruburu, Department of English

1968: A Year of Rebellion
Professor Susan Yohn, Department of History

Clothed in Flesh: Constructing the Self in the Middle Ages
Professor J. Stephen Russell, Dean, HUHC, Department of English

Cognition and Learning
Professor Bruce Torff, Department of Curriculum and Teaching

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FALL 2004

The Cognitive Basis for Human Decision Making
Dr. Charles F. Levinthal, Department of Psychology

Mirror Up to Nature: Imitation and Creation in Art and Literature
Professor Douglas Friedlander, Department of English
Professor David Pushkin, Department of English

Music, Women and Gender
Professor Heather L. Feldman, Department of Music

Ways of Knowing Science Wars, Science Peace
Professor Karyn Valerius, Department of English

World Literature and the Anatomy of Cultural Difference
Professor Barbara Lekatsas, Department of Comparative Languages and Literatures

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SPRING 2003

Visual Literacy
Professor M. Hollander, Department of Art History and Fine Arts

Foundation of Disbelief
Professor John Teehan, Department of Philosophy

The Human Genome
Professor Joanne Wiley, Department of Biology

The Chinese Novel: The Dream of the Red Chamber
Professor Zuyan Zhou

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FALL 2003

To Be a Woman & Artist: Female Creativity in Fiction
Professor Susan Lorsch, Department of English

Eugenics and Bioethics of the Well Born
Professor Louis Kern, Department of History

Character and the Good Life
Professor Ira Singer, Department of Philosophy

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SPRING 2002

The New Testament and Early Christian Literature
Professor Alexander Burke, Department of English

Language: an Interdisciplinary Perspective
Professor Evelyn Altenberg, Department of Speech, Language and Pathology

Storytelling: The Intersection of Anthropology and History
Professor Chris Matthews, Department Anthropology

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FALL 2002

Disability in Literature
Professor G. Thomas Couser

Thinking Images and Words
Professor L. Otis, Department of English

Engines of Life
Professor Sina Rabbany, Department of Engineering
Professor Margaret Hunter, Department of Engineering

Hume and Kant
Professor T. Godlove, Department of Philosophy