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Scribner Seminars
Director of the First Year Experience: Michael Arnush
Administrative Coordinator: Chrisana McGill
All Scribner Seminars are interdisciplinary. The seminars invite
students to think about the liberal arts as a whole, to challenge
their preconceived notions about inquiry and knowledge, to examine
issues from multiple perspectives, and to make connections across
disciplines. Faculty instructors participate not only as specialists
in particular fields of knowledge, but as models of people who have
themselves been liberally educated, and are thus able to apply their
thinking to a variety of new as well as familiar experiences.
SSP 100. SCRIBNER SEMINAR 4 These interdisciplinary seminars introduce students to perspectives on
a particular subject of inquiry. Each seminar, limited to 15
first-year students, allows participants to work together closely and
also acts as a foundation and context for future college studies.
Faculty instructors develop the seminar theme around their research
and scholarly interests. In addition, faculty instructors serve as the
mentors and advisors to the students enrolled in the seminars. During
each seminar, students enhance their abilities to read critically,
communicate ideas both orally and in writing, and relate the seminar
to their educational goals. All first-year students must
take one Scribner Seminar in their first semester. This course must be
taken for a letter grade.
Africa Through Its Changing Cinema In this seminar, we explore through film and other visual documents the
causes and effects of colonialism on the African people, their society,
and their culture. The colonial experience, in all its political and
psychological aspects, provides a historical, economic, social, and
aesthetic context in which to study and understand African film.
Although our main focus is Sub-Saharan Africa from the Second World War
to the present, we will refer, whenever pertinent, to the North African
filmmaking experience in our discussions. We will examine the practice
of filmmaking in Africa, the forces that shape this practice, and
strategies of reading this creative medium. H. Jaouad, Foreign Languages and Literatures
African Arts from the Old World to the New What do art, language, and music have to do with the slave trade? In
this seminar, we examine continuities and changes in the visual verbal
and musical arts transmitted from Africa to the New World through the
trans-Atlantic slave trade. We begin by analyzing arts in their
traditional African setting, and with an eye to their
interconnectedness, the role they play in building a sense of
community and their likelihood for survival in the New World. We then
turn to the arts of Black cultures of Brazil, Haiti, the Caribbean,
and the United States. Analyzing these arts within their proper
historical and cultural framework, and from a variety of disciplines
(art history, anthropology, history, folklore, comparative literature,
and ethnomusicology), we consider their relationship to the arts of
Africa, and, as well, how cultures use them in constructing their New
World identities. L. Aronson, Art and Art History
American Memories How does memory work? What is the relationship between the past and
memory, between memory and history? How do individual and collective
memories influence, complement, and contradict one another? How are
memories reconstructed, interpreted, transmitted and transformed? In
this seminar, we explore disciplinary and interdisciplinary
perspectives on American memories, personal and public, considering
some of the many ways Americans have remembered (and forgotten)
specific people, places, and events in our national past, such as
Abraham Lincoln, colonial Williamsburg, and the Oklahoma City bombing.
Students will examine various cultural mechanisms of memory
production—monuments, museums, and movies—and will explore the
historically distinct ways in which memories have been reconstructed,
used and abused. D. Nathan, American Studies
American Taste An interdisciplinary analysis of the evolution of American cuisine from
1600 to the present. Beginning with a taste of Native American food, we
will explore regional food patterns of the colonial period, consider the
development of distinctively American styles of cooking and eating in
the nineteenth century, and pay special attention to the effects of
immigration. We will then explore the impact of science, business,
technology, globalization, and changing family patterns on food in the
United States in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. M. Lynn, American Studies
Buzz: The Visual and Material Culture of Caffeine What keeps you awake? Caffeinated substances have been consumed in
many societies for hundreds of years, but the form and significance of
the "buzz" have varied greatly. In this seminar, students explore how
coffee, tea, chocolate and Coca-Cola have been presented to consumers
in different places and times, and how these modes of presentation
have engaged diverse cultural values. We will focus on the visual and
material aspects of caffeinated products: how they are packaged,
advertised, prepared, and served; the environments in which they are
sold and consumed; and their depiction in prints, paintings, and film.
We will discover how these representational strategies both express
and actively shape how people think about their bodies, their social
identities, and the world in which they live. Our investigation will
take us from coffeehouses in 17th century Europe to the ritual of the
Japanese tea ceremony to the design of Godiva chocolate boxes to the
marketing of Coca-Cola. Through a range of learning experiences, this
course will wake you up to new ideas about the history and meaning of
"buzz." M. Hellman, Art and Art History
China and the West: The Myth of the Other What shapes our images of the Other? How do people perceive the Other in
a given historical period or in certain cultural milieus? In this
course, we will introduce and examine the experience of the Other from
both Chinese and Western standpoints. Students will look at China as an
idealized utopia in the eyes of some eighteenth-century Europeans or as
the land of ignorance described in some early modern literature.
Students will also explore various Chinese responses to the West. In
discussing such issues as orientalism vs. occidentalism, and cultural
relativism vs. universalism, we will examine the polemics of cultural
difference in ethical terms. M. Chen, Foreign Languages and Literatures
Cities of Dreadful Delight: The Latin American Urban Experience In this seminar, students explore the role of the city in the
development of Latin American societies and cultures from pre-colonial
times to the present. Latin America's capital cities, in particular,
encapsulate a country's political, industrial, financial, commercial,
entertainment, intellectual, cultural, and religious identities. On
their streets and in their public and private buildings, which have been
built and rebuilt for hundreds of years, rich and poor, native and
immigrant, men, women and children have worked, celebrated, rioted,
studied, created, voted, fought, thrived, suffered, loved, hated,
demonstrated, and lived. Students focus on Mexico City (Mexico) and
Buenos Aires (Argentina) as the case studies in which to read the
evidence of the historical, political, social, economic, and cultural
life in continental Spanish America, since many characteristics of their
urban experience are shared by other cities throughout the continent.
Supplementary materials from port cities like Havana (Cuba) and from Rio
de Janeiro and Brasilia (Brazil), which began as Portuguese colonies,
will provide some contrast, and student projects on other key urban
centers will conclude the seminar. J. Dym, History, and P. Rubio,
Foreign Languages and Literatures
Coming of Age: Food, Drugs and Sex After the Biotech Revolution The discovery of the DNA double helix by Watson and Crick in 1953
sparked a revolution in science that fundamentally changed our approach
to such complex problems as human disease, famine, drug design, and
fertility. Students in this seminar will explore the beauty of DNA
structure and the powerful, modern techniques used to understand and
manipulate this fascinating molecule. But what are the consequences of
our ability to alter the genetic blueprint of an organism? Together, we
will grapple with ethical issues associated with genetically modified
organisms (GMOs), stem cell research, gene therapy, and the possibility
of selecting the traits of our offspring. M. Frey, Chemistry
Cycles of Marriage and Divorce During the past century, the number of marriages ending in divorce
reached historically unprecedented rates. At the beginning of this
century, couples previously excluded from marriage are nevertheless
eager to wed. Students in this seminar investigate continuities and
changes in marriage—both as a social institution and as a private
experience of two people. Drawing on research studies and expressive
narratives, we explore how social scientific and literary approaches
differ and intersect in illuminating cycles of marriage and divorce. S. Walzer,
Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Dangerous Earth: Climatologic and Geologic Disasters Who will be the victims of the next natural disaster? When, where, and
why will it occur? Can we safeguard our communities? In this seminar,
students examine the diverse ways in which climatologic and geologic
phenomena influence human lives and activities, the root causes of
disaster phenomena, and the principles that render seemingly random
natural disasters comprehensible and predictable. Through case studies
and research projects, students will investigate a variety of hazards,
such as floods, droughts, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes,
and tsunamis, and will explore the extent to which these events are
regulated by cyclic and/or periodic earth processes. This will enable
students to make predictions and develop scenarios to mitigate against
potential effects of future natural disasters. We will also examine the
influence of diverse cultural perspectives about the causes and effects
of natural disasters on a community's ability to respond effectively to
a disaster event. K. Marsella, Geosciences
The Debate About Women in the Middle Ages The medieval debate about women had enduring impact upon Western ideas
about gender and authority. In this seminar, we will study questions
raised by medieval theologians, philosophers, poets, artists, and
critics about the nature of women, their abilities, virtues and vices,
their power, and their proper relation to men. We will explore the
implications of these questions both in medieval terms and in light of
modern critical, historical, and especially feminist discussions. K.
Greenspan, English
Democracy Inaction What does it mean to be democratic? We speak of living in a democratic
society, we refer to the Republican and Democratic parties, and yet
do we understand what those terms signify, and what being "democratic"
really conveys? We will look for answers first far in the past, with the
ancient Greeks and their experiment with demokratia, and the Roman
government of the res publica. Students will conduct close readings of
treatises such as Plato's Apology and Aristotle's Athenian Constitution,
the histories of Herodotus and Thucydides, Livy and Polybius, tragedies
and comedies like Aeschylus' Oresteia and Aristophanes' Wasps, and
ancient Greek and Roman law codes
Athenian and Roman philosophical, political, historical, dramatic and
comic texts; and will examine the archaeological
remains of ancient, civic Athens and republican Rome. The seminarStudents will
also examineuse a very modern and public exercise of democracy—the local
November elections foroperations of the City Council in Saratoga Springs—as a living
laboratory for the contemporary American conception of democracy.
Students will analyze Saratoga Springs' city charter, examine local
monuments that celebrate democratic practices, critique Jon Stewart's
irreverent America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction,
investigate local campaigns and candidates and issues, and participate in the
electionsexamine participatory democracy—by
participating! For a final project, students will craft proposals for
contemporary, functioning democratic systems based upon their study of
ancient and modern democracies. M. Arnush, Classics
Detective Fictions, Dark Designs (London) An introduction to the interdisciplinary study of crime fiction.
Students will examine crime fiction's history and evolution,
particularly with regard to the genre's status as popular literature.
Simultaneously, we will study its sociological dimension, which makes of
detective fiction the morally ambiguous site for the representation of
criminals and of behavioral taboos. Finally, we will experience its
cross-cultural dimension, with London and Los Angeles serving as
geographical counterpoints for comparing British and American examples
of the genre. Beginning with the invention of the armchair detective in
several tales by Edgar Allen Poe, we will study sleuths and gumshoes in
writers such as Arthur Conan Doyle, Josephine Tey, Dorothy Sayers,
Raymond Chandler, and Michael Connelly; and in films such as Chinatown,
L.A. Confidential, and The Usual Suspects. J. Anzalone,
Foreign Languages and Literatures, and R. Copans, College Librarian
Educating Citizens for the American Republic Drawing on the writings of a number of prominent American citizens, we
will consider the education that is fitting for citizens of a republic,
who prize freedom and equality. American thinkers have long noticed that
American democracy requires certain moral and intellectual virtues of
its citizens. What are these virtues? What sort of education will foster
them? We will begin our study of these questions with readings from the
colonial period and continue with selected writings by nineteenth and twentieth
century authors. We will conclude the seminar by considering the
education offered at liberal arts colleges, which have been described as
"distinctively American." Students will meet some of America's great
political, historical, and literary figures, while formulating their
aspirations for their own educations. N. Taylor, Government
Emerging Diseases: Global Challenges to Human Health Recent outbreaks of new and re-emerging diseases, including AIDS, Ebola,
tuberculosis, and cholera, have challenged the ways we think about
biological and social factors that cause human suffering. In this
seminar, students approach disease from several perspectives,
integrating public health, environmental studies, and medical
anthropology. We aim to understand the global nature of emerging
infectious diseases and learn about factors affecting how we recognize,
control, prevent, and treat these diseases. Students develop seminar
projects that analyze disease outbreaks in various countries: how does
the spread of new diseases relate to social inequality? New medical
technologies? Drug policies? Global climate change? Studying infectious
diseases gives us a powerful example of how methods in medical and
social sciences come together in addressing health problems. M.
Ennis-McMillan, Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Environmental Problems. Economic Solutions? Does the solution to the Earth's environmental problems
depend upon the profit motive inherent in the economic
systems that cause these problems in the first place? This
seminar examines how the corporate need for economic profit
and the insatiable consumer desire for new products lead to
environmental ills such as the pollution of air and ground
water, the devastation of ecosystems, and the degradation of
natural resources. Should the government take on the role of
legislating "command and control" environmental regulation
or can these problems be solved through profit-based
conservation? Students in this seminar will critique cases
in which command and control legislation, profit-based
conservation, or a combination of the two have been used to
combat environmental problems. Each student will develop a
seminar project critiquing a specific environmental problem
and positing an appropriate policy solution. L. Vargha, Economics
The Ethics of Tobacco and Alcohol Advertising The advertising of tobacco and alcohol products is dynamic
and controversial. What aspects of it are socially
responsible or irresponsible, profitable or gratuitous,
politically correct or incorrect, moral or immoral? As a
society changes, so too do its perspectives on these
questions. Students in this seminar study how a range of
factors shape—and are shaped by—tobacco and alcohol
advertising: social structures, economic forces, politics,
law and ethics. In addition, we will analyze various
persuasive techniques that advertisers use to try to
influence peoples' attitudes and opinions toward such
products. C. Page, Management and Business
Gender Benders: The Plays of Federico Garcia Lorca and the Films of Pedro Almodovar How do novelists and filmmakers depict gender and sexuality? In this
sentence, students will compare these themes in the works of two
artists from different eras and manifesting distinct aesthetic
tendencies, the playwright Federico Garcia Lorca and the filmmaker
Pedro Almodovar, who both question the construction of gender in their
works. By alternative Lorca's plays with Almodovar's films, students
in this seminar will examine various aspects of and perspectives on
"masculinity" and "femininity." Students will do readings in and
discuss issues of modernity vs. post-modernity; the genres of film and
theatre; homosexuality, lesbianism, and heterosexuality; parents and
family structures; transvestism and transsexuality; dress and gesture;
and psychoanalytic theory. Students will also gain a background in
modern Spanish history from the Franco era to the present, with
emphasis on the transition from dictatorship to democracy. Note: The
films we will watch contain scenes of nudity and violence that may be
offensive to some students. Also, students must view the films during
the "fourth hour" outside of the classroom. M. Mudrovic, Foreign Languages and Literatures
Genes and Generation Aristotle argued that females contribute the "raw material" for an
offspring and males contribute a force that shapes it into an organism.
Beginning with this ancient Greek account of generation, students study
explanations of the generation of organisms from historical and
scientific perspectives. We compare Aristotle's concept of generation to
later scientific theories typical of the 17th to 19th centuries,
including spontaneous generation, vitalism, epigenesis and the idea that
germ cells contain a tiny version of the organism that develops into the
adult. We follow the demise of some of these theories and the
transformation of others into the modern concepts of genes and
developmental biology, and end with a discussion of current perspectives
on the role of genes in the development of organisms. B. Possidente, Biology
The Good Life in Ancient Greek Philosophy and Literature All of us want to live a good life. Yet since there are many different
goods in human life, such as health, wealth, fame, education and virtue,
which is to be given priority when they conflict? Can one be a good
person without being happy and vice versa? If so, which is most
essential to the good life, morality or happiness? And are we in full
control of the goodness of our lives or are there factors (God, fate,
chance) beyond our control and even our understanding? And to whom can
we turn for the answers? The Ancient Greeks asked these questions in a
radical way and, far from dogmatically accepting any particular answers
and reaching any final consensus, they remained deeply divided not only
about the answers, but also about how to approach the questions. While
we might consider the above questions "philosophical," in Ancient Greece
they were equally the concern of the poet, artist, playwright, and
historian. Thus we will study Homer's Iliad; plays by the comic poet
Aristophanes and the tragedians Sophocles and Euripides; an account of
war and imperialism by the historian Thucydides; dialogues by Plato on
piety, civil disobedience, and the rhetoric of power; and lectures on
ethics by Aristotle. We will also give some consideration to the ideals
and values embodied in the visual arts. The goal in studying these works
of the Ancient Greeks will be for them to have a fundamental impact on
how you see your own life today. F. Gonzalez, Philosophy
and Religion
How Do Women Look? Woman as Object/Subject in Contemporary American Visual Culture Do blondes have more fun? Are lesbians really "invisible"? How
do women look? Women have long been subject to an excruciatingly exacting
visual evaluation from both men and women. In this class we will
examine the representation of women in a variety of media (visual art,
television, films) spanning the 1970s to today, considering how these
images, through emphasizing weight, race, and sexuality, objectify
women, encouraging the view to visually "consume" and appraise them.
However, women also actively look—at themselves, at each other, and at
men. We will consider whether a woman's gaze can ever be as active as
a man's, and if there might be alternatives to the controlling,
patriarchal gaze. K. Hauser, Art and Art History
The Hudson River in American Life Why the Hudson? Far more than a short river flowing through New York
State, the Hudson is a thread that runs through the fabric of four
centuries of American history, through the development of American
civilization—its culture, its community, and its consciousness. For
those living in the United States the Hudson is the river of firsts: the
first great river explorers came upon when they arrived in the New
World; the first river that led explorers into the continent's uncharted
interior; the river that was the first line of defense in the American
Revolution; the river of America's first writers, the river that
inspired America's first great painters; the river millions of
immigrants first encountered when they stepped off their boats onto
their new land; the river whose deep water port helped New York City
become the nation's foremost financial center; the river that inspired
America's first conservationists. And in the late twentieth century,
after suffering extraordinary degradation, the river became the first
battleground of environmentalists. All these firsts in a landscape that
numerous authors have prized for its mystery, romance and ineffable
beauty. This interdisciplinary seminar should appeal to students
interested in history, art history, literature, biology, and the
environment. It will include field trips to the artist Frederick Edwin
Church's house, Olana, the Saratoga battlefield and West Point, and will
provide opportunities for individual study on a variety of topics. T. Lewis, English
The Human Body—From Science to Society What happens to the human body when science and society clash? What
types of decisions do we make about food, exercise, body weight, and
anti-aging products? Do we make decision about health care, exercise
and wellness based upon societal norms or informed science? In this
seminar, students will explore the myriad of physiological and
sociocultural factors that cause or contribute to certain human health
conditions. Students will investigate such topics as ideal body
weight, body image, proper diet, and appropriate exercise regimens.
Additionally, students will consider how perceptions of exercise,
fitness, and health are influenced by aging, physical disability, or
injury. P. Fehling, Exercise Science
Human Colonization of Space Our current exploration of space points to eventual extraterrestrial
human colonies. In fact, much of the technology to begin small
colonies already exists, and some anthropologists argue that it is the
nature of humankind to explore and settle new "lands," even when that
means leaving the earth. In this seminar, students explore the issues
involved in making policy decisions in this area, including
technological limitations, political and economic motives, the
possible catastrophic destruction of earth, and the biological and
psychological development of individuals within a small, extremely
isolated society. M. Crone Odekon, Physics
Human Dilemmas As you begin college, you are confronting the recurring dilemmas that
define and shape our lives: Who am I? What exactly am I? What is my
relationship to others? What is my responsibility to them and to the
world? As biologist E. O. Wilson contends in his 2003 book The Future of
Life, life is "an insoluble problem, a dynamic process in search of an
indefinable goal. [It is] neither a celebration nor a spectacle but
rather, as a later philosopher put it, a predicament" (xxii). "Human
Dilemmas" will challenge your conventional assumptions surrounding these
predicaments as we focus our attention on interdisciplinary readings,
critical thinking, and academic inquiry. Debates, field trips, and
writing will move us toward an understanding of what it means to be
human in our contemporary world. M. DiSanto-Rose,
Dance; R. Giguere, Chemistry; S. Layden, HEOP;
M. Marx, English; L. Rosengarten, HEOP; P. Roth, English;
R. Rotheim, Economics; S. Solomon, Psychology
The Idea of Freedom What does it mean to be free, and why is freedom important? Questions
about the nature and value of human freedom arise at multiple levels.
For example, do we have free will, or are all of our actions ultimately
determined by causes outside our control? What kind of freedom does
moral responsibility require? Finally, what would a genuinely free
society look like—that is, what social, political, and economic
conditions must be satisfied if human beings are to live fully
autonomous lives? In this seminar, students explore these interrelated
questions about freedom from an interdisciplinary perspective. We study
mainly historical and contemporary texts in philosophy and political
theory. But students also distinguish and draw connections between these
disciplines and others such as literature, women's studies, and
economics. Authors studied include Aristotle, Hobbes, Hume, Reid, Kant,
Rousseau, Hegel, Mill, Wollstonecraft, Aldous Huxley, Amartya Sen, and
Barbara Ehrenreich. M. Rohlf, Philosophy and Religion
Images of Work in Literature, the Arts, and Popular Culture What is it like to manage or be managed? Students in this seminar will
examine the concept of work and the complex issues faced by workers
and leaders in organizations and society using the varied perspectives
of literature, the arts, and popular culture. Work is a central life
experience that can be understood using sociological, psychological,
and managerial theories and models. Through the lenses of film,
literature, dance, music, theater and pop culture, the course will
illustrate these interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks and the
experience of work. We will study work-related topics such as employee
mentoring and coaching, business ethics, power and authority,
entrepreneurship, work/life balance, leadership, and white vs. blue
collar work in the context of films such as Wall Street, works of
literature like The Great Gatsby, and plays such as Arthur Miller's
All My Sons. The richness and accessibility of these textual,
artistic, and visual examples provides a powerful context for
understanding the complexities of the work experience. C. D'Abate, Management and Business
Ireland: Myth, Reality, Conflict, Identity Ireland did not really enter the 20th century until nearly the end of
it. Yet, when it did so, it was at a dizzying pace. We will explore,
in a broad interdisciplinary manner, patterns of modern and
contemporary Irish life and culture, Ireland's unique "sense of
place," and finally, the issue of Irish identity (including the
conflict between the "two traditions" in Northern Ireland). We set
aside simplified stereotypes of the Irish and explore instead the
diversity and plurality of Irish identity. Ultimately, we seek to
answer such questions as: What does it mean to be Irish in an Ireland
that has radically changed the way it views itself and the world? Can
the Irish remain the most "globalized" economy in the world, without
becoming less Irish? If the country buries its past, what will replace
it? J. Kennelly, Management and Business
Italy, Fascism, and Jews Mussolini marched on Rome in 1922 with a group of Black Shirts. What
happened before and after this historic moment is the subject of this
seminar. Who challenged the legitimacy of the government? How was
Mussolini's Fascism able to last twenty-two years? Italian Jews were an
integral part of the political process until the Racial Laws in 1938,
but who are Italy's Jews? We explore the history and culture (holidays
and cuisine) of Jews from the first colony in Rome till the end of World
War II. Historic texts, novels, memoirs, films, and political science
treatises uncover different perspectives on the rise and fall of
Fascism, anti-Semitism, and the survival of Italy and the Italian Jewish
community. S.
Smith, Foreign Languages and Literatures
Leaving Home What does it mean to leave home? As far back as Adam and Eve, we have
been leaving home, willingly or not. We leave home as kindergartners
and college students, as soldiers and explorers, as emigrants and
exiles. When we leave home, what (things, values, languages, ideas) do
we leave behind? What from home do we carry with us? What losses do we
suffer and what new perspectives do we gain? What happens to our
familiar selves? Do we (can we?) form new selves? How do we cope with
the foreign, the strange, the alien, and the uncanny? How do we leave
home (our customary way of thinking and feeling) through the exercise
of intellect or imagination or empathy? Is it possible to travel too
far from home? To make sense of this central life experience, we will
read from the Bible and mythology, from nursery rhymes and fairy
tales, from fiction and poetry, from autobiography and memoir, and
from work in sociology, psychology, philosophy and anthropology. We
will look at paintings, watch movies, and listen to songs. Our project
will be to explore the meaning(s) home holds for us, to consider the
ways in which narratives about leaving home are structured or
represented in different media and disciplines, to discuss the themes
embodied in those structures, and to examine the various consequences
of leaving home. S. Kress, English
Mathematics and the Art of M.C. Escher How did Escher bend the rules of perspective to create a castle where
its inhabitants are walking ever upward or downward on a staircase,
without getting any higher or lower? What would it be like to live in a
non-Euclidean world where the sum of the angles of a triangle are less
than 180 degrees, or where we could create an octagonal room with eight
right angles? Or do we? As well as examining these questions, students
in this seminar explore the relationship between Escher's art and the
underlying mathematical themes and consider the artist's success at
achieving a visual representation of mathematical ideas. M.
Hofmann, Mathematics & Computer Science
Minority Rights in a Majority-Driven Democracy When the "majority rules," what happens to the rights of the
non-majority? Students in this seminar explore how minority rights are
protected (or not) in a majority-run democracy. We will examine the
history, law, public policy, and popular opinion regarding three
specific issues: the right of gays to marry; the rights of the religious
(of varying faiths) to practice their faith freely; and the role of
affirmative action in our culture. Students will read and analyze cases
and legal briefs, perform debates, give oral presentations, and write
both analytic and persuasive papers. C. Kopec, Management and Business
The Mind's I The unconscious is not an object or place or part of the body, but an
imaginary construction. What it is, where it is, what it contains, and
how it relates to the conscious self are questions that have generated
vastly different responses from scientists, philosophers, artists, and
writers, who have represented the unconscious in various and colorful
ways: as a repository of memories, as a primal wilderness, as a
mysterious archaeological site, and even as a separate personality. In
this seminar, we'll examine writings about the unconscious to ask
questions about human nature, free will, sources of creativity, and, not
least, how one develops a sense of true self. L. Simon, English
The Molecular Frontier "One of the things that separates us from all earlier generations is
this, we have seen our atoms" (Karl K. Darrow in The Renaissance of
Physics). Not only have we seen atoms, we have learned to manipulate
them individually. This remarkable achievement has changed the way
that scientists think about matter and opened the door to the
possibility of constructing materials and machines on the smallest
scale possible. What will these molecular constructs do for us? Will
they revolutionize the fields of medicine, computing, and
manufacturing? Students in this seminar will consider these questions
and others, through readings, laboratory exercises, and field trips,
as we explore the development of nanotechnology and dream about its
impact on our future. Students will also confront and debate ethical,
political, and economic issues that will ultimately drive and
influence the direction of this revolution in science. S. Frey, Chemistry
Mother Russia's Daughters: Gender and Power in Russia's Past and Present What explains the fact that in a country famously and widely known as
"Mother Russia," one of the most enduring proverbs is "Just as a crab
is not a fish, a woman is not a human being"? In this seminar,
students will apply the powerful tool of gender analysis to Russia's
past and present, exploring such topics as Catherine the Great's
exalted and controversial reign, and the demonization of Tsarina
Alexandra, last empress of Russia. We will also look at changing
notions of womanhood during the Bolshevik and Stalinist revolutions,
gender politics during WWII, and the crises of femininity and
masculinity that emerged in the mature Soviet and post-Soviet era.
Here we will pay special attention to the problems of contraception,
prostitution and trafficking of women, as well as the gendered nature
of Russia's transition to capitalism and "democracy." Letters,
diaries, works of fiction, works of art, literary criticism,
anthropological works, and films produced by and about Russian women
will provide an interdisciplinary perspective on Mother Russia. K. Graney, Government
The Music Between Us: The Culture of Musical Creation and Consumption Music can bind us together and drive us apart. Music is an element of
our individuality and can help us disappear into a group. How do
individuals define themselves in the context of musical communities?
What kinds of communities are there? How can we describe musical
communities? What is the relationship between musical change and social
change in the context of these communities? What is the role of music in
the relationship between the self and society? This seminar will reason
through a number of descriptions of how humans employ music to define
themselves. G. Thompson, Music
On the Stage and in Your Face: American Political and Activist Theater Students explore American political and activist theater in the 1930s,
1960s, and 1990s from the perspectives of history and performance.
Students will analyze major events and issues along with the various
play texts and performance styles and strategies that emerged to move
social and political agendas forward. Through close readings of
historical documents, essays on performance theory, and viewing videos
of performances, students will analyze the concepts of activism as
performance and performance as activism. At the end of the semester,
students will conceptualize, construct, and perform a short activist
theater piece. C.
Anderson, Theater
The Painters' Canon: Landscape, Still Life, Figure What, if anything, do contemporary artists owe to the past? For more
than a thousand years artists in different cultures created images
falling into three broad categories: landscape, still life, and figure.
The majority of these paintings followed long-held cultural traditions
and artisan/artist criteria. Today there is little or no consensus on
painting norms; therefore, contemporary painters and students of art
must make individual and informed choices. Students in this seminar will
create art as well as study art and examine paintings in the three
categories from various times and cultures, including contemporary
trends. Students will write essays about the various criteria identified
and apply the findings from their research to the creation of small
paintings. D. Miller, Art and Art History
The Philosophic Basis of the American Founding What are the philosophic principles of the liberal democracy under which
we live? After examining the thought of the Christian political thinkers
who had originally guided political life in the new world—the political
thought that our founders rejected—we turn to the work of John Locke,
the philosopher who laid out most clearly and explicitly a wholly new
understanding of political life, especially through his argument for
individual natural rights. We then turn to the writings of the American
founders, especially of Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton, Jay, and the
"Anti-Federalists," to see how Locke's understanding of human beings
came to guide those who were victorious in the debate over what the
guiding principles of the new American regime would be. We conclude the
seminar with an examination of slavery in the writings of Fredrick
Douglass, and with Lincoln's attempt to defeat slavery by appeal to the
original principles of the founding. The seminar will introduce students
to the close study of texts in political philosophy, political theology,
constitutional thought, political rhetoric, history, and literature. T.
Burns, Government
Psychological Theories of Social Justice In this seminar, students will learn to think critically about a variety
of social justice issues and policies in the areas of redistributive
justice, procedural justice, distributive justice, and expressive
justice. These theories have relevance to issues related to criminal
justice, justice in the course and in legal proceedings, justice in the
workplace, justice in war, and politics and justice in international
affairs. Using different social and psychological frameworks, students
will analyze theories of punishment and the use of the death penalty,
ideas of what it means to be responsible for a crime and competent to
testify in court, analyses of affirmative action policies,
considerations of justice warfare and problems of global poverty, and
definitions of human rights. In our analyses, we will consider multiple
questions such as: What is a just way to punish people who commit
crimes? Do tough prison policies help deter crime and make society
safer? Is the "not guilty by reason of insanity" verdict just? Can young
children serve as credible witnesses in court? How fair is affirmative
action? Are human rights culturally universal? Is justice gender biased?
Why do we go to war, and is there such a thing as a "just war"? V. Murphy-Berman, Psychology
Robot Design Today's robots do things that humans can't or don't want to do: find and
defuse bombs, navigate the Martian landscape gathering geological data,
vacuum floors in houses. In a series of team projects, students will
integrate tools from several scientific disciplines to design robots
using the Lego Mindstorms Robotics Invention System. Students will learn
how designing a robot is affected by factors such as the laws of
physics, choice among programming languages, and the imprecise nature of
physical measurement and computer calculations. The student teams will
document and present their projects to the class. A. Dean, Mathematics and Computer Science
Saratoga: People & Place Past & Present Welcome to Saratoga Springs—your home for the next four years! In this
seminar we will explore our town, learn its rich history, and meet its
people, past and present, to understand how individuals and groups shape
communities and how communities shape individuals and groups. We will
draw ideas and methods from the social sciences, insights from the arts,
and perspectives from history. You will meet and talk with Saratogians
of all sorts—come-heres and been-heres, Republicans and Democrats and
Independents, business people and social workers, young and old and in
between, citizens of all sorts. We will go beyond our campus to explore
Saratoga's streets and alleys, its nooks and crannies—a "hidden" library
that few natives know, a coffee house where American Pie was first
performed, a Victorian cemetery, and a church with Tiffany windows. We
will share many readings and speakers in our seminar, but you will also
explore in depth an issue of special interest to you. In sum, this
seminar on Saratoga will foster your sense of place. W. Fox, Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
The Search for Pattern and Symmetry Students in this seminar examine the role and significance of symmetry
and pattern in diverse domains of nature and of human endeavor. It is
surprising how broad a variety of disciplines share a common canon of
criteria for a "good" design: repetition, harmony, and variety. The
study of examples from the earth and the heavens, from human visual
and auditory art, from language and literature, and from rhetoric and
reasoning will show symmetry (or a lack of it) as a crucial component
of form and content. D. Hurwitz, Mathematics and Computer Science
Sexualities/Textualities An exploration of the centrality of writing to the creation,
promulgation, and enforcement of human sexualities. We will focus on
the written word as a place where an otherwise amorphous network of
desires gets clarified and organized, deployed and policed. From Plain
Talks on Avoided Subjects, a popular nineteenth-century guidebook for
the young, to The Flame and the Flower, a Harlequin romance from the
early 1970s, we will explore the ways in which sex becomes text. We
will position these sometimes-bizarre popular texts in the context of
medical, scientific, and philosophic discourses, including the work of
Freud, Foucault, and Kinsey, in an attempt to understand the relation
between the written word and the ways in which we live and imagine
human sexual identity. M. Stokes, English
Sport, Self and Society How many hours do we devote to sport in a week, as participants or
fans? How many of us follow with fanatical devotion a favorite team or
athlete? Whether on the school, club, neighborhood, city, or national
level, many of us identify passionately with athletes, teams, and our
chosen sports. In this seminar, we will examine our personal
relationship to sports as recreation and institution. We will broaden
our focus to study the structure and culture of athletics over the
past three-hundred years, examining the relationship of sport to such
social, cultural and political institutions as clubs, schools,
neighborhoods, church, state and nation. We will also consider sport’s
past and present role in international affairs and its enormous
economic presence in our lives. The seminar will feature several field
trips as well as featured speakers. P. Boshoff, English, or J. Segrave, Exercise Science
The Verbal/Visual Encounter in the Western Tradition Through Western culture, one can trace a long tradition of written
literary texts—lyric and epic poems, novels, critical essays—that
describe visual works of art and that ask their readers to reflect
about the fundamentally different natures of reading and seeing. On
the other hand, innumerable paintings and statues use scenes and
characters from written works as a topic for visual representation. In
this seminar, we will explore this fascinating interplay between the
written and the visual arts historically and thematically. To grasp
more specifically the shape and intricacies of the topic, we will
first examine how the written/visual interaction surfaces in certain
twentieth-century texts. We will then go back to the first major text
of Western Literature, Homer's Iliad, and analyze how the
written/visual interplay finds its original articulation in the way
Homer describes the shield that Hephaïstos crafts for Achilles. At
this point we will follow the phenomenon chronologically, bringing our
investigations into the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. M. Wiesmann, Foreign Languages and Literatures
The Virtual Republic: American Politics in the Media Age Is the American "mediathon" sapping the public's interest in, engagement
with, and knowledge of politics? In this seminar, students explore the
influence of the mass media on political debate, political engagement,
and public policy in the United States. We trace the development of the
mass media from the turn of the 20th century to the present, assessing
critically the claim that this development has contributed to an
increasing coarsening of political discourse, a growth in public
disaffection with politics, and a diminution of the government's
capacity to solve pressing social and economic problems. We will examine
the effect of radio and television on political oratory, the genesis and
evolution of "political marketing," the rise of an "adversarial press,"
and the implications of the "new media" for American politics. R. Seyb, Government
War and Peace and Eugene Onegin in Literature and the Performing Arts Through a mix of reading, watching, listening, writing, and discussion,
students will examine two great works of Russian literature and their
transformation into performance. We will study Tolstoy's epic novel, War
and Peace, and Pushkin's epic poem, Eugene Onegin. These will be
supplemented by operatic, balletic, and dramatic performances inspired
by the texts. I. Brown, Dance
