HUM 2A. Topic: "Motherhood in Western Culture and History" (4 Units)
CRN 73879 | Prof. Jennifer Kaminer | TR 3:10 - 4:30PM | 202 Wellman Hall
How has the “good” or “bad” mother been defined in Western cultures? How has this definition evolved as a result of historical, philosophical, and cultural shifts? Is a bond between mother and child biologically predetermined or culturally dictated? Is the maternal instinct myth or reality? This course will explore the answers to these questions in works of fiction and nonfiction by scholars, philosophers, novelists, poets, and artists. We will chart the development of Western maternal mythology and discuss how it continues to inform our perceptions of motherhood in the contemporary era.
During the first half of the course, readings will center on the history of motherhood in the West, from the era B.C. to the twenty-first century. In the second half of the term, our attention will turn to the contemporary experience of motherhood, as relayed in works of fiction, nonfiction, and film. In particular, we will focus on potential conflicts between maternity and sexuality and maternity and creativity, and how these conflicts are explored in the writings of mothers themselves. Then, using Russia as an example, we will consider the relationship between motherhood and the state. We will analyze how the maternal figure — which occupied a unique and hallowed position in Russian culture — was co-opted by the Soviet government. Next, we will examine one of the most enduring maternal myths, that of Medea (the paradigmatic ‘bad’ mother). How does contemporary society continue to imagine the malevolent mother? Finally, we will briefly consider how technological advances may impact the future of maternity. During our reading during the second half of the course, we will continue to reflect upon how centuries-old maternal myths still influence cultural representations of motherhood.
Grading - Midterm exam, final paper, and final exam
GE credit (Old): ArtHum.
GE credit (New): ArtHum, World Cultures and WrtExp.
Texts:
- Shari Thurer, Myths of Motherhood (Penguin Books, 1995)
Note: HUM 2A can be repeated one time for credit if topic differs.
About the Instructor: Prof. Jennifer Kaminer is an assistant professor in the department of German and Russian.
HUM 2B. Topic: "Rhetoric and Tolerance in American Society" (4 Units)
CRN 73880 | Prof. Carl Whithaus | MWF 1:10 - 2:00PM | 202 Wellman Hall
Rhetoric and Tolerance in American Society examines how public debates about religion, race, and gender/sexual-orientation have functioned over the last three hundred years. The course integrates the study of public writing, speeches, sermons, digital videos, and literary works within historical, religious, and rhetorical frameworks. The course emphasizes the critical analysis of human experience, achievement, and conditions with an emphasis on how public debates in the U.S. have employed cultural differences to either include or exclude groups from broader communities.
GE credit (Old): ArtHum.
GE credit (New): ACGH, ArtHum and WrtExp.
Texts:
- Gloria Anzaldua, Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza (Aunt Lute Books, 2012)
Note: HUM 2B can be repeated one time for credit if topic differs.
About the Instructor: Prof. Carl Whithaus is the director of the University Writing Program.
HUM 13. Witches: Myth and Historical Reality (4 Units)
CRN 73882 | Prof. Elisabeth Krimmer | TR 10:30 - 11:50AM | 3 Kleiber Hall
This course focuses on four aspects of witches/witchcraft in order to examine the historical construction of the witch in the context of the social realities of the women and men labeled as witches. The four areas covered are: European pagan religions and the spread of Christianity; the “Burning Times” in early modern Europe, with an emphasis on the German situation; 17th-century New England and the Salem witch trials; and fairytales. The goal of the course is to sensitize students to the ways in which our perception of reality is a product of social construction.
Readings are drawn from documentary records of the witch persecutions and witch trials, literary representation, scholarly analyses of witch-related phenomena, and essays examining witches, witchcraft, and the witch persecutions from a contemporary feminist perspective. The lectures will be supplemented by visual material (movie clips, slides) drawn from art history, early modern witch literature, popular culture, and documentary sources.
GE credit (Old): ArtHum, Div and Wrt.
GE credit (New): ArtHum, World Cultures and WrtExp.
Texts:
- Arthur Miller, The Crucible (Penguin Classics, 2003)
About the Instructor: Prof. Elisabeth Krimmer is a professor in the department of German and Russian.