Honors Courses

HON 171 Civilization Since 1500

HON 172 Introduction to Philosophy

HON 183 Reading and Writing II

HON 280W Introduction to Literature

HON 383 Popular Culture
Forms of modern culture such as television shows, films, and popular music increasingly command our attention and our time. The programs we watch, the movies we attend, and the CDs we purchase all play a part in determining how we understand ourselves, our relationships, and our social and cultural environments. Because of the central, yet sometimes invisible, nature of popular culture, the messages and images that are generated by the cultural industries should be attended to seriously. This course will ask you to step back from your favorite leisure pursuits and ask some difficult questions about what lessons you are being taught while you are having fun. This course can be counted as an elective in the Communication or Sociology majors, or it may be used to fulfill one of the requirements for the Media or Social Change emphases in those majors.

HON 384 Play in Literature & Philosophy
What is playfulness? How is it represented by writers and thinkers? In this seminar we will explore many types of playfulness:authorial, linguistic, and cultural. We will meditate on the idea of thought and writing as forms of play. Writers such as Milan Kundera, Halo Calvino, Umberto Eco, and Haruki Murakami engage in literary play, while philosophers such as Jacques Derrida, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and Frederich Schiller explore its role in shaping the quality of existence; Freud also examines its psycho- analytical consequences. In this seminar, we will tour the notions of play put forth by these thinkers, and witness their playful engagement with their work. This course may be counted as an elective in the English and Philosophy major.

HON 385 Women, Weight and Worry
The majority of women are dissatisfied with their bodies, now more than ever before. This increase has been attributed to the media, the historical/cultural shift in the conceptualization of “girlhood,” and as a way to keep women from obtaining power in a patriarchal society. We will study a variety of topics as they relate to the conceptualization and social construction of women’s bodies, beauty, and sexuality. An emphasis on feminist theory will help us keep in mind the historical and social context in which women’s bodies are viewed. We will examine the issues of feminism, beauty, puberty, menstruation, sexuality, eating disorders, media and cultural influences, weight, obesity, violence, pornography, plastic surgery, and female genital mutilation. Students will write weekly reaction papers and engage in a seminar-style discussion, each taking turns to lead the class. Students will also explore their own experiences in light of the readings and class exercises. A final project will challenge students to bring theory to practice. This course may be counted as an elective in the Psychology major.

HON 390 Humanities Center Seminar
One of the most active and important aspects of today’s multicultural society is the presence and power of ethnic elements in popular music. This is reflected in every style and genre of music heard around the world. Music is symbolic of ethnic, racial, social, political, religious, and philosophical principles and attitudes that are being projected through mass media promotion. Thus, music has emerged as a vital component of contemporary popular culture, ethnicity has been “popularized,” and what once may have been isolated is now celebrated. The work of this seminar will be to look at the role of music in popular culture in the United States, Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. and to consider social and cultural history that has established a context for the emergence of ethnicity in the last half of the 20th century. It will examine representative examples of popular music from various cultures and consider the impact and value of music as a primary component of expressive culture and identity. Prerequisite:HON 389 taken in Fall 2001.

HON 493 Honors Research

HON 494 Honors Thesis