Humanistic Studies (HUM STUD)

Courses

HUM STUD 100. Living the Humanities. 3 Credits.

This team-taught course introduces students to the Humanities as a way of study. By grappling with one of humanity's problems--such as the ethics of eating or our imprint on the environment--students explore various ways in which the strengths and values that are unique to the humanities can best prepare students for their future. Course is not repeatable for credit.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 110. Introduction to Film. 3 Credits.

Examines film as literature, as a visual and aural art, as technology, and as a medium which both reflects and influences social trends, values, and attitudes. Involves viewing a range of films and examining their place in film history.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 160. Introduction to Language. 3 Credits.

Study of language and linguistics, including basic principles and methods in structural linguistics, social and regional variation in language, historical change and introductory study of meaning.
Spring.

HUM STUD 198. First Year Seminar. 3 Credits.

First Year Seminar, topics vary.
Reserved for New Incoming Freshman
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 200. Introduction to Digital and Public Humanities. 3 Credits.

This course introduces students to the fields of digital and public humanities, with an emphasis on how we think about, and through, digital and public spaces. Students read, discuss, and write about humanities texts and artifacts, but also engage with the tools, platforms, methods, and projects of these emerging fields. Topics include curation, design, visualization, networked interaction, and collaborative research.
P: None. REC: HUM STUD 100
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 201. Introduction to the Humanities. 3 Credits.

Major methods and ideas of the humanities, examined in selected works of literature, philosophy and fine arts.
Spring.

HUM STUD 210. Film and Society. 3 Credits.

The ways in which films reflect and influence society. Examines films for their social content and the social milieu of their creation, the ways in which different cultures use films and the cross-cultural influences which occur.

HUM STUD 213. Ethnic Diversity and Human Values. 3 Credits.

This course will explore some of the most fundamental questions of human values and meaning by studying the rich literature, history, and culture of one or more of the following groups of the United States: African American, American Indian, Asian American, and Latino. Course is not repeatable for credit.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 220. ESL: Listening and Speaking Across Cultures. 3-6 Credits.

Global and discrete listening and speaking skills for ESL students based on content in intercultural communication. Emphasis on note-taking, listening for main ideas and key details, organizing and delivering speeches, and participating effectively in debates and small and large group discussions.
P: International student status or permission of instructor.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 299. Travel Course. 1-6 Credits.

Travel courses are conducted to various parts of the world and are led by one or more faculty members. May be repeated to different locations.
P: cons of instr & prior trip arr & financial deposit.

HUM STUD 300. Intermediate Digital and Public Humanities. 3 Credits.

Students explore methods and approaches of the digital and public humanities in-depth, perform research, and complete work on a collaborative project.
P: HUM STUD 200
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 309. Introduction to Film History and Theory. 3 Credits.

Art criticism is concerned with the ways in which perception influences artistic judgment. This course will be a survey of significant works, traditions, and movements of film and media history from cinema's beginnings to the present. Examines questions of what distinguishes cinema from other visual arts, considering theories of film aesthetics, meaning, and spectatorship from the classical to the contemporary era. Investigations may include issues of commerce, technology, authorship, genre, affect, transnationalism, race and ethnicity, gender, and cinema's intersection with theories of other arts.
REC: HUM STUD 110
Spring Even.

HUM STUD 318. Topics in Linguistics/TESL. 3 Credits.

Analysis and discussion of topics of central importance in applied linguistics and Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL). Possible topics include:Teaching Grammer to ELLs; Second Language Pragmatics; Second Language Writing; and others.

HUM STUD 319. Second Language Acquisition & Assessment. 3 Credits.

Overview of issues in second-language acquisition and assessment, including linguistic, cognitive, social, and affective factors. Students will examine and think about learner language, read research on learner language, and consider implications for second-language teaching.
Rec: HUM STUD 160.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 320. Language and Identity. 3 Credits.

This course explores the role that language attitudes and ideologies as well as identity play in the speech and patterns of language use of native speakers as well as those acquiring a second language. We will address these issues in relation to various immigrant groups in the US, with a special focus on Hispanic communities across the US. In addition, within the broader picture, we will look at the question of language use and identity construction; that is, the social meaning that certain variations in language have (i.e. power and solidarity traits) and the use that native speakers make of these variables to construct an identity.
REC: HUM STUD 160 or EDUC 311 or EDUC 315.
Spring.

HUM STUD 321. Sociolinguistics. 3 Credits.

The study of language in relation to society, including social and regional dialects, bilingualism and language contact, speech communities, the ethnography of language, and applications such as language policy and planning.
P: None. REC: HUM STUD 160.
Spring.

HUM STUD 326. Non-Western Religions. 3 Credits.

The two major religions of the East, Hinduism and Buddhism: the richness, variety and flexibility of the faith and practice of Hinduism, with its belief in a multiplicity of gods and goddesses; and the various sects and schools of Buddhism--Theravadic, Mayahana, Zen and Tantric.
P: none; REC: jr st.
Spring Even.

HUM STUD 333. Utopia and Dystopia. 3 Credits.

This course examines utopian and dystopian thought in literature, philosophy, politics, and social thought as well as attempts to realize utopian visions. The course focuses on the question of the value of utopian and dystopian thought in their historical and contemporary moments. What can utopia teach us about our society and the directions in which it may develop?
Spring Even.

HUM STUD 334. The Ancient World. 3 Credits.

Focuses on aspects of the cultures and civilizations of the ancient world as reflected in its texts and fine arts.
P: jr st.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 335. The Medieval World. 3 Credits.

Focuses on the history, society, culture and values of the middle ages as reflected in its literature and fine arts.
P: jr st.
Spring.

HUM STUD 336. The Renaissance. 3 Credits.

Explores human values as they appear in texts and fine arts in the 15th and 16th century European Renaissance.
P: jr st.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 337. The Age of Reason. 3 Credits.

Immerses in the ideas that fueled the enlightenment era in seventeenth and eighteenth century Europe. Focuses specifically on political turmoil amidst radical thinking, the revolution in the conduct of science, and the impact of these changes on the social world.
P: jr st.
Spring.

HUM STUD 343. International Cinema. 3 Credits.

This course explores international cinema and the filmic arts with particular attention to their diverse cultural, social and political contexts as a means of expanding students' knowledge of the human condition and human cultures throughout the world. Students will engage in critical analysis of filmmaking, film aesthetics and narrative structure, while developing a deepened appreciation for cross-cultural experiences and the ways cinema creates meaning.
Spring Odd.

HUM STUD 350. Interdisciplinary Study of Great Works. 3 Credits.

Interdisciplinary study of one or more works central to the Humanistic tradition. Variable content.
P: jr st.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 351. Interdisciplinary Themes in Humanities. 3 Credits.

Interdisciplinary examination of a single important theme in the Humanities. Variable content. Course is repeatable for credit if topics differ.
P: jr st.
Spring.

HUM STUD 352. Literatures in Translation. 3 Credits.

A study of selected works of literatures in translation. A variable content course.
P: jr st.

HUM STUD 353. Latinx Culture. 3 Credits.

This course is an introduction to US Hispanic/ Latinx history, civilization, literature, and culture. The course is designed to provide an opportunity to understand cultural commonalities and differences of the people generally grouped in the United States under the single ethnic category of "Latinx/Hispanic" and who have become the largest minority group. The course will focus on understanding sociological, historical and artistic productions and how they affect the construction of an ethnic identity and will address key issues regarding Latinx/Hispanic experiences in the US such as the constitution of ethnicity, language issues, immigration debates, the border/wall as a reality and as a symbol, the influence of media, visual and pop culture on the formation and marketing of an ethnic consciousness as well as other topics.
Spring.

HUM STUD 356. German Culture. 3 Credits.

The culture of the German-speaking world from the earliest periods to the present with a focus on how contemporary Germany has been shaped by issues of history, religion, art, music, philosophy, and commerce.
Fall Odd.

HUM STUD 360. Globalization and Cultural Conflict. 3 Credits.

This course examines the phenomenon of globalization and its impact on cultural identity as well as the conflicts in values and belief-systems that have arisen in its wake. We will explore the notion of a clash of civilizations and cultures with particular emphasis on the supposed clash between the West and the Islamic world.
REC: jr st
Spring Odd.

HUM STUD 370. Sustainability through the Humanities. 3 Credits.

This course offers a critical exploration of the problem of sustainability from the perspective of the humanities, including history, First Nations Studies, literature, and philosophy. The problem of environmental sustainability has at least as much to do with our cultures, histories, languages, and philosophies as it does with more concrete factors such as resource usage and pollution. To the extent that humanistic disciplines help us to expand and broaden how we comprehend the natural world, so too might they provide us with essential resources and tools with which to imagine and mount broad and value-infused solutions. This course will include a digital and public humanities project.
P: Junior Standing REC: HISTORY 220, PHILOS 220, or FNS 224
Spring.

HUM STUD 375. Humanities, Business and Critical Thinking. 3 Credits.

The Humanities in general and literature in particular provide tools for critical thinking that produce a new level of discourse, often outside of author / artist intent. This course will analyze literary works from the advent of modern capitalism to the present to engage in discussions of literary representations of business and economic modals
REC: Major: Integrative Leadership Studies
Spring.

HUM STUD 382. Romanticism to Modernism. 3 Credits.

Studies the challenge to tradition and reason and the response to that challenge from the development of romanticism in the late 18th century to the flowering of modernism in the early twentieth century.
REC: jr st.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 383. Contemporary Cultural Issues. 3 Credits.

A study of contemporary cultural and social issues through historical, literary, philosophical, and artistic analysis. Course is repeatable for credit if topics differ; may be taken 2 times for a total of 6 credits.
P: HISTORY 102. REC: jr st
Spring.

HUM STUD 384. Topics in World Cultures. 3 Credits.

Study of cultures and worldviews outside of Western Europe and the United States. Course is repeatable for credit if topics differ; may be taken 2 times for a total of 6 credits.
P: none; REC: jr st.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 400. Humanities Practicum. 3 Credits.

In this course students gain in-depth, hands-on experience by collaboratively creating humanities projects. Course is repeatable for credit if topics differ; may be taken 2 times for a total of 6 credits.
P: None. REC: HUM STUD 200
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 478. Honors in the Major. 3 Credits.

Honors in the Major is designed to recognize student excellence within interdisciplinary and disciplinary academic programs.
P: min 3.50 all cses req for major and min gpa 3.75 all UL cses req for major.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 480. Humanities Seminar. 3 Credits.

A capstone seminar for humanities majors, examining basic questions and issues in the humanities. Course will emphasize student participation and a substantial term paper. Course is repeatable for credit if topics differ; may be taken 2 times for a total of 6 credits.
P: Junior Standing. REC: One or more courses in the Humanities, English, First Nations Studies, History, Modern Languages, or Philosophy.
Fall Only.

HUM STUD 497. Internship. 1-12 Credits.

Supervised practical experience in an organization or activity appropriate to a student's career and educational interests. Internships are supervised by faculty members and require periodic student/faculty meetings. Course is repeatable for credit.
P: jr st.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 498. Independent Study. 1-4 Credits.

Independent study is offered on an individual basis at the student's request and consists of a program of learning activities planned in consultation with a faculty member. A student wishing to study or conduct research in an area not represented in available scheduled courses should develop a preliminary proposal and seek the sponsorship of a faculty member. The student's advisor can direct him or her to instructors with appropriate interests. A written report or equivalent is required for evaluation, and a short title describing the program must be sent early inthe semester to the registrar for entry on the student's transcript.
P: fr or so st with cum gpa > or = 2.50; or jr or sr st with cum gpa > or = 2.00.
Fall and Spring.

HUM STUD 499. Travel Course. 1-6 Credits.

Travel courses are conducted to various parts of the world and are led by one or more faculty members. May be repeated to different locations.
P: cons of instr & prior trip arr & financial deposit.