Humanities Interdisciplinary Program

98-99 University Bulletin Entry for:

(file last updated: [8/10/1998 - 15:23:58])

Objectives

This program offers studentsan opportunity to explore the humanities from multiple perspectives,traditionally Western as well as global, and to make connectionsbetween a variety of disciplines.

How to Become a ProgramMember

Students may enroll in theprogram by visiting Professor Karen Klein (Rabb 264) or ProfessorLuis Yglesias (Shiffman 116) where they will be assigned a HIPadvisor who will work with them throughout their program. Studentsare strongly advised to enroll before their senior year. Onceenrolled, students are invited to participate in all program events,including lectures by visiting scholars and artists, field trips,and the salon.

Committee

Karen Klein, Cochair

(English and American Literature)

Luis Yglesias, Cochair

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Tzvi Abusch

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Pamela Allara

(Fine Arts)

Joyce Antler

(American Studies)

Carl Belz

(Fine Arts)

Bernadette Brooten

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Eric Chafe

(Music)

Olga Davidson

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Eberhard Frey

(Germanic and Slavic Languages)

Stephen Gendzier

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Arthur Green

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Jane Hale

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Karen Hansen

(Sociology)

Erica Harth

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Judith Irvine

(Anthropology)

Patricia Johnston

(Classical Studies)

Edward Kaplan

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Reuven Kimelman

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Thomas King

(English and American Literature)

Ann Koloski-Ostrow

(Classical Studies)

Robert Lange

(Physics)

Richard Lansing

(Romance and Comparative Literature)

Alan Levitan

(English and American Literature)

Robert Maeda

(Fine Arts)

Leonard Muellner

(Classical Studies)

Richard Parmentier

(Anthropology)

Benson Saler

(Anthropology)

Nancy Scott

(Fine Arts)

Faith Smith

(African and Afro-AmericanStudies/English and American Literature)

Susan Staves

(English and American Literature)

Maurice Stein

(Sociology)

Ibrahim Sundiata

(African and Afro-AmericanStudies)

Robert Szulkin

(Germanic and Slavic Languages)

Andreas Teuber

(Philosophy)

Cheryl Walker

(Classical Studies)

David Wong

(Philosophy)

David Wright

(Near Eastern and Judaic Studies)

Palle Yourgrau

(Philosophy)

Requirements for the Program

A.HIP 20a or 20b or the equivalent with the permission of the advisor.This requirement provides students with a sense of the humanitiesthrough its connection to the classics and the contributions offundamental texts.

B.HIP 10b, or one semester course from category 1 below. This requirementinvolves students in comparative studies of specific arts andletters, exposing them to literary and philosophical texts onart, music, or theater from more than one era, culture, or discipline.

C.HIP 21a (formerly AMST 172b), or one semester course from category2 below. Courses in category 2 explore myth, ritual, religion,folklore,and philosophy. This requirement enables students tounderstand how different cultures have made sense of human existencein relation to the spiritual: the realm of the divine, the realmof animal spirits, the supernatural.

D.HIP 30b, or one semester course from category 3 below. These coursesexamine responses or alternatives to the Western tradition. Thisrequirement thus provides most students with an in-depth explorationof a culture other than their own or with a critique of a culturefrom within.

E.The final course in the humanities sequence is an independentstudy which will focus on themes and methodologies central tothe study of the humanities. This course is available only afterother course requirements are completed.

F.No single course can satisfy more than one requirement.

Courses of Instruction

(1-99) Primarily for UndergraduateStudents

HIP 10b Lyric Poetry andDrawing

[ cl⁵ wihum ]

Signature of the instructorrequired.

Comparative study of the genresof lyric poetry and drawing with special attention to their sharedformal concerns and their ability to achieve maximum expressivenesswith an economy of means. Examples will be taken from differenthistorical periods. Usually offered in even years.

Ms. Klein

HIP 11b The Grid: In andOut of Bounds

[ hum ]

Studies the meaning and functionof the grid in different disciplines. Focusing first on 20th centuryvisual art, including the Rose Art Museum collection, we willexplore examples from music, mathematics, architecture, and dance,with guest lecturers.

Ms. Dash

HIP 20a Imagining How WeAre: East and West I

[ cl⁸ nwhum ]

Human history can be understoodas a struggle between competing myths, each claiming to be thesource of true knowledge. Does our present understanding of earth'shistory, however, point instead to a narrative which finds commonground in all cultures? This course examines the possibility.Usually offered every year.

Messrs. Stein and Yglesias

HIP 20b Imagining How WeAre: East and West II

[ nw hum ]

This course raises the sameissues as HIP 20a, but uses a different set of texts. Both coursesdraw upon foundational texts from eastern and western civilizations.Usually offered every year.

Messrs. Stein and Yglesias

HIP 21a Mysticism and theMoral Life: Abraham Heschel, Howard Thurman, Thomas Merton

(Formerly AMST 172b)

[ cl⁴⁸ humss ]

Enrollment limited to 25.This course may not be repeated for credit by students who havetaken AMST 172b in previous years.

A study of three exemplaryAmerican religious activists: Abraham Heschel, a Jewish theologianand activist; Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk; and Howard Thurman,a black minister. Focuses upon the relationship between theirinwardness and social and political commitments. Usually offeredin even years.

Mr. Kaplan

HIP 30b The Persistenceof Tradition: An Introduction to Japanese Poetry, Drama, Fiction,and Film

[ cl⁴¹ nwhum ]

Prerequisite: A UniversitySeminar in Humanistic Inquiries (USEM).

This course will study traditionsof fiction, poetry, and drama over the span of Japan's culturalhistory from about the ninth century to the present. Featuredwill be Lady Murasaki's Tale of Genji, great women poets,and the dramatic genres of Noh, Kabuki, and Bunraku. Usually offeredin even years.

Mr. Levitan

HIP 98a Independent Study

Signature of the instructorand the program director required.

Independent readings, research,and writing on a subject of the student's interest under the directionof a faculty advisor. Usually offered every year.

Staff

HIP 98b Independent Study

See HIP 98a for special notesand course description. Usually offered every year.

Staff

Electives

The following courses are notall given in any one year; therefore, the Course Schedulefor each semester should be consulted.

Category 1

AMST 128b

History as Theater

CLAS 115b

Topics in Greek and Roman History

CLAS 133b