2018 E-term Bulletin

15 particular text or a tracing of the concept over a few texts, and the other a more personal reflection on howwe see these realities playing out around us. EH*E299*31 The Walking Dead: A Question of Leadership Tynes Cowan Prerequisites: None Open To: First-Years Grading System: Letter Max. Enrollment: 15 Meeting Times: M Tu WTh9:00 am–12:00 pm, TuTh4:00 pm- 6:00 pm for First-Year Leadership Challenge AMC’s The Walking Dead follows a cast of characters who are struggling to survive a zombie apocalypse. Besides having to decide which weapon might provide the best defense against “walkers,” the characters struggle with how best to work collectively to achieve the ultimate goal—survival. Students enrolled in this project will read essays in leadership theory, apply those concepts to questions of leadership raised by the show, and develop interpretations based upon close readings of very specific moments in individual episodes. We will not be binge- viewing the entire series, so some familiarity with the showwill be necessary from day one of E-Term. Students will write short weekly papers as well as a longer one by the end of the term (8-10 pages). Daily participation may be evaluated through presentations of independent research, group work, class discussion, and postings to our class Moodle site. In addition, all students will participate in the Krulak Institute’s First- Year Leadership Challenge. GENERAL STUDIES GEN*E299*32 Aging in America Katie Gibbs Prerequisites: None Open To: All Students Grading System: Letter Max. Enrollment: 16 Meeting Times: M Tu WTh9:00 am–12:00 pm One of the fastest growing demographics in America today includes individuals age 60 and older, many of whom require continued management of chronic health problems. In this project, students will explore aging in America from at least three perspectives: biological effects on aging, financial costs of caring for our elderly, and the faces of the people involved. Two-thirds of the project will be spent learning about the biology and financial cost of aging through assigned readings, relevant films, class discussions, and critical reflections. The remaining third of project time will be designated for service learning through a partnership with Oak Knoll Health and Rehabilitation Center near the BSC campus. Students will be evaluated on class participation, a journal including daily 1-2 page guided reflections from class discussions and 2-3 page critical reflections for each service experience, and a 15-minute presentation on a related topic chosen by the student. have prepared together. Students will be assigned weekly readings and research featuring Southern foods and culture and will be required to participate in group discussions delving into the history, culture, and traditions associated with representational foods, as presented by well- known chefs, food critics, and writers. Students will write weekly essays (500-1000 words) in response to our discussions about race, gender, poverty, the South, and Southern foods. In addition, students will maintain a personal food journal chronicling their Southern food experiences during the term. Evaluation will be based on essays, reading discussion, journals, active participation, and attendance. Estimate Student Fees: $150 EH*E299*29 Tolkien’s Worlds: Language, History, Myth, and Story Joseph Stitt Prerequisites: EH 102 or 208 Open To: All Students Grading System: Letter Max. Enrollment: 16 Meeting Times: M TuTh9:00 am–12:00 pm The project will focus on The Hobbit and (more so) The Lord of the Rings as well as shorter works such as “On Faerie-Stories.” Thematic elements will include Tolkien’s ideas about history, ethics, Christianity, myth, nature, industrialization, fate and free will, war and peace, modernism and antimodernism, social class, sub-creation, eucatastrophe, friendship, pity, and death. Stylistic elements will include interlacement, merging archaic diction with non-archaic diction and modern novelistic techniques, etymology as thematic cryptography, approaching epic through an everyman or everyhobbit point of view, and synchronization. Tolkien’s philological work will be considered as an inspiration for Middle Earth, with language itself serving as protagonist. Secondary texts will include works by Tom Shippey, as well as Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull. Evaluation will be based on one short essay (4-6 pages), one research paper (12+ pages), quizzes, and a final exam. Competent students will work well in excess of 150 hours. EH*E299*30 Total Entertainment Forever: Amusement and Distraction as a Literary Theme Fred Ashe Prerequisites: None Open To: All Students Grading System: Letter Max. Enrollment: 16 Meeting Times: M TuTh 1:00 pm–4:00 pm In the first part of the twentieth century, George Orwell and Aldous Huxley wrote competing visions of western culture’s evolution into dystopia. Huxley’s vision prevailed. According to Neil Postman in a book called Amusing Ourselves to Death , the voluntary use of the pacifying drug soma in Huxley’s Brave NewWorld accurately captures our current subjection. This class will explore the ways that culture tempts us into self-inflicted distraction—the ways we use entertainment (and, increasingly, social media) to avoid confronting injustice, each other, ourselves. We will read Brave NewWorld along with excerpts from Postman and other theorists on this question. We will watch Wall-E , listen to Father John Misty and Nirvana, and read David Foster Wallace and George Saunders. We will take daily reading quizzes and write two papers: one a close reading of a ris e 3