Catamount core: AH1

This course is an introduction to medieval art history with special focus on the study of romance imagery in illuminated manuscripts produced from the twelfth through the fifteenth centuries in northern Europe. Students will engage with medieval texts and recent scholarship to establish a working knowledge of medieval art as well as with the production and reception of manuscripts in the medieval period. Subjects will include popular medieval texts such as the Romance of the Rose, The Romance of Alexander, and the Arthurian cycle. Through lectures and writing assignments we will consider the visual representation of themes such as courtly love, royal histories, mythologies, and allegory within the framework of socio-political, literary, and cultural developments.

Currently under review for Catamount Core:  OC

Since times immemorial, humans have been fascinated with the natural world, so much so that we have continuously sought ways to imitate Nature in search of solutions to our daily challenges and to expand the realm of human activities. Many ascribe the original notion that “technology imitates nature” to Aristotle, who defined mimesis as the perfection and imitation of nature. Nature’s fascinating designs and elaborate strategies for problem solving are the product of 3.8 billion years of experimentation, the process of organic evolution, sensu stricto. While the concept of imitating Nature has been around for millennia, its pursuit as a scientific discipline dates back to the 1950’s when the term biomimetics was coined to describe the transfer of ideas from biology to technology. The 1990’s witnessed the birth of biomimicry, a new science that studies Nature’s models and then imitates or takes inspiration from these designs and processes to solve human problems. But the goal of biomimicry is not simply to rob Nature of its secrets for human’s technological prowess. Biomimicry also aims to instill among its practitioners a sense of awe and respect for Nature; that Nature’s best ideas are only there for the taking if we protect and preserve our natural surroundings. Truly innovative bio-inspired solutions should transform human lives while also creating a more sustainable world. In this course, students will become familiar with the discovery, scientific, and technological processes that turn a Nature-inspired idea into an invention, whether it is an intellectual concept, a process, a material, or a device.

Catamount Core: D1, AH2

In this reading- and writing-intensive Topics in Native American Literature Sophomore Seminar, we will devour poems, memoirs, songs, select works from an edited collection of First People’s Poetry, a children’s story, and a play—all produced by the prolific 23rd Poet Laureate of the U.S., Joy Harjo. In the abstract for her article, “Making Songs of the Marrow,” scholar Laura Castor writes, “Joy Harjo is a multi-media artist of Mvskoke background whose poetry, song, and instrumentals break with conventional boundaries of form. For Harjo, melding poetry and music allows her to contribute to processes of psychological healing from collective trauma, a reality in Native American experience since European contact…. Harjo’s combined poetry and music encourage larger processes of cultural healing that, at the same time, reinforce the need for continued advocacy.” This semester, we will meet Joy Harjo in multiple forms. We will marvel in the power of her words, studying her works in various genres to deepen our understanding of this Native American artist and others introduced through Harjo’s edited anthologies of Native Nations’ and First People’s poetry. We will read like writers and then practice imitation, using all we read and hear as models for composing scrapbooks filled with our own variations of miniature memoirs, poems, songs, and more. In this course, through close reading, research, and process writing, we will gain fresh perspectives and understanding of how various forms of writing function as expression of memory, purpose, spirit, and community. We will expand our knowledge of diverse cultural identities and—illuminated by the personal experience and wisdom of Joy Harjo—cultivate awareness of the origins and systemic nature of prejudice, injustice, discrimination, and oppression directed toward people of diverse backgrounds . Disclosure: Expect a lack of closure. Course content will generate expansive thinking to last a lifetime. Prepare for this journey of enlightenment and inspiration. Trust the process.

Catamount Core: SU

In a unique meditation on how landscapes shape our imagination, desires, and dreams, writer Barry Lopez wonders, “How do people imagine the landscapes they find themselves in? How does the land shape the imaginations of the people who dwell in it? How does desire itself, the desire to comprehend, shape knowledge?” But one may also ask how imaginations of austere and formidable places such as the Arctic shape scientific exploration, colonial conquests, geopolitical control, and further racial capitalism. The unfreezing Arctic environment and its changing sociocultural systems are a product of region’s colonial past. But an unstable Arctic poses threats, not only to the future of the region, but to the world itself. In this seminar we will explore a landscape that is rapidly changing, as a result of climatic and socioeconomic changes. These prospective changes will open new shipping avenues, reveal new resources, raise issues of native sovereignty, as well as prompt geo-political national security concerns. This seminar provides an interdisciplinary overview of the social, political, and environmental conflicts but also environmental sustainability and just transitions efforts in the Arctic. This is a dynamic course where each of you will co-lead the class to explore the following key themes we will discuss throughout the semester: • The histories of indigenous communities in the Arctic • Relationship between science, capitalism, and resource exploitation • Discourses and impacts of climate change in the region • Contemporary environmental conflicts • Just transitions in the Arctic. • Indigenous rights and Native sovereignty • Geopolitics of Arctic governance

Catamount Core: AH3

American society today is often described as highly individualistic. We celebrate individual freedom and mobility; we obsessively curate and display ourselves online; we strive to “be ourselves” and strain against the limits imposed by tradition and community. This explores American individualism through two clusters of questions. The first cluster is sociological: in what ways is American society individualistic? What are the different forms of individualism manifest in our culture and politics? The second cluster is ethical: is individualism something we should embrace or reject? Is it a worrying trend that inhibits solidarity and political action and brings social disintegration? Or is it an emancipatory trend that allows us to cast away oppressive constraints and take control of our lives? Which forms of individualism, if any, are valuable, and which are troubling—and why? To explore these questions, we work with many different kinds of texts: works of sociology, philosophy, and political science, but also novels, personal essays, and films. We will discuss the role of social media and consumer culture more broadly in encouraging individualistic attitudes and behaviors, and explore the way our politics today is shaped by individualistic ideas.

Catamount Core: D1, QD, S1

This course explores the economics of discrimination through theory and empirics. We will focus on discrimination in the United States based on race and ethnicity, and we will also consider discrimination along lines of gender identity, sexual orientation, citizenship status, and nation of birth. We will examine discrimination in domains, including labor markets, lending, housing, and criminal justice. In the first half of the course, we will read about and discuss basic economic models of discrimination and delve into the existing empirical evidence, with extensive discussion of how economists test these models using observational and experimental data. In the second half of the course, we will work in two to three groups to design and implement field experiments that measure discrimination using an audit study-style methodology. For example, students might measure employer call-back rates on fictional resumes that are broadly identical except on one dimension such as race/ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, or national origin (often signaled through name or extracurricular participation). Through this process, students will conduct literature reviews, develop and refine research ideas, develop study protocols, collect and analyze data, and use this analysis to create a short paper and presentation that deliver the study findings. Course objectives include: 1. To understand and apply economic theories of discrimination and connect the predictions of these models with empirical evidence\\ 2. To interpret and synthesize academic evidence on discrimination and critically consider individual-level models of discrimination in light of broader structural patterns 3. To gain experience in applied research by developing original research questions and hypotheses informed by academic literature, conceptualizing methods to test research questions, constructing specific and implementable protocols, evaluating ethical considerations, and implementing the designed research 4. To clearly communicate research findings orally and in writing, drawing from academic literature and data analysis based on primary data collection 5. To communicate and collaborate with classmates to identify and address challenges and opportunities in designing and implementing a research study.

Catamount Core: D1, AH3

This seminar will examine the intersection of war, race, and identity in America focused around two critical sites.  Firstly, the racialized othering of Native America from the wars of colonial conquest to the defeat of the Plains Indians; and secondly the Civil War, viewed as war for the overthrow of slavery and as it was transformed in memory into a valorous war between brothers in which questions of race were marginalized.  These sites are critical to race and race relations in America, working to define who is, and who is not included with its racialized boundaries.

Based in the discipline of History, the seminar will embrace approaches drawn from gender studies, critical race theory, anthropology and film studies. Seminar discussions will be based on academic monographs and on cultural products, particularly in film.  I also plan to organize a visit to the “Dreaming of Timbuctoo” exhibit at the John Brown Farm in Lake Placid as part of a discussion on Civil-War era Black settlement in the Adirondacks.

Catamount Core: AH3

Who am I? What is my place and my role in the world? How do I relate to others, and how should I? These fundamental, and arguably universal questions we ask about ourselves and about our humanity have a very long history. In this course we will be reading and interpreting works written by several authors who lived in the Mediterranean world and in Europe from the 4th century BCE to the 15th century CE. We shall critically engage with and trace the development of key ideas about the individual and society, starting with Plato and Aristotle, and ending with Christine de Pizan and Leonardo Bruni, in order to examine how these writers frame their own identities and how they reflect upon human interactions and relationships; we will also pay due attention to how we respond to what they have to say, and why this might be. The issues these writers deal with fall broadly within the fields of ethics, psychology, and politics, but as historians we will also be paying attention to how intellectual traditions form, change, and are challenged or rejected, and to how ideas influence and are in turn affected by events and social and cultural contexts. Especially regarding culture, a goal of this course is also to have us address matters such as literary genre, canonicity, language, style, and audience.

Catamount Core: D2, AH1

This course explores post-WWII South Korean art in a global context, analyzing works by major modern and contemporary Korean artists, including those from mainland South Korea and the diaspora. Through thematic and chronological exploration, we analyze critical issues such as art activism, avant-gardism, border crossing, exile, diaspora, and globalism. Emphasizing the incorporation of tradition into contemporary works, we study how artists establish their presence in the global art scene. From an interdisciplinary perspective, the course explores diverse contexts of art production and circulation, including cross-cultural exchanges, the relationship between art and ritual, and the interplay of political and artistic expression throughout Korean history. Major philosophies such as Confucianism, Daoism, Shamanism, and Buddhism are examined for their impact on Korean cultural and aesthetic ideals. The course also covers cultural theory, including identity politics, institutional critique, feminism, queer, and postcolonial theories across various media. It examines avant-garde movements in South Korea within the context of authoritarian regimes and compares them to global counterparts. Students will develop analytical skills and engage critically with visual objects, gaining familiarity with representations in Korea and the forces behind them. Assignments foster visual analysis and critical thinking, exposing students to diverse writing sources within art history and related fields. They are introduced to major figures in the global art scene through readings and the instructor's professional network. All exams and assignments are submitted online.
Section Expectations: After completing this course, the student will be able to: recognize, identify and classify important works of art from the 20th and 21st centuries in Korean traditions. recognize and understand contemporary events and monuments in the visual arts of Korea including the ability to interpret meanings, concepts, theories, and collective attitudes embodied in the works discussed. analyze visual elements (line, shape, value, texture, color, space) and design principles (balance, contrast, movement, economy, and unity) using proper terminology, and to improve the ability of critical thinking by interpreting and evaluating historical significance of artistic creation. discern and explain different types of evidence, not only visual works of art but also archaeological, art historical, historical, philosophical, journalistic, and literary materials both in class discussion and in writing.  develop effective communication and analytical skills to discuss, compare and contrast (in a verbal and written format) works of art.

Catamount Core: AH3

This course examines the fates of the Jewish population in Fascist Italy (1922-1945) and in Nazi Germany (1933-45). We will start by looking at Jewish live in Italy and Germany before Mussolini and Hitler came to power. In the course of the semester, we will examine the role of antisemitism in Fascist and Nazi ideology and analyze the gradual radicalization of Nazi and Fascist anti-Jewish policy and Jewish responses in a comparative manner. We will analyze the deteriorating situation of the Jewish population in both countries and explore the reactions of the Italian and German population to the persecution and to deportation and murder of the Jews. The course will end with an examination of the situation of Holocaust survivors in Germany and Italy and Holocaust memory in postwar Italy and Germany.

Catamount Core: OC

People, objects, and environments interact to produce culture and society. As a result of these interactions, it has become evident that spoken and written language are just some of the modes involved in producing meaning and experience. Thus, gesture, gaze, composition, and layout have been added to them. In order to analyze multimodal social interaction and meaning, the course will rely on three major theoretical bases. Using Halliday's systemic functional linguistics and mediated discourse analysis as a starting point, the current course will emphasize a social semiotic approach to multimodal communication. Through observation, analysis, criticism of human interactions, communication behavior, mediated systems, and technological innovations, students are given the opportunity to understand how communication is shaping the domain of meaning and most importantly how to be an efficient participant in the global social environment of contemporary communication.

Catamount Core: under review for S1

The intersection of Geography and History is explored here through a critical examination of American childhoods of the late 19th thru mid-20th centuries. We will take four key dimensions of social life as central to understanding the historical geographies of childhood, and in turn, to build a better understanding of American culture, places, and change over time. These 4 themes are: Mobility and Migration; Social Inequalities (race, class, gender, etc.); Child Health and Mortality; and Material Cultures of Childhood & Youth. We use diverse readings and resources, including primary materials from the time period as well as scholarly work in the growing sub-field of critical childhood history/geography. We uncover the conditions of childhood, including everything from child labor to standards of housing, from childhood diseases to immigrant experiences, and from schooling to the material culture of books, toys, and games. We ask questions such as: How is ‘childhood’ constructed socially and culturally over time and through different places? How are diverse experiences of ‘childhood’ related to broader social, economic, and political contexts? To explore these questions, students will engage in a mix of classroom-based explorations, learn about archival research, develop data visualization skills (ArcGIS StoryMaps, census mappers, digital timelines, wordpress sites), and work in small groups on project-based research to uncover and ‘map’ diverse experiences of childhood.

Catamount Core: under review for N1, GC1, D2

This course uses a diverse selection of films to explore the intersection of Earth Science processes, science communication, and public perception of common Earth hazards. Through background readings, lectures, film analysis, role-playing scenarios, and discussions students will examine how natural and environmental disasters are portrayed in film, and how these portrayals shape public understanding and response to events. Students will dive deeply into the scientific mechanisms behind natural and human-induced earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, superstorms, environmental problems, climate change and more. By dissecting the science, points of view, and storytelling techniques embedded in films, students will gain insights into communicating Earth hazards effectively by considering scientific accuracy, culture, and the media's role in shaping public perceptions.

Section Expectations: Students will view and evaluate approximately 12 films total during the semester. Students will view the films outside of class on their own time. Most films can be viewed using UVM’s film streaming services (Kanopy and Swank Digital Campus). However, a few films must be rented by students for $4 using the Apple TV+ app. The total cost for film rental is ~$16 per student and takes the place of purchasing textbooks. Students are required to have a device suitable for viewing digital films. This can be either a laptop computer, a tablet, or a smart television (one that can connect to the internet). I recommend that you do not try to view the films on your phone. Please download the Apple TV+ app and make sure it works on your device.

Catamount Core: WIL2

This is a seminar on Free Speech and Expression under the US Constitution's First Amendment. The seminar will focus on first principles, foundational and normative values, doctrine, counter theories of broader speech protection or less protection, and current debates. The seminar will utilize a proactive, interactive teaching style that will engage students in discussion, dialogue, and debates. Free speech has become a subject of widespread debate. Today, conversations in secondary schools, the workplace, living rooms, and the popular media touch on a vast range of free speech issues. Arguments about protests by athletes, whether something constitutes "hate speech", the censoring effects of "political correctness", campaign contributions, the role of media, the former President's Twitter feed - and even more esoteric issues like "revenge porn" or whether someone should have a right to burn the flag or whether making a wedding cake qualifies as "speech" - have become commonplace. This seminar seeks to promote better understanding, and therefore better discussion, of the ideas that underlie our protection of free expression. It attempts to help readers better comprehend why free speech issues that presently confront us are uniquely complex. And, it sheds light on the factors that make debates over free speech so intractable and to offer educational tools that might help us improve our discourse around this fascinating and critically important topic. We begin by discussing the foundational values that traditionally have been identified as supporting expansive protection for free speech. The formidable force of those arguments and their influence on the development of first principles and legal doctrine will be analyzed. Next, we will trace the development of first principles and the evolution of free speech doctrine in the Supreme Court. It will show how those principles and doctrines connect with the values discussed earlier in the class. The class then will explore how the Supreme Court has applied those values, principles, and doctrinal frameworks to such current issues as campaign finance, speech in public schools, hate speech, campus speech, public employee speech and digital speech. The seminar will show how debates around these challenging issues necessarily call us to a consideration - and perhaps a reconsideration - of the values and first principles considered earlier in the class.

Catamount Core: SU

This course explores the deep entanglement between humans and honey bees across a range of perspectives and ways of knowing. Drawing on the natural sciences, humanities, social sciences, and spirituality, we will immerse ourselves in the life of honey bees to explore the animating questions of this class: What are honey bees? What are they asking of us? What can we learn alongside them about living sustainably on earth? These lines of inquiry will take us on a multidisciplinary journey through the tapestry of human/honey bee cultures. In the process, you may discover your own guiding questions to carry you forward. There are two required texts and one optional text for this class. Required: The Buzz about Bees: Biology of a Superorganism by Jürgen Tautz Song of Increase: Listening to the Wisdom of Honeybees for Kinder Beekeeping and a Better World by Jacqueline Freeman Optional: The Lives of Bees: The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild by Thomas D. Seeley

Catamount Core: D2

Students will gain a general understanding of the experience of disability through critical analysis of a broad range of socio-cultural artifacts and expression. Though not an exhaustive list, these artifacts will include literature, visual art, performance art, dance, film, television, and resources from the web. By interpreting differing points of view, concepts such as ableism, implicit bias, cultural appropriation, and intersectionality will be discussed through course assignments and in-class discussions. The essential questions that we will discuss include: How has the social construction of disability been influenced by the many different forms of media representation? What are the range of media responses to the disability experience? What are the cultural benefits and social justice opportunities of examining disability through a variety of representative forms?

Catamount Core: SU

The Earth is a complex coupled human-natural system that is increasingly dominated by human activities. We will examine anthropogenic climate change as part of an integrated earth system that includes impacts on and feedbacks with human systems. We will consider the challenges and interactions between climate change and human societies by considering responses of current and past societies to climate change and environmental degradation. We will place anthropogenic climate change in the broader context of limits to growth, sustainability, and societal development. The class will emphasize readings, discussions, and construction of simple simulation models to understand the scientific and social basis of contemporary climate and sustainability. Students will use the graphical computer programming language Stella to develop a simplified model of the Earth system.