Spring 2007
FRESHMEN SEMINARS PROGRAM
College of Arts and Sciences
Marker Abbreviations:
WI: Writing Intensive
SI: Speaking Intensive
GL: Global Perspectives
GN: Global Non-Western
Perspectives
H: Honors
These seminars are open only to students who will be freshmen in the Spring 2007 semester. For the most current
information including location of the class, see UNCGenie on the web: www.uncg.edu. (TBA means To Be Announced)
We encourage students not to sign up for a seminar without first reading the course description and not to sign up for
more than one seminar. Talk with your advisor about registering for a seminar. A more in depth description of the class
is available on the web at http://www.uncg.edu/aas/fms .
REASONING AND DISCOURSE I
GEC category: GRD
Also carries credit equivalent to ENG 101. You may not receive credit for both FMS 115 and ENG 101.
Course #
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
115-01
Markers
M, W, F
9:00-9:50 a.m.
GRAM 308
Strange Music, Hidden Americas: Visions of America in Popular Music. Music is more
Lee
Templeton
FMS
115-02
M, W, F
10:00-10:50 a.m.
GRAM 209
M,W,F
1:00-1:50 p.m.
GRAM 209
M,W,F
1:00-1:50 p.m.
GRAM 402
FMS
115-03
FMS
115-04
FMS
115-05
M,W,F
3:00-3:50 p.m.
CURY 303
than a form of entertainment; it is a discourse that shapes how we see ourselves and the world
in which we live. This class will focus on the way popular music creates images, visions, and
myths of America and how these reflect, revise, question and contradict those images found in
key historical and literary texts spanning the history of the United States.
King Arthur Revisited. In this class we will read both “old” and “new” literature dealing
with the mythic king. Students will test ideas, present information, and be a vital part of a
dialogue on the current influence of King Arthur on media and society.
Jennifer
Whitaker
King Arthur Revisited. See description of FMS-115-01.
Jennifer
Whitaker
Analyze This: Studying Film Adaptations Of Literary Texts. This course is designed to equip
you with skills of close reading, analysis, reasoning, and research necessary for your college
work and beyond. Our focus will be on film adaptations of representative novels, novellas,
short stories, plays, and nonfiction works that take on the age-old question: What is love?
Analyze This: Studying Film Adaptations Of Literary Texts. See description of FMS 115-03.
Laura
Savu
LITERATURE
Laura
Savu
GEC category: GLT
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
120-01
WI
T, R
8:00-9:15 a.m.
HHRA 1209
Leaving Home, Finding Home: The Literature of Travel. This course will help
Chris Porter
FMS
121-01
WI, GL
T, R
8:00-9:15 a.m.
HHRA 1208
FMS
121-02
WI, GL
T, R
11:00-12:15 p.m.
HHRA 1214
students develop their reading, writing, and analytical skills through the study of the literature
of travel. We will explore a wide range of travel writings, from those written of far off, exotic
lands, to those travels in familiar places, and even to those travels that take place in the
writer’s imagination.
Walking in the Shadow of Death. In this class we will explore various literary treatments
of death, considering the different ways in which writers of different periods and cultures
struggle with the reality of death, and attempt to understand the experience. Readings include
the Book of Job, excerpts from medieval works (Marie de France, Dante, The Song of
Roland), and writings by Montaigne, Tolstoy, Weisel, Beauvoir, Camus, and García-Marquez.
Colliding Cultures. Confrontations between individuals or groups with different cultural
backgrounds are a fact of life – and of literature. In this seminar, we will read a wide range of
poetry, fiction, literary non-fiction, and drama depicting individuals who are forced to
examine their own cultural values and identities (ethnic, religious, racial, regional, class,
and/or generational) as a result of their encounters with people of different backgrounds.
David
Fein
Karen
Meyers
Page 1 of 4
FMS
121-03
WI, GL
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
HHRA 1214
Colliding Cultures. See description of 121-02.
Karen
Meyers
FMS
122-01
WI
M, W, F
11:00-11:50 p.m.
HHRA 1215
Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. Explore the works of two major figures in world literature,
Carrie
Levesque
FMS
122-02
WI
T, R
3:30-4:45 p.m.
HHRA 3208
Global Voices, Fresh Perspectives. In this course we will explore our complex, changing
world through the voices of contemporary fiction and non-fiction writers around the globe.
We will hear new voices from Viet Nam, the Caribbean, India, South Africa, Iran,
Afghanistan, China, and other countries
Deborah
Seabrooke
FMS
122-03
WI
GTL
M, W
3:30-5:00 p.m.
Mary Foust Hall
118
Detective Fiction. Invented by Edgar Allen Poe in a brief period of sobriety and success,
Fran
Arndt
Russian novelists Fyodor Dostoevsky and Lev Tolstoy, as they take on the complex social and
literary problems of their day. Works to be read will include Tolstoy's Anna Karenina and
Dostoevsky's Notes from the Underground and Crime and Punishment.
* Laptop Computer Recommended
the fictional detective is a product of the modern age, an individual able to use his reason or
her feeling to unravel difficult puzzles and restore order to a troubled world. This course will
chart the development of this popular genre from its origins in 1841 to the present, looking at
the innovations and variations it undergoes as it evolves. Dominated by English and
American writers for over one hundred years (western nations were first to develop modern
police forces and court systems), it now reflects almost every conceivable culture and national
region. Non-western writers such as Xiaolong will be represented as well as western classics
such as Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) and Hammett (Sam Spade). Besides writing their own
detective story, students will help shape the course by reporting on a writer of choice.
FINE ARTS
GEC category: GFA
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
130-01
WI
M, W, F
10:00-10:50 a.m.
ABCB 107
Classical Architecture and Classicisms. All around us in today's United States are
Richard
Gantt
FMS
130-02
WI, SI
T,R
11:00-12:15 p.m.
HHRA 2209
The Dramatic Impulse: Classical Theatre in Greece and Rome. Why do we tell
FMS
130-03
WI
T,R
12:30-1:45 p.m.
HHRA 2206
A Place You Have Never Been: An examination of the elements that make great
Documentary Cinema. This course will show documentaries that take the students to
buildings that offer us a means to travel back to the remote past. This seminar will examine
the architectural styles of ancient Greece and Rome and the architectural inspiration that
other cultures and other centuries have derived from those sources. The student will gain a
useful familiarity with the original principles of classical architecture and the stylistic
versions and their cultural meanings that have shaped subsequent environments.
stories? When did humans first tell stories and how did telling stories evolve into
performance? This course will address early performance and how the Theatre was born. The
plays of Ancient Greece and Rome will be explored as a natural consequence of humankind’s
“dramatic impulse.”
Marc
Williams
Christina
Nova
places that they have never been. We will explore the lives of street kids, urban messengers,
police, body builders, rock stars, bible salesman, politicians, basketball players, skateboarders
and mine workers as we screen documentaries on these groups.
PHILOSOPHICAL, RELIGIOUS, AND ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
GEC category: GPR
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
140-01
WI
M,W,F
9:00-9:50 a.m.
EBER 554
Saving the Earth: Ethics and the Environment.
Lauren
Mackinnon
FMS
140-02
WI
FMS
142-01
WI, GN
M,W,F
11:00-11:50 a.m.
GRAM 307
T,R
11:00-12:15 p.m.
CURY 309
Do you call yourself an
environmentalist? Do you wear or eat organic products only? OR…Do you hate it when
someone reminds you to recycle? Does all the worry about global warming feel like media
hype to you? In this seminar on environmental ethics we’ll tackle these and other real issues
in today’s world: eco-justice, animal rights, national parks, nuclear waste, emission’s trading
and more. Environmental ethics asks tough questions about nature, humans, animals and
place. We’ll use tools from science, economics, literature, film and philosophy to explore
typical and unusual responses to issues that are commonly labeled “environmental crises”
and determine if all of the hype really means anything.
Saving the Earth: Ethics and the Environment. See description of FMS-140-01
The Dalai Lama: Monk, Statesman, Mystic. This course will explore the complex
Douglas
Duckworth
interrelations of politics, religion, and modernity around a contemporary contemplative and
statesman: the current Tibetan leaner, the Dalai Lama. We will look into the life of the Dalai
Lama in Tibet, India, and abroad in his multiple roles as a political figure, a religious leader,
and a commentator on a diverse set of contemporary issues.
Lauren
Mackinnon
Page 2 of 4
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: Pre-Modern
Course #
Markers
FMS
151-01
Days/Time/Place
T, R
11:00-12:15p.m.
HHRA 2206
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: Modern
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
160-01
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
HHRA 3204
FMS
160-02
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
HHRA 1215
GEC/CAR category: GHP/GPM
Course Title/Description
Map it Out. What is included in a map? What is left out? Who decides? We will consider
these and other questions as we analyze early modern maps as historical documents.
Students will consider the development of cartography over five hundred years as a science,
art, and an ideological tool of empire. Students will develop their analytical skills as they
critically appraise both the value and the limitations of maps as historical texts. They will
acquire practical tools so they can incorporate maps and cartographic analysis into their
future coursework.
Instructor
Linda
Rupert
GEC/CAR category: GHP/GMO
Course Title/Description
Instructor
Binder’s Keepers: The History and Making of Books. The history of books tells the
story of modernity. The making of books illustrates how the modern world was constructed.
By examining not only the history of books but also their form and construction, the student
will gain an invaluable insight into the formation of the modern world. This is not simply an
intellectual history, since this course will analyze the craft of bookmaking and engage us in
the composition of our own books. We will understand the limits imposed upon the written
word and the other choices that have existed over time and across cultures.
Darwin, Evolution and Society. Ever since its initial presentation, Darwinian notions of
evolution have engendered much controversy in western societies. This course compares
Darwin’s notions with those evolutionary notions prevalent before Darwin, examines how
Darwinian notions have influenced the understanding of society, and how society has reacted
to Darwinian notions.
Alan
Brilliant
George
Michel
* Laptop Computer Recommended
SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
170-01
WI
M, W, F
9:00-9:50 a.m.
EBER 161
FMS
170-02
WI
M,W,F
11:00-11:50 a.m.
EBER 554
FMS
170-03
WI
FMS
171-01
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
HHRA 3208
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
CURY 312
* Laptop Computer Recommended
Race, Gender and Social Equality. Race and gender are fundamental organizing
principles of American society, yet they are grossly misunderstood by laypersons; and dimly
understood by social scientists. We will explore what is genuinely known about gender and
race relations in America, with the special intention of applying this knowledge to the
creation of an ethically, and legally “fair” society.
* Laptop Computer Recommended
Psychopathology and Film. Mental illness (psychopathology) is frequently portrayed in
popular culture. The history of cinema is filled with classic films such as “A Beautiful Mind”
and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” that have introduced society to a variety of mental
disorders. The goal of the course is to use examples from popular and independent cinema as
a catalyst for discussion of psychopathology, treatment, and the modern myths that often
accompany mental disorders.
The Hungry Coyote: Anthropologists Look at Megacities This course will explore
the issue of megacities through readings and writing exercises in inference designed to
expand the student's and the instructor's ability to comprehend formerly unimaginable
circumstances.
NATURAL SCIENCES: Physical Science
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
183-01
WI
M,W,F
2:00-2:50 p.m.
EBER 161
FMS
183-02
WI
M,W,F
10:00-10:50a.m.
HHRA 2211
GEC category: GSB
Course Title/Description
War and Conflict. It has been estimated that there has been a war somewhere in the world
94% of the time since the dawn of civilization. Why does mankind periodically organize
himself for armed conflict and warfare? This course will begin by asking these questions and
try to answer them through an examination of the United States’ involvement in war and
conflict over the last hundred years.
Instructor
A. Leigh
Sink
Michael
Cauthen
Tom
Kwapil
Joel
Gunn
GEC/CAR category: GNS/GPS
Course Title/Description
Physics for Poets. We will look at the development of the world view that physics
provides at the start of the 21st century. We will see how the modern scientific view of the
world developed from antiquity to the present. Focus will be on the development of physics
from Newton to Einstein. Utilizing a minimum of mathematics students will learn not only
the basic concepts of motion and energy but also of relativity and atomic physics.
Global Warming: Present Choices, Future Solutions? The increased frequency of
published reports offering evidence for climate change suggests that global warming has
moved from a future possibility to a present reality. What is the physical science behind the
arguments presented for or against the existence of global warming? How is scientific data
used and interpreted by both sides in this debate? Is it imperative that we use alternative
sources of energy to attempt to deal with this issue? Students will utilize the scientific method
and data available on the internet to attempt to answer these questions for themselves. We
will also explore how the energy sources we choose to use impact our lives from the
community level to international relations.
Instructor
Dave
Birnbaum
Dennis
Burnes
Page 3 of 4
MATHEMATICS
GEC/CAR category: GMT
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
195-01
WI
M,W,F
10:00-10:50 p.m.
GRAM 424
Mathematics in Modern Culture. Mathematics permeates our modern existence. Any
Greg
Bell
time you make a credit card payment online, play a game of Sudoku, unknot the cord of your
laptop computer, or solve a Rubik's cube there are deep mathematical principles involved. In
this course we'll examine the background of these and many other topics. We'll answer
questions like, how many games of Sudoku are there. Why is it news when they find a new
prime number? What is the Butterfly Effect? What is a fractal?
Page 4 of 4