Fall 2007
FRESHMAN SEMINAR PROGRAM
College of Arts and Sciences
Each Freshman Seminar gives you the opportunity to study a topic in depth while earning credit in the General Education Core
(GEC) or fulfilling the College Additional Requirements (CAR). The seminars are small discussion classes taught by faculty
selected for their commitment and interest in undergraduate teaching. The seminars have no prerequisites and do not presume any
special knowledge about the topics to be covered. The seminars emphasize class discussion, critical reading or original literature
(rather than textbooks), and practice in writing and argument. They are all challenging courses, intended for students who plan to
take their education seriously.
These seminars are open only to students who will be freshmen in the Fall 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/
Marker Abbreviations:
WI: Writing Intensive, SI: Speaking Intensive, GL: Global Perspectives, GN: Global Non-Western Perspectives, L: Lab,
SVL: Service Learning
REASONING AND DISCOURSE II
GEC category: GRD
Also carries credit equivalent to ENG 102. You may not receive credit for both FMS 116 and ENG 102.
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
116-01
M,W,F
1:00-1:50 p.m.
SCIE 203
FMS
116-02
T, R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
STON 217
FMS
116-03
M,W,F
10:00-10:50 a.m.
BRYN 117
M,W,F
12:00-12:50 p.m.
HEHP 340
FMS
116-04
Course Title/Description
Reason & Argument. This course introduces students to critical thinking and reasoning
skills useful in all areas of study and in all occupations. The learning goals for the course are to
enable students to distinguish rhetoric and emotional speech from rational argumentation and
to distinguish successful arguments from unsuccessful ones.
Racial Literacy. What does it mean to be literate in a racialized world? The ultimate goal
of this course is to become racially literate, the ability to read, write, view, and speak about
race with knowledge of how and why it was constructed, and how and why it continues to
impact our lives today.
Civil Discourse. This Freshman Seminar will be based on the book A World of Ideas by
Lee Jacobus (seventh edition). The book contains readings from across the world and the
centuries from the Buddha to Hannah Arendt to Rousseau.
Instructor
Civil Discourse. This Freshman Seminar will be based on the book A World of Ideas by
Jennifer
Whitaker
Lee Jacobus (seventh edition). The book contains readings from across the world and the
centuries from the Buddha to Hannah Arendt to Rousseau.
LITERATURE
Richard
Gallimore
Michelle
Johnson
Jennifer
Whitaker
GEC category: GLT
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
120-01
WI
M,W,F
1:00-1:50 p.m.
BRYN 216
Representations of Native America: Images, Literature, and Politics during the
Seven Eras of US-Native Relations. This course will use texts by and about Native
Liz
Wilkinson
T, R
12:30-1:45 p.m.
MHRA 3204
Her Hideous Progeny: Mary Shelly's Frankenstein in Literature and Film.
FMS
120-02
WI
FMS
120-03
WI
M,W,F
9:00-9:50 a.m.
MHRA 1213
http://www.uncg.edu/aas/fms/
Americans. We will watch documentaries and Native produced movies, look at children’s
books, advertisements, and professional sports teams’ mascots and discuss and debate USNative relations from contact to the present. We will write, research, reflect, and debate.
In 1818, when she was 19 years old, Mary Shelley published Frankenstein, the first story ever
written about a being conceived in scientific theory and constructed by artificial means—in
short, the mother of all cyborg tales.
On the Congo. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is the most famous English novel about
the Congo and one of the best-known accounts of colonialism from the colonizers’
perspective. But the river and the appalling legacy of colonialism, misrule, and war in the
region have since inspired literary responses from those both inside and outside Africa. This
course will examine a selection of these texts in order to understand better some of the major
movements, forms, and problems of twentieth-century literature.
Fall 2007 Freshman Seminar Program
Anne
Wallace
Matt
Wilkens
Page 1
FMS
120-04
WI
FMS
122-01
WI, GN
FMS
122-03
WI, GN
T,R
3:30-4:45 p.m.
GRAM 204
Telling Stories: A Course on the Memoir. In this course we’ll read three book-length
M, W, F
1:00-1:50 p.m.
GRAM 204
Latin America: Time, Memory and Identity. A selection of some of the best 20th-
M, W, F
9:00-9:50 a.m.
GRAM 310
The Empire Writes Back: A Fresh Look At World Literature. This course will deal
memoirs and a variety of personal memory essays. In addition, we’ll view memoirs on film, in
comics, and visit the Weatherspoon Art Museum. Students will also be encouraged to
experiment with the craft, conveying slices of their own pasts.
century novelists and short-story authors from Mexico, Guatemala, Chile, Argentina and
Puerto Rico. These men and women offer unique and creative responses to political,
economic and social struggle in changing times.
with twentieth and twenty-first century literatures from all over the world. Many so-called
"world literature" authors have purposefully built on and subverted the tropes created and
propagated by Western "canonical" authors. We will be taking a look at several works like
this, many of which students have likely not encountered before, and comparing them with the
Western works from which they derive, coming to understand in the process that such writing
is not merely derivative, but instead can be a source of inspiration, innovation, and power.
FINE ARTS
Deborah
Seabrooke
Laura
Chesak
Dorothy
Kuykendal
GEC category: GFA
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
130-01
WI
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
Mary Foust Hall
10 Watts is All You Need: Indy Rock Culture. From the quirky art-rock of DEVO and
Thomas
Dempster
FMS
130-02
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
MHRA 2208
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
Christina
Nova
places that they have never been. We will explore the lives of street kids, urban messengers,
police, body builders, rock stars, bible salesmen, politicians, basketball players, skateboarders
and mine workers as we screen documentaries on these groups.
Storytelling Across Culture. Take a journey into the folklore of Non-Western countries
as we advance multicultural education and foster an appreciation of diversity. Students will
research, read, analyze, and perform stories of their choice; from around the world. As the
journey comes to an end the final storytelling project of this service-learning course will
involve telling stories to children at the Greensboro Public Library.
This course is Speaking Intensive and is a Service Learning Course.
Kimberly
Cuny
Opposites Attract: Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller – America’s Postwar
Theatre Giants. Theatre is a mirror held up to life. In this course, we’ll look at postwar
Jeffrey
West
FMS
130-03
WI, SI,
SVL
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
MCVR 021
FMS
130-04
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
MCVR 225
the Talking Heads to the icon of Björk and the eclectic TV on the Radio, college radio and
“rock” and its youth-culture has launched, rescued, and sometimes destroyed the careers of
various artists and groups. This course explores the history of this wide and inclusive
“genre,” discusses the criticisms and politics of “independent” music, and seeks to engage
students in writing their own music criticism pieces, attending live performances, and
discussing the future of the “independent” media in a rapidly changing technological
landscape. A final, substantial piece of music criticism or a research paper will be coached
and revised with the aid of the instructor through the initial stages to the final draft.
American society in the mirrors held up by two of our best playwrights. Miller and Williams,
men who come from two very different segments of society, share the ability to bring to life a
stunning range of characters who tell us much about the ‘American Dream’ and its effects.
We’ll read the major plays, see several film adaptations, write responses to the works and to
some selected criticism, and act some pivotal scenes.
PHILOSOPHICAL, RELIGIOUS, AND ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
141-01
WI, GL
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
MHRA 1209
FMS
142-01
WI, GN
T,R
11:00-12:15 p.m.
BRYN 204
GEC category: GPR
Course Title/Description
It’s a Small World. Fairness, justice, human dignity, equality… the concepts that have
challenged ethical people throughout history are magnified in the global society. What does it
mean to be fair when the people in question have radically different lifestyles? Is it even
possible to think about every human being as a member of the same community? In this
course we’ll look closely at a few key authors’ takes on the question of global society. This
course is a discussion-based, writing intensive seminar.
Instructor
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.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: Pre-Modern
Lauren
Mackinnon
GEC/CAR category: GHP/GPM
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
151-01
WI, GL
T, R
11:00-12:15p.m.
Mary Foust Hall
Frozen in Time: The Archaeology of Pompeii. In this course, we will the study the
Maura
Heyn
http://www.uncg.edu/aas/fms/
archaeological evidence for Pompeii in order to gain insight into the society of a Roman city.
Buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD, Pompeii offers us the unique opportunity to see
a town “frozen in time”. Despite the extraordinary preservation of the remains, many
questions remain about the inhabitants of the city, particularly with regard to how they
defined themselves both as a community and as individuals. In order to understand better the
public and private lives of the inhabitants, we will explore the archaeological remains of
Pompeii and Herculaneum (a neighboring town, which provides great comparative material).
Fall 2007 Freshman Seminar Program
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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: Modern
GEC/CAR category: GHP/GMO
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
Course Title/Description
Instructor
FMS
160-01
WI
M, W, F
10:00-10:50 a.m.
Mary Foust Hall
Ashby Parlor
Hollywood and History: Truth, Lies and Videotape
Christine
Flood
FMS
160-02
WI
T,R
11:00-12:15 p.m.
Julius Foust 111
FMS
160-03
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
GRAM 303
In this seminar, we will look at
issues of power, oppression and interpersonal relationships in American History, as depicted
in popular film, including “Birth of a Nation”, “Gone with the Wind”, “Grapes of Wrath”,
“Casablanca”, “A Long Walk Home”, “13 Days”, and “Primary Colors”. We will context
and critique the films on their historical storytelling. To facilitate these discussions, our
readings will include essays on popular films, as well as a history textbook to help us
contextualize the real events and issues
Meaning and Memory in American Popular Music. Sometimes popular music is
treated like disposable culture—the fad of the month—but a closer look shows that the most
innovative figures in American music are sustained by a deep sense of history. How do
artists draw on the past to create vibrant new musical styles? How do Americans’ visions of
“authentic” musical roots reflect their ideas about race, class, and identity? In this course, we
will look at and listen to case studies in blues, rock, rap, and genres of your choice to
understand how music is shaped by—and shapes—a vision of American history.
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.
SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
170-01
WI
M, W, F
11:00-11:50 a.m.
EBER 554
FMS
170-02
WI
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
MHRA 1304
FMS
170-03
WI
T,R
2:00-3:15 p.m.
MHRA 2210
FMS
171-01
WI, GL
T,R
3:30-4:45 p.m.
GRAM 424
Course #
Markers
Days/Time/Place
FMS
183-01
WI, L
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
MCVR 256
FMS
183-02
WI
T,R
9:30-10:45 a.m.
GRAM 116
http://www.uncg.edu/aas/fms/
Alan
Brilliant
GEC category: GSB
Course Title/Description
On Human Nature. Human beings and the societies they create, inhabit, and destroy, are
the most complex phenomena on the planet. Much is assumed, but little in understood about
what it means to be human. Perhaps the most fundamental question which may be asked is,
does human nature exist? Social and behavioral scientists from many “grand” disciplines
(i.e., sociology, anthropology, and psychology) profoundly and doggedly grapple with this
question alone. We will explore the myriad of descriptions, explanations, and methods for
understanding humankind. The main intellectual “platform” for this exploration is the
landmark book (and Pulitzer Prize winner) by E. O. Wilson, entitled, On Human Nature.
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.
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
Benjamin
Filene
Instructor
Michael
Cauthen
A. Leigh
Sink
Tom
Kwapil
Joel
Gunn
GEC/CAR category: GNS/GPS
Course Title/Description
Physics for Everyone. From an autumn leaf gently tumbling to the ground, to a race car
speeding around the track, to the planets turning in their orbits, all motion is governed by
only a few fundamental laws of nature. In this course, you will build an understanding of
these laws for yourself. You will take on the role of scientific investigator. Your time in
class will be spent actually designing and carrying out experiments, evaluating the results,
and drawing conclusions. The structure of the course provides time for small group
discussion as well as dialogue between the instructor and individual students. This
unconventional approach will allow you to learn about physics concepts as well as about the
process of science in general in a fun and engaging way.
This course fulfills a Lab requirement in GEC.
Movers and Shakers: Plate Tectonics. Death! Destruction! Mayhem! (OK… life,
creation and order as well.) Plate Tectonic Theory states that the crust of the Earth is broken
into numerous sections called plates. Continents and ocean floors may be components of
these plates. Plate sections travel across the Earth’s surface as if on conveyor belts. Plates
may collide with one another, drift apart, or grind past one another. The Christmas Tsunami
of 2004 which killed over 200,000 people was generated by an uplift of the ocean floor as
one section of a plate rebounded as it was being forced underneath another. This course will
cover concepts of Plate Tectonics in order to better understand affects generated by plate
movement such as earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, and mountains.
Fall 2007 Freshman Seminar Program
Instructor
Martin
Dewitt
Mary
Hall-Brown
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