Houston Community College System COURSE SYLLABUS Humanities 1301: Introduction to the Humanities Professor: Dr. James A. Ross-Nazzal, Co-Director Mexican American/Latino Studies Program Office Number: AM #206 Office Phone Number: Email: james.rossnazzal@hccs.edu CATALOG DESCRIPTION Prerequisite: ENGL 1301 Credit: 3 (3 lecture) This course provides an introduction to the arts and humanities. It investigates connections between individual human lives and a broad range of culture, aesthetics, and philosophy. Core Curriculum Course. COURSE PURPOSE To develop student thinking, seeing, reading, writing, and listening skills and expand his/her knowledge of the human condition as portrayed in works of the human imagination and intellect. DESCRIPTION OF COURSE CONTENT Students focus on the connections between their own lives and the ideas and values expressed in works of human imagination and thought. Through inquiry into selected literature, philosophy, and the visual and performing arts, students will engage in critical thinking, form aesthetic judgments, and develop an appreciation of the arts and humanities and their pivotal role in the health and survival of any society. Students will attend and respond to museum and gallery exhibitions and performances (live theater and film). They will be introduced to readings in several genres from a variety of cultures. Students will respond to the work they study in a variety of ways including oral presentations, formal written assignments, and informal journal responses. TEXTBOOKS Sayre, Henry. The Humanities: Culture, Continuity and Change, Vol. 1, Pearson, Prentice Hall, 2012. (2nd edition). Student Learning Objectives 1. Describe representative themes and developments in the humanities. 2. Interpret representative terms, works, figures, and artists in philosophy, literature, and the visual and performing arts. 3. Compare and contrast representative terms, works, figures, and artists in philosophy, literature and the visual and performing arts 4. Evaluate cultural creations in the humanities. Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 1 HCCS Humanities in the Core Curriculum Humanities 1301 may be taken to fulfill the core curriculum requirement for 3 semester hours in Cross/Multicultural Studies. Humanities 1301 helps students attain the following: 1. Establish broad and multiple perspectives on individuals in relationship to the larger society and world in which they live and understand the responsibilities of living in a culturally and ethnically diversified world; 2. Stimulate a capacity to discuss and reflect upon individual, political, economic, and social aspects of life in order to understand ways in which to be a responsible member of society; 3. Develop personal values for ethical behavior; 4. Develop the ability to make aesthetic judgments; and 5. Integrate knowledge and understanding of the interrelationships of the scholarly disciplines. The objective of the humanities and visual and performing arts in a core curriculum is to expand students’ knowledge of the human condition and human cultures especially in relation to behaviors, ideas, and values expressed in works of human imagination and thought. Through study in disciplines such as literature and the visual and performing arts, students will engage in critical analysis, form aesthetic judgments, and develop an appreciation of the arts and humanities as fundamental to the health and survival of any society. Students should have experiences in both the arts and humanities. The objective of the cross/multicultural component of the core curriculum is to introduce students to areas of study which enlarge their knowledge and appreciation of the multicultural and multiracial world in which they live. Assignments: 1. Short Essay I: Cultural themes prevail in a group’s artistic, literary, or architectural production. Some examples are floods, droughts, war rivalries, religious conflict, the strength of particular animals, persecution, etc. As you review each cultural group found in chapters 1 - 3, think about a theme that was important to that culture. Then, write a comparative/contrast essay discussing how 2 works (art, literature, architecture, or philosophy) produced by those people represent that theme. (SLO 1) 20% of your final grade. 750 words minimum, double spaced, typed, TNR 12 font, citing in accordance with APA or MLA. This assignment will be completed outside of class. Due 9/21 2. Test 1, 2, 3 – Three essay tests will cover terms, works, figures and artists in philosophy, literature, and the visual and performing arts. 9/26, 10/17, 12/12 (SLO 2) 30% of your final grade (each exam is worth 10%) 3. Research Presentation (PowerPoint) (SLO 4) 30% of your final grade a. Choose a famous work of art from the cultural groups studied in class and provide an evaluation of the piece, but first, b. research the following: Historical background Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 2 Participation. Participation is required if you want to succeed (i.e., pass): Remember, you have something due each week. Biography of the artist Time and tools used in completing this work Theme How does the work represent an artistic movement popular or revolutionary for that time? Describe the work (attach picture) Interpretation Evaluation in terms of its structural composition and aesthetic features, meaning, and purpose. 4. Annotated Bibliography (20%) (SLO 3 and 4) Research your topic and use at least 5 sources to obtain the information given above. Write one page for each source where you present the information that was useful to answer the questions. Follow APA Style Scholastic Dishonesty: The Houston Community College System Student Handbook 1999/2000 defines the following criteria: "Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on a test, plagiarism, and collusion." Plagiarism means the appropriation of another's work and the unacknowledged incorporation of that work in one's own written work offered for credit. Collusion means the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing written work offered for credit. Students who engage in scholastic dishonesty will be given an F in the class. HCCS POLICY: Ringing cellular phones or sounding beepers constitute an interruption of instruction. Students must remember to TURN OFF phones and beepers when they are in class. ADA: Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric, vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must contact the Disability Services Office at the beginning of each semester. Faculty is authorized to provide only the accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services Office. Student Attendance: Life is too short to repeat in lecture what is available in your readings, thus relentless attendance is required. If miss “just one day” you truly miss a lot because my lectures, like history, are tightly integrated. Successful students attend class with a tenacity of purpose. Grades The grade of A (100-90) reflects excellence. The A work offers a well-focused and organized discussion appropriate to the instructor's assignment, reflects critical use of all relevant materials, and demonstrates effective and formal writing requirements. Work must demonstrate outstanding efforts to identify and use varied and pertinent evidence from all available sources, to employ those materials critically in the text of the papers, and to provide error-free citations of those resources. A work is handed in on time. The grade of B (89-80) represents work beyond satisfactory and indicates the work was completed in an appropriate and competent manner and, in general, demonstrates a strong attempt at original and critical analysis, writing, and research. Work must demonstrate Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 3 beyond satisfactory efforts to identify varied and pertinent evidence from all available sources. The B paper may contain a number of minor errors of grammar or citation, and its thesis or its conclusions may be undeveloped or too weakly supported. B work is handed in on time. The grade of C(79-70) indicates that the work was done in a satisfactory or appropriate fashion and represents the average work expected for university courses. In order to obtain a C grade, your work must adhere to all of the assignment’s minimum requirements to include but limited to page/word requirements, number of sources, types of sources, and proper citation method. The work is organized around a central idea with arguments supported by relevant examples from the available sources. The work is structured into correctly written paragraphs and sentences. Although fulfilling the assignment, the C work may exhibit one or more weaknesses including, but not limited to, errors of punctuation and grammar, imprecise or incorrect word use, inaccurate or uncritical use of materials, occasional inconsistency of organization or development, and lack of direct relevance of the selected research materials to the topic. C work is handed in on time. The grade of D (69-60) indicates that the work may have a poorly defined topic or thesis, lacks clear focus or organization, and contains unsupported generalizations or conclusions. Research support (citations) is inadequate, not clearly relevant, or improperly documented. A less-than-minimal research effort is evident. D works fails to obtain the required page or word minimum requirement. The work may also suffer from numerous or major formal writing errors. D work fails to adhere to any of the assignment’s minimum requirements. D work is handed in on time. The grade of F (59-1) indicates that the work is not clearly relevant to the assignment and that its topic and thesis are poorly focused or defined. The work may display inadequate organization or development, unsupported generalizations, and nonstandard formal features (including language usage, sentence structure, and paragraphing). Research support (citations) is absent, or irrelevant to the assignment. F work is handed in on time. The grade of 0 indicates that the work was not submitted at all or submitted after the due date/time. Remember any cheating whatsoever will result in an F for the course. Do you remember what happened to SMU in 1987? http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spe/2004/feb25football/smu.html Late Work. I do not accept late work, for any reason. Do not ask me to accept late work. If any holidays, parties, work, vacations, family obligations, legal matters, or secular or religious responsibilities prevent you from completing the work when it is due, please do not take this class as I do not negotiate assignments or due dates. Missed Assignments. I do not allow make ups for any reason. Do not ask me if there are any make up assignments. Extra Credit. I do not offer such a thing, for any reason, thus please do not ask me to entertain such a thing. Please leave all high school thoughts behind. Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 4 HUMANITIES 1301 - WEEKLY CALENDAR Last Day for Student & Administrative Withdrawals: Nov. 3 WEEK MATERIAL TO BE COVERED 8/29 Introduction to the course. HW: Read Chapter 1 – The Rise of Culture: From Forest to Farm pp. 1 – 15 Basic Concepts, Methods, Disciplines in the Humanities. Distribution of questions for Chapter 1. HW: Complete your readings, pp. 16 – 29. 9/5 Chapter 1: From Forest to Farm: The Rise of villages and cities The Paleolithic and Neolithic cultures: Wall paintings, ancient maps, goddesses’ sculptures; agriculture, and ceramic, Stonehenge. HW: Read Chapter 2: Mesopotamia: Power and Social order in the Early Middle East (pp. 31 – 50) HW: Finish reading Chapter 2 (50-62). 9/12 Mesopotamia: Power and Social Order in the Early Middle East Sumerian Ur, Akkad, Babylon, the Code of Hammurabi, the Assyrians, the Blessing of Innana and the Epic of Gilgamesh, Neo Babylonia, the Persian Empire. HW: Begin reading Chapter 3: The Stability of Ancient Egypt; (pp. 65- 75. HW: Finish reading Chapter 3: The Stability of Ancient Egypt: Flood and Sun; (pp. 76 – 92) answer questions provided in class. Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 5 9/19 Chapter 3: The Stability of Ancient Egypt: The Nile and Its Culture, The Old Kingdom, and the Middle Kingdom of Thebes. The Palette of Narmer, the pyramids, The Rosetta Stones, Menkaure sculptures; the Pharaohs HW: Begin reading Chapter 4: The Aegean World and the Rise of Greece, pp. 95- 108. Short Essay Due NLT 6:00pm Wed., 9/21 9/26 Test 1: chapters 1 – 3, 9/26 HW: Finish reading Chapter 4, pp. 108-133 Chapter 4: The Aegean World and the Rise of Greece: Trade, War, and Victory. The Cyclades, Minoan culture, The Palace of Minos, Mycenaean culture HW: Begin reading Chapter 5: The Golden Age Athens and the Hellenic World, pp. 135-150 10/3 The Golden Age of Athens and the Hellenic World: The Iliad and The Odyssey - Sparta HW: Finish reading Chapter 5: The Golden Age Athens and the Hellenistic World: The School of Hellas and complete questions 10/10 Chapter 5 continued The philosophers, architecture, sculpture The Theatre of the People, Alexander the Great HW: study guide for midterm 10/17 the Hellenistic World, Test No. 2: Chapters 4-5, 10/17 HW: Read Chapter 6: Rome: Urban Life and Imperial Majesty, pp. 175 - 190 Etruscans and Ancient Rome 10/24 Rome: Urban Life: social and political organization: works of art, architecture and literature. HW: Read Chapter 7: Other Empires Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 6 Ancient India HW: Finish reading Chapter 7 10/31 Library tour: Learning Hub Obtain all 5 resources for your group Project HW: Begin the Annotated Bibliography Meet with your partner to work on research project HW: Finish the Annotated Bibliography 11/7 Annotated Bibliography is due Wed 11/9 NLT 6:00pm. China HW: Work on your PP presentations with your partner 11/14 Pre-Columbian Americas HW: Find information about Pre-Hispanic civilizations of the Americas on Internet: Olmec, Aztec, Zapotec, Maya, Toltec, Teotihuacan (Divide by groups) HW: Finish PP presentations HW: Be prepared for presentations: instructor: 6 slides per page Research 11/21 Presentations are due (Monday only) 11/28 Presentations Continue (Mon and Wed) print a handout for the HW: Study for final 12/5 Test III preparations 12/12 Test 3: Chapters 6 and 7 Huma 1301 – Fall 2011 - Ross-Nazzal Page 7