Spring 2012 Classes:

HON 3950: The Aging U.S. Population (Debra Carter)

With the elderly comprising a growing proportion of the U.S. population, the challenges—and opportunities—associated with aging have come to the forefront.  This course will explore a holistic approach to aging that addresses physical, psychosocial, economic, and spiritual aspects of the older adult.  We will evaluate aging as it is portrayed in politics, literature, media, art, and history.  The course will particularly emphasize “normal,” successful aging and the challenges associated with it.  We will also explore the impact of generational perspectives on interpersonal relationships between different age groups.

M/W/F 2:00-2:50

HON 3951: Race and Rebellion as Performance in the 19th Century (Michael Hunt)

The course explores the construction and practices of race in 19^th Century America.  Topics will include general background on performance studies, the construction of race, the institution and practice of slavery, abolitionism, the role of race in the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the development of Jim Crow laws and culture.  Particular attention will be paid to cultural representations of African, slave, plantation, and abolitionist cultures, including both white and black minstrelsy, and the many staged interpretations of Uncle Tom’s Cabin throughout the century.  Another focus will be the cultural dialogue generated by Nat Turner’s and John Brown’s race-centered rebellions, the radical attempts to overturn racial roles through Reconstruction, the initial rise of the KKK and the creation of a revisionist history of the Confederacy, and the rationale for and institutionalization of social and legal Jim Crow concepts by the century’s end.

T/R 11:00-12:15

HON 3952: Software and Society (Abrar Qureshi)

This course will examine the monumental impact that recent software technology developments have had (and continue to have) on American culture and society. Topics include: identity and privacy issues, the digital divide and its impact, social networking, blogging, source credibility, music, distance learning, e-commerce, and open source vs commercial software.  The goal is not only to think critically about these particular areas, but also to think about how the software "revolution" as a whole has/is reconfiguring how we live, think, and relate to other people (and perhaps to consider the pros and cons of said changes).  Note: This is NOT a software programming course and no software background / experience / coursework is required to take this course.

T/R 12:30-1:45