Core One: The Contemporary Situation
Reading and Lecture Schedule 2015
Core One asks students to think critically about our contemporary world and culture. It also begins the Core journey of selfdiscovery. The course is organized around a number of topics and essential questions related to those topics:
FAMILY VALUES, CULTURAL VALUES: How do family and culture play a role in making us who we are? What kinds of
family values and cultural values are we seeing in our country today?
AMERICA UNDER PRESSURE: From industrialization and globalization to threats to national security,
how have these challenges impacted us? How well are we holding up under the pressure?
A LOOK AHEAD: What does the future hold for us? What do we want our future to look like?
As students and faculty read books that ask these questions, they will also hear from experts across academic disciplines and
professions about what their discipline or profession brings to the question at hand. Students should leave this course with an
appreciation of the complexities of these issues and with experience charting the intersection of these issues with their own lives.
Week
Day
Reading
Lecture
Tuesday 8/18
One
Introduction
No reading
Dr. Maia Hawthorne, English, “Welcome to Core”
In this lecture Dr. Hawthorne, Director of Core One, will welcome students to liberal arts
education at Saint Joseph’s College—the Core program—and to Core One in particular,
outlining expectations for the course. Dr. Hawthorne will also ask students to begin
considering the question of what’s “contemporary” about the contemporary situation and
what that might mean in our lives.
Writing
No reading
--
Thursday 8/20
The Glass Castle, pages 1-57
(57 pages)
Dr. Maia Hawthorne, English, “Memory and Meaning-Making: The Memoir”
The Glass Castle is a memoir. What does that mean? Who reads memoirs and why? Why are
we reading memoir in Core One? Why do people write memoirs? What’s the relationship
between memoir and the “reflective essay” that’s a required part of the writing program in
Core?
The Glass Castle, pages 58-115
(57 pages)
Dr. Tom Ryan, Education, “The Glass Castle and The Reflective Essay: Using the
Readings To Explore the Meanings inside One's Experiences”
Dr. Ryan will build on Thursday’s lecture to demonstrate how The Glass Castle might be used
as a springboard for your own work.
“The Reflective Essay.” This handout
is included in the coursepack. Model
reflective essays will be provided by
your instructor.
(2 pages)
--
Writing
Two
Tuesday 8/25
One
FAMILY VALUES, CULTURAL VALUES: How do family and culture play a role in making us who we are?
What kinds of family values and cultural values are we seeing in our country today?
Thursday 8/27
Elizabeth Gray, Core, “The Culture of Parenting”
How do our families shape who we become? Is it the location and social culture of the
family? Is it the way we were raised? Can we find new meaning for the Walls family by how
our families have shaped us?
Tuesday 9/1
The Glass Castle, pages 175-234
(59 pages)
Professor Susan Chattin, History, “The American Family: A Historical Perspective”
The Glass Castle helps us think about the relationships between individuals and their
families, but how typical is the family in this memoir? What have American families looked
like historically? What do they look like today? What can that tell us about who we are?
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Thursday 9/3
The Glass Castle, pages 235-288
(53 pages)
Dr. Chad Pulver, Psychology, “You’re Just Wired That Way”
As a counter to the idea that “who we are” comes from how we were parented and where
we grew up, this lecture will look at the biological, genetic impact on behavior, decision
making, and personality.
Tuesday 9/8
“What Silicon Valley Thinks of
Women”by Nina Burleigh, a January
18, 2015 Newsweek article available
at www.newsweek.com.
Missrepresentation, 45 minutes of a 90 minute film
Part of our sense of who we are has to do with our sense of what it means to be male,
female, or transgender. How are ideas about gender encoded in media and do they really
affect us? This documentary considers that question, focusing specifically on images of
women in advertising.
“The Argument.” This handout is
included in the coursepack.
“Model student arguments,” also in
the coursepack.
(12 pages)
--
The Other Wes Moore, Part One
(62 pages)
Michael Steinhour, Sociology, "Gender Roles in The Other Wes Moore and Beyond"
Let’s extend our look at gender roles as we begin reading a new book. Human behaviors are
not new, nor are they unique. Rather our behaviors are so closely monitored and controlled
that we often are not even aware that gender roles exist, let alone the ways in which they
shape us at a conscious--or subconscious--level. Gender roles exist in society, outside of each
of us, limiting some behaviors, while at the same time rewarding others. This lecture will use
and expand upon The Other Wes Moore in providing an overview of gender roles both as
expressed in the book, and in scientific research.
The Other Wes Moore, Part Two
(66 pages)
PBS Frontline special “Prison State,” 45 minutes of a 90 minute documentary
As The Other Wes Moore follows one Wes to prison, the book begs questions about the
opportunities afforded our nation’s young black men and the role that prison plays in those
lives. "Prison State" takes up those questions by “following the lives of four individuals in
Kentucky's criminal justice system as the state tries to interrupt the cycle of mass
incarceration” (the quoted material is from PBS Frontline’s website).
They Say, I Say, preface and
introduction
(26 pages)
--
Tuesday 9/15
Writing
Five
Thursday 9/10
Writing
Three
Four
The Glass Castle, pages 116-174
(58 pages)
Thursday 9/17
Tuesday 9/22
Six
The Other Wes Moore, Part Three,
Epilogue, Afterword, and A Call to
Action
(66 pages)
Dr. Jerry McKim, Education, “The Opportunities Afforded by Our Nation’s Schools”
The Other Wes Moore ends by asking us to seriously consider the options we, as a nation,
present to or withhold from our children. This lecture will consider education as a part of
that equation.
Test day, no reading
Test day, no lecture
Writing
They Say, I Say, part one
(33 pages)
--
Thursday 9/24
Cheap
Introduction: Gresham’s Law
Chapter 1: Discount Nation
Chapter 2: The Founding
Fathers
(54 pages)
Bill White, History, “From Sears to Starbucks”
Cheap takes us on a trip to better understand how we became a nation bound together not
by ideas so much as the gossamer threads of consumption. This lecture will explore some of
the techniques used by American businesses to turn us into "better" consumers from the
19th century to the 21st (with a stop in the 1950's world of Don Draper). Dr. White will look
at how a few CEO's, such as Howard Schultz at Starbucks, understand the relationship
between their companies, their country, and the world.
Tuesday 9/29
Cheap
Chapter 3: Winner Take
Nothing
(33 pages)
Courtney Stewart, Philosophy, “The Ethics of Consumer Culture”
Lecture description forthcoming.
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Thursday 10/1
Cheap
Chapter 4: The Outlet Gambit
Chapter 5: Markdown Madness
(37 pages)
Tony Franco, Business Administration, “The Battle Over Minimum Wage”
What about the workers who serve us our cheap goods at places like outlet stores or fast
food restaurants? Many of these workers make minimum wage. Whether that minimum
wage is sufficient has been the subject of much recent public debate. Where are we in that
debate and what are people on each side of this issue saying?
Tuesday 10/6
Cheap
Chapter 6: Death of a
Craftsman
Chapter 7: Discounting and Its
Discontents
(38 pages)
Inequality for All, 45 minutes of a 90 minute film
Today, we’ll continue last week’s reflection on low-wage workers by considering wage
stagnation and income inequality more broadly. In 2013, President Obama called economic
inequality “the defining issue of our time.” This documentary by political economist and
commentator Robert Reich explores the history of economic inequality and the reasons for
it.
Writing
Eight
Seven
Six
AMERICA UNDER PRESSURE: From industrialization and globalization to threats to national security,
how have these challenges impacted us? How well are we holding up under the pressure?
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Dr. Chelle Robertson, Communication, “’Food Be Thy Medicine’: A Moral Imperative”
Today’s cheap goods include food. How important is what we eat? This lecture will explore
the concept of “nourishment” from a number of perspectives: physical, social, cultural, and
societal.
Tuesday 10/13
Cheap
Chapter 9: The Double-Headed
Dragon
Chapter 10: The Perfect Price
(44 pages)
PBS Frontline special “Is Wal-Mart Good for America?”
Today’s reading in Cheap will explore globalization’s role in the economy of “cheap” and
argues that this economy couldn’t exist without Americans’ consumer desires. But what
about the conscious business practices of large retail stores like Wal-Mart? How have they
shaped world economies? That’s the question at issue in this documentary.
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Thursday 10/15
Zeitoun, pages 1-68 (Friday, August
26 through Saturday, August 27)
(68 pages)
Jon Nichols, English, “Literary Nonfiction and Zeitoun”
Lecture description forthcoming.
Tuesday 10/20
Zeitoun, pages 68-127 (Sunday,
August 28 through Thursday,
September 1)
(59 pages)
“Act I” of When the Levees Broke, a documentary film by Spike Lee
What did New Orleans look like and feel like as the storm approached and hit? Through a
mix of footage of New Orleans, media clips, and interviews, this documentary helps us see
and feel what the residents of New Orleans were experiencing in the days leading up to and
after the storm.
Writing
They Say, I Say, part two
(50 pages)
--
Zeitoun, pages 127-191 (Friday,
September 2 through Tuesday,
September 13)
(64 pages)
Joseph Koczan, Core, “The Breaching of the Levee and the Fault Lines of Race and Class in New
Orleans”
During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, some Americans suggested that the inadequate
government response was due in part a manifestation of its racism and classism, given that
many of the storm’s victims were black and poor. This story about race and class in the
aftermath of Katrina speaks in interesting ways to Zeitoun’s own experience of being a
Syrian-American in a post-9/11 America under pressure. How did Katrina expose our
nation’s race anxiety?
Tuesday 10/27
Zeitoun, pages 191-256
(Wednesday, September 14, Kathy’s
perspective, through Wednesday,
September 14, Abdulrahman’s
perspective)
(65 pages)
PBS Frontline special “The Storm”
What do we expect of our government during threats to our security? How well did the
government respond during Katrina? This 60 minute program was broadcast six months
after Hurricane Katrina and analyzes the government response to the event.
Writing
They Say, I Say, part three
(56 pages; a lot of reading, but note
that the last 15 of these pages are a
sample student essay)
--
Eleven
Thursday 10/22
Ten
Nine
Thursday 10/8
Cheap
Chapter 8: Cheap Eats
(25 pages)
Thursday 10/29
Tuesday 11/3
Twelve
Zeitoun, pages 256-325 (Thursday,
September 15-end)
(69 pages)
PBS Frontline special “The United States of Secrets,” 45 minutes of a 180 minute documentary
Zeitoun raises questions about the limits of the power of the state. In post 9/11 America
such questions have become routine. This documentary considers this question in light of the
recent revelations of massive government surveillance of the communication records of
American citizens, telling the story of how that practice of surveillance came to be.
Test day, no reading
The Core One Colloquium, featuring the work of current Core One students
The Core One Colloquium gives you, the students, an opportunity to have your voices join
those of our Core One lecturers and authors and to share your perspectives with an audience
wider than your own professor or discussion section. It gives those of us in attendance an
opportunity to see what others have been thinking about Core One subject matter or the
ways in which the course’s subject matter has served as a springboard into personal
reflection. Details about how the colloquium works are forthcoming.
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
Thursday 11/5
Generation Like, PBS Frontline video
watched outside of class, available
online at
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/fr
ontline/generation-like/
Sally Berger, Digital Media and Journalism, “Our Relationship with Social Media”
This lecture will explore the ways that social media changes the way we live and think.
Tuesday 11/10
Feed, pages 1-72
(72 pages)
Dr. Maia Hawthorne, English, “Science Fiction”
This lecture will introduce the book Feed by considering the following questions: how is
science fiction used to explore what it means to be human? How is Feed an example? What
are the questions recent science fiction has considered? What are the questions Feed is
considering?
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Courtney Stewart, Philosophy, “Digital Reading, Digital Thinking, and Ethics”
This lecture will investigate how the brain works at a biological and neurological level,
contending that our online lives have fundamentally changed the organization of our brains.
It will consider the differences between the “old,” linearly-organized brain, and the “new,”
non-linearly organized brain. In addition, this lecture will consider what biological, personal,
and social outcomes may result from continuous interaction with and increased dependence
upon technology and explore the ethical implications of this trend.
Tuesday 11/17
Feed, pages 73-150
(77 pages)
--
Feed, pages 151-226
(75 pages)
Professor Jon Nichols, Composition and Rhetoric, “Transhumanism as Science Fact “
Transhumanism is the idea of using technology to enhance a person's body and mind. We
see numerous examples of this in Feed. Prof. Nichols will take a look at these aspects of the
book as well as other examples from science fiction and connect them to real world,
cutting-edge technology. Feed may not be so fictional after all.
Writing
Fourteen
Thursday 11/12
Thirteen
Twelve
A LOOK AHEAD: What does the future hold for us? What do we want our future to look like?
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Thursday 11/19
11/24 &
11/26
Enjoy your holiday!
Online reading: “A Walk in the
Woods: Right or Privilege?” by
Richard Louv (March/April 2009).
Available at
www.orionmagazine.org.
Dr. Mark Seely, Psychology, “A Touch of Nature”
Human bodies and minds are designed by evolution to cope with the specific demands and
opportunities of natural environments. Despite this, most of us spend the greater portion of
our lives in human-constructed environments, largely isolated from the natural world. Wild
nature is typically treated either as an alien and inhospitable place or as a kind of “spice” to
be added here and there in tiny, controlled doses (pets, houseplants, weekend camping
trips). This lecture will use research findings from the field of evolutionary psychology to
explore some of the ways that our physical and psychological wellbeing are affected by
exposure—and lack of exposure—to the natural world.
Writing
No reading (or reading assigned by
your instructor)
--
Thursday 12/3
No reading
Dr. Maia Hawthorne, English, “What Does the Future Hold for You?”
This lecture will use the essential questions of the final unit to ask us to think about the
meaning of the overall project of Core One and what it has helped us accomplish. It will
address the question “Tell me again--why are we doing this ‘Core’ thing?”
Consult the exam schedule and your
professor for the time of your
section’s exam.
Hope you enjoyed Core One.
Good luck to you on your exams!
Exam
week
Fifteen
Tuesday 12/1
Thanksgiving Break
12/7-10
Break
Feed, pages 227-300
(73 pages)
Professor Bonnie Zimmer, Art, “21st Century Artists Respond to Their World: Exploring Our
Relationship with Nature”
Alexis Rockman and Chris Jordan are two artists whose work meditates on the relationship
between man and nature. Professor Zimmer will introduce us to the work of these artists,
suggesting ways that it comments on our recent discussions about man and our planet.