Spring 2017 Special Topics/Opportunities
American Studies
AMST-200G-A Reparations
This course ponders the historical, ethical, and political dimensions of reparations using case studies of atrocities
enacted in the United States, including the racial enslavement of Africans and their descendants, Japanese American
internment during WWII, indigenous displacement and colonization, and genocidal acts such as lynching. It
considers the different stances taken by the U.S. nation-state and its citizenry on reparations and dissects the
reasonings underpinning those often conflicting positions. While the United States is the course’s primary
geographic focus, participants also will examine the broader global contexts in which vexed debates around injury
and remedy transpire including United Nations discourses and worldwide black reparations movements.
Art & Art History Department
ART-250-A
Islam and the Image
With the recent controversies and backlash surrounding Charlie Hebdo’s publication of a cartoon of the Prophet
Muhammad and the destruction of various cultural heritage sites by ISIS, it appears that Islam adheres to a strict
aniconic code when it comes to artistic productions. This, however, is not quite accurate. With the spread of Islam
outward from the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century, the figurative artistic traditions of the newly conquered
lands profoundly influenced the development of Islamic art. Ornamentation in Islamic art came to include figural
representations in its decorative vocabulary, drawn from a variety of sources. Although the often cited opposition in
Islam to the depiction of human and animal forms holds true for religious art and architecture, in the secular sphere,
such representations have flourished in nearly all Islamic cultures. This course will survey the development of the
Art of the Islamic Lands, with a particular focus on the use of figurative imagery, its reception and meaning.
Biology Department
BIO-350-A
Animal Behavior
In this course, students will explore the ecology and evolution of animal behavior. The genetic, neural, and
hormonal bases of behavior will also be examined. Topics will include foraging behavior, antipredator behavior,
habitat selection, mating behavior, parental behavior, aggression, learning, communication, and intelligence.
Students will learn how the principles of animal behavior can be applied to problems such as the management of
agricultural pests, and bullying in grade school classrooms. Case studies will feature a diversity of animals,
including humans. In the laboratory, students will conduct original animal behavior research. Research will take
place in both the lab and field, and it will involve the collection and analysis of behavioral data from squirrels, a
variety of insects, and salamanders. Pre-requisite: BIO 101 or permission of the instructor. Three hours of lecture;
three hours of lab per week. Four semester hours.
BIO-350-B
Innovation in Biology
This course will approach biology through the lens of innovation – identification of problems and pathways to
solutions. Students will explore: 1. the solving of biological problems by organisms; 2. how humans have innovated
using biology; and 3. the role of innovation in scientific funding, patents, and biotechnology. Topics may include
viral immune evasion strategies, tumor cell survival strategies, designing enzymes for industrial use, biological
weapons, and the discovery and patenting of CRISPR genome-editing technology. Students will investigate
biotechnology trends and consider the requirements of scientific patents. Pre-requisite: BIO 201W. 3 hours per
week and additional meeting times TBA.
BIO-350-C&D Darwin & Evolution
This course considers the theory of evolution from its original conception by Charles Darwin to its modern form.
Readings from the primary and secondary scientific literature, and from the history and philosophy of science, will
examine both the historical origin and our current understanding of evolution, including key concepts of natural and
sexual selection, the origin of species, common descent and the tree of life, and the role of development.
Prerequisites: BIO-101W; or permission of the instructor. Three hours per week. Four semester hours.
Classical Studies
LAT-350-A
Bad Emperors
The image of greedy, wrathful, and depraved Roman emperors endures thanks to the lurid biographies that survived
them. How do we read these as historical documents? How does the language of excess and disgust fit into Roman
political commentary? We’ll examine De Vita Caesarum and its modern adaptation I, Claudius, Roman screeds
against monarchs, the Late Roman Historia Augusta, and the Neronian work which describes Emperor Claudius’
detour to gourdhood, rather than godhood.
East Asian Studies
EAS-299-A
Topics in East Asian Studies: The Visual Culture of Japan
What do you see when you look at a Japanese woodblock print, a doll or toy robot, a person in Gothic-Lolita dress,
manga or anime, a photograph of a geisha, a building made of cardboard tubes, or a Hello Kitty toaster? What kind
of information is being sent to you, and how are you processing it? How do these images represent and construct
Japanese society and culture? We will study visuality in Japan from the 18th century through the present, beginning
with ukiyo-e (woodblock prints) housed at the Berman Museum. General readings on visual studies (including
semiotics and cultural representation) will be combined with materials specific to the Japanese context. Among the
topics open for consideration are photography, film, anime, architecture, art, manga, performance, mass media,
advertising, design, fashion, and concepts of the body and space. The last part of the course will consist of
presentations by students on projects designed by them in consultation with the instructor. The goal of the course is
to help us see Japan, and society in general, with fresh eyes and a deeper understanding of how we make images and
images make us. This course fulfills the “G” requirement. Four hours per week, plus occasional required screenings
or events outside class hours. Four semester hours.
Education Department
EDUC-446-A/PHIL-309-D
The Liberal Arts
This course will consider what it means to engage in liberal arts education. We will turn to philosophical thinkers
from the ancient, medieval, and modern periods to explore the ideas that shape current practices in higher education
and to develop our own ideas about what liberal education is and should be. In addition, we will investigate the
demise of the liberal arts in K-12 education over the past century in the US and consider whether they ought to be
reinstated in American public education. In particular, the course will consider such questions as: What is the
purpose of liberal education? What makes liberal arts colleges different from universities and professional colleges?
What is “liberal” about the liberal arts? Are the liberal arts inherently elitist or inherently democratic? What place, if
any, do the liberal arts have in K-12 education? In asking these questions, we will seek to understand the originating
ideals of the educational model of Ursinus College and thereby to gain greater insight into our own experiences. This
course is intended for sophomore, junior and senior level students across all majors; sophomores wishing to enroll
are encouraged to meet with the instructor prior to registration. A background in Philosophy and/or Education is
not required.
English Department
ENGL-104W-A Satire
From Ancient Rome to the Onion, satire has held up a mocking mirror to pretension, hypocrisy and self-importance.
We will study great satires and hatch some of our own. Gulliver’s Travels, The Rape of the Lock, The Hitch-Hiker’s
Guide to the Galaxy, and more! This writing-intensive course will feature both analytical and creative writing. No
pre-requisites. Limited to first- and
second-year students. H
ENGL-209R-A Animal Tales
This multi-genre creative writing course entails the study and practice of writing focusing on the real
and imagined lives of animals from ancient fables through 21 st-century stories, poems, and essays. We
will follow discussions of readings with writing experiments designed to spark original thinking,
develop facility with writing, and enhance understanding of your creative process. You will explore the
possibilities of creative writing and the fine and ferocious literature concerning the great and small
beasts by writing short creative and analytical pieces and longer works. Some classes will involve field
trips to observe animals. No pre-requisites. Three hours per week. Four semester hours
ENGL-230-A
Freedom Bound
In the early- to mid-nineteenth century, American authors equated and often privileged “freedom” with and in terms
of “whiteness.” Dominant cultural beliefs touted the superior nature of the Anglo-Europeans, recently renamed as
Americans, endowing them with the inalienable rights of “life, liberty and happiness.” But many within this
political and cultural discourse remained “un-free,” including women, as well as enslaved and indigenous people.
Often persecuted, always disenfranchised, and relatively dismissed by hegemonic discourse, those subjected to
unfair laws found ways to be heard. For example, when these non-white, non-male characters peopled the pages of
fiction, their stories become fraught with the very contradictions, hypocrisies, and challenges their real-life
counterparts represented historically. This course will offer students the chance to read and reconsider what it meant
to be “free” in antebellum American, why those prevented from enjoying their liberty protested against their
captivity, and how some women authors either imagined or actually found freedom outside of the confines of white
patriarchal society thru becoming captured by Indians. No pre-requisites. Fulfills the “D” or “H” core
requirement.
ENGL-250-A
Dual Citizenship: Topics in Caribbean Literature
What do the writers linked to this complex region help us to understand about the Caribbean? Most of them live,
work, and reflect on it from elsewhere. With its gumbo of cultures, languages, histories, and mythologies, its transAtlantic struggles and alliances, no single idea or voice captures the ethos of the Caribbean. English 240 explores
this question through folklore, poetry, fiction, drama and film. Texts from the English-, French-, and Spanishspeaking Caribbean will shape your learning experience. A short research project, writing, regular discussion and
oral presentation are required in this highly participatory course. No pre-requisites. Fulfills the “G” or “H” core
requirement.
ENGL-315-A
Poetry of Protest
How do you (safely) complain about a king? For medieval writers, poetry became the vehicle of praise, petition,
and protest: it was a means to effect social change by entertaining and instructing a growing, literate middle
class. In this course, we’ll examine this political poetry, including works by monks, diplomats, and lawyers who
also happen to be authors. How did these writers advise and admonish figures of power, and did it do any
good? How do they deal with expanding class mobility? How do these poems engage with an increasingly mobile
and global world, and how do they imagine England as a nation?
Please note that we will read this poetry in the original, that is, in Middle English. Students do not need any
previous exposure to Middle English – we will gain confidence and fluency together over the course of the
semester. Come prepared to gain an appreciation for this earlier form of English language and literature!
Prerequisites: ENGL 290W and a course between ENGL 220 and ENGL 250. This course fulfills the pre-1800
requirement for the English major. H
ENGL-330-A
Mapping American Literary Realism and Place
American Realist fiction is rooted in place, whether urban or rural; leisure-class or working-class; gendered,
ethnicized, racialized, or all of the above. This course will explore matters of space and place in late nineteenthcentury American fiction using literary theory as well as geographic information systems (GIS) mapping; thus, it
will offer an introduction to digital humanities approaches to literature. Students will develop a digital project as
well as traditional argumentative essays. No digital or GIS experience necessary.
Prerequisites: ENGL 290W and a course between ENGL 220 and ENGL 250. This course fulfills the post-1800
requirement for the English major. H
ENGL-444W-A Senior Seminar: Shakespeare’s Problem Comedies
Proposals refused. Threats of revenge. Forced marriages. Forced religious conversion. Messengers arriving with
bad news—the king is dead; the villain has fled. Attempted murder. Attempted sexual assault. These are just a few
of the cheery devices Shakespeare used to wrap up the action in some of his best-known plays: the comedies. In this
seminar, we will study five or six of the “problem” comedies, problematic because a pronounced streak of darkness
accents the happily-ever-after endings. Two or three meetings per play, with extensive student-led discussion and
preparatory assignments. Grades are based on several short writing assignments, participation, oral presentations,
and a final research project. Senior English Majors only. H
Environmental Studies Department
ENV-112-A
Drinking it Up: Water Resources on a Thirsty Planet
Water is essential for life. But it is not always readily available in the amount or form desired. There are droughts,
floods, lack of access, and various types of contamination (natural and human-caused). In order to help understand
the science behind reducing the problems causing and caused by having too much, too little, or not clean enough
water, this course will explore water as a natural resource, investigating its properties, the storage and movement of
water above and below the ground surface, types of contamination and treatment options, and the accessibility of
water resources for drinking, agriculture, and more. We will consider the links between these insights and the ways
they inform social and ethical considerations. There are no prerequisites. Three hours of lecture and three hours of
laboratory per week. Four semester hours. (LS.)
ENV-350-A
Fueling Society: Energy and the Environment
Most of us are so used to having easy access to energy that we continue to try to turn on the lights even when the
power goes out. Where does this energy come from? How does it get to our house? Are some types of energy better
than others, for us and/or for the environment? This course considers energy in the context of humans and the
environment. We will investigate current and potential energy sources including fossil fuels, nuclear, and
renewables. Discussions will include facets of each, from extraction to storage to transport to energy generation, in
addition to the benefits and drawbacks and the feasibility of each energy source, including considerations of public
health. This course incorporates knowledge and methods from many disciplines and will culminate in an
overarching student project including an analysis comparing particular energy sources.
Film Studies
FS-250-A/LAS-332-A
Latin American Film
This course introduces students to the major films and cinematic trends of twentieth and twenty-first century Latin
America. Students will examine how the films emerge from their specific national contexts but also from a shared
regional/Latin American experience. Through a range of commercial and non-commercial films from Mexico, the
Caribbean, and South America, we will analyze how Latin American cinema interpreted or reacted to major
historical and political issues of the region including revolutions, military dictatorships, drug trafficking, urban
violence, and border-crossings. The course will also offer an overview of the development (or underdevelopment) of
national film industries in contemporary times. Students will acquire an understanding of the major issues and topics
of Latin American cinema, its film industries, and contemporary Latin American history.
Open to all students: no pre-requisites. Students must also register for FS 250S for evening screenings. Three
hours per week. Four semester hours (G, H).
FS-251-A/MCS-375-B
Teen Film and Television
This course studies the development and proliferation of films and television programs about and marketed toward
American teenagers. We will trace teen film and television’s origins and their reformulations through U.S. film and
television history, while studying genre theory to interrogate teen film and television’s generic conventions and their
relation to other genres such as the musical, the gangster film, and the soap opera. The course will examine
Hollywood’s representations of and attempts to appeal to the American teenager, paying special attention to issues
of delinquency and rebellion, burgeoning sexuality, the social politics of high school, and nostalgia. We will also
consider teen film and television’s intersections with subcultures, popular music, and consumer culture. Students
must also register for FS251S for evening screenings. Four semester hours (H).
FS-253-A
Adapting Books into Film
“How can they make a movie of that book?” “The book is always better than the movie.” This course will address
the narrative expectations that underlie these two frequent remarks. We will read essays by adaptation theorists, but
also try to imagine how we ourselves might design films that draw their plots from written texts. In the course of
this process, we will do thematic readings of literary texts, consider what filmic techniques can offer parallels to
literary narrative techniques, develop our own visions of cinematic adaptations, and then screen and analyze the
actual films based on those books. Source texts will be drawn from a range of genres: novels, a novella (such as Dr.
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), a short story (one of those little-known stories that inspired Memento or Rear Window), a play
(possibly Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, or a Shakespeare play that has been updated), and a graphic novel (class
choice between Persepolis and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World). No prerequisites. Students must also register for FS
253S, for evening screenings most weeks. Four semester hours. This class counts as an elective for the English
major, the MCS major, and the Film Studies minor.
Health and Exercise Physiology Department
HEP-210-A
Advanced Conditioning
This course is designed as a continuation of HEP 220 – Critical Components of Conditioning. The course will
expand upon and explore previously studied components of conditioning such as flexibility, muscular strength and
endurance, cardiovascular fitness, and advanced training with special emphasis placed upon variations in program
design and implementation for various populations (age-related, gender, athlete vs. non-athlete demands). The
course will also examine nutrition and supplementation as it pertains to conditioning. Students will also explore
other areas of interest such as fitness center design, safety/organization, and motivational techniques.
Prerequisites – HEP 100 and HEP 220 or permission of the instructor
HEP-360-A
Advanced Cardiovascular Physiology
This course will provide an overview of cardiovascular physiology and anatomy underlying cardiac function.
Lectures will also focus on the structure, function, and disorders of the heart. Students will learn dynamic aspects of
heart function, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and current interventions used by cardiologists. The course will include
study of the pathological changes that affect the cardiovascular and vascular system including disease,
pathophysiological mechanisms, signs, symptoms, and post-treatment concerns. This investigation will include an
introduction to both non-invasive and invasive cardiology. The laboratory component will include current
cardiovascular literature, 12-lead electrocardiography, pacemaker basics, holter monitoring, 24-hour blood pressure
monitoring, operation of specialty catheters used in interventional cardiology, cardiac surgical procedures,
introduction to echocardiography, and cardiac stress testing. Prerequisites: BIO206 or permission of instructor.
Three hours of lecture and three hours of laboratory per week. Four semester hours. (LS)
History Department
HIST-220-A
Philadelphia Story: The City as Text
What stories can a city relate? What clues about American pasts might we find within—but also beneath—urban
streets? Whose pasts might we uncover? Using Philadelphia as our guide, this course will explore in microcosm the
American nation’s layered pasts. Course topics will range from William Penn’s first encounter with Native peoples,
to the city’s role in the founding of the United States and in the negotiation of the politics of slavery and freedom, to
the historical foundations and development of modern incarceration. Central to our discussions will be analysis of
documentary and material sources as well as questions of memory and historical preservation. Through field trips,
discussions, readings, writing, and an independent research project, students will piece together Philadelphia’s Story
in order to better understand a place and a nation, as well as the diverse array of people who inhabit both. Three
hours per week, plus required field trips. Four semester hours (H,D). No prerequisites.
HIST-327-A
Topics in Modern U.S. History: Terrorism in America
In 2001, the United States experienced the deadliest day of violence it had seen since Pearl Harbor. Quickly
identified as “terrorism,” the events seemed to reshape American memory in profound ways. Terrorism became
identified exclusively with “radical Islamic extremists.” The term narrowed in ways that redirected citizens’
attention to locales outside of U.S. borders as they searched for the source of their troubles. America’s long history
with domestic terrorism began to fade as present-day concerns monopolized their attention. This course will
examine terrorism committed by and against American citizens. Using a combination of scholarly sources, primary
documents, and current events, students will explore the violence committed by late-19th anarchists, as well as the
Weather Underground’s calculated attacks on property in the 1970s. We will examine every day acts of terror, such
as racial hate crimes and sexual assault at various points in the twentieth century. We will make more flexible (for
the purpose of analysis), a term that scholars agree has become too static in the last 15 or so years. Yet, more recent
times and definitions will remain important as we will also learn about the dynamics that led up to the destruction of
September 11, 2001, and other recent acts of mass violence. Several major questions will guide our studies: What is
terrorism? How does one distinguish terrorism from other acts of violence? Can a country – a state – sponsor and/or
carry out acts of terror? Three hours per week. Four semester hours (H,D). No prerequisites.
HIST-421W-A Seminar: American Indian Activism and Red Power
During the 1960s and 1970s, the American Indian Movement exploded onto the U.S. political scene with the
occupation of Alcatraz Island and the dramatic standoff at Wounded Knee. What many Americans failed to realize
then, however, was that by the time of the civil rights moment of which these events—and the Red Power movement
more generally—were a key part, American Indian activism already possessed a long history. Ranging from
boarding school defiance to the birth of the National Congress of American Indians and the “Red Progressive”
movement, Native American activists had a history of working both within and against the American political
system. This course will examine the Red Power moment in the context of that longer history of activism—a history
that continues to take shape today—in order to ask how and why American Indians fought for political rights,
territorial sovereignty, and cultural endurance. Through intensive reading, writing, discussion, and research, students
will interrogate the foundations, consequences, and legacies of American Indian activism and Red Power in order to
complete a capstone research project and presentation. Three hours per week. Four semester hours (D).
Prerequisite: HIST200W or equivalent.
Interdivisional Studies
IDS-050-A
Creating an entrepreneurial mindset through passion and purpose
This course is designed to introduce students to the frameworks and methods of entrepreneurial thinking in order to
develop an entrepreneurial mindset. Students from all disciplines explore the basic concepts in processes of
creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurial action. This course will be especially relevant to students planning to
enter BEAR Innovation. This course will also develop oral and written communication skills with an emphasis on
persuasive communication in an academic context. Study concentrates on the entrepreneurial process, passion driven
purpose and a leadership theme permeates class discussions. A variety of instructional techniques will be used
including group projects, guest presenters, and visiting entrepreneurs. The course may include readings, videos, and
entrepreneurial enterprise simulations. This course offers the foundation for further project exploration and
development in summer work.Graded S/U. Two hours per week. Two semester hours.
IDS-110-A&B
Marketing in a Digital World
As an ever-growing source of entertainment, news, shopping and social interaction, digital media has revolutionized
marketing and consumers now have access to information any time and any place they want it. Digital marketing is
the umbrella term used to describe how organizations develop, promote, distribute and price their products and
services using one or more forms of electronic media to deliver personalized and relevant information tailored to the
needs and preferences of target customers. In an environment where organizations must carefully manage their
products’ brand, customers also get information from the media, friends, relatives, peers and people they do not
know. The challenge facing marketers is that they must formulate, execute and measure effectiveness of digital
strategies, often using real time data. This course will provide an overview of marketing strategy and how channels
such as the Internet, wireless text messaging, mobile apps, 3D printing, podcasts, blogs and other forms of electronic
media have democratized marketing. The course will also introduce students to commonly used approaches to
analyzing digital marketing data. Students enrolled in this course will have an opportunity to apply for special
funding to continue their examination of digital marketing during the summer. Enrollment is limited to 15 students
per section. This course will count as an elective for the Management Studies minor.
Latin American Studies
LAS-332-A/FS-250-A
Latin American Film
This course introduces students to the major films and cinematic trends of twentieth and twenty-first century Latin
America. Students will examine how the films emerge from their specific national contexts but also from a shared
regional/Latin American experience. Through a range of commercial and non-commercial films from Mexico, the
Caribbean, and South America, we will analyze how Latin American cinema interpreted or reacted to major
historical and political issues of the region including revolutions, military dictatorships, drug trafficking, urban
violence, and border-crossings. The course will also offer an overview of the development (or underdevelopment) of
national film industries in contemporary times. Students will acquire an understanding of the major issues and topics
of Latin American cinema, its film industries, and contemporary Latin American history.
Open to all students: no pre-requisites. Students must also register for FS 250S for evening screenings. Three
hours per week. Four semester hours (G, H).
Media & Communication Studies Department
MCS-275-A
Arts & Culture Journalism
This class explores critical reviewing and cultural reporting in many areas, including video games, television, food,
film, books, music, theater, dance, and visual arts. Students will develop the skills to review, criticize, report, profile,
and analyze artistic and cultural products, events, and performances (and will write stories that do so), both related
to or occurring on Ursinus's campus, and beyond. Projects will be writing- and reporting-focused, but may include
multimedia elements where appropriate.
MCS-375-A
TV and Radio History
This course examines the history of television and radio in the United States. We will study the development of and
changes in popular genres (e.g. the sitcom, news, soap opera, reality television), the industries and regulations that
produce and shape television and radio, and the social, cultural, and political significance of these media to everyday
life. The course will cover major historical shifts including radio’s move from fiction storytelling to music
programming, consider how television and radio have historically contributed to American cultural ideologies of
race, gender, class, and sexuality, and learn to evaluate these popular media as much more than simply
“entertainment.”
MCS-375-B/FS-251-A
Teen Film and Television
This course examines the history of television and radio in the United States. We will study the development of and
changes in popular genres (e.g. the sitcom, news, soap opera, reality television), the industries and regulations that
produce and shape television and radio, and the social, cultural, and political significance of these media to everyday
life. The course will cover major historical shifts including radio’s move from fiction storytelling to music
programming, the rise of cable television, and new developments in streaming audio and video. We will consider
how television and radio have historically contributed to American cultural ideologies of race, gender, class, and
sexuality, and learn to evaluate these popular media as much more than simply “entertainment.”
MCS-375-C
Voice in Media
Why does listening to my recorded voice make me cringe? The voice is housed in a body, but conveyed through a
medium: oracles, ventriloquists, microphones, and spiritualists all deliver voices, some more trustworthy than
others. This course asks us to consider the relationship between the voice and identity in order to think about how
voices are interpreted in a variety of cultural contexts. We will examine voices floating on the airwaves of talk radio,
belting from stages of televised singing competitions, occupying the soundtracks of the cinema, coughing in the
lecture hall, pranking with the telephone, soaring at a football game, soothing the nerves through a podcast late at
night. We will produce projects that engage with questions of vocal representation, creating media texts that
demonstrate standard modes of constructing the mediated voice (voice-overs, podcasts, animations, prank calls). We
will also analyze and write about voices, our own and those of others, situated in the present and beyond the grave.
Modern Language Department
Spanish
SPAN-340-A
Televised (Hi) Stories: Remembering and Re-Writing the Past in Spanish Media
Television plays a central role in the construction of historical memory. In Spain, a series of recent TV shows have
emerged that explore the end of Francoism and 1970s transition to democracy as their central theme. Focusing on
two popular Spanish TV shows: the long-running series Cuéntame cómo pasó (2001- to the date) and the program El
Ministerio del Tiempo (2014-16), we will explore how television has become a privileged tool to promote specific
visions of the Spanish past. Through combining visual and textual analysis, the class will help students develop
critical thinking skills in Spanish, history, and media studies. Ultimately, we will grapple with the question of how
mass media serves State ideologies to persuade audiences that present conditions are the best possible outcome of
historical processes.
Philosophy & Religious Studies
Philosophy
PHIL-309-A
Beauvoir and Beyond: Philosophy and Sexual Difference
“But if I wish to define myself,” writes Simone de Beauvoir, “I must first of all say: ‘I am a woman’; on this truth
must be based all further discussion.” With this declaration—and the publication of The Second Sex in 1953—the
question of “woman” becomes a proper topic of philosophical investigation, as Beauvoir demystifies the “eternal
feminine” and lays bare the structural relationship of the categories of masculine and feminine and how they
function to construct woman as Other. This course examine a set of twentieth century texts that insist on taking
woman, gender, and sexual difference seriously as philosophical categories. The first third of the course will focus
on readings from The Second Sex. We will then consider so-called “French feminism” after Beauvoir, including
figures as diverse as Julia Kristeva, Luce Irigaray, Hélène Cixous, Catherine Clément, Monique Wittig, and Michèle
Le Doueff. Topics to be addressed include the place of women in philosophy; essentialism, strategic and otherwise;
critical responses to Freud’s analysis of female sexuality; the possibility of theorizing multiple subjects rather than
a single ostensibly universal subject; and the relationship of sexual difference to other kinds of difference,
including race, class, and sexual orientation. Credit for this course may be applied toward the GWMS minor.
PHIL-309-B/RELS-309-B
“Marx, Nietzsche, Freud.”
Descartes taught us to doubt our senses. Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud teach us to distrust consciousness itself. What
we think we know about ourselves, about others, and about the world around us is wrong, and all our feelings and
beliefs require constant critique. As Marx wrote, “All that is solid melts into air….” In this course, we will study key
writings by these theorists, rightfully termed the three “masters of suspicion.” We will pay particular attention to
Marx’s view of the economic basis of human relations and his conception of alienated labor; Nietzsche’s
“perspectivism” and his assault upon conventional explanations for morality; and Freud’s account of the
unconscious forces shaping human behavior, relationships, and institutions. All students are welcome; no prior
coursework in philosophy will be assumed.
PHIL-309-C
Buddhism, Confucianism and Asian Philosophy
We'll ask and try to answer many questions in this course. What are the basic principles of Confucian, Buddhist and
Daoist thought? Do such principles differ from one Asian country to the next? Might they be applicable to nonAsian countries? Are Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism properly characterized as "philosophies" or are they
religions? Can we translate the concepts of Asian thought accurately into Western terms? How do they affect the
day-to-day decision-making and ethics of Asian leaders, professionals, artists and the public at large? Do Easterners
and Westerners think differently, or live by different values? We'll read translations of original texts by classic
Chinese thinkers such as Confucius and end by looking at Japanese philosophy, particularly Shinto and Zen.
While the class takes a 309 number as a "Special Topics" class, it presumes no prior knowledge of Asian
philosophy, philosophy in general, or Asian languages. It may be taken as an introduction to the subject, and is open
to first-year students. Students who wish to work at a more advanced level will have an opportunity to do so. Prof.
Romano has been Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies at Peking
University and also lectured at Beijing Foreign Studies University and Beijing Normal University.
PHIL-309-D/EDUC-446-A
The Liberal Arts
This course will consider what it means to engage in liberal arts education. We will turn to philosophical thinkers
from the ancient, medieval, and modern periods to explore the ideas that shape current practices in higher education
and to develop our own ideas about what liberal education is and should be. In addition, we will investigate the
demise of the liberal arts in K-12 education over the past century in the US and consider whether they ought to be
reinstated in American public education. In particular, the course will consider such questions as: What is the
purpose of liberal education? What makes liberal arts colleges different from universities and professional colleges?
What is “liberal” about the liberal arts? Are the liberal arts inherently elitist or inherently democratic? What place, if
any, do the liberal arts have in K-12 education? In asking these questions, we will seek to understand the originating
ideals of the educational model of Ursinus College and thereby to gain greater insight into our own experiences. This
course is intended for sophomore, junior and senior level students across all majors; sophomores wishing to enroll
are encouraged to meet with the instructor prior to registration. A background in Philosophy and/or Education is
not required.
Religious Studies
RELS -309-A
Jihad in Islamic Traditions
This course traces the ways in which jihad—struggle, striving—has figured in Islamic tradition, from its beginning
until the contemporary period. We will look at how jihad constitutes a site for affirming piety, regulating and
containing violence, negotiating political autonomy, motivating social movements, and animating critiques of
injustice. We will address the interpretation of Qur’anic discourse of jihad, Islamic ideas of “just war,” countercolonial movements, Islamic feminism, and extremist violence. By exploring this complex history of jihad, we will
be able to understand better how religion offers a compelling frame for combining and contesting political and
existential commitments.
Politics & International Relations Department
POL-101-A
Introductory Special Topics in Politics: Left, Right, Center
This course is a useful gateway to the political science major but is designed for anyone with an interest in politics.
This year’s version, taught by Jonathan Marks, will focus on how we decide where we stand politically and will do
so by focusing on the historical development and leading points of difference between liberals, conservatives,
moderates, libertarians, radicals, and others, especially in the U.S. Issues and topics that may be considered include:
partisanship; the relationship between party politics and political ideas and beliefs; inequality; religion; education;
democracy; Occupy Wall Street; the Tea Party. But each student will be asked to look at the material through the
lens of this guiding question: where (if anywhere) should I stand politically?
POL-399-A
Democracy in Africa
This course offers an introduction to contemporary African politics through an exploration of democratization on the
continent. It will examine the concepts, meanings, and measurements of democracy broadly, the history of
democratization throughout Africa and the variance of democratic institutions found across the continent. Specific
topics include, but are not limited to, legal, legislative and corruption reform across Africa, the role of civil society
in democratization, public opinion, election processes, and human rights regimes. Four semester hours.
Psychology Department
PSYC-475-A
Seminar: Minority Health and Health Disparities
Individuals from marginalized backgrounds (i.e. marginalized on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual
orientation, socioeconomic status, etc.) bear a disproportionately high rate of physical and mental health difficulties
in the United States (NIMHD, 2016). This seminar course will integrate institutional, interpersonal, and individuallevel factors to examine both the health challenges and strengths of individuals from marginalized communities.
Through this course, students will gain foundational knowledge that will enable them to build successful initiatives
for social justice and health equity at individual and organizational levels. The majority of course material will focus
on the African American community and draw from Critical Race Theory, feminist, and Afrocentric psychological
perspectives. Prerequisite: PSYC-100, 3 semester hours in AAAS, OR permission of instructor.
PSYC-475-B
Advanced Research Methods in Health Psychology
This course will apply students’ knowledge of health psychology through the development and execution of an
empirically-based research project or assessment that meets ethical standards. Projects will focus on the application
of psychological theories and factors to health behaviors, conditions, and outcomes. Topics may include stress and
coping, sleep, cardiovascular risk, eating behaviors, exercise, short-term health prevention/intervention projects, and
the intersection of mental and physical health. Methods will vary according to survey, experimental, or interview
designs. Emphasis will be placed on cultural sensitivity, effective communication, teamwork, and management
skills. This course may be especially beneficial for students considering careers in the health/medical professions,
occupational and physical therapy, public health, and health and exercise physiology. Prerequisites: PSYC-200WQ
and PSYC-275 (Health Psychology) or permission of instructor.
Theater & Dance
Dance
DANC-250-A
Tap Dance Workshop
The course will provide training in tap dance technique suitable for all experience levels.
In addition to technical training, students in the course will trace the history of tap dance from its roots to the present
day. Students also will participate in music/rhythm education, include drumming, improvisation, and movement
jams.
Theater
THEA-245-A
Styles: Theatrical Makeup
In this creative class, students will develop skills to create and complete makeup designs for themselves and for
others. With practical exercises, the students will design makeup that can be used in a variety of styles and genres of
the performing arts. Students will also work on script analysis, character development, and will delve into primary
and secondary research needed to complete makeup designs.
THEA-250-A
Dramatic Dames: Plays By and About Women
This course explores provocative portraits of women in plays written by women. We begin with a 10th-century nun
and read our way right up to the present day. Sex, murder, mayhem…and that’s just one play! Really. This is the
subversive side of dramatic literature—the plays not included in most anthologies. We will investigate the
objectification and reclamation of the female body, gendered language, intersectionality, and the politics of drama
by and about women in their socio-historical contexts.
November 4, 2016