English

The English Department is committed to the importance of critical reading and writing, incisive thinking, compelling argumentation, original expression, and productive reflection. Moreover, we seek to inspire students to love and find joy in the storytelling arts. Exposure to challenging literary texts—whether canonical or contemporary, linguistic or visual, political or existential—enhances students’ literacy, cultivates empathy, and supports informed, socially responsible, and moral decisions. Our discussion-based classes encourage students to be curious, lead each other in conversation, share individual perspectives, and actively listen to, and learn from, their peers. Thereby, students learn to be both independent learners and supportive collaborators

World Literature

World Literature provides a foundation for the study of literature in the Upper School. The readings for this course are selected for their rich language, cultural influence, and universal themes. Through study of a wide variety of texts spanning the globe, students will consider how these works inform their understandings of identity and self. With close reading and lively discussions centered on the texts, students develop intellectual confidence, study skills, and an appreciation of literature, all of which is a preamble to writing. The process of composition is given great attention in the freshman English course, as students work towards mastering organization, diction, and voice to build fluency in academic conversation, composition, and presentation. Students will study challenging vocabulary words and receive instruction in grammar, proper sentence structure, and idea flow. Representative texts include Purple Hibiscus, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; The Odyssey (translated by Emily Wilson); Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi; and Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare.
Honors World Literature

This course is an introductory study of literature and its various forms (short story, mythology, novel, drama, and poetry) for the freshman with a love of inquiry as well as strong fundamental skills in reading and writing. Like World Literature, this course encourages students to consider how works from around the globe inform their understandings of identity and self; however, reading and writing assignments are more demanding, both in terms of scope and complexity. Emphasis is placed on learning how to analyze literature critically and write with voice, focus, and fluency. Students in this course will engage in frequent composition, both in class and at home, vocabulary and grammar study, Harkness discussions, presentations, and projects. Representative texts include Purple Hibiscus, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie; The Odyssey (translated by Emily Wilson); Night, by Elie Wiesel; In the Time of the Butterflies, by Julia Alvarez, and Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor and/or the Upper School English Department Chair.
British Literature

Students in this course will examine a wide array of texts from the British Isles that address an important question: how are our individual identities and choices shaped by the societies in which we live? In search for an answer to this question, students study several works of English literature, ranging from long-standing classics to contemporary novels. Students will continue to refine their composition skills, focusing primarily on thesis generation and development, the effective use of close reading of quotations, and revision and editing. In addition, students will develop their public speaking skills through oral presentations and graded discussions. Representative texts include Beowulf; Macbeth, by William Shakespeare; Transcription, by Kate Atkinson; and Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro.
Honors British Literature

This rigorous course explores classic and contemporary texts in British literature. The central intellectual task of the students will be to expand their natural critical thinking talents, and to write clearly and sequentially about complex ideas. All genres—poetry, plays, fiction, and film—will be integrated into the curriculum, and students will become aware of the way art reflects and illuminates the human condition. Students in this course should have exceptional reading skills and a strong appreciation of the written word. Representative texts include Macbeth, by William Shakespeare; Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley; The Importance of Being Earnest, by Oscar Wilde; Atonement, by Ian McEwan; and The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
American Studies

The people of the United States, indeed people around the world, would finish this sentence in many different ways. Even for Americans, it is difficult to define what is means to be an American. Yet, this course will attempt to do so. In a rich multidisciplinary context, students will examine together the major historical realities that brought the United States into being and have defined its development into the major political, economic, and cultural power that it is today. We will explore history, literature, fine arts, as well as music and popular culture in our quest to better understand who we are as a nation. The course will establish a firm understanding of the history of the United States and embroider that understanding with a close analysis of the many ways America expresses its culture and its power in the world, both past and present. Students will further develop their analytical thinking and persuasive writing skills while building a deep understanding of what “America is.”

Representative texts include The Crucible, by Arthur Miller; Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, by Frederick Douglass; The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald; and Sing, Unburied, Sing, by Jesmyn Ward.

Note: this course awards two academic credits and fulfills graduation requirements for both English and History. The class will meet during two academic periods.
Honors American Studies

The people of the United States, indeed people around the world, would finish this sentence in many different ways. Even for Americans, it is difficult to define what is means to be an American. Yet, this course will attempt to do so. In a rich multidisciplinary context, students will examine together the major historical realities that brought the United States into being and have defined its development into the major political, economic, and cultural power that it is today. We will explore history, literature, fine arts, as well as music and popular culture in our quest to better understand who we are as a nation. The course will establish a firm understanding of the history of the United States and embroider that understanding with a close analysis of the many ways America expresses its culture and its power in the world, both past and present. Students will further develop their analytical thinking and persuasive writing skills while building a deep understanding of what “America is.”

Representative texts include The Crucible, by Arthur Miller; Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, by Frederick Douglass; The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald; and Sing, Unburied, Sing, by Jesmyn Ward.

Note: this course awards two academic credits and fulfills graduation requirements for both English and History. The class will meet during two academic periods.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Advanced American Studies

The people of the United States, indeed people around the world, would finish this sentence in many different ways. Even for Americans, it is difficult to define what is means to be an American. Yet, this course will attempt to do so. In a rich multidisciplinary context, students will examine together the major historical realities that brought the United States into being and have defined its development into the major political, economic, and cultural power that it is today. We will explore history, literature, fine arts, as well as music and popular culture in our quest to better understand who we are as a nation. The course will establish a firm understanding of the history of the United States and embroider that understanding with a close analysis of the many ways America expresses its culture and its power in the world, both past and present. Students will further develop their analytical thinking and persuasive writing skills while building a deep understanding of what “America is.”

Representative texts include The Crucible, by Arthur Miller; Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, by Frederick Douglass; The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald; and Sing, Unburied, Sing, by Jesmyn Ward.

Note: this course awards two academic credits and fulfills graduation requirements for both English and History. The class will meet during two academic periods.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
America in Film

Film. The Cinema. Movies. Whatever society calls it, the artistic phenomenon of ‘the big screen’ is an essential reflection of America in ways that are personal, social and political. This course will cover the historical arc of American film from The Jazz Singer in 1927—the first “talking picture”—to the antic vision of Quentin Tarantino’s recent “Once Upon a Time….in America” in order to reveal how movies mirror culture, and, reflexively, how culture mirrors movies. Genres such as horror, the western, film noir, the sci-fi thriller, and rom-coms will be viewed, explored and analyzed. There will be entertainment but also scholarship as the class engages visually, verbally and in writing with a wide and dynamic range of films.
Advanced America in Film

Film. The Cinema. Movies. Whatever society calls it, the artistic phenomenon of ‘the big screen’ is an essential reflection of America in ways that are personal, social and political. This course will cover the historical arc of American film from The Jazz Singer in 1927—the first “talking picture”—to the antic vision of Quentin Tarantino’s recent “Once Upon a Time….in America” in order to reveal how movies mirror culture, and, reflexively, how culture mirrors movies. Genres such as horror, the western, film noir, the sci-fi thriller, and rom-coms will be viewed, explored and analyzed. There will be entertainment but also scholarship as the class engages visually, verbally and in writing with a wide and dynamic range of films.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Science in Literature

Are you doing STEM in college? Or are you a Humanities person? This binary seems to be alive and well in our culture, leading us to believe that we have to reduce our life-paths because these categories accurately organize our world. Nothing could be further from the truth. (Is a human writing this?) In fact, the sciences and the humanities have long influenced each other, and today they are increasingly part of each other’s conversations. Some scientists claim the universe acts poetically; some poets say poetry is knowledge about the universe. (Does it matter?) Recently, scientists are offering insights into the state and health of our inner lives, our relationships, even our thoughts, desires, and hopes. We will read poets, playwrights, and novelists inspired by and in critical conversation with science, and we will read scientists writing poetry, fiction, and philosophy. We will play with chatbots, or they will play with us. Our topics will include: Artificial Intelligence and Consciousness; Genetic Engineering and the Good Life; Cognition, Memory and the Self; Ecology and Animal Consciousness; Neuroscience and Happiness.
Advanced Science in Literature

Are you doing STEM in college? Or are you a Humanities person? This binary seems to be alive and well in our culture, leading us to believe that we have to reduce our life-paths because these categories accurately organize our world. Nothing could be further from the truth. (Is a human writing this?) In fact, the sciences and the humanities have long influenced each other, and today they are increasingly part of each other’s conversations. Some scientists claim the universe acts poetically; some poets say poetry is knowledge about the universe. (Does it matter?) Recently, scientists are offering insights into the state and health of our inner lives, our relationships, even our thoughts, desires, and hopes. We will read poets, playwrights, and novelists inspired by and in critical conversation with science, and we will read scientists writing poetry, fiction, and philosophy. We will play with chatbots, or they will play with us. Our topics will include: Artificial Intelligence and Consciousness; Genetic Engineering and the Good Life; Cognition, Memory and the Self; Ecology and Animal Consciousness; Neuroscience and Happiness.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Global Literature

Why do our moral codes allow us to cheer for a drug dealer like Walter White or a mobster like Tony Soprano? In a world that exists in shades of grey, where heroes are fallible and villains sometimes virtuous, what universal moral rules dictate how society passes judgment? Why do readers empathize with some characters who break these rules but villainize others for the same actions? In this class, we will explore universal beliefs about goodness that transcend country and custom and why we celebrate characters who don’t conform to these ideals. In our study of heroes, antiheroes, and villains, we will read novels such as The White Tiger, by Aravind Adiga, A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, and The Long Petal of the Sea, by Isabel Allende. This discussion-based course will include both analytical writing and creative projects.
Advanced Global Literature

Why do our moral codes allow us to cheer for a drug dealer like Walter White or a mobster like Tony Soprano? In a world that exists in shades of grey, where heroes are fallible and villains sometimes virtuous, what universal moral rules dictate how society passes judgment? Why do readers empathize with some characters who break these rules but villainize others for the same actions? In this class, we will explore universal beliefs about goodness that transcend country and custom and why we celebrate characters who don’t conform to these ideals. In our study of heroes, antiheroes, and villains, we will read novels such as The White Tiger, by Aravind Adiga, A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, and The Long Petal of the Sea, by Isabel Allende. This discussion-based course will include both analytical writing and creative projects.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Creative Writing

This course is for students who would like to begin or deepen a practice of creative writing, culminating in an original portfolio of poetry and short fiction. First, we will read and discuss the techniques of a range of poets, imitating different styles and poetic structures. Then we’ll shift to short fiction, and students will explore the elements of craft such as character, point of view, setting, structure, and dialogue. Students will develop works of short fiction inspired by the stories we read as well as by writing exercises designed to spark the imagination. This course will have a combination of craft classes and workshop classes. For craft classes, typical homework would be to read and annotate published poems or works of short fiction. In workshop classes, the text becomes student writing, and the homework would either be to create a draft or critique a peer’s draft. We will supplement these craft and workshop classes with visits from working writers as well as with opportunities for students to share their writing with a wider audience.
Advanced Creative Writing

This course is for students who would like to begin or deepen a practice of creative writing, culminating in an original portfolio of poetry and short fiction. First, we will read and discuss the techniques of a range of poets, imitating different styles and poetic structures. Then we’ll shift to short fiction, and students will explore the elements of craft such as character, point of view, setting, structure, and dialogue. Students will develop works of short fiction inspired by the stories we read as well as by writing exercises designed to spark the imagination. This course will have a combination of craft classes and workshop classes. For craft classes, typical homework would be to read and annotate published poems or works of short fiction. In workshop classes, the text becomes student writing, and the homework would either be to create a draft or critique a peer’s draft. We will supplement these craft and workshop classes with visits from working writers as well as with opportunities for students to share their writing with a wider audience.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
African American Literature

What is African American literature? Drawing from Kenneth Warren’s What Was African American Literature, we will try to define the genre by relating it to other categories of literature based on race, ethnicity, gender and geography. We will also explore the historical context and literary content of the works to determine if they are judged based on aesthetics or their social and/or political representations. Readings in this course will include short stories, essays, articles, poems and one novel.
Advanced African American Literature

What is African American literature? Drawing from Kenneth Warren’s What Was African American Literature, we will try to define the genre by relating it to other categories of literature based on race, ethnicity, gender and geography. We will also explore the historical context and literary content of the works to determine if they are judged based on aesthetics or their social and/or political representations. Readings in this course will include short stories, essays, articles, poems and one novel.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Classical Mythology

While the mythological tales of Greece and Rome were created millennia ago, the ideals and morals shared within them can still be relevant to our lives today. Ancient Greek and Roman literature are generally defined by their use of mythology and religion. In this course, students will analyze some of the most important myths and mythological figures of ancient Greece and Rome to determine how these stories can help us better understand the people and societies who believed them. Additionally, students will study how Greek and Roman art enhanced or, in some cases, contradicted the best-known versions of mythological stories.
Advanced Classical Mythology

While the mythological tales of Greece and Rome were created millennia ago, the ideals and morals shared within them can still be relevant to our lives today. Ancient Greek and Roman literature are generally defined by their use of mythology and religion. In this course, students will analyze some of the most important myths and mythological figures of ancient Greece and Rome to determine how these stories can help us better understand the people and societies who believed them. Additionally, students will study how Greek and Roman art enhanced or, in some cases, contradicted the best-known versions of mythological stories.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Advanced Shakespeare

“The play’s the thing…”--- on the screen!

This course is an in-depth examination of Shakespeare’s finest as they have been adapted for film. How does premeditated murder, rampaging jealousy, cross-dressing and the never-ending search for identity play out in contemporary movies? How do directors and actors honor and/or depart from what the Bard intended when he put ink to parchment? And how do the words and actions illuminate the essential question of existence from cradle to grave: What does it mean to be human? Films on tap include Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet, Julie Taymor’s Titus Andronicus, Gil Junger’s 10 Things I Hate About You (or The Taming of the Shrew), Ian McKellen’s gleeful grotesque in Richard III, and an artistic rogue’s gallery of other screen adaptations. Students will be asked to engage intellectually and emotionally with the stories on the screen and in the text; academic requirements include active participation, analytic papers, and an oral presentation.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Advanced European Literature

In 1929, Sigmund Freud came to the astonishing conclusion that, “What we call our civilization is largely responsible for our misery.” What inspired such iconoclasm from the founding father of psychoanalysis, and did it share anything in common with the overwhelming anxiety that compelled Edvard Munch to endeavor to paint “the infinite scream of nature” nearly forty years prior? This interdisciplinary seminar will probe this and related questions by exploring significant developments in European culture and society in the period running from the Belle Époque to the close of the 1920’s. Against a backdrop of ascendant nationalism and the mounting crisis of liberalism, we will examine a wide array of writers, artists, and thinkers whose work critiqued established social norms regarding gender, class, and race. We will consider efforts in fiction, philosophy, and psychology to test and even transcend the limits of reason, along with those of modernist artists and musicians to challenge long-running assumptions concerning meaning and authenticity. Across group discussions, as well as individual research and writing, students will engage with text and context simultaneously, blending English and History in order to lay bare the profound role played by the arts and humanities in giving shape to this transformative age.

Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Feminist Literature

This interactive course will explore the rich stash of novels, plays, poetry, film, and non-fiction for and about women from a psychological and socio-political lens. Is biology destiny? Where do myth and reality diverge? What does society have to fear from strong women? What is meant by ‘closing the gender gap’—and is it beneficial to women? Close reading and seminar-style discussion will dominate the class, and papers will mix the academic and the personal. A NYC museum excursion to view female artists, or a theatrical production, will be on the docket, and women’s voices from classic to contemporary—Amazon ancestors to cover girls—will be examined.
Advanced Feminist Literature

This interactive course will explore the rich stash of novels, plays, poetry, film, and non-fiction for and about women from a psychological and socio-political lens. Is biology destiny? Where do myth and reality diverge? What does society have to fear from strong women? What is meant by ‘closing the gender gap’—and is it beneficial to women? Close reading and seminar-style discussion will dominate the class, and papers will mix the academic and the personal. A NYC museum excursion to view female artists, or a theatrical production, will be on the docket, and women’s voices from classic to contemporary—Amazon ancestors to cover girls—will be examined.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Literature of War

Why do we go to war? What is the effect of war on those who lead it, those who serve in it, those caught up in it as civilians, and those who stay at home waiting for news of it? Is there such thing as a “moral war”? Students in this course will examine these questions from a literary perspective. We will study the ways writers of nonfiction and fiction have attempted to answer these questions in a global context. The Roman philosopher and poet Horace wrote that “it is sweet and noble to die for one’s country,” a line so memorable and important that two thousand years later, it is engraved above Arlington National Cemetery. World War I poet Wilfred Owen famously called Horace’s line “The old Lie.” This course examines both perspectives. Students should expect a discussion-based seminar with both traditional analytical essays and creative projects.
Advanced Literature of War

Why do we go to war? What is the effect of war on those who lead it, those who serve in it, those caught up in it as civilians, and those who stay at home waiting for news of it? Is there such thing as a “moral war”? Students in this course will examine these questions from a literary perspective. We will study the ways writers of nonfiction and fiction have attempted to answer these questions in a global context. The Roman philosopher and poet Horace wrote that “it is sweet and noble to die for one’s country,” a line so memorable and important that two thousand years later, it is engraved above Arlington National Cemetery. World War I poet Wilfred Owen famously called Horace’s line “The old Lie.” This course examines both perspectives. Students should expect a discussion-based seminar with both traditional analytical essays and creative projects.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Journalism

What makes a story newsworthy? What makes a lead compelling or research for an article reliable? Students in this class will learn the essentials of news writing, including how to generate story ideas, craft interview questions, and uphold the ethics of journalism. This course will include reading and writing articles of all types, engaging in writing workshops with peers, and learning from professionals from the industry. Students should come away from this class with a foundation in the history of journalism, the state of journalism today, and how to write meaningful stories.
Advanced Journalism

What makes a story newsworthy? What makes a lead compelling or research for an article reliable? Students in this class will learn the essentials of news writing, including how to generate story ideas, craft interview questions, and uphold the ethics of journalism. This course will include reading and writing articles of all types, engaging in writing workshops with peers, and learning from professionals from the industry. Students should come away from this class with a foundation in the history of journalism, the state of journalism today, and how to write meaningful stories.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Literature of Racial Passing

This course will explore the literature of racial passing in America. Between the late eighteenth and mid-twentieth centuries, many racially ambiguous Black Americans passed as white. Their decision holds a mirror up to the profoundly destructive social violence of white supremacy and also poses tricky and troubling questions about the nature of identity, race, and culture. How much agency do we have in shaping our own histories and identities? How much is chosen for us? In this course, we’ll consider how the literature of passing attests to such existential and historical conundrums at a formal, narrative, and aesthetic level. In exploring these texts, we’ll consider not only how they represent the history they’re grappling with, but also how they seek to rewrite and reimagine it, opening up new and empowering avenues for expressing and conceiving of the self. Assessments will include a family history project, several short papers, group presentations, and a film/tv review.
Advanced Literature of Racial Passing

This course will explore the literature of racial passing in America. Between the late eighteenth and mid-twentieth centuries, many racially ambiguous Black Americans passed as white. Their decision holds a mirror up to the profoundly destructive social violence of white supremacy and also poses tricky and troubling questions about the nature of identity, race, and culture. How much agency do we have in shaping our own histories and identities? How much is chosen for us? In this course, we’ll consider how the literature of passing attests to such existential and historical conundrums at a formal, narrative, and aesthetic level. In exploring these texts, we’ll consider not only how they represent the history they’re grappling with, but also how they seek to rewrite and reimagine it, opening up new and empowering avenues for expressing and conceiving of the self. Assessments will include a family history project, several short papers, group presentations, and a film/tv review.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Satan in Literature

From William Blake to the Rolling Stones, some of history’s most imaginative artists have fallen under the dark spell of Satan. But what, to quote Mick Jagger, is the nature of his game? What artistic wisdom persists in the dark territory at the margins of respectable culture, in the turn to the forbidden, the banished, the exiled? In this course we’ll explore the long literary and artistic legacy of the Devil, tracing a tangled trajectory from Greek mythology and Judeo-Christian doctrine to Renaissance tragedy and the Gothic tradition and finally to twentieth- and twenty-first-century popular culture. We will use Satan as a lens through which to consider philosophical, political, and artistic questions of good and evil, authority and resistance, control and chaos. In uncovering the evolution of evil in literature, students will gain a new perspective on literature’s relationship to moral and ethical good—as Goethe’s Mephistopheles declares, “I am part of that power / Which eternally wills evil / And eternally works good.” Assessments will include formal debates, a film review, devil profiles, in-class Satan artifact presentations, and a paper.
Advanced Satan in Literature

From William Blake to the Rolling Stones, some of history’s most imaginative artists have fallen under the dark spell of Satan. But what, to quote Mick Jagger, is the nature of his game? What artistic wisdom persists in the dark territory at the margins of respectable culture, in the turn to the forbidden, the banished, the exiled? In this course we’ll explore the long literary and artistic legacy of the Devil, tracing a tangled trajectory from Greek mythology and Judeo-Christian doctrine to Renaissance tragedy and the Gothic tradition and finally to twentieth- and twenty-first-century popular culture. We will use Satan as a lens through which to consider philosophical, political, and artistic questions of good and evil, authority and resistance, control and chaos. In uncovering the evolution of evil in literature, students will gain a new perspective on literature’s relationship to moral and ethical good—as Goethe’s Mephistopheles declares, “I am part of that power / Which eternally wills evil / And eternally works good.” Assessments will include formal debates, a film review, devil profiles, in-class Satan artifact presentations, and a paper.
Prerequisite: recommendation of the student’s current instructor.
Cold War Literature

The Cold War, begun politically, turned into a cultural and philosophical battle between the Soviet Union and the U.S., then spread to the entire globe, putting pressure on writers and artists to be spokespeople for their respective ways of life. In response, writers composed political novels, poems, and films rich in social and philosophical commentary. They re-examined values, such as individual rights vs. social commitments; duty vs. freedom; power vs. cooperation; rationality vs. spirituality; sanity vs. insanity. The questions they raised will be the same ones we answer using literary texts. Is there something essentially “human,” such as a human spirit, or are we made up by our societies? What is the purpose of literature when tanks are in the streets? Under what circumstances and to what degree does an individual owe allegiance to her moral ideals? Does language serve to reveal or to mask reality? Is sanity socially or transcendentally defined? We will focus on three themes, “Mind Games”, “Human Rights,” and “Nuclear Culture” as we read a spy thriller, Le Carré’s The Spy Who Came in from the Cold; a dystopian novel, George Orwell’s 1984; and a nuclear sci-fi satire, Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. We will also read essays, music, poems, and art from Eastern European writers from the period.
Advanced Cold War Literature

The Cold War, begun politically, turned into a cultural and philosophical battle between the Soviet Union and the U.S., then spread to the entire globe, putting pressure on writers and artists to be spokespeople for their respective ways of life. In response, writers composed political novels, poems, and films rich in social and philosophical commentary. They re-examined values, such as individual rights vs. social commitments; duty vs. freedom; power vs. cooperation; rationality vs. spirituality; sanity vs. insanity. The questions they raised will be the same ones we answer using literary texts. Is there something essentially “human,” such as a human spirit, or are we made up by our societies? What is the purpose of literature when tanks are in the streets? Under what circumstances and to what degree does an individual owe allegiance to her moral ideals? Does language serve to reveal or to mask reality? Is sanity socially or transcendentally defined? We will focus on three themes, “Mind Games”, “Human Rights,” and “Nuclear Culture” as we read a spy thriller, Le Carré’s The Spy Who Came in from the Cold; a dystopian novel, George Orwell’s 1984; and a nuclear sci-fi satire, Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. We will also read essays, music, poems, and art from Eastern European writers from the period.
Rhetorical Theory

What do “Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you” and “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” have in common? Their power comes from arrangement: antithesis and parallelism work together to create a punchy, memorable idea. But rhetoric is also an art. In order to develop our own writing and speaking skills toward powerful persuasion, we will critically evaluate the rhetoric of influential speakers both ancient and modern and apply what we learn to craft our own persuasive essays and speeches to convince each other of a point of view, as memorably and fluently as possible. We will consider audience identity and makeup, the purpose and occasion, the historical moment, as well as our own passions so that we mean what we say.
Advanced Rhetorical Theory

What do “Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you” and “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” have in common? Their power comes from arrangement: antithesis and parallelism work together to create a punchy, memorable idea. But rhetoric is also an art. In order to develop our own writing and speaking skills toward powerful persuasion, we will critically evaluate the rhetoric of influential speakers both ancient and modern and apply what we learn to craft our own persuasive essays and speeches to convince each other of a point of view, as memorably and fluently as possible. We will consider audience identity and makeup, the purpose and occasion, the historical moment, as well as our own passions so that we mean what we say.
Advanced Literary Scholars Seminar

This course serves as a college-level research experience for our Literary Scholars. Students accepted into the program will complete a detailed explication of primary literary sources, literary criticism research, an interdisciplinary approach to the study of literature. Monthly presentations on research will be given, and a substantive research paper will be due in May. Additionally, Literary Scholars will present their research at the Scholars Symposium in April.
Prerequisite: acceptance into the Literary Scholars program.