HONR 300 Directed Reading
(4 credits)
Wilson, Josephine
Prerequisite: Junior Honors students only
This course is intended to help students explore topics in preparation for the Senior Honors Thesis. Readings for the course will include theses written by former Wittenberg Honors students as well as books and articles selected by individual students, in consultation with the course instructor, as they develop a bibliography for a thesis. WRITING INTENSIVE.
HONR 300A The Darkness Within
(4 credits)
Richards, Cynthia
Swamps, closets, the occasional summer camp, that's where monsters live. But during times of cultural disruption and political change, monsters can live far closer to home. We may find them in our own mirror, the self and our own identity made strange through the prism of a world in flux.
This course will examine the literary representation of this darkness within, and the broader historical and cultural contexts coloring it. We will begin with Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, move on to Charles Brockden Brown's Weiland, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, all works which produce monsters out of the revolutions of the eighteenth century. We will then look at the effects of twentieth-century totalitarian states on the individual psyche, through works such as George Orwell's 1984 and Milan Kundera's The Joke. The darkness within women has proved particularly problematic for both male and female writers, and we will examine nineteenth-century and contemporary representations of monstrous women. Finally, we will look at the crime story, and how in American culture its villains often become its heroes, the darkness within our culture shedding a light on the complexities of our most deeply-held values. Both Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and Truman Capot's In Cold Blood will attest to this phenomenon.
The course will be WRITING INTENSIVE, and will include three analytical papers, a comprehensive take-home exam, and a researched report. Students will also participate in formal oral presentations.
HONR 300S Leadership in Management
(4 credits)
Schindler, Pamela
Prerequisite: ENGL 101
Often a deeper discussion and understanding of concepts like leadership can be found in books revealing applications of these concepts in real managerial settings. Authors writing such books often use established empirical methods for proving their thesis or create new methodologies. Each may also develop new terminology for emerging industry practices. Students will read a range of books related to leadership and exceptional performance under different types of leaders. Class sessions will be primarily book discussions and presentations. Grades will be based on discussion contributions, written book analysis, author and manager profiles, and discussion session management. Students who have completed MGT 290: Contemporary Issues in Management are not eligible to take this course. WRITING INTENSIVE.
HONR 300S Understanding Violence: Theory, Research, and Practice
McEvoy, Alan
If there is an essential "human nature," arguably that nature tends to be violent. Throughout history, we humans have displayed a remarkable inclination toward violence - persistent warfare, murder, family violence, sexual assault, bullying, personal vendettas, and acts of self-destruction are but a few examples. This course emphasizes the importance of race, gender, age, ethnicity, religion, psychology, and cultural variations as contextual elements in the experienced of violence. Students are expected to apply theory and conduct original research on selected aspects of violence. The development of research skills, assessing best practices, and learning to write both reflective narrative and analytical critique are central learning goals The underlying premise throughout is that violence is a choice - it is not a predetermined and inevitable feature of human nature - and that - compassionate understanding has no counterpoint. WRITING INTENSIVE.
