Fall 2021 Honors Legacies Course Descriptions

JOHN HUNT, Dr. or Professor, History / Political Science HONR 2000— Magic and Witchcraft from Antiquity to the Renaissance

Until the Enlightenment, most men and women in pre-modern Europe believed in the reality and potency of magic. Ancient Romans betting on chariot races employed curse tablets to ensure their horses would win the competition. Medieval alchemists sought to discover the elixir of life and necromancers summoned demons through esoteric rituals to do their nefarious biddings. In the Renaissance, thousands of women were accused of diabolical witchcraft when they were simply practicing an age-old form of love magic. Even Isaac Newton dabbled in the Cabala and alchemy. This course will explore the social and cultural functions of magic from Greco-Roman Antiquity until the Renaissance and Scientific Revolution. Particularly, we will focus on meaning of magic in people’s lives, its relation to religion and science, the gendered politics of sorcery that led to the great witch hunts of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and the decline of the magical worldview during the eighteenth century.

These themes will be examined through class discussion and several essays that encourage creative thought and critical reflection. Core texts include the following books: Apuleius’s The Golden Ass, which tells the story of an unfortunate youth in Roman Greece whose fascination with the magic arts leads to a series of misadventures; Guido Ruggiero’s Binding Passions, an exploration of magic, sex, and power through the Inquisition trials of Renaissance Venice; and a collection of sources on magic and witchcraft in Medieval and Renaissance Europe. A few journal articles will supplement and add context to these readings.

RUEN-CHUAN MA, Assistant Professor, English & Literature HONR 2000— Legacies and Resonant Ideas Through Time and Across Various Cultures

What are “ancient legacies” and how do they have bearing on contemporary society? By seeking to uncover the ways in which the past is relevant to the present, working with the very idea of “legacies” transcends temporal and spatial boundaries. This section of Ancient Legacies takes an intercultural and interdisciplinary approach towards understanding important works of literature, philosophy, and art from before 1600. The main goal is to examine recurrent, resonant ideas through time and across different cultures, and in doing so, foster an appreciation of how and why these ideas become influential and remain relevant. For example, in reading the Old English poem Judith, which is based on the biblical story of Judith slaying Holofernes, alongside the Chinese poem The Ballad of Mulan, what can we learn about the representation of female identity, specifically women heroes? More broadly speaking, what can we learn from reading ancient and medieval works alongside their contemporary adaptations? We will read works that are familiar because of their place in the western canon (Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales) and works that, while less widely read, provide fascinating avenues of insight into the literature of the past (e.g., Refugee Tales, an adaptation of the Canterbury Tales set in modern-day Britain). We will cover a wide range of themes that include, but are not limited to, religion and spirituality, learning, social commentary, encounters with foreign cultures, and gender relationships.

Fall 2021 Honors Legacies Course Descriptions

THOMAS BRETZ, Assistant Professor, Philosophy HONR 2000— Humans and Our Relationship to Nature and the Cosmos

In this class we are going to consider various stories and accounts that humans have developed in order to understand and make sense of their relationships to nature (both living and non-living) and their position in the larger cosmos. We will mostly consider ancient and medieval works (although we are going to contrast some of these understandings with more modern understandings of the human place in the world). Some of the major concerns we are going to encounter in these writings, among others, is whether human beings have responsibilities towards the rest of the cosmos, whether humans are exceptional in the cosmos or how humans fit into the wider order of the cosmos, and how we can understand human origins and purpose. We are going to consider some of the major traditions that are currently present as or have influenced U.S. American cultures such as Ancient Greek, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Taoist and North American Indigenous thought.

SHANNON MUSSETT, Professor, Assistant Department Chair, Philosophy HONR 2000—Ancient Literature, Tragedy, Religion, and More

Using primary texts drawn from the genres of poetry, philosophy, literature, and religion, this course surveys an extensive period of ancient and medieval history from an interdisciplinary and multicultural perspective. We begin at the origins of Greek literature with Homer’s The Iliad, a work central to the education of ancient Greek citizens. Following this, we study Greek tragedy in the writings of Aeschylus, and philosophy in select Platonic dialogues. We then turn to a study of religion in the Book of Job and Buddhism. Next, we engage in a comparative reading of medieval literature in the figures of Murasaki Shikibu and Ibn Tufayl, as well as explore stories and philosophy from Indigenous communities. As an Honors course, this class emphasizes the interpretation of these texts through careful reading, writing, and engaging class discussion.

ROB CARNEY, Professor - English HONR 2100— Dystopian Literature

“Do you think, then, that we should attempt such a survey? For it is, I assure you, too big a task to undertake without thought.” “‘We know what we are in for,’ returned Adeimantus, ‘go on.’” (58) —Plato, The Republic

The questions raised by Plato are some that we will pursue all semester. They’re foundational. The States and possible futures built on that foundation are too many to list, so we’ll focus on a few renowned and lesser-known works in the dystopian genre and ask, “Futuristic fiction: paranoia or prophecy?” This is fun, of course, but not as easy as it sounds. There’s a lot of academic attention paid to these works, and many scholars liken dystopian authors to Old Testament prophets speaking out in the predominant form of our age. Another way to think of it is this: These fictive works are philosophy and social critique done as demonstration rather than discussion. We’ll be doing a little bit of both as we interpret novels, short-stories, philosophy, and film and do some discussing, group presenting, and writing.

Fall 2021 Honors Legacies Course Descriptions

T. HEATH OGDEN, Associate Professor, Biology HONR 2100—The Evolution of Evolution and its Impact on Society

Evolution is the central organizing concept of Biology and evolution “unites … the world of purposeless, meaningless, matter-in-motion on the one side with the world of purpose, meaning, and design on the other” (Daniel Dennet). The course will investigate the rich history of evolutionary thought and its impact on society. Because evolution is a scientific theory we will overview what science is (and is not) and why scientific thinking and critical thinking are a necessary part of informing our worldviews. We will examine the people and ideas that predate Darwin and how they influenced him. We will dedicate significant time to Darwin and his contemporaries (Wallace and others) and the ideas of natural selection, tree like thinking, and the book Origin of Species. We will follow evolutionary advancements to modern day, highlighting how evolution affects our modern world. And we will examine science and society, including areas of supposed conflict between evolution and religion.

ASHLEY EGAN, Assistant Professor, Biology HONR 2100— Wilderness Writing

Wilderness abounds in Utah, with >75% of our state designated as public lands. National and state parks, designated wilderness areas, and BLM lands all provide natural areas with varying degrees of wildness. This immersion-based class will give students the opportunity to interact with wilderness on its own terms, to write about their experiences through free- and directed writing activities, and to synthesize their own opinions and understanding of wilderness. Students will explore-- through reading, writing, and direct experiential education--the value of biodiversity and community as well as the purpose, function and sociocultural construction of wilderness and their place in it. The dual focus on place-consciousness and community development will work together to help students develop an environmental ethic and a capacity for both stewardship and leadership. The purpose of this writing- intensive course is to enhance student learning and awareness of the natural world and wilderness through personal interactions in natural environments and through meditative, reflective and creative writing. Students will learn about nature and about themselves through a series of intense, engaging activities such as snowshoeing in Wasatch Mountain State Park, spelunking in Timpanogos Caverns, kayaking the waters of the Green River, or camping under the desert stars while developing confidence and skill in the processes of composition through a student-centered writer’s workshop approach. Multiple overnight trips are required for this course, potentially including one over fall break.

BRIAN BIRCH, Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Center for the Study of Ethics and Director of the Religious Studies Program HONR 2100— The Challenge of Religious Diversity

This course will explore the historical and theoretical development of the problem of religious diversity. These issues lie at the heart of the rise of modernism, so we will trace how concepts of diversity developed from the Renaissance to the present day. Students will examine classic and contemporary texts in legal theory, philosophy, theology, and religious studies. Authors include Thomas More, Roger Williams, John Locke, Martha Nussbaum, James Madison, Diana Eck, Talal Asad, and others.