Courses

• CAS RN 555: Dante's Hell
  A close reading of one text, Dante Aligheri’s Inferno, with attention to its medieval contexts: philosophical, theological, and historical. Analysis of the poetic means by which Dante represents both human evil and human hope. Bi-lingual text. Lectures and discussion in English. Also offered as CAS LI 555 and CAS XL 383.
• CAS RN 556: Dante: The Divine Comedy II: Purgatorio and Paradiso
  Focus on the literary, philosophical, and theological ideas Dante uses to represent his experience of himself and of human nature. Bi-lingual texts. Lectures and discussions in English. Also offered as CAS LI 556.
• CAS RN 560: The Politics of Religion, Ethnicity, and Nationalism in International Relations
  Explores causes, consequences, and patterns of resurgent religion, ethnicity, and nationalism in post-Cold War international relations, using interdisciplinary scholarship, policy literatures, and case studies.
• CAS RN 561: Religion and International Relations
  (Meets with CAS IR 561.) Explores the role of religion in contemporary international relations in the context of questions about the common core of modernity. Reviews scholarly and policy literature, and case studies, in order to elucidate religion’s intellectual and operational diversity in international relations.
• CAS RN 571: Literature of Memory I
  Topic for Fall 2010: Elie Wiesel, Author: Fiction. Examines the development of Elie Wiesel as a novelist from a selection of his fictional works. Particular attention is paid to the books' structures, themes, and moral lessons. Provides an opportunity to study these works with the author himself.
• CAS RN 572: Literature of Memory II
  Topic for Fall 2010: Elie Wiesel, Author: Non-Fiction. Explores Elie Wiesel's non-fiction writing. Using his memoirs, Biblical interpretations, and reflections on prominent Hasidic masters, we seek to better comprehend the ethical voice in his work. Provides the opportunity to explore these issues with Professor Wiesel himself.
• CAS RN 577: Literature of Memory III: Faith and Tragedy
  From antiquity to modern times, writers have tried to capture what is essential in human nature by composing tragedies. What defines tragedy? How does the tragic form provide occasions for ethical examination? We will explore tragic literature from Sophocles to Miller and from Shakespeare to Shaw, as well as theories of tragedy from Aristotle to Brecht. Preference given to seniors and graduate students.
• CAS RN 578: Literature of Memory IV: Hope and Despair in Chasidism
  The Chasidic revolution, originating in Eastern Europe, altered the course of religious history by introducing radically innovative models of spiritual life that remained grounded in classical Jewish tradition. This course will explore central tensions between the Chasidic emphasis on joy and the experience of despair. How does one find hope in desperate times? How do fundamental principles impact a community's ability to generate constructive belief in the face of anguish? How did some of the great Jewish religious figures of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries negotiate choices surrounding faith and melancholy, deal with the temptation to despair, and foster hope. Preference given to seniors and graduate students.
• CAS RN 583: Literature of Memory V: Faith and Destruction
  Examines the role of faith-- as question, outcry, and absurdity-- during and after the Holocaust. The role of faith in catalyzing resistance or causing resignation to evil, the varieties of faith, and the faith and doubt of survivors are examined. Is faith after devastation possible? How were survivors' beliefs transformed? Is absurd faith still faith?
• CAS RN 584: Literature of Memory VI: Biblical Choices
  Examines some of the fateful decisions faced by biblical characters, from Adam and Eve through David. Is there a biblical theology of decision-making? What is the nature of choice and human agency in the biblical economy? Morality, narrative, and theology serve as guiding issues. Close reading of biblical and secondary texts.
• CAS SO 100: Principles in Sociology
  An introduction to the major theories and basic principles of sociological analysis. Subjects include methods of social research and investigation; role of individuals in groups, organizations, and society; socialization and education; stratification; race and ethnicity; science, culture, and religion; formal and informal organization; and economic and political systems.
• CAS SO 108: Introduction to Sociology: Community
  Basic concepts, theories, and ways of studying interpersonal relations and large-scale societal conditions through the types of communities that human beings make. Includes several assignments where students become familiar with everyday life in Boston.
• CAS SO 115: Introduction to Sociology: Law and Society
  Law and deviance as complementary aspects of the basic relationship between the individual and society. Structure and culture of agencies that maintain law and order. Students are expected to observe in court settings.
• CAS SO 201: Sociological Methods
  Required of concentrators and minor concentrators. Scientific method, measurement, experimentation, survey research, observational methods, projective techniques, and content analysis.
• CAS SO 203: Introduction to Sociological Theories
  Required of concentrators and minor concentrators. Theoretical problems in sociology. Historical background of theories and methods of sociology; characteristics of most significant sociological systems.
• CAS SO 205: The American Family
  Nature of the American family and its ethnic and class variants. Social changes affecting courtship, mate selection, sexual behavior, reproduction, marital stability, and divorce through the life cycle. Social policies affecting family life. Interrelations of family with economy, state, religion, and other institutions.
• CAS SO 207: Introduction to Ethnic, Race, and Minority Relations
  Social definition of race and ethnicity. The adjustment of different ethnic groups and their impact upon U.S. social life. How prejudice and discrimination create class identities and how caste relations have affected patterns of integration during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
• CAS SO 208: Sociological Approaches to Current Issues
  Topic for Spring 2009: Sociology of Death and Dying: Trends and patterns of behavior associated with death and dying. Addresses historical perspectives, cultural definitions, social changes, demographic patterns, and medical technology. Special attention given to death rituals, such as wakes and funerals.
• CAS SO 209: Crime and Delinquency
  Analysis of criminal and delinquent behavior. Evaluation of current theories and research into causes and sociological implications of these behavior patterns. Examination of criminal justice systems, including police, courts, and corrections.
• CAS SO 210: Confronting Persistent Social Inequalities in American Schools: Educational and Sociological Perspectives
  Examines issues of race, culture, gender, and identity in urban elementary classrooms. Course taught at the Trotter School; transportation provided. Includes a field placement.

Note that this information may change at any time.

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