Humanities
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CGS HU 101: Humanities I: Traditions in the Humanities (The Ancient World through the Renaissance)
Organized historically and devoted to the study of fiction, drama, poetry, art, and film. The semester begins with a unit on ways of interpreting the humanities, proceeds with the study of literature and art from Ancient Greece through the seventeenth century, and includes a film studies component. -
CGS HU 102: Humanities II: Breaks with Tradition (The Enlightenment to the Present)
Examines the departure from tradition characteristic of the modern in all the arts. Units of study include poetry, modern art, modern drama, and the novel. Particular themes may be stressed, such as, for example, the recurrence in modern culture of the antihero, formal experiment in the arts, or literature as the embodiment of values. Students also analyze five films by distinguished contemporary directors. -
CGS HU 201: Humanities III: History of Western Ethical Philosophy (Plato to Nietzsche)
A rigorous course in the history of Western ethical thought from Socrates through Nietzsche. The course also includes selected films and literary works that embody philosophical ideas or dramatize ethical dilemmas. Primary texts are used throughout. -
CGS HU 202: Humanities IV: History of 20th-Century Ethical Philosophy and Applied Ethics
This is a course with two goals: first, the application of philosophical ideas to various areas of modern life, such as politics, science, business, personal development, education, and religious faith; and second, preparation for the Capstone Project. This final project involves each faculty team with small groups of students. The students in each group choose a specific current problem, research it, and synthesize their work in all their courses at the College by producing a 50-page research essay. This essay must include a recommendation for a solution to the problem that is justified politically, scientifically, and ethically. Each student is expected to contribute research and imagination to the group's report, which is presented in written form, examined by the faculty, then defended orally by the students before their instructors.
