Course Listings

Using Memphis, TN as the context, students in this course will study a variety of issues related to urban education. The course culminates in a week-long immersion trip to Memphis (May 10-15), where students will work with host teachers in Memphis public schools. Additionally, students will have opportunities to job-shadow in organizations related to urban development, education policy, and youth services. Enrollment through Registrar's Office With permission from instructor. This course will satisfy the Diversity Requirement for the PPE major.

From the medieval period until today, the legend of King Arthur and his round table of knights has persisted in the cultural imagination. In this class, we will read some of the most lasting iterations of the Arthurian myths, including the 15th-century classic Le Morte D'Arthur, the 19th-century retelling Idylls of the King, and more modern retellings and films. The class takes as its thesis that each generation creates the Arthurian legends anew to reflect the spirit of the age. This one-half credit course meets three times a week for the second half of the semester. Prerequisites: none.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) was one of the greatest theologians of the 20th century, despite dying an early death at the hands of the Nazis. A Lutheran pastor and near-pacifist, he was involved with a plot to assassinate Hitler and was hanged for it, but not before producing a number of fascinating theological works about community, vocation, discipleship and politics. In this course we will learn about his remarkable life as well as engage key texts from his theological writings. Prerequisites: REL 171 or 172 recommended, but not required.

Topics in Comparative Religion: Symbol & Myth. 2nd Half-Semester. Do myths and symbols belong in the skill-set of people living in a modern scientific world? Or are they playthings for nerds or soft-minded romantics? What exactly are symbols? Myths? What do they do? Are they socially constructed? Archetypal? Something else? How important are they for religion? Can you have a religion that's "demythologized"? Should you? These are some of the questions that we'll tackle in this half-course. We'll read selections from, among others, Mircea Eliade and Wendy Doniger, as well as their critics. Using film and other media, we'll also read or look at a variety of myths, both ancient and modern. .5 course credit. 2nd half-semester. Prerequisites: None. Course limited to 20.