Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21965

In Person | Topics Lecture 4

St Paul: In Person

Requirements Met:
     Writing to learn

  Ora Itkin, Tim Ketcher

The Fragmented Self: Modernity and the Poetics of Re-Enchantment - “Long before humans spoke, the universe sang." The technologically advanced world we live in offers never before seen wonders of comfort and convenience. Yet, we find ourselves increasingly estranged, disconnected, and at a loss for meaning. Perhaps now is the time to ask ourselves: how much of our de-mystified, hyper-rationalized world are we willing to sacrifice in order to discover re-enchantment? The Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution affected a shift in consciousness Weber termed “disenchantment:” in their wake, the cosmos could no longer be viewed as a mysterious divine order intimating the purpose and meaning of human existence. Seemingly cut off from transcendental truths encountered in a structured, ordered world, science demythologized the unconscious and desacralized Nature. The disenchantment of the modern age that followed increasingly led to a sense of fragmentation and disorientation in a world seemingly bereft of metaphysical purpose and significance. Expressed in poetry and music in particular, Modernity birthed a conception of the self as a fluid, ephemeral vehicle of improvisation, an epiphenomenal residue of social, economic, and cultural forces, a construct of language and interpretation. Charles Taylor, in his book, Cosmic Connections: Poetry in the Age of Disenchantment, traces the development of the modern self through poetry’s attempt to reveal, illuminate, and unveil the hidden, transcendental order thought to inhere in the substructure of the world. In this seminar, using Taylor’s book as a guide alongside concepts developed in Heidegger’s Being and Time, we will engage in a close reading, and listening to, of modern poetry and music from the Age of Enlightenment through the Romantics, Symbolists/Surrealists, and Modernists in order to shed light on the nature of the self in an age of disenchantment. We will pay particular attention to the way in which poetry and music serve as a vehicle for different kinds of “vision,” providing revelation and an unveiling of cosmic meaning considered essential for reintegration after the fragmentation of Modernity. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21966

In Person | Topics Lecture 5

St Paul: In Person

Requirements Met:
     Writing to learn

  James Snapko, Christopher Kachian

Storytelling Through Music & Film - Even in the earliest silent forms of cinema, music has been an integral part connecting to an audience and telling a story. The purpose of this seminar is to shed light on these interconnected art forms by introducing students to the practical theories and creation of each discipline. What better way to understand the inextricable bond music and film have than to create a film based on a piece of music as the narrative impulse? The film industry standard these days is to use music as an afterthought. But this course will operate in reverse. We will use music as a basis of narrative filmmaking; the music students choose or create will become the sonic script of the films they will produce. Students will begin the course with a formal study of music theory and hands-on instruction of filmmaking practices. Students will make movies based on the music they choose or create. Part of this course involves using industry standard software and we will spend time learning software programs that allow students to create music for film and editing software to assemble the films. Students will also have the opportunity to learn basic filmmaking techniques with digital film cameras. Students need not have any formal training in music or filmmaking to participate and succeed in this seminar. By the end of the semester, students will be composers, music supervisors, and filmmakers. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21968

In Person | Topics Lecture 6

St Paul: In Person

  Patricia Maddox, Seth Quam

Building a Culture of Consent: A Social Action Course for Preventing Violence on Campus - This course blends sociological action frameworks with public health practice to equip students with the tools to take meaningful action against rape culture in higher education. Moving beyond theory, the bulk of the course emphasizes applied, student-led social action. Students will engage in hands-on projects to design, implement, and evaluate campus-based initiatives aimed at violence prevention, education, and cultural transformation. These may include awareness campaigns, policy advocacy, bystander intervention training, survivor-support programs, or restorative justice dialogues. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 20536

In Person | Topics Lecture 7

St Paul: In Person

  Monica Hartmann, Kathryn Combs

Freakonomics: Adventure into Real-World Economics - The Freakonomics books and podcasts cover intriguing and provocative topics that overlap multiple disciplines. We will explore the importance of relying on data rather than conventional wisdom in getting to the root of a problem. We also will examine how incentives influence behavior and how this behavioral perspective may alter how to address a problem. As we delve into interdisciplinary topics like parenting, online dating, legal battles between Taylor Swift fans and Ticketmaster, crime trends, environmental challenges, and labor market dynamics, we invite students to use the tools learned in this class in conjunction with insights from other disciplines, especially from their majors and minors. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21972

In Person | Topics Lecture 8

St Paul: In Person

  Eugenia Gavrilyuk

Art as a Theological Act - Through the ages, the relationship between religion and the art has been mutually enriching, resulting in some of the world's masterpieces of visual art, architecture, music, and literature. In this course, students will consider the theological dimensions of the complex relationship between theology and the arts, focusing primarily on the Judeo-Christian and Muslim traditions. Different- ancient and modern- as well as non-Christian approaches to beauty and art will be considered. Through reading original texts, analyzing selected works of art we will discuss the religious or theological dimension art and how religion can define, perceive, and explain the nature and goal of artistic creativity. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21967

In Person | Topics Lecture 9

St Paul: In Person

  Vanessa Rousseau, Codrina Ewbank-Popescu

Have you ever wondered how artworks are authenticated? Or how unknown objects are identified? Or how artistic and scientific curiosity helped materials evolve? This course seeks to explore how artists, art conservators and chemists work together to analyze artworks and uncover artistic processes, production methods, materials development, as well as degradation and changes of artworks in time. Employing different disciplines and forms of inquiry can produce a deeper understanding of materials, art objects and their contexts than is possible from the perspective of a single field. Such interdisciplinary inquiry can also help answer questions related to dating, geography, culture, and authenticity. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21963

In Person | Topics Lecture 1

St Paul: In Person

Core Requirements Met:
     [Core] Integ/Humanities

Other Requirements Met:
     Writing to learn

  Ginny Contreras, Fernando Contreras Flamand

Between Worlds: Narratives of Home and Belonging - This interdisciplinary seminar examines the deep and inextricable ties between place of origin, identity, and belonging through the study of literature, film, and personal narrative. It explores how our sense of home and identity is shaped—and reshaped—by movement across cities, states, or nations, whether by choice or circumstance, and considers what is gained, lost, or transformed in the process. Co-taught by a professor of English and a professor of Spanish, the course places texts and stories in dialogue across languages and cultures, highlighting how writers and artists navigate themes of displacement, home, and cultural encounter. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university. Students will engage with works by authors such as Javier Zamora, Valeria Luiselli, Michelle Zauner, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and watch films such as The Hate U Give and Home is Somewhere Else, along with other works exploring migration and identity, to deepen understanding through visual storytelling. Alongside literary and cinematic analysis, students will experiment with bilingual storytelling, reflective writing, and creative projects that invite them to consider the politics of language, codeswitching, and what it means to examine a lived experience—our own or another’s—through a different cultural or moral framework.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21964

In Person | Topics Lecture 2

St Paul: In Person

Core Requirements Met:
     [Core] Integ/Humanities

Other Requirements Met:
     Writing to learn

  Kathya Dawe

This introductory course pairs core concepts in international human rights with hands-on storytelling. We will examine rights such as education, health, freedom from torture, freedom of expression, and due process through current examples and class discussion. In parallel, students will learn the basics of making short documentaries—planning and scripting, ethical interviewing and consent, on-camera presence, and practical approaches to framing and sound—always with real-world constraints like time limits and audience needs in mind. No editing software is required; we will focus on capturing clear, compelling stories with the tools you already have. No prior experience in law, human rights, or video is required. A smartphone with a camera is sufficient. By the end of the semester, students will have: (1) created a concise, evidence-informed short documentary on a human-rights topic of their choice; (2) conducted and recorded at least one interview with a guest practitioner invited to class (with consent and ethics protocols); and (3) delivered a filmed presentation explaining one international human-rights convention and its real-world relevance. The course emphasizes clear communication, practical skills, and constructive peer feedback to help translate ideas into responsible, compelling media. These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits

Subject: Honors (HONR)

CRN: 21973

In Person | Topics Lecture 3

St Paul: In Person

Core Requirements Met:
     [Core] Integ/Humanities

Other Requirements Met:
     Writing to learn

  David Williard, Gregory Robinson-Riegler

Memory: Cognition, Representation, and Social Function - This course examines memory in two related disciplinary contexts. While history and psychology as disciplines both situate questions of how events are remembered, what gets remembered, the fallibility and reliability of memory, and the relationship between power and remembrance as foundational questions, the disciplines have differing approaches to where the study of memory should originate and what it can reveal. In psychology, memory as cognition emerges from how the brain processes events and engages questions of what processes determine how the mind selects, stores, and retains information by attaching meaning. For historians, memory has deep importance to examining both the veracity of evidence and the processes by which societies and groups develop identity consciousness through selecting what moments merit significance in commemorative or cautionary memorialization. We will place the cognitive psychological processes of individual memory and the social implications of collective memory in dialog to ask: what makes human experience? These interdisciplinary seminars are intended to develop integrating insights through an analysis of topics chosen from different disciplines. Often they are taught by two faculty members or by a visiting lecturer who holds one of the endowed chairs at the university.

2 Credits