May 10, 2024

Catalogue 2013-2014

Catalogue 2013-2014 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Course Descriptions

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French and Francophone Studies: I. Introductory
	FREN 109 - Basic French Review 1 unit(s) For students who have had some French but who are not yet ready for an intermediate course. Students learn to understand spoken French, to express simple ideas both orally and in writing, and to read French of average difficulty. While enhancing their communicative skills, students acquire knowledge of France and the Francophone world. Enrollment limited by class. The department. Three 50-minute periods, 2 hours of drill and oral practice. Two 75-minute periods. Open only to Freshmen. Satisfies the college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar. Placement test required. Students must successfully complete the proficiency exam at the end of the semester in order to satisfy the foreign language requirement with this course. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 186 - Meeting Places: Bars, Streets, Cafés Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.” This bitter observation, made by the owner of “Rick’s Café” in the 1942 American-made film Casablanca, is often misquoted as, “she had to walk into mine.” Indeed, the unexpected encounter with a past acquaintance or stranger is a necessary catalyst that sets in motion the plot of many a novel or film. This course looks at literary or cinematic chance meetings that occur in three kinds of locales: the bar, the street, and the café. While studying bars, streets, or cafés as narrative meeting places, we simultaneously consider France’s relation to the larger “place,” or geographical region, in which each story of a chance meeting unfolds. After viewing Michael Curtiz’s film Casablanca, set in French-occupied Morocco, our explorations take us to the city of Paris in André Breton’s Nadja, to Amsterdam in Albert Camus’ The Fall, to French Indochina in Marguerite Duras’ The Lover, and then back to France with Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s The Fabulous Destiny of Amélie Poulain. Finally, we return to the film Casablanca, better equipped to understand why, if all roads lead to Casablanca, then all roads in Casablanca “must” lead to Rick’s Café. The course is taught in English. All works are read in translation. Ms. Hart. Two 75-minute periods. Open only to Freshmen. Satisfies the college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.
French and Francophone Studies: II. Intermediate The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 .
	FREN 205 - Intermediate French I Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Basic grammar review and vocabulary acquisition. Oral and written practice using short texts, audiovisual and on-line resources. Enrollment limited by class. The department. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (French 205), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 105 -FREN 106 , or permission of the instructor. Not open to students who have taken a course at or above the 206 level. Three 50-minute or two 75-minute periods; one hour of scheduled oral practice. Enrollment limited by class. Placement test required.
	FREN 206 - Intermediate French II Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) Emphasis on more complex linguistic structures. Reading, writing, and speaking skills are developed through discussion of cultural and literary texts and use of audiovisual material. The course prepares students linguistically for cultural and literary study at the intermediate level. The department. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (French 206), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 205 or permission of the instructor. Not open to students who have taken a course at or above the 210 level. Three 50-minute or two 75-minute periods; one hour of scheduled oral practice. Enrollment limited by class. Placement test required.
	FREN 210 - The Francophone World Through Text, Sound, and Image Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) Introduction to the Francophone world and to basic modes of interpretation and analysis through the study and discussion of short texts (print or online magazine or newspaper articles, short stories, essays), films, and other visual or recorded media. The course includes a grammar workshop, vocabulary building, essay writing, image analysis, and “explication de texte.” Review and expansion of more complex linguistic structures and proficiency skills serve as preparation for the TCF exam, and upper 200-level courses. The department. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (French 210), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of French 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 206 or equivalent. Three 50-minute or two 75-minute periods; one hour of scheduled oral practice. Enrollment limited by class. Placement test required.
	FREN 212 - Reading Literature and Film Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) Introductory study of French and Francophone literature and cinema through the analysis and discussion of poetry, short fiction, theater, the essay, and film. Biographical information, cultural context, historical background, critical theory, and the evolution of genre are explored. The department. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing French 212. FREN 210 or equivalent. Enrollment limited by class. Placement test required.
	FREN 228 - Tellers and Tales Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Study of narrative fiction using short stories taken from several periods of French literature. Mr. Andrews. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent.
	FREN 230 - Medieval and Early Modern Times 1 unit(s) Studies in French literature, history, and culture from the Medieval to the Classical period. Topic for 2012/13a: The Politics of Seduction. Introduction to the literature and culture of France, with a special focus on woman as subject and object of desire. Readings include Tristan et Iseut, the love poetry of Ronsard and Labé, La Princesse de Clèves, a story of illicit passion by France’s first prominent female novelist, and classical theater’s greatest masterpieces of love and deception authored by Corneille, Racine, and Molière. The course concludes with Denis Diderot’s daring and celebrated narrative, La Religieuse, about a young woman’s struggle for emancipation in pre-Revolutionary France. Ms. Kerr. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 231 - Revolutionary France and Its Legacies 1 unit(s) Studies in French literature, history, and culture in relation to the French Revolution during the Enlightenment and the Romantic period. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two-75 minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 232 - The Modern Age 1 unit(s) The course explores literary, artistic, social, or political manifestations of modern French society and its relation to the French-speaking world from the Napoleonic Empire to the present. Topic for 2012/13b: Music and Text. From Bizet’s opera Carmen, inspired by Prosper Mérimée’s nineteenth-century novella, to modern cultural practices including rap, raï, slam, and environmentally focused sound recordings, the course examines literary language in relation to music. How does language “sing,” and what does music “say?” If music performs a “socially prescribed task,” as musicologist Richard Middleton proposes, then what do various combinations of music and language suggest about specific moments in French history? We address this question by considering music and literature both separately and together in relation to class, gender, ethnicity, and national identity. Readings include song lyrics, poetry by Charles Baudelaire and Paul Verlaine, a play by Marguerite Duras, and fiction by Germaine de Staël and Jean-Paul Sartre. Required films are Edmond T. Gréville’s Princesse Tam-Tam, Jaco van Dormael’s Toto le héros, and Christophe Barratier’s Les choristes. Ms. Hart. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 235 - Contemporary France Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) This course offers a study of French society as it has been shaped by the major historical and cultural events since WWII. The main themes include Vichy France, de Gaulle’s regime, the wars of French decolonization, the Mitterrand years, immigration, and the religious issues facing France today. The course draws on a variety of texts and documents including articles from the press and movies. Ms. Célérier. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing French FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent.
	FREN 240 - Grammar and Composition Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) A course designed to improve written expression through the study and practice of various forms of writing, readings, and oral practice as well as an in-depth study of major aspects of French grammar. Mr. Reyes (a), Mr. Andrews (b). Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent.
	FREN 241 - Composition and Conversation 1 unit(s) A course designed to improve written and oral expression, through the study and practice of various forms of writing, and the discussion of readings on contemporary issues. Enrollment limited by class. Mr. Andrews. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 242 - Studies in Genre I 1 unit(s) Study of narrative and prose forms including the novel, autobiography, and the essay. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . another 200-level course above FREN 206 or equivalent. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 243 - Studies in Genre II 1 unit(s) Study of dramatic and lyric forms including theater, poetry, and song. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 244 - French Cinema 1 unit(s) Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods plus evening film screenings. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 246 - French-Speaking Cultures and Literatures of Africa and the Caribbean Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as AFRS 246 ) Topic for 2013/2014b: What Does Comic Art Say? African comic art comes in a variety of styles, languages, and formats. From the comic strip, found in newspapers and magazines, to developmental and political cartoons, it interfaces with journalism, painting, advertising, television, film and music. Having placed comic art in its theoretical context, we analyze the production of francophone ‘bédéistes’ (cartoonists) from and on Africa, such as Marguerite Abouet and Clément Oubrerie’s Aya de Yopougon, Edimo-Simon-Pierre Mbumbo’s Malamine, un Africain à Paris, Pahé’s La vie de Pahé, Serge Diantantu’s Simon Kimbangu, Arnaud Floc’h’s La compagnie des cochons and Stassen Les Enfants. We also examine how cartoon characters such as Camphy Combo and Gorgooloo, respectively in Gbich! and Le Cafard Libéré, represent the complexities of francophone African urban society at the turn of the century. Ms. Célérier. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods.
	FREN 280 - Black Majesty: Fashioning the First King of Haiti Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . FREN 210 or FREN 212 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods.
	FREN 284 - A Taste of Terroir: French Methodologies for Experiencing the Earth Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as CLCS 284 ) The uniquely French concept of “terroir” explains how the physiographic properties of the origin of a food or wine can be detected in its taste. Yet, although the French have “tasted the earth” through foods for more than 500 years, the idea remains problematic: some believe terroir to be more myth than science. This seminar queries the intersection between the science and myth of terroir, mapping the latter’s evolution from Antiquity to the Renaissance and the French Revolution to the modern-day Parisian Restaurant. Along the way, we discover what terroir can tell us of French political theory, aesthetic appreciation, and an Epicurean philosophical movement subverted but never extinguished by Cartesian dualism. Other themes include: food and satire, the birth of connoisseurship, landscape theory, and the evolving dialect between nature and culture. Just as Proust used the flavors of the Madeleine to travel in time, we learn how the French use the “psychogeographics” of terroir to revisit forgotten places. Tastings accompany texts as we savor the fine line between science and figments of the French imagination. Taught in English. A $35 enrollment fee for the tasting component will be charged to enrolled students. Mr. Parker. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 . Two 75-minute periods.
	FREN 290 - Field Work 1/2 or 1 unit(s) Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 .
	FREN 298 - Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) One unit of credit given only in exceptional cases and by permission of the chair. The department. Prerequisite(s): The intermediate level comprises a third-semester level (FREN 205 ), a fourth-semester level (FREN 206 ), a fifth-semester level (FREN 210 ), and a sixth-semester level (200-level courses numbered above 210). Prerequisite for all sixth-semester courses: completion of FREN 210 or the equivalent. Students desiring an introduction to the study of literature and culture may begin by electing FREN 212 .
French and Francophone Studies: III. Advanced Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 or French 213, or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor.
	FREN 300 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) Open only to majors. The department. Permission required.
	FREN 301 - Senior Translation Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) Open only to majors. One unit of credit given in exceptional cases only and by permission of the chair. The department. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor.
	FREN 332 - Literature and Society in Pre-Revolutionary France Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Topic for 2013/14b: Crime and Punishment in Early Modern France. What was considered criminal behavior under French law from the Middle Ages to the Revolution, and why does it still matter today? Who determined guilt, and what kinds of punishments were inflicted? This seminar on crime, prejudice, and the struggle for civil rights examines from a modern perspective some of the most famous courtroom battles of history. It provides a look into the lives of heretics and rebels, enemies of the state, and hapless individuals caught up in the machinery of government. We read court transcripts and literary texts, explore cinematic adaptations, and analyze how modern scholars, film directors, and politicians have exploited these celebrated cases. Historical figures studied include Joan of Arc, Fouquet, Molière, Voltaire, Sade, Louis XVI, and Marie Antoinette. Ms. Kerr. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. One 2-hour period.
	FREN 348 - Modernism and its Discontents Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Topic for 2013/14a: Fashion’s Empires. This course examines the emergence of fashion as one of French modernity’s most complex and ideologically charged discourses. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, we consider the historical and cultural evolution of fashion in France from the end of the Old Regime to the early twentieth century. From the spectacle of Marie Antoinette’s fashion excesses to the new chic of Coco Chanel’s simplicity, the course explores the ways in which fashion and its representation in both text and image operated on gender, society and national identity in France’s modern age. Studying literary texts next to historical documents, illustrations, real objects, and works of fashion theory, our analysis reveals fashion’s central and powerful role in French culture. Authors studied may include Girardin, Balzac, Feydeau, Zola, Mallarmé, Proust, Colette, alongside illustrators and fashion writers. Ms. Hiner. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. One 2-hour period.
	FREN 355 - Cross-Currents in French Culture Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Topic for 2013/14b: Foreign Lands, Inner Journeys. As of the nineteenth century, the French encountered other cultures on an unprecedented scale, due to colonialist expansion and an increase in tourism. Travel narratives and literary evocations of “local color” became popular, providing the reading public with an opportunity to learn about foreign lands and peoples. Yet travelers who write, and writers who travel, often express more about themselves than the cultures they purport to represent in their texts. Assumptions of national superiority, or dreams of a romantic “elsewhere” distort the traveler’s perception. Changes in geographical location may be accompanied by feelings of strangeness, leading the traveler to undergo an unexpected inner odyssey. As we explore the relationships between writing, displacement (both physical and psychological), and confrontation with an exotic “other,” we also consider real and imagined experiences of study abroad. Texts include novels, poetry, memoirs and essays from the nineteenth century to the present, and two films. Ms. Hart. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. One 2-hour period.
	FREN 366 - Francophone Literature and Cultures Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Topic for 2013/2014a: Paris at the Crossroads. Paris has been, and continues to be, celebrated as an enchanting place, a site of knowledge and sophistication, a cradle of democracy, and a refuge for exiles the world over. This course traces the evolution and treatment of Paris in works written by francophone authors originally from North and Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Caribbean, who live or have lived in the City of Lights. We analyze why and how their novels and short stories featuring the French capital manifest a frequently ambivalent relationship to France. From Bernard Dadié’s Un Nègre à Paris (1959) to Léonora Miano’s Blues pour Elise (2010), we identify the transformation of these writers’ positions vis-à-vis France’s dominant cultural and historical narratives. We discuss the key role they have played in the development of new aesthetics and a finer theorization of such notions as La France Noire and (post) beure. Ms. Célérier. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. One 2-hour period.
	FREN 370 - Stylistics and Translation Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) A study of different modes of writing and of the major problems encountered when translating from English to French, and vice versa. Practice with a broad range of both literary and nonliterary texts. Ms. Kerr Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor.
	FREN 378 - Black Paris Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as AFRS 378 and ENGL 378 ) This multidisciplinary course examines black cultural productions in Paris from the first Conference of Negro-African writers and artists in 1956 to the present. While considered a haven by African American artists, Paris, the metropolitan center of the French empire, was a more complex location for African and Afro-Caribbean intellectuals and artists. Yet, the city provided a key space for the development and negotiation of a black diasporic consciousness. This course examines the tensions born from expatriation and exile, and the ways they complicate understandings of racial, national and transnational identities. Using literature, film, music, and new media, we explore topics ranging from modernism, jazz, Négritude, Pan-Africanism, and the Présence Africaine group, to assess the meanings of blackness and race in contemporary Paris. Works by James Baldwin, Aime Césaire, Chester Himes, Claude McKay, the Nardal sisters, Richard Wright. Ousmane Sembène, Mongo Beti, among others, are studied. Ms. Célérier and Ms. Dunbar. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. One 2-hour period.
	FREN 380 - Special Seminar Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 , or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor. Not offered in 2013/14.
	FREN 399 - Senior Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) One unit of credit given only in exceptional cases and by permission of the Chair. The department. Prerequisite(s): Prerequisite for all advanced courses: 1 unit of 200-level work above FREN 212 or French 213, or Study Abroad in France or in a French-speaking country, or by permission of the department. Open to freshman and sophomores only by permission of the instructor.
Geography-Anthropology
	GEAN 290 - Field Work 1/2 or 1 unit(s)
	GEAN 300 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall 1/2 unit(s) A 1-unit thesis with 1/2 unit graded provisionally in the fall and 1/2 unit graded in the spring. The final grade, awarded in the spring, shall replace the provisional grade in the fall. Ordinarily, the senior thesis will have two faculty advisors, one from Anthropology and one from Geography. The department. Yearlong course GEAN 300a-GEAN 301 .
	GEAN 301 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Spring 1/2 unit(s) A 1-unit thesis with 1/2 unit graded provisionally in the fall and 1/2 unit graded in the spring. The final grade, awarded in the spring, shall replace the provisional grade in the fall. Ordinarily, the senior thesis will have two faculty advisors, one from Anthropology and one from Geography. The department. Yearlong course GEAN 300 -301.
	GEAN 302 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1 unit(s) Students may elect a 1-unit thesis only in exceptional circumstances. Usually, students will adopt GEAN 300 -GEAN 301 . The department.
	GEAN 399 - Senior Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) By permission of the adviser and the instructor who will supervise the work.
Geography: I. Introductory
	GEOG 100 - Earth Resource Challenges Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 100 , ESSC 100 , and ENST 100 ) This course combines the insights of the natural and social sciences to address a topic of societal concern. Geographers bring spatial analysis of human environmental change, while earth scientists contribute their knowledge of the diverse natural processes shaping the earth’s surface. Together, these distinctive yet complementary fields contribute to comprehensive understandings of the physical limitations and potentials, uses and misuses of the earth’s natural resources. Each year the topic of the course changes to focus on selected resource problems facing societies and environments around the world. When this course is team-taught by faculty from earth science and geography, it serves as an introduction to both disciplines. Topic for 2013/14a: Water and Cities. With the explosive urbanization of the modern world, new and unprecedented demands are placed on the earth’s hydrological systems. A variety of environmental issues-such as water provision and drought, depletion of aquifers, pollution of watersheds, flooding, regional climate change, privatization of supply and other policy questions-arise out of the insatiable demand for water by contemporary metropolitan regions. This course combines geographical and geological perspectives on the increasingly urgent problems of urban water. Consideration is given to case studies of water problems in the New York metropolitan region, cities and suburbs of the arid U.S. Southwest, and Latin American mega-cities such as Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro. Ms. Menking. Two 75-minute periods. Open only to freshmen; satisfies college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.
	GEOG 102 - Global Geography: People, Places, and Regions Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) Places and regions are fundamental parts of the human experience. From our hometowns to the Vassar campus, the United States, and the world beyond, we all inherit but then actively reproduce our geographies through the ways in which we lead our lives-by our social practices and spatial movements, and by the meanings we ascribe to people, places, and regions. In this manner, people shape their cultural landscapes and create the spatial divisions that represent global power relations, ideologies, socioeconomic differences, and the uneven distribution of resources. In this course we study the making of the modern world at different scales, ranging from the local to the global-through case studies drawn from the Hudson Valley and around the world-with an emphasis on the ways people, places, and regions relate to socio-economic inequalities. In addition to learning about specific places and regions, we focus on major themes and debates in geography, including mapping and cartographic communication, culture and landscape modification, population and sustainable development, agriculture and urbanization, and political divisions of the globe. The department. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 111 - Earth Science and Environmental Justice Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 111 ) Exploration of the roles that race, gender, and class play in contemporary environmental issues and the geology that underlies them. Examination of the power of governments, corporations and science to influence the physical and human environment. We critique the traditional environmental movement, study cases of environmental racism, and appreciate how basic geological knowledge can assist communities in creating healthful surroundings. Examples come from urban and rural settings in the United States and abroad and are informed by feminist analysis. Ms. Schneiderman. Two 75-minute periods; a one-day weekend field trip may be required. Open to freshmen only; satisfies college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.
	GEOG 151 - Earth, Environment, and Humanity Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 151 ) Catastrophic events such as hurricanes and tsunamis and the specter of global climate change affirm the centrality of Earth Science in a well-rounded liberal arts education. This course explores three intertwined questions: 1) How do Earth’s different systems (lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere) function and interact to create the environment we live in? 2) What are the causes of, and how can we protect ourselves from, geologic hazards such as earthquakes, flooding, and landslides? 3) How are human activities modifying the environment through changes to the composition of the atmosphere, biogeochemical cycles, and soil erosion, among other factors? While serving as an introduction to the Earth Science major, this course emphasizes those aspects of the science that everyone should know to make informed decisions such as where and where not to buy a house, whether to support the construction of an underground nuclear waste repository, and how to live more lightly upon the Earth. The department. Two 75-minute periods; one 4-hour laboratory/field period. The course fulfills the QA requirement and several lab exercises take place in the field.
Geography: II. Intermediate
	GEOG 220 - Cartography: Making Maps with GIS Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 220 ) Cartography, the science and art of map-making, is integral to the geographer’s craft. This course uses GIS to make thematic maps and to acquire and present data, including data fitting students’ individual interests. In addition, we explore the culture, politics, and technology of historic cartography, and we examine techniques in using maps as rhetoric and as political tools. Throughout the course, we focus on issues of clear, efficient, and intentional communication through graphic presentation of data. Thus, the course integrates problems of graphic design and aesthetics with strategies of manipulating quantitative data. ArcGIS is used in labs for map production and data analysis. Ms. Cunningham. Prerequisite(s): one 100-level geography or earth science course, or permission of the instructor. Two 75-minute periods; one 2-hour laboratory. Satisfies college requirements for quantitative reasoning.
	GEOG 221 - Soils and Sustainable Ecosystems Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 221 ) Soils form an important interface between the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. As such, they are critical to understanding the functioning of ecosystems. This course studies soil formation, and the physical and chemical properties of soils critical to the understanding of natural and constructed ecosystems. Field trips and laboratory work focus on the description and interpretation of local soils. Mr. Walker. Prerequisite(s): one introductory course in geology, biology, or chemistry. Two 75-minute periods; one 4-hour laboratory/field period.
	GEOG 224 - GIS: Spatial Analysis Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 224 ) Geographic information systems (GIS) are increasingly important and widespread packages for manipulating and presenting spatial data. While this course uses ArcGIS, the same software as Cartography, the primary focus here is spatial analysis (calculating patterns and relationships), rather than map design for data visualization. We explore a variety of techniques for answering questions with spatial data, including overlay, map algebra (math using multiple input layers), hydrologic modeling, surface interpolation, and site selection. Issues of data collection through remote sensing and sampling are addressed. GIS involves a more rapid introduction to the software than Cartography does; it is useful to take both Cartography and GIS (preferably in that order) to gain a more complete understanding of spatial data analysis and manipulation. Ms. Cunningham. Two 75-minute periods; one 2-hour laboratory.
	GEOG 230 - Geographic Research Methods Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) How do we develop clear research questions, and how do we know when we have the answer? Focusing on qualitative approaches, this course examines different methods for asking and answering questions about the world, which are essential skills in geography and other disciplines. Topics include formulation of a research question or hypothesis, research design, and data collection and analysis. We examine major research and methodological papers in the discipline, design an empirical research project, and carry out basic data analysis. Students who are considering writing a thesis or conducting other independent research and writing are encouraged to take this course. Mr. Lindner. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 231 - Geomorphology: Surface Processes and Evolution of Landforms 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 231 ) Quantitative study of the physical, chemical, and biological processes that create Earth’s many landforms. Topics include weathering and erosion, landsliding and debris flows, sediment transport by rivers and glaciers, the role of climate in landscape modification, and the use of landforms to document earthquake hazards. Lab exercises emphasize fundamental skills in geomorphologic analysis such as mapping, surveying, interpretation of aerial photography, and use of Geographic Information Systems software. Ms. Menking. Prerequisite(s): ESCI 151 or ESCI 203 . Two 75-minute periods; one 4-hour laboratory/field period. An overnight weekend field trip may be required. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 235 - Water Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 235 ) Sixty to 70% of Dutchess County residents depend on groundwater supplies to meet their daily needs. Industrial pollution and road salt have contaminated many of these supplies, spawning legal actions and requiring costly remediation. Ensuring adequate and safe groundwater supplies for humans and ecosystems requires extensive knowledge of the hydrologic cycle and of how contaminants may be introduced into water resources. We explore how rainfall and snowmelt infiltrate into soils and bedrock to become part of the groundwater system, learn what factors govern subsurface flow, and discuss the concept of well-head protection, which seeks to protect groundwater recharge areas from contamination. Using Vassar’s teaching well at the field station we perform a number of experiments to assess aquifer properties, water chemistry, and presence of microbial contaminants. Comfort with basic algebra and trigonometry is expected. Ms. Menking. Prerequisite(s): ESCI 151 or ENST 124 . Two 75-minute periods; one 4-hour laboratory/field period.
	GEOG 236 - The Making of Modern East Asia: Empires and Transnational Interactions Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as ASIA 236 ) East Asia–the homeland of the oldest continuous civilization of the world–is now the most dynamic center in the world economy and an emerging power in global politics. Central to the global expansion of trade, production, and cultural exchange through the span of several millennia, the East Asian region provides a critical lens for us to understand the origin, transformation and future development of the global system. This course provides a multidisciplinary understanding of the common and contrasting experiences of East Asian countries as each struggled to come to terms with the western dominated expansion of global capitalism and the modernization process. The course incorporates a significant amount of visual imagery such as traditional painting and contemporary film, in addition to literature. Professors from Art History, Film, Chinese and Japanese literature and history will give guest lecture in the course, on special topics such as ancient Chinese and Japanese arts, East Asia intellectual history, Japanese war literature, post war American hegemony, and vampire films in Southeast Asia. Together, they illustrate the diverse and complex struggles of different parts of East Asia to construct their own modernities. Ms. Zhou. Prerequisite(s): at least one 100-level course in Geography or Asian Studies. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 238 - Environmental China: Nature, Culture, and Development Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ASIA 238 and INTL 238 ) China is commonly seen in the West as a sad example, even the culprit, of global environmental ills. Besides surpassing the United States to be the world’s largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, China also experiences widespread pollution of its air, soil and water–arguably among the worst in the world. Yet, few will dispute the fact that China holds the key for the future global environment as it emerges as the largest economy on earth. This course examines China’s environments as created by and mediated through historical, cultural, political, economic and social forces both internal and external to the country. Moving away from prevailing caricatures of a “toxic” China, the course studies Chinese humanistic traditions, which offer rich and deep lessons on how the environment has shaped human activities and vice versa. We examine China’s long-lasting intellectual traditions on human/environmental interactions; diversity of environmental practices rooted in its ecological diversity; environmental tensions resulting from rapid regional development and globalization in the contemporary era; and most recently, the social activism and innovation of green technology in China. Ms. Zhou. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 242 - Brazil: Society, Culture, and Environment in Portuguese America Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as AFRS 242 , INTL 242 , and LALS 242 ) Brazil, long Latin America’s largest and most populous country, has become an industrial and agricultural powerhouse with increasing political-economic clout in global affairs. This course examines Brazil’s contemporary evolution in light of the country’s historical geography, the distinctive cultural and environmental features of Portuguese America, and the political-economic linkages with the outside world. Specific topics for study include: the legacies of colonial Brazil; race relations, Afro-Brazilian culture, and ethnic identities; issues of gender, youth, violence, and poverty; processes of urban-industrial growth; regionalism and national integration; environmental conservation and sustainability; continuing controversies surrounding the occupation of Amazonia; and long-run prospects for democracy and equitable development in Brazil. Mr. Godfrey. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 250 - Urban Geography: Space, Place, Environment Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as URBS 250 ) Now that most of the world’s population lives in urban areas, expanding city-regions pose a series of social, spatial and environmental problems. This course focuses on the making of urban spaces, places, and environments at a variety of geographical scales. We examine entrepreneurial urban branding, sense of place and place making, geographies of race and class, urbanization of nature, environmental and spatial justice, and urban risk and resilience in facing climate change. Concentrating on American urbanism, case studies include New York City, Poughkeepsie, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Students also research specific issues in cities of their own choice, such as land-use planning and public space, historic preservation, transit-oriented development, urban ecology and restoration, urban sustainability programs, and citizen movements for livable cities. Mr. Godfrey. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 252 - Cities of the Global South: Urbanization and Social Change in the Developing World Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as URBS 252 and INTL 252 ) The largest and fastest wave of urbanization in human history is now underway in the Global South-the developing countries of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Most of the world’s urban population already resides here, where mega-cities now reach massive proportions. Despite widespread economic dynamism, high rates of urbanization and deprivation often coincide, so many of the 21st century’s greatest challenges will arise in the Global South. This course examines postcolonial urbanism, global-city and ordinary-city theories, informal settlements and slums, social and environmental justice, and urban design, planning, and governance. We study scholarly, journalistic, and film depictions of Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro in Latin America; Algiers and Lagos in Africa; Cairo and Istanbul in the Middle East; and Beijing and Mumbai in Asia. Mr. Godfrey. Prerequisite(s): a previous Geography or Urban Studies course. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 254 - Environmental Science in the Field 1 unit(s) (Same as BIOL 254 , ESCI 254 , and ENST 254 ) The environment consists of complex and often elegant interactions between various constituents so that an interdisciplinary approach is required to understand how human interactions may affect it. In this course, we study a variety of aspects of a specific environment by considering how biological, chemical, geological, and human factors interact. We observe these interactions first hand during a weeklong field trip. Some of the questions we may consider are: How does a coral polyp create an environment that not only suits its particular species, but also helps regulate the global climate? How has human development and associated water demands in the desert Southwest changed the landscape, fire ecology, and even estuary and fisheries’ health as far away as the Gulf of California? How have a variety of species (humans included) managed to survive on an island with the harsh environment of the exposed mid-ocean ridge of Iceland? The course is offered every other year, and topics vary with expertise of the faculty teaching the course. Prerequisite(s): permission of the instructor. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 256 - Geographies of Food and Farming 1 unit(s) Farming and food production connect us to the landscapes in which we live, and they shape the geographies of our communities. Increasingly, farming and food also connect us to processes of globalization. The world produces more food than ever before, yet factors such as centralization of production and competition from biofuels lead to food riots in developing regions and continuing losses of rainforests from Brazil to Indonesia. One key strategy for understanding these connections is to examine the biogeographic patterns that shape food production. In this course, we focus first on the physical environmental factors (including water resources, climate patterns, and biodiversity) that characterize agricultural regions of North America. As part of this discussion, we consider ethical, political, and cultural aspects of food production. We then use these frameworks to examine global production and exchanges of food. We use case studies, such as land conversion in Brazil and Indonesia, to understand prominent debates about food and farming today. Ms. Cunningham. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 258 - Sustainable Landscapes: Bridging Place and Environment 1 unit(s) (Same as URBS 258 ) Geographers have long understood the relationship of aesthetic landscapes and place to include concepts of identity, control, and territory. Increasingly we consider landscape aesthetics to involve environmental quality as well. How do these contrasting sets of priorities meet in the process of landscape design and analysis? In this course we begin by examining regional and local histories of landscape design and their relationship to concepts of place, territory, and identity. We then consider landscape ecological approaches to marrying aesthetic and environmental priorities in landscapes. We investigate local issues such as watershed quality, native plantings, and runoff management in order to consider creative ways to bridge these once-contrary approaches to understanding the landscapes we occupy. We focus on projects on topics related to the ongoing Vassar campus landscape study. Ms. Cunningham. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 260 - Conservation of Natural Resources Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 260 ) Natural resources are perennially at the center of debates on sustainability, planning, land development, and environmental policy. The ways we conceptualize resources can be as important to understanding these issues as their actual distributions are. This course provides a geographic perspective on natural resource conservation, using local examples to provide deeper experience with resource debates. We focus particularly on forest resources: biodiversity, forest health, timber resources, forest policy, and the ways people have struggled to make a living in forested ecosystems. We discuss these issues on a global scale (such as tropical timber piracy and forest conversion), and we explore them locally in the Adirondacks of New York. This course requires that students spend October Break on a group study trip in the Adirondacks. Students must be willing to spend long, cold days outside, including some strenuous physical activity (unless special permission is arranged with the instructor). Ms. Cunningham. Two 75-minute periods. Students wishing to register under Earth Science must have had at least one previous earth science course.
	GEOG 266 - Population, Environment, and Sustainable Development Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as INTL 266 ) Concerns about human population are integral to debates about matters of political stability, socio-economic equity, ecological sustainability, and human wellbeing. This course engages these debates via an examination of environmental change, power and inequality, and technology and development. Case studies include: water supplies, fishing and agriculture and the production of foodstuffs. Being a geography course, it highlights human-“nature” relations, spatial distribution and difference, and the dynamic connections between places and regions. Mr. Lindner. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 270 - Gender and Social Space 1 unit(s) (Same as URBS 270 and WMST 270 ) This course explores the ways in which gender informs the spatial organization of daily life; the interrelation of gender and key spatial forms and practices such as the home, the city, the hotel, migration, shopping, community activism, and walking at night. It draws on feminist theoretical work from diverse fields such as geography, architecture, anthropology and urban studies not only to begin to map the gendered divisions of the social world but also to understand gender itself as a spatial practice. Ms. Brawley. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 272 - Geographies of Mass Violence 1 unit(s) Violence has been an integral part of the making of landscapes, places, and the world political map. This course examines theories of violence, explanations of why it happens where it does, and how mass violence has come to shape local, national, and international geographies. In doing so, it analyzes how violence becomes embedded in geographical space and informs social relations. The course draws upon various case studies, including incidents of mass violence in Rwanda, Indonesia, East Timor, Guatemala, and the United States. Mr. Nevins. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 274 - The Political Geography of Human Rights Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Human rights have a deep history and varied geographical origins. This course examines the highly contested making and representation of human rights in regards to their content and emphases, and the various practices and institutions deployed in their name–with a focus on the post -1945 era. In doing so, the course interrogates human rights in relation to a variety of settings–from anti-colonial and anti-imperial struggles to social movements championing racial and gender equality to humanitarian interventions. Throughout, the course seeks to analyze how these various human-rights-related endeavors flow from, produce, and challenge spatial inequality, places and geographical scales, and articulate with a diverse set of political geographical agendas. Mr. Nevins. Prerequisite(s): one 100-level geography or earth science course, or the instructor’s permission. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 276 - Economic Geography: Spaces of Global Capitalism Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as INTL 276 ) This course analyzes the shifting economic landscape of globalization. It covers classic location theories in economic geography, but also the recent trends of industrial reorganization in agriculture, manufacturing and services. Two areas of focus in this course are the globalization of the world economy and regional development under the first and third world contexts. We analyze the emergence of the global capitalist system, the commodification of nature, the transformation of agriculture, the global spread of manufacturing and the rise of flexible production systems, and restructuring of transnational corporations and its regional impacts. Ms. Zhou. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 290 - Field Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) The department.
	GEOG 297 - Readings in Geography Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 unit(s)
	GEOG 298 - Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) Open to qualified students in other disciplines who wish to pursue related independent work in geography. The department.
Geography: III. Advanced
	GEOG 300 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall 1/2 unit(s) A 1-unit thesis starting in the fall semester, with 1/2 unit graded provisionally in the fall and 1/2 unit graded in the spring. The final grade, awarded in the spring, shall replace the provisional grade in the fall. The department. Yearlong course 300-GEOG 301 .
	GEOG 301 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Spring 1/2 unit(s) A 1-unit thesis starting in the fall semester, with 1/2 unit graded provisionally in the fall and 1/2 unit graded in the spring. The final grade, awarded in the spring, shall replace the provisional grade in the fall. The department. Yearlong course GEOG 300 -301.
	GEOG 302 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1 unit(s) Students may elect a 1-semester, 1-unit thesis only in exceptional circumstances. Usually, students adopt GEOG 300 -GEOG 301 . The department.
	GEOG 304 - Senior Seminar: Issues in Geographic Theory and Method Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) A review of the theory, method, and practice of geographical inquiry. The seminar traces the history of geographic thought from early episodes of global exploration to modern scientific transformations. The works and biographies of major contemporary theorists are critically examined in terms of the changing philosophies of geographic research. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches are discussed, along with scientific, humanist, radical, feminist, and other critiques in human geography. Overall, alternative conceptions of geography are related to the evolution of society and the dominant intellectual currents of the day. The student is left to choose which approaches best suits his or her own research. The seminar culminates in the presentation of student research proposals. Mr. Nevins. One 3-hour period.
	GEOG 340 - Advanced Urban and Regional Studies Semester Offered: Fall and Spring 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 340 and ENST 340 ) Topic for 2013/14a: Ethnic Geography and Transnationalism. This seminar is a multidisciplinary discussion of the changing theoretical discourses on studying ethnic groups in America ranging from assimilation, multi-culturalism to transnationalism. We contrast the historical experiences of the European immigrants and the experiences of contemporary Hispanic and Asian populations in different urban locations in the U.S. Particular attention is paid to the ways in which ethnic spaces are constructed through the practices of the ethnic population and the larger society. The topics include immigration in the context of global history, race, ethnicity and identities, cultural assimilation and integration, changes in gender relations, and transnational linkages. Topic for 2013/14b: Arctic Environmental Change. Arctic environments define a geographic region that is important to understand both in terms of its distinctive biogeographic patterns and functions and because it is subject to some of the most dramatic environmental alterations associated with global climate change. This course takes a biogeographic and landscape ecological approach to examining how this region contributes to global biodiversity, and why it contributes disproportionately to the regulation and change of the earth’s climate system. What characteristics define these environments and make them especially vulnerable to positive feedbacks in a changing climate? How might climate changes alter landscape structure and composition, and what are the implications of these changes for the distribution of plants and animals in the region? What are global implications of these changes? We examine current literature and data to explore these questions about ongoing and anticipated environmental change in arctic regions. Some background in understanding earth systems or climate change is helpful. 2013/14a: Ms. Zhou. 2013/14b: Ms. Cunningham. One 3-hour period.
	GEOG 341 - Oil 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 341 and ENST 341 ) For the hydraulic civilizations of Mesopotamia, it was water. For the Native Americans of the Great Plains, it was buffalo. As we enter the twenty-first century, our society is firmly rooted both culturally and economically in oil. This class looks into almost every aspect of oil. Starting at the source with kerogen generation, we follow the hydrocarbons along migration pathways to a reservoir with a suitable trap. We look at the techniques geologists and geophysicists use to find a field, and how engineers and economists get the product from the field to refineries, paying particular attention to environmental concerns. What is involved in the negotiations between multinational corporations and developing countries over production issues? What are the stages in refining oil from the crude that comes from the ground to the myriad uses seen today, including plastics, pharmaceuticals, and fertilizers, not to mention gasoline? We also discuss the future of this rapidly dwindling, non-renewable resource, and options for an oil-less future. Mr. McAdoo, Mr. Rashid. Prerequisite(s): one 200-level Earth Science course or permission of the instructor. One 4-hour classroom/laboratory/field period. Not offered in 2013/14. Will be offered in 2016/17.
	GEOG 356 - Environment and Land Use Planning 1 unit(s) (Same as ENST 356 and URBS 356 ) This seminar focuses on land-use issues such as open-space planning, urban design, transportation planning, and the social and environmental effects of planning and land use policies. The focus of the course this year is impacts of planning policies (such as transportation, zoning, or growth boundaries) on environmental quality, including open space preservation, farmland conservation, and environmental services. We begin with global and regional examples and then apply ideas in the context of Dutchess County’s trajectory of land use change and planning policies. Ms. Cunningham. Prerequisite(s): one 200-level course in Geography, Urban Studies or Environmental Studies. One 3-hour period. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 372 - Topics in Human Geography Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) This seminar focuses on advanced debates in the socio- spatial organization of the modern world. The specific topic of inquiry varies from year to year. Students may repeat the course for credit if the topic changes. Previous seminar themes include the urban-industrial transition, the urban frontier, urban poverty, cities of the Americas, segregation in the city, global migration, and reading globalization. Topic for 2013/14b: Lines, Fences, and Walls: The Partitioning of the Global Landscape. This course examines the making of the spatial boundaries that divide and connect people and places across the Earth’s surface. In doing so, it considers the origins and evolution of various types of divides-from private property lines that have marked the demise of commons throughout the world, to the barbed wire fences used to contain people and animals, and the international boundary walls and barriers that increasingly scar the global landscape-and considers various effects of and responses to these phenomena. Mr. Nevins. Prerequisite(s): permission of the instructor. One 3-hour period.
	GEOG 382 - Neoliberalism, Environmental Governance, and the Commons 1 unit(s) In an era characterized by many as one of neoliberalism, processes of enclosure, privatization, and commodification have become central to the governance of natural resources and nature-society relations, often in ways detrimental to both environmental and human systems. Yet interdisciplinary human-environment research has also demonstrated the ability of local groups to manage commons, or community-based resources, in sustainable, equitable, and resilient ways. Ranging between these two poles of neoliberalism and the commons, this course examines political, economic, and cultural dimensions of the management of nature and natural resources, drawing on cases from various sites across the globe, including Africa, South and Southeast Asia, the Mideast and North & South America. With focus on the contested forms of access to and control over natural resources and their intersection with environmental change and social justice in both rural and urban areas, topics include large-scale resource extraction; markets and environmental institutions; the production of environmental knowledge; conservation and common property; and environmental social movements and resistance. Prerequisite(s): permission of the instructor. One 3-hour period. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 384 - Community GIS 1 unit(s) Geographers contribute to vitality and equity in their communities by examining the spatial dynamics of socioeconomic and environmental problems. Strategies used to interrogate these problems include mapping and geographic information systems (GIS), or computer-aided mapping and spatial analysis. For example, community access to transportation and housing, differential access to food or health care, or distributions of social services are often best understood in terms of mapped patterns. These patterns both reflect and influence the social dynamics of a community. In addition to affecting quality of life, these issues give insights into the ways we decide as a society to allocate resources. In this course we take on subjects of concern in the local area and use mapping and spatial data to examine them. Projects may involve work with groups in the Poughkeepsie area as well as library research, readings, some GIS work. Course activities and projects vary according to subjects studied. Because this course focuses on collaborative research projects, rather than on the technology, GIS and cartography are useful but not prerequisite courses. The department. One 3-hour period. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GEOG 386 - Seminar on Energy and Extraction Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) (Same as ENST 386 ) This course examines the political, economic, cultural, and ecological dimensions of historical and contemporary systems of energy and extraction. Grounded in theoretical perspectives from political ecology, critical resource geography, green governmentality, and related fields, we examine key issues surrounding, on one hand, energy production, distribution, and consumption; and on the other hand, global extractive industries. By exploring diverse case studies in the Americas, Africa, Middle East, and Asia, we survey varied topics and themes. These include petro-capitalism and fossil fuel dependence; new forms of resource extraction such as mountaintop removal mining and hydraulic fracturing; the cultural politics of race, class, and gender in environmental conflicts; the relationship between energy and social transformation; and social movements, labor politics, and struggles for justice. Mr. Lindner. Two 75-minute periods.
	GEOG 387 - Risk and Geohazards 1 unit(s) (Same as ESCI 387 and ENST 387 ) The world is becoming an increasingly risky place. Every year, natural hazards affect more and more people, and these people are incurring increasingly expensive losses. This course explores the nature of risk associated with geophysical phenomena. Are there more hazardous events now than there have been in the past? Are these events somehow more energetic? Or is it that increasing populations with increasingly disparate incomes are being exposed to these hazards? What physical, economic, political and social tools can be employed to reduce this geophysical risk? We draw on examples from recent disasters, both rapid onset (earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones), and slow onset (climate change, famine) to examine the complex and interlinked vulnerabilities of the coupled human-environment system. Mr. McAdoo. Prerequisite(s): ESCI 121 , ESCI 151 , or ESCI 203 . One 4-hour period. Not offered in 2013/14. Will be offered in 2015/16.
	GEOG 399 - Senior Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) The department.
German: I. Introductory
	GERM 101 - Sex Before, During, and After the Nazis Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) This course offers an introduction to Germany’s unique position in the history of sexuality. As early as the late nineteenth century, Germany and Austria were a hotbed for new thinking sexuality and sexual freedom, including the founding of psychoanalysis and the world’s first homosexual emancipation movement. National Socialism, however, forever changed the way that Germans and non-Germans viewed every aspect of Germany’s history and culture, including its sexual politics. This course examines some of Germany’s most salient debates about sex from the late nineteenth century to the Nazi era and beyond, including the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. Materials include autobiographies, fictional works, plays, films, political tracts, and sexual case studies, as well as secondary texts representing a variety of disciplinary approaches. Readings and discussions in English. Mr. Schneider. Two 75-minute periods. Satisfies college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.
	GERM 105 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) This course offers a yearlong introduction to the study of German language and culture through literature, fairy tales, and films for and about children. Since these materials tend to be linguistically easier, they are ideal for beginning language learning. Moreover, their role in socializing a new generation makes them important sources for understanding a culture’s fundamental values and way of looking at the world. Materials range from classic texts, such as fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, to contemporary stories, films, and television shows. In addition to offering a systematic introduction to German grammar and vocabulary, classroom activities promote practical and active oral and written communication. No prior experience with German required. Mr. Schreiber and Mr. Schneider. Four 50-minute periods and four 30-minute drill periods. Yearlong course 105-GERM 106 .
	GERM 106 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) This course offers a yearlong introduction to the study of German language and culture through literature, fairy tales, and films for and about children. Since these materials tend to be linguistically easier, they are ideal for beginning language learning. Moreover, their role in socializing a new generation makes them important sources for understanding a culture’s fundamental values and way of looking at the world. Materials range from classic texts, such as fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm, to contemporary stories, films, and television shows. In addition to offering a systematic introduction to German grammar and vocabulary, classroom activities promote practical and active oral and written communication. No prior experience with German required. Mr. Schreiber and Mr. Schneider. Four 50-minute periods and four 30-minute drill periods. Yearlong course GERM 105 -106.
	GERM 109 - Intensive Beginning German Semester Offered: Spring 2 unit(s) A single-semester study of the German language, equivalent to GERM 105 -GERM 106 . Intensive training in the fundamental language skills. Designed for beginning students who wish to accelerate their learning of German. Ms. von der Emde. Open to all classes; five 75-minute periods, four 30-minute drill sessions, and computer-assisted instruction.
German: II. Intermediate
	GERM 210 - Intermediate German I: Identity in Contemporary Germany Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Low-intermediate language study through short texts and research topics on questions of national identity in contemporary Germany. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing oral and written expression. The course uses an online educational environment and may involve an exchange with learners at another college. Mr. Schreiber. Prerequisite(s): GERM 106 , GERM 109 or the equivalent.
	GERM 211 - Intermediate German II: Space in Weimar Germany Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Intermediate language study through texts and research topics on questions of space in Weimar Germany at the time of the “Roaring Twenties.” Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing oral and written expression. The course uses an online educational environment and may involve an exchange with learners at another college. Mr. Schneider. Prerequisite(s): GERM 210 or the equivalent.
	GERM 230 - Contemporary German Culture and Media Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Advanced intermediate language study through an examination of contemporary German culture and the role played by different media such as newspapers, television, radio, film, and the Internet. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary, reviewing grammar, as well as oral and written expression. The course may involve an exchange with native speakers of German. Ms. von der Emde. Prerequisite(s): GERM 211 or the equivalent.
	GERM 235 - Introduction to German Cultural Studies Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Introduction to the methodological questions and debates in the field of German Cultural Studies. Strong emphasis on formal analysis and writing. Readings and discussions in English. Topic for 2013/14a: Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Sigmund Freud. Marx, Nietsche, and Freud are three of the most influential thinkers of the modern era. We associate their names with different, even antagonistic agendas ranging from political systems (socialism/communism vs. elitism), entire disciplines (psychoanalysis, philosophy, economics), and even the death of God. Yet all three were pivotal in developing a “hermeneutics of suspicion,” in which “reality” turned out to be hiding darker and more powerful forces: economic motives, unconscious desires, or the will to power. This course examines their writings in the context of nineteenth-century Germany and Austria and assesses their contributions to our understanding of language, truth, and modern subjectivity. In addition to analyzing some of the important similarities and differences among their ideas, we also read works by other authors in order to trace the influences of their theory on German culture. Finally, we also investigate the ways in which twentieth-century writers and thinkers continued to develop-as well as question-their theories. Mr. Schneider. Two 75-minute periods. Open to all classes. German majors see GERM 239 .
	GERM 239 - Introduction to German Cultural Studies for Majors Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) Students in this course attend the same seminar meetings as in GERM 235 but do the readings in the original, attend a separate discussion class, and take separate exams. Mr. Schneider. Prerequisite(s): GERM 230 or the equivalent or permission of the instructor.
	GERM 240 - A Culture of Play: An Introduction to German Theater 1 unit(s) Since the eighteenth century, drama and theater have held a vaunted place within Germany’s language literary and cultural production. This course offers an introduction to that tradition through the study of specific authors, texts, and theories. Students have the opportunity to hone their speaking skills through performance activities, such as mounting scenes or an entire production. Strong emphasis is placed on developing vocabulary and reviewing grammar as well as developing written expression. Authors may include Brecht, Büchner, Dürrenmatt, Handke, Jelinek, Lessing, Schiller, Schnitzler, and Wedekind. Mr. Schneider. Prerequisite(s): GERM 211 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods. Not offered in 2013/14.
	GERM 260 - Developments in German Literature Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) This course offers an overview of selected historical developments in German literature from the last three centuries. Topic for 2013/14b: The German Gothic. This course is an introduction to the history of the German literature, art, and cinema of the occult and the uncanny. Among the high points we consider are the revival of Gothic themes in Romantic literature, such as the novellas of E.T.A. Hoffmann; their flourishing in Realist tales such as Annette von Droste-Hülshoff’s The Jew’s Beech Tree; their pervasiveness in German Expressionist films such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari; and the fascination that these themes continue to exercise in contemporary novels such as Patrick Süskind’s Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (the basis for the film by Tom Tykwer). We study the historical contexts in which the modern German fascination with the Gothic arose and developed, and also consider seminal theories such as Sigmund Freud’s famous essay on the uncanny. In addition to several short critical essays, students write their own Gothic narratives. Readings, discussion, and composition in German. Mr. Schreiber. Prerequisite(s): GERM 230 , GERM 239 , GERM 240 , or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods.
	GERM 265 - German Film in English Translation Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) This course offers an overview of selected historical and formal developments in German films from the silent period to the present. Topic for 2013/14b: German Cinema Behind the Wall. This course explores the history of East Geman cinema through the films of the state-owned studios of DEFA (Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft), 1946-1992. DEFA produced over 850 feature films and countless documentaries between 1946-1990, yet East German film culture had remained terra incognita for the Western public during the existence of the GDR. We analyze this significant segment of German film history in relation to the development of New (West) German Cinema and think about the exact “placing” of GDR cinema within German film history and international debates around national cinema. Readings and discussions in English. Open to all classes. German majors see GERM 269 . Ms. von der Emde. Two 75-minute periods.
	GERM 269 - German Film for Majors Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) Students in this course attend the same seminar meetings as in GERM 265 but do readings in German, attend a separate discussions class, and take separate exams. Ms. von der Emde. Prerequisite(s): GERM 230 , GERM 239 or the equivalent.
	GERM 270 - Aesthetic Forms, Texts, and Genres 1 unit(s) Not offered in 2013/14.
	GERM 290 - Field Work 1/2 or 1 unit(s)
	GERM 297 - Readings In German 1/2 unit(s)
	GERM 298 - Independent Work Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1/2 or 1 unit(s) Permission required.
German: III. Advanced
	GERM 300 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall or Spring 1 or 2 unit(s) Open only to majors. Permission required.
	GERM 301 - Senior Seminar Semester Offered: Fall 1 unit(s) An examination of selected topics in German literature and culture. May be taken more than once for credit when topic changes. Topic for 2013/14a: The Politics of German Memory. The collective memories of the Nazi past in the two postwar German states have helped define a new paradigm of memory politics. German Holocaust memory has been taken as a test case in different parts of the world from Europe to South Africa and from Latin America to Iraq. We will study how the two Germanies have responded to the memories of the Nazi past and what role Holocaust memory plays in the construction of a new national identity in the unified Germany. In addition to Holocaust memory, the legacies of the GDR also had to be negotiated and rethought after the Wende in 1989. This course traces the discourse on memory in the Federal Republic of Germany and the development of a new transnational memory in the new millennium. We will work with texts of many different genres and a variety of media, from theoretical texts, to films, websites and fictional texts. Authors and films include Christa Wolf, Heiner Müller, Günter Grass, Herta Müller, Jacob the Liar, Goodbye Lenin, and The Lives of Others. Ms.von der Emde. Prerequisite(s): GERM 260 or GERM 270 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods.
	GERM 302 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Fall 1/2 unit(s) Open only to majors. The department. Yearlong course 302-GERM 303 .
	GERM 303 - Senior Thesis Semester Offered: Spring 1/2 unit(s) Open only to majors. The department. Yearlong course GERM 302 -303.
	GERM 355 - Advanced Seminar Semester Offered: Spring 1 unit(s) An examination of selected topics in German literature and culture. May be taken more than once for credit when topic changes. Topic for 2013/14b: Literary Science: Exploring the Fusion of German Literature and the Natural Sciences. This seminar investigates the border crossings between German literature and the natural sciences from the Enlightenment to the present. We consider how and why scientists such as Georg Christoph Lichtenberg and Sigmund Freud cultivate a literary style in their evocations of nature or human psychology. We also study how and why authors such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe appropriate in their literary work principles derived from the natural sciences, and how and why authors such as Bertolt Brecht, Helga Königsdorf, or Daniel Kehlmann (author of the best-selling novel Measuring the World) depict the lives of scientists such as Galileo, Lise Meitner, or Alexander von Humboldt. In addition, we discuss the extent to which scientific theories (e.g., Einstein’s theory of general relativity) can be applied to literature. Our overarching questions are: What have the modern arts and sciences learned from one another, and what can we as readers learn by studying German literature and science in relation to one another? Other authors and scientists we may consider include Friedrich Hölderlin, Carl Friedrich Gauss, Heinrich von Kleist, Adalbert von Chamisso, Georg Büchner, Charles Darwin, Kurd Lasswitz, Werner Heisenberg, Christa Wolf, Michael Frayn, and Hans Magnus Enzensberger. Mr. Schreiber. Prerequisite(s): GERM 260 or GERM 270 or the equivalent. Two 75-minute periods.
	GERM 375 - Advanced Topics in German Cultural Studies 1 unit(s) Not offered in 2013/14.
	GERM 399 - Senior Independent Work 1/2 or 1 unit(s)

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Course Descriptions

FREN 109 - Basic French Review

FREN 186 - Meeting Places: Bars, Streets, Cafés

FREN 205 - Intermediate French I

FREN 206 - Intermediate French II

FREN 210 - The Francophone World Through Text, Sound, and Image

FREN 212 - Reading Literature and Film

FREN 228 - Tellers and Tales

FREN 230 - Medieval and Early Modern Times

FREN 231 - Revolutionary France and Its Legacies

FREN 232 - The Modern Age

FREN 235 - Contemporary France

FREN 240 - Grammar and Composition

FREN 241 - Composition and Conversation

FREN 242 - Studies in Genre I

FREN 243 - Studies in Genre II

FREN 244 - French Cinema

FREN 246 - French-Speaking Cultures and Literatures of Africa and the Caribbean

FREN 280 - Black Majesty: Fashioning the First King of Haiti

FREN 284 - A Taste of Terroir: French Methodologies for Experiencing the Earth

FREN 290 - Field Work

FREN 298 - Independent Work

FREN 300 - Senior Thesis

FREN 301 - Senior Translation

FREN 332 - Literature and Society in Pre-Revolutionary France

FREN 348 - Modernism and its Discontents

FREN 355 - Cross-Currents in French Culture

FREN 366 - Francophone Literature and Cultures

FREN 370 - Stylistics and Translation

FREN 378 - Black Paris

FREN 380 - Special Seminar

FREN 399 - Senior Independent Work

GEAN 290 - Field Work

GEAN 300 - Senior Thesis

GEAN 301 - Senior Thesis

GEAN 302 - Senior Thesis

GEAN 399 - Senior Independent Work

GEOG 100 - Earth Resource Challenges

GEOG 102 - Global Geography: People, Places, and Regions

GEOG 111 - Earth Science and Environmental Justice

GEOG 151 - Earth, Environment, and Humanity

GEOG 220 - Cartography: Making Maps with GIS

GEOG 221 - Soils and Sustainable Ecosystems

GEOG 224 - GIS: Spatial Analysis

GEOG 230 - Geographic Research Methods

GEOG 231 - Geomorphology: Surface Processes and Evolution of Landforms

GEOG 235 - Water

GEOG 236 - The Making of Modern East Asia: Empires and Transnational Interactions

GEOG 238 - Environmental China: Nature, Culture, and Development

GEOG 242 - Brazil: Society, Culture, and Environment in Portuguese America

GEOG 250 - Urban Geography: Space, Place, Environment

GEOG 252 - Cities of the Global South: Urbanization and Social Change in the Developing World

GEOG 254 - Environmental Science in the Field

GEOG 256 - Geographies of Food and Farming

GEOG 258 - Sustainable Landscapes: Bridging Place and Environment

GEOG 260 - Conservation of Natural Resources

GEOG 266 - Population, Environment, and Sustainable Development

GEOG 270 - Gender and Social Space

GEOG 272 - Geographies of Mass Violence

GEOG 274 - The Political Geography of Human Rights

GEOG 276 - Economic Geography: Spaces of Global Capitalism

GEOG 290 - Field Work

GEOG 297 - Readings in Geography

GEOG 298 - Independent Work

GEOG 300 - Senior Thesis

GEOG 301 - Senior Thesis

GEOG 302 - Senior Thesis

GEOG 304 - Senior Seminar: Issues in Geographic Theory and Method

GEOG 340 - Advanced Urban and Regional Studies

GEOG 341 - Oil

GEOG 356 - Environment and Land Use Planning

GEOG 372 - Topics in Human Geography

GEOG 382 - Neoliberalism, Environmental Governance, and the Commons

GEOG 384 - Community GIS

GEOG 386 - Seminar on Energy and Extraction

GEOG 387 - Risk and Geohazards

GEOG 399 - Senior Independent Work

GERM 101 - Sex Before, During, and After the Nazis

GERM 105 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood

GERM 106 - Beginning German: The Stories of Childhood