Course Descriptions
Spring 2026 Course Descriptions
9:00 – 10:30 AM
COURSE 101
Latin American Art
Dr. Yumi Park Huntington
This course examines the arts of Central and South America and the Caribbean across the colonial, modern, and contemporary periods. Students analyze these artifacts through an in-depth study of the ancient American artistic tradition in the Mesoamerican regions of Central America, the Andean regions of South America, and the Caribbean. Emphasis is placed on recognizing key works of art and architecture and the social, political, and religious contexts in which they were created. Some ancient American material objects and cultural items are also analyzed by connecting them to selected contemporary artists’ works. The relationship between contemporary/modern art and ancient art will be discussed during class sessions. This class is designed for students interested in the artistic heritage of Latin America.
Week 1: Mesoamerican art and its relationship to colonial, modern, and contemporary art
Week 2: Mayan art and its relationship to colonial, modern, and contemporary art
Week 3: Caribbean art and its relationship to colonial, modern, and contemporary art
Week 4: Andean art and its relationship to colonial, modern, and contemporary art
COURSE 102
Colonial New England and the Dawnland
Dr. Joseph Adelman
When English settlers arrived on the northeastern coast of North America in the 1620s, they established themselves in the middle of what the region's Indigenous people called the Dawnland. In this course, we'll explore the history of the region during the colonial era from the late sixteenth to the late eighteenth centuries. Across nearly 200 years, migrants from England, Ireland, Scotland, and other parts of Europe interacted with Wampanoag, Nipmuc, Massachusett, and numerous other Indigenous peoples to create the region we now know as New England.
10:45 AM – 12:15 PM
COURSE 103
David Copperfield: “Will I Be the Hero of My Own Life?”
Dr. Helen Heineman
David Copperfield is regarded as Dickens‘s most autobiographical novel, invested with many elements of his own life. Once the novel was written, he made no attempt to mask his preference for it. In the 1867 preface, he refers to the book as his “favorite child,” which appeared as a monthly serial from 1849 to 1850. In it, he asserted the significance of childhood in determining adult character. Few writers before Freud had placed early experience at the center of human character, and the book is a very complicated interweaving of truth and fiction.
In form, David Copperfield is a buildings-roman, a novel that traces the development of the hero in his progress toward adulthood. In this great favorite with readers, we meet David, not only as the famous and successful writer he becomes, but also as the neglected child, the ambitious student, the ardent young lover, and the loyal friend. When Dickens finished the novel, he felt as if he were dismissing some portion of himself into the shadowy world, where this crowd of the creatures of his brain would go along with him forever. May they also accompany you in this journey of reading the novel.
Dr. Heineman will be referring to the Penguin Classics (2004) edition of David Copperfield.
Week 1: Chapters 1 – 15
Week 2: Chapters 16 – 24
Week 3: Chapters 25 – 43
Week 4: Chapters 44 to the end
COURSE 104
Living the Awakened Life
Dr. Paul Galvin
We will all grow old, get sick, and eventually die separating us from all that we love. Contemplating these truths can awaken us to the life we live and what we offer the world. In Buddhism, taking this step is called the Five Remembrances. The course will review the life of Siddhartha Gautama and his awaking as Shakyamuni Buddha through the five remembrances. The course will include an overview of Buddhist philosophy, silent meditation, structured contemplation, class sharing and discussion to promote application in everyday life.
1:15 PM – 2:45 PM
COURSE 105
The Complicated Relationship: Religion and American Politics
Dr. David Smailes
The role of religion in American political life has been a question from the very beginning of our national story. The American political system has played a unique role in shaping how religion and politics interact, raising a number of questions about how much faith should guide politics. In this course, we will explore how politics and religion have developed in this country, how each has been both supported and in conflict with the other, and the ways in which religion has become more politicized in modern times.