Great Books (G B)
G B 110H Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds I 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material covered in Great Books 313C.
G B 111H Honors Lab: Ancient Worlds II 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material covered in Great Books 313D.
G B 313C Ancient Worlds I: Human and Divine 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions in the great texts, communal practices, and cosmological teachings from the Ancient Near East and Mediterranean. Investigate problems of the sacred and the profane, nobility and shame, holiness and justice. Study sources of wisdom in texts and authors such as Gilgamesh, Bible, Homer, Anaximander, and the tragedians.
G B 313D Ancient Worlds II: Philosophy and the City 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions in the great dramatic, historical, and philosophic texts of the Ancient Mediterranean world. Investigate issues such as the unity and multiplicity of the virtues, the problem of knowledge, and the character of nature. Study sources of wisdom in such authors as Aristophanes, Thucydides, Plato, and Aristotle.
G B 315 Topics in Great Books 3 Hours
Study one or more great works in the Great Books tradition.
G B 119S, 219S, 319S, 419S, 519S, 619S, 719S, 819S, 919S Topics in Great Books 1-9 Hours
This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad advisor in the School of Civic Leadership. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence. Transfer credit is awarded for work in an affiliated studies program.
G B 325 Topics in Ancient and Medieval Great Books 3 Hours
Study one or more ancient or medieval great works in the Great Books tradition.
G B 326 Topics in Renaissance and Modern Great Books 3 Hours
Study one or more Renaissance or modern great works in the Great Books tradition.
G B 327 American Letters: Colonial Times to 1877 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, scientific, and civic questions as they emerge in the arts and letters of America in the period up to and including Reconstruction. Focus on issues such as the nature of virtue and freedom, the character of the self and its relation to God and nature, and the relation between the individual and authority. Study sources of wisdom in such figures as the Puritans, James Fennimore Cooper, Herman Melville, Emily Dickinson, and Frederick Douglass.
G B 328 American Letters: 1877 through the 20th Century 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, scientific, and civic questions as they emerge in the arts and letters of America in the period from 1872 to 2000. Examine questions such as the nature of reality and our knowledge of it, the relationship between tradition and science, loyalties to place, family, and country, and the possibilities and problems of progress. Study sources of wisdom in such figures as Mark Twain, Henry James, the Gershwins, William Faulkner, and important literary, political, and cultural writings from the period.
G B 129S, 229S, 329S, 429S, 529S, 629S, 729S, 829S, 929S Topics in Great Books 1-9 Hours
This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad advisor in the School of Civic Leadership. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence. Transfer credit is awarded for work in an affiliated studies program.
G B 130H Honors Lab: Classical and Medieval Worlds 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material in Great Books 334C.
G B 131H Honors Lab: Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material in Great Books 334D.
G B 334 Foundations in Classical Education 3 Hours
G B 334C Classical and Medieval Worlds 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions as they emerge in the great texts of the classical and medieval periods. Investigate issues such as the relation between philosophy and the political community, the sources of human excellence and civic consensus, and the relation between the human and the divine. Study sources of wisdom in such authors as Virgil, Augustine, Chaucer, Thomas Aquinas, and Dante.
G B 334D Renaissance, Reformation, and the Age of Reason 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions in the great texts and art of the early modern period. Investigate issues such as the nature of the political community, the relation between the human and the divine, and the problem of human knowledge. Study sources of wisdom in such authors and texts as Petrarch, Calvin, Galileo, Shakespeare, and Francis Bacon.
G B 335 Great Books in Leadership 3 Hours
Explore religious, poetic, and philosophic reflections on leadership as they emerge in the great books of the ancient and modern worlds. Focus on such themes as great ambition, servanthood, aspirations and obedience to divinity, grandeur, and the obligations of justice. Study sources of wisdom in such texts and authors as Xenophon, the books of Samuel, Cicero, Washington, and Churchill.
G B 337 Great Books in Law and Justice 3 Hours
Explore religious, poetic, and philosophic reflections on questions of law and justice. Investigate questions concerning obligations to the community and the divine, the ordinances of the best regime, the status of nature, the character of the lawgiver, the development of common law, and the variation in law. Study such texts and authors as Exodus, Sophocles, Thomas Aquinas, Montesquieu, and Blackstone.
G B 338 Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Antiquity 3 Hours
Introduction to history of mathematics and science through study of core texts from Greek and Roman antiquity. Approach science and mathematics as liberal arts; examine fundamental questions raised by scientific inquiry. Consider questions regarding the nature of scientific knowledge, mathematical truth, physical reality, and causality.
G B 339 Classics of Mathematics and Scientific Thought: Modernity 3 Hours
Examine core philosophical and scientific texts in the history of modern science and mathematics. Consider questions related to natural laws, empirical investigation, mathematical analysis, and technology and the human experience. Study sources of wisdom in such authors as Galileo, Descartes, Newton, Darwin, and Einstein.
G B 140H Honors Lab: Modern Soul 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material in Great Books 345C.
G B 141H Honors Lab: Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction 1 Hour
Discuss readings and material in Great Books 345D.
G B 345C The Modern Soul 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions in the literature, art, and philosophy of the modern period. Focus on issues such as the nature of freedom, the character of the self, the relation between the individual and politico-religious authority, and the ascendency of science. Study sources of wisdom in authors and artists such as Bach, Newton, Hume, Austen, Goethe, and Tolstoy.
G B 345D Romanticism, Revolution, and Reaction 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, philosophic, and civic questions in the great texts of the later modern period. Focus on questions concerning the relationship between freedom and community, history and reason, the self and society, and rational inquiry and revelation. Study sources of wisdom in authors such as Rousseau, Flaubert, Marx, Dostoevsky, Darwin, Nietzsche, and Heisenberg.
G B 346 Advanced Topics in Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss one or more great works in the great books tradition at an advanced level.
G B 346.1 Advanced Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss great books at an advanced level.
G B 347 Fertility, Birth, Fragility, Dying 3 Hours
Explore religious, poetic, scientific, and philosophic reflections on the phenomena of fertility, birth, injury, disability, aging, and dying. Consider authors and texts from the ancient world through modern times.
G B 348 Technology and the Human Experience 3 Hours
Explore religious, literary, scientific, and philosophic reflections on the phenomena of technology, such as: the conquest of nature, industrial and digital revolutions, Artificial Intelligence, transhumanism, cryotherapy, and others. Consider authors and texts from the ancient world through modern times.
G B 356 Advanced Topics in Ancient and Medieval Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss one or more ancient or medieval great works in the great books tradition at an advanced level.
G B 356.1 Advanced Ancient and Medieval Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss ancient and medieval great books at an advanced level.
G B 366 Advanced Topics in Renaissance and Modern Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss one or more Renaissance or modern great works in the great books tradition at an advanced level.
G B 366.1 Advanced Renaissance and Modern Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss Renaissance and modern great books at an advanced level.
G B 367 Topics in Advanced Readings in Great Books 3 Hours
Discuss advanced topics examining a single major topic or theme in great books or works of a significant author.
G B 371 Capstone in Great Books 3 Hours
Participate in capstone of the great books degree. Develop and defend a persuasive argument on a significant question.
G B 372 Topics in Independent Research in Great Books 3 Hours
Participate in supervised research.
G B 177I Internship in Great Books 1 Hour
Participate in a professional internship. Reflect on internship to improve ability to both articulate preferences and skills, and to match them with appropriate career-related choices.
G B 378H Great Books Honors Thesis I 3 Hours
Participate in thesis writing in the great books degree. Develop and defend a persuasive argument on a significant question.
G B 278I, 378I Internship in Great Books 2-3 Hours
Participate in a professional internship. Reflect on internship to improve ability to both articulate preferences and skills, and to match them with appropriate career-related choices.
G B 379H Great Books Honors Thesis II 3 Hours
Participate in thesis writing in the great books degree. Develop and defend a persuasive argument on a significant question.