GNST 300 L60
Heritage I

Summer 2008
M,T,W,Th 14:00 - 17:20

 

 

Instructor:	Dr. Tom Brown
Office Location:	SS 209
E-Mail:	tebrown@shaw.ca
Office Hours:	by appt.

Additional Information

Course Description

GNST 300 introduces students to the Great Ideas, Great Thinkers, and Great Texts from the Ancient Greeks to the Age of Enlightenment in the eighteenth century that have shaped the modern Western mind. Particular attention will focus on the two great traditions of the Ancient World - the Greco-Roman and the Judeo-Christian - that have been formative in shaping the Western imagination., By examining the  attempted "Medieval Synthesis" of these traditions, the Renaissance return to classical knowledge, the shattering of the unity of Christendom in the Reformation of the sixteenth century, the rejection of ancient learning by the natural philosophers of the seventeenth-century Scientific Revolution, and the calling into question of the entire Ancien Régime  of Church and State  by the eighteenth-century philosophes, we will explore how much of what makes up our present Western sensibility is the product of  the long-standing friction between these two great ancient traditions of Reason and Faith.

Objectives of the Course

1)      to introduce students to the "Great Conversation" of  Western literature, philosophy, science, architecture, and the visual arts that has shaped our modern Western imagination

2)      to critique this "Great Conversation" by helping students explore the often hidden assumptions of power, gender, sexual orientation, race, and empire that inform this Western dialogue of the mind

3)      to encourage students to embark on their own Socratic quest for self-knowledge - the "Know Thyself"

4)      to show students that the holding of "idle opinion" is worthless; that critical thinking and  reflective argument - that can only be attained by close reading, informed discussion and thoughtful writing - are the essential tools of the "educated mind"

Textbooks and Readings:

Lawrence S. Cunningham and John J, Reich, Culture and Values, Vols. I & II, 6^th Edition. Thomson Wadsworth, 2006.

Aeschylus, Oresteia, translated by Peter Meineck. Hackett Publishing, 1998

Assignments and Evaluation

10%: Reading Quiz (the Oresteia): Tuesday, 15 July

 

20%: Mid-Term Exam: Thursday, 24 July

 

20%: Essay Assignment (the Oresteia): Tuesday, 5 August

 

15%: Group Projects/Class Presentations: 11, 12, 13 August

 

10%: Class Discussion Participation

 

25%: Final Exam

It is the student's responsibility to keep a copy of each submitted assignment.
Note: Please hand in your essays directly to your tutor or instructor if possible. If it is not possible to do so, a daytime drop box is available in SS110; a date stamp is provided for your use. A night drop box is also available for after-hours submission. Assignments will be removed the following morning, stamped with the previous day's date, and placed in the instructor's mailbox.

Registrar-scheduled Final Examination:  YES

Please note: If your class is held in the evening, the Registrar's Office will make every attempt to schedule the final exam during the evening; however, there is NO guarantee that the exam will NOT be scheduled during the day.

Policy for Late Assignments

Assignments submitted after the deadline may be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.

Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented.

If you need help with your writing, you may use the Writing Centre.  Visit the website for more details: www.efwr.ucalgary.ca

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

A+ (96-100); A (92-95); A- (86-91); B+ (81-85); B (77-80); B- (71-76);
C+ (65-70); C (62-64); C- (59-61); D+ (55-58); D (50-54); F (0-49)

 

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS 106, efwr.ucalgary.ca) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/su

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

Ethics

Whenever you perform research with human participants (i.e. surveys, interviews, observation) as part of your university studies, you are responsible for following university research ethics guidelines.  Your instructor must review and approve of your research plans and supervise your research.  For more information about your research ethics responsibilities, see

The Faculty of Communication and Culture Research Ethics site: http://www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/ethics

or the University of Calgary Research Ethics site: http://www.ucalgary.ca/research/compliance/ethics/info/undergrad/

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

 

To be handed out in class.