Schedule
Click on course titles for course
descriptions.
Link to Registrar's Office Schedule.
Seminar on the Human Condition,
Wednesdays
Seminar on the
Human Experience:
A Prose Workshop: Fiction and
Creative Non-fiction,
Mondays
Seminar on the Human Experience:
Roots of the American Documentary
Tradition, Tuesdays
Seminar on the Individual and Society:
Technology and Global Citizenry, Tuesdays *5pm-7:30pm
Seminar on the Individual and Society:
Political Thought, Thursdays
Seminar on the Individual and Society:
History of Judaism, Mondays
Seminar
on Science and Human Values:
Descartes: Mind & Body, Wednesdays
Seminar on Science and Human Values:
Consumerism and the Environment, Thursdays
Directed Readings: Approaches to
Research, individual meetings
Tutorial Option (as arranged)
Scholarly Research Seminar -
Prerequisite: Successful completion of 21 hours in the MLA program, Wednesdays
Course Descriptions
MLA 500.001 - Seminar on the Human
Condition
Instructor: Holly Iglesias (MLA)
Wednesdays 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN) 11041
Carmichael Hall 232
The gateway seminar for the Master of Liberal Arts
Program, MLA 500 is an introduction to interdisciplinary studies at the
graduate level. With the large, overarching theme of "the human condition,"
the course offers an opportunity to examine topics that address our
fundamental human nature from a multitude of perspectives—intimate and
immediate as well as analytical and more removed—and to develop scholarly
skills (research, writing, analytical thinking).
I've chosen the topic "notions of race at the turn of
the 20th century" because it reflects the dreams and anxieties that launched
the century and continues to vex the nation to this day; because it
addresses how memory is linked to healing and how storytelling shapes
meaning; because it exemplifies a deep paradox (i.e. co-existence of a
belief in progress and acceptance of brutal oppression); and because it
lends itself to examination through a wide variety of disciplines.
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MLA
520.001 - Seminar on the Human Experience:
A
Prose Workshop: Fiction and Creative Nonfiction
Instructor: Tommy Hays (MLA)
Mondays 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN) 11042
Carmichael Hall 102
This
class will provide structure, support and constructive criticism for
students who are interested in writing fiction or creative nonfiction.
Students may have a project in mind or one they’re already at work on, but
that is not required. In fact, part of what students may accomplish is
discovering and tapping into creative veins from which to write. In that
regard, we will do some in-class writing exercises.
Each
student will submit short stories, novel excerpts or creative nonfiction
during the semester, which I will respond to at length in writing, and which
we as a class will discuss. Over time, as we learn what to look for and how
to read like a writer, the class will become a community of supportive and
insightful critics. I will also meet individually with students to discuss
their writing. And finally, we will read and discuss works by accomplished
writers to heighten our awareness of craft so that we might avail ourselves
of the many possible approaches to our own work.
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MLA 520.002 - Seminar on the Human Experience: Roots
of the American Documentary Tradition
Instructor: Holly Iglesias (MLA)
Tuesdays 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN) 11043
Carmichael Hall 102
The course examines the confluence of two major influences on the character
of the 20th century in the United States—technology (advances in photography
and filmmaking fueling the power of mass media) and social unrest (racism,
immigration, cycles of economic boom and bust). Because visual imagery
became increasingly available at the same time that major social changes
were taking place, photography and film were soon utilized as instruments of
social change, one of the most powerful expressions created during the Great
Depression when the government subsidized photographers and filmmakers in
order to "show America to America" and gain support for federal relief
programs.
Starting with social documentarians Jacob Riis and Lewis Hine and moving on
to the work of the Photo League and the those hired by Roy Stryker for the
Farm Security Administration (such as Margaret Bourke-White, Pare Lorenz,
Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, Walker Evans, Willard Van Dyke, Ben Shahn,
Russell Lee, Esther Bubely, Marion Post Wolcott), the course will examine
the roots of art in the service of politics as well as the challenging
ethics of representation.
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MLA 540.EZ1 – Seminar on the
Individual & Society: Technology and Global
Citizenry
Instructor: Larry Wilson (former
UNC Asheville Chancellor and visiting professor)
Tuesdays, 5:00-7:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11006
**This course is offered
through UNC Asheville Distance Education and will be taught off-campus at
the YMI Cultural Center in downtown Asheville. Students enrolled only in
this course will not have to pay student fees, only graduate tuition.
Students enrolled in this class in addition to other MLA course(s) will
still have to pay student fees. PLEASE contact the MLA Office with
questions about this pay structure.
Over the last few centuries science and
technology increasingly have had a major influence in the determining the
quality of life in all corners of the world and, consequently, impact our
global societies at many levels. In order to participate knowledgeably in
decision-making, global citizens in the 21st Century should have an
understanding of some of the fundamental principles and practices in the
scientific and technological world and how their applications affect the
world in which we live. This course is designed for those who want to
understand the role and impact of science and technology upon their lives
and futures. The subject matter will be studied from an interdisciplinary
approach and will include discussion of and readings on topics such as
Evolution of the Universe, Energy and Matter, Weapons of Mass Destruction
and Terrorism, Global Climate Change, Bio-engineering and Technology,
Promise of New Technologies, and Sustainability and Limits. Where
appropriate, material relating to other countries will be included.
Since science and technology are not restricted by the boundaries of normal
academic disciplines, this course will be interdisciplinary in nature and
will not assume any particular background in science, technology or
mathematics.
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MLA
540.002 – Seminar on the Individual & Society: Political Thought
Instructor: John McClain
(Humanities)
Thursdays, 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN) 11045
Karpen Hall 127
*This course is co-listed as an undergraduate Honors seminar
The
purpose of this course to study political thought with primary sources that
represent literary culture with a “political” intent, broadly and popularly
understood. A society’s political ideas can be found and studied in many
aspects of its cultural heritage apart from explicitly political and
governmental texts.
The
course will begin with Machiavelli. He is of course a conspicuously
political thinker, but one who communicates his political ideas in a variety
of genres: plays (The Mandrake Root), history, biography, fable,
letters, and straightforward political theory, most famously with The
Prince. Machiavelli interweaves his political views with aesthetic
(and entertainment) interests across a variety of forms. He educates
different audiences under different literary guises: Thus Machiavelli is a
model “political culture” thinker.
Having
the class accustomed to this “politics of culture” approach, we would then
switch to the American scene.
Some Themes: The role of
government; How to instruct about the role of government; Political
leadership; How to teach “leadership,” how to “lead” potential leaders and
their potential followers; violence.
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MLA 540.003 – Seminar on the Individual & Society: History of Judaism
Instructor:
Rick Chess (Literature)
Mondays, 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11046
Karpen Hall 232
*This course is co-listed as an undergraduate Religious Studies seminar
In this class, we’ll look at the evolution of
Judaism in relation to the history of the Jewish people. Because Judaism is
largely a text-based religion, we’ll consider some of the primary sacred and
cultural texts of the Jews, including excerpts from the Torah, the Talmud,
the Zohar, and Jewish liturgy. We’ll also read some tales of Hasidim, a
novel, a memoir/spiritual autobiography, a Holocaust testimony, and poetry
both by some of the great Hebrew poets of Medieval Spain and by some
contemporary Israeli and Jewish poets. We’ll also view one or two films and
attend the second annual Asheville Jewish Film Festival. We will have
several speakers/programs on campus and downtown to support our class,
including talks by Dr. James Tabor, Dr. Howard Schwartz, and Emily Warn.
Through it all, we should gain some knowledge about and insight into Jewish
belief, practice and thought as well as into Jewish cultures.
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MLA
560.001 – Seminar on Science & Human Values: Descartes: Mind and Body
Instructor: Greg Boudreaux
(Mathematics)
Wednesdays, 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11047
Karpen Hall 127
*This course is co-listed as an undergraduate Honors seminar
Sure, Descartes thought, therefore he was,
but there is a lot more to Descartes than that too often repeated
one-liner. Most people do not know that Descartes posited an all
encompassing philosophical system that sparked major revolutions in physics,
mathematics, and philosophy itself. His work even had religious implications
because he gave several "proofs" of the existence of God. Students in this
class will be studying his major works: Discourse on the Method and
Meditations on First Philosophy. In addition, we will read a biography
of Descartes, some of his lesser known works, some criticism of his works,
and some criticism of the criticisms. The main objective will be for us to
form our own opinion of Descartes based on his own writings while coming to
grips with one of his most enduring and controversial legacies -- his
mind-body dualism. No knowledge of physics or college mathematics is
required.
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MLA 560.002 – Seminar on Science
& Human Values: Consumerism and the Environment
Instructor: Gerard Voos (MLA)
Thursdays, 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credit hours
Carmichael Hall 102
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11048
“How much is enough?” That is the title
of a book by Alan Durning and the overarching theme of this course. The
class will be taught in a seminar format, requiring participation from each
student. The first half of each class will include instructor and
student-led discussions on subjects ranging from the clamor for constant
world-wide economic growth to the impacts of our increasing consumption of
natural resources to the belief that the more material goods we possess, the
happier (as a society and individually) we will be. These discussions will
incorporate information from daily, weekly, and monthly periodicals as well
as internet-based sources. Three to five books, written on the
above-mentioned and additional themes, will be assigned at the start of the
semester. From these, a weekly reading will be selected and discussed
during the second half of each class. Course grading will be based on class
participation, a multimedia presentation by each student, and an
end-of-semester written project.
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MLA
572.001 – Directed Readings:
Approaches to Research
Instructor: Holly Iglesias
(MLA)
Individual meetings
2 graduate credits
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11049
Prerequisite: Successful completion
of 9 credit hours in the MLA Program.
This two-hour course provides direction
and focus in research for students who have completed introductory
coursework. It is individualized by topic and methodology, providing each
student support and assistance in developing a bibliography and narrowing an
interdisciplinary theme into a focused thesis. The course is appropriate for
students anticipating the creation of a variety of final projects, including
research-based papers, community projects and creative writing manuscripts
(poetry, fiction, nonfiction, drama).
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MLA 610: Tutorial Options
Individual study under the
supervision of a faculty member, or cross-listing with an undergraduate
course for graduate credit (with graduate-level work). Please contact
the MLA Director as soon as possible if you are interested in pursuing
a tutorial.
Tutorial Request Form
MLA 670.001: Scholarly Research Seminar
Instructor: Peg Downes (MLA)
Wednesdays, 6:00-8:30pm
3 graduate credits
Carmichael Hall 102
Registration Call Number: (CRN)
11050
This
seminar provides a forum for students to develop their individual scholarly
interests into a capstone MLA project. Includes survey of techniques of
inquiry in the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, as
well as practical issues from finding a topic, to final presentation and
defense. Students will define a topic for the project seminar and begin
preliminary research. Project proposals must be approved by the project
advisor, the project seminar instructor, and the Program Director.
Prerequisite: 21 hours in the MLA Program. (Grading S/U).
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