Honors
(non major/minor)
The University Honors Program (UHP) provides enhanced educational opportunities for Cal Lutheran’s most academically motivated students. The mission of the UHP is to challenge students at a higher level as they grapple with deeper questions of life, identity, and purpose within a global community. It encourages intellectual exploration and experimentation by involving students in an intensive study of works that bridge diverse historical contexts, cultural settings and fields of knowledge. By balancing tradition and innovation and discovering or creating links between areas of knowledge currently separated by disciplines and departments, the UHP encourages students to think holistically and critically about these works and the global issues they illuminate.
The UHP is open to students by invitation upon admission to Cal Lutheran, although other admitted students may petition the Honors Committee for admission to the program. In addition, up to five transfers a year may petition to enter the Honors Program either during their sophomore or the beginning of their junior year.
First-year UHP students must attend one of two year-long foundational seminar courses. One of these courses is Humanities Tutorial, a course that explores a wide array of themes in literature and philosophy. From the origins of Western thought in Greek philosophy and literature to an extensive survey of contemporary themes (both Western and non-Western) in more recent writings, the Humanities Tutorial foundational seminar provides a stimulating atmosphere in which to explore important ideas in the humanities.
The second choice of foundational seminar is At Home in the Universe: a Scientific World View. This course affords students the opportunity to delve into some of the most important ideas in post-Enlightenment thought, and provides them with a modern, scientific understanding of man and nature. From cosmological theories for the birth of our universe to the intricate neurological underpinnings of human consciousness, the processes by which our current perception of the natural world has been elucidated will be explored.
During their second and third years, University Honors students must attend at least two honors seminars (preferably one in each year). In their final year, students must attend one capstone honors seminar course. With the successful completion of the capstone and seminars, the student will achieve University Honors. Transfer students will be required to attend at least four honors seminars and the capstone to achieve University Honors.
Requirements for completion of the Honors Program
Successful completion of 4 honors seminars (16 credits); successful completion of a capstone honors seminar. Students entering on or after the 2007-2008 academic year must maintain a 3.5 cumulative GPA to sustain their membership in the UHP.
Courses
Lower Division
HNRS 101/102. At Home in the Universe. (I,1154).
A scientific worldview encourages students to delve into some of the most important ideas in post-Enlightenment thought, and provides them with a modern, scientific understanding of man and nature. From cosmological theories for the birth of our universe to the intricate neurological underpinnings of human consciousness, the processes by which our current perception of the natural world has been elucidated are explored.
HNRS 103/104. Honors Social Science Seminar. (4,4).
The two-semester Social Sciences Seminar will introduce first-year Honors students to the theories and methods of the social and behavioral sciences -- Communication, Criminal Justice, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology -- by taking an interdisciplinary approach to explore important topics. Topics will be selected each year by the faculty leading the course, and might include, for example, "Privilege and Power," "Emotion," or "Pop Culture, Self, and Society.".
HNRS 113. Honors ST: History. (4).
HNRS 115. Humanities Tutorial. (4).
The year-long Humanities Tutorial begins with an in-depth, one-semester study of the origins of Western culture in Greek literature and philosophy. The second semester continues with a study of contemporary themes and concerns both in Western and Non-Western thought. In addition to providing practice in the skills of analysis, argument, and critical and reflective interpretation, the course aims to familiarize students with the intellectual ideal of illuminating the new by understanding the old. (cross-listed with PHIL 115, ENGL 115).
HNRS 116. Honors St: Philosophy. (4).
HNRS 118. Humanities Tutorial. (4).
HNRS 120. Social Science Seminar. (4).
HNRS 122. Honors St: Communication. (4).
HNRS 130. Natural Science Seminar. (4).
HNRS 182. Selected Topic:. (4).
HNRS 213. Honors St: History. (4).
HNRS 215. Honors ST: English. (4).
HNRS 222. Honors ST: Communication. (4).
HNRS 282. Selected Topic. (1-4).
Upper Division
HNRS 300. Experimental Modernism: Art, Ideas, Identities. (4).
Between 1900-1940, the rich conversations and artistic production of three highly influential communities of writers and artists--the Bloomsbury group in London, Stein and Picasso's circle in Paris, and participants in the Harlem Renaissance in New York--caused the art salon to become a fashionable and prominent symbol of the mondernist era. This interdisciplinary course explores the role of these three salons 1)in the development of new and experimental art forms, including cubism, post impressionism, and literary modernism; and 2)in shaping public discourses about identity and identity politics that still impacts us today. Primary texts include poetry, autobiographies, novel, paintings, and philosophical manifestos from the modernist era. Secondary texts includes work by contemporary scholars in fields ranging from literature and art history to women's, gender, queer, black and cultural studies.
HNRS 301. Globalizing the Feminine: Women in International Film. (4).
This course will consider issues in the representation of women in film from a variety of perspectives, using feminist as well as film criticism to evaluate films drawn from world cinema.
HNRS 303. Don Quijote and Modern Fiction. (4).
This course is designed to trace the influence of Don Quijote on contemporary prose fiction and film. It will involve the study of the work itself as well as that of other select works from Western literature for comparison purposes, focusing on literary aspects as well as the historical, social and cultural context. Instructor's consent is required. (cross-listed with SPAN 303).
HNRS 304. St.Augustine's City of God. (UG).
On the City of God, written between 413-427 CE by Augustine, bishop of Hippo in North Africa, is arguably the most important and lastingly influential Christian text of late antiquity. In it, Augustine answers pagan critics of Christianity, makes the case for Christianity's compatibility with what he thinks is the best part of ancient philosophy, develops a biblical view of history, and makes sense theologically of the greatest historical disaster he and his contemporaries could imagine - the disintegration of the Western Roman Empire.
HNRS 306. Masterpieces of German Literature In Translation. (4).
The study and interpretation of selected major works from German literature in English translation, supplemented by outside reading and individual reports. (cross-listed with GERM 306).
HNRS 313. Honors ST: History. (4).
HNRS 314. Topics in Religion. (4).
HNRS 315. Topics in English. (4).
HNRS 320. The Science and Aesthetics of Science Fiction. (4).
This course will examine contemporary science fiction film from a number of perspectives - scientific, philosophical, and aesthetic. A special focus will be placed on identifying the limits of scientific fact and artistic license in aesthetic production. In-class learning activities will include both viewing of films along with detailed, scene-by-scene cinematic analysis through regular small-group (less than 5) mini-workshops.
HNRS 322. Honors ST: Communication. (4).
HNRS 324. War, Politics and Cinema. (4).
Explore the political nature of cinema and the ways in which war and political culture, issues and themes are expressed in and through the movies. Particular emphasis is placed in this course on the historical dialectic between "hawks" and "doves.".
HNRS 326. Topics in Political Science. (4).
HNRS 328. Cold War America. (4).
A close examination of modern United States history during the Cold War and after. Class sessions give attention to the political, social, economic and international developments of what has been termed "the Pax Americana." Focus is specifically on the role of presidents and policymaking, particularly the relationship with the Soviet Union. (a/y). (Cross-listed with HIST 328).
HNRS 402. Post-Modernism: Politics and Philosophy Of Art. (4).
Postmodernism explores the relationship between art, science, and politics in contemporary philosophy. The course begins with a consideration of the legacies of Freud, Nietzsche, and Marx and continues with an analysis of such authors as Breton, Heidegger, Benjamin, Cort zar, Borges, Derrida, Foucault, Heisenberg, and Rorty. Uses film (including students' own short surrealist films) literature, and philosophical texts. Open to all students, it also fulfills the Honors Capstone requirement. (cross-listed POLS 402).
HNRS 413. Music and the Civil Rights Movement. (4).
The purpose of this course is to examine the southern civil rights movement (CRM) from 1954 to 1968. This course integrates discussion and analysis of the CRM with music. Music was very important to the movement because it inspired both participants and supporters to continue the struggle until several victories were won. Emphasis in this course is on matching the music with a political event, ideology and/or individual. This course includes discussion on the personal involvement in political and social activities by the singers and performers themselves. Tactics and strategies of the CRM are examined and their relationships to music are explored by relying on music with explicitly political lyrics and messages as well as those with lyrics and composition that convey spiritual and festive elements. (cross-listed with POLS 413).
HNRS 415. Honors ST: English. (4).
HNRS 422. Honors ST: Communication. (4).
HNRS 432. Freud and Beyond. (4).
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to psychoanalytic theory and the impact of the psychoanalytic theory on society. Students will examine the development of psychoanalysis from an historical perspective beginning with an in depth investigation of Freud, his life and his classical theory. Next, the course will examine the development of psychoanalysis and its departure from traditional Freudian ideology. Students will then consider the four major branches of psychoanalysis including drive theory, ego psychology, object relations, and self psychology. Finally, students will examine contemporary view of psychoanalysis with an emphasis on the integration of psychoanalytic theory and the neurobiology of attachment.
HNRS 477. Cityscapes. (4).
Through art, politics, and philosophy, this course offers an in-depth study of the cultural landscape of selected global cities. Along with texts, films, and music from such centers as Prague and Mexico city, students develop their own "cityscape" from a region of their choice (often based on their off-campus experience) as their final projects. Open to all students, this course fulfills the requirement for an honors seminar and is the capstone for the Global Studies major. (cross-listed with GLST 477 and POLS 477).
HNRS 482. Honors Seminar. (4).
HNRS 490. Directed Research. (2).
HNRS 498. Goodness, Truth, and Beauty: Capstone. (4).
This course examines the relationship between contemporary philosophy and contemporary biology in relation to the major triad of categories dealing with aesthetics, ethics, and the search for truth. (cross-listed with POLS 498).