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Director: Gordon
E. Whatley
Office: HC 134, (718) 997-3180
Email: e.whatley@qc.cuny.edu
Honors in the
Humanities (HTH) was
established over 30 years ago and is
the oldest honors program at Queens
College. The program is designed
for students who wish to gain an understanding of the origins
and history of our contemporary artistic and intellectual
culture. The full sequence of 8 courses is interdisciplinary
in design and covers a broad range of fundamental works of
literature, religion, history, philosophy, and art, and complements
majors in any division of the college.
COURSES
The
course sequence includes three components:
- 3
foundation courses:
- English 140H: an introduction to poetry
that provides training in close reading and critical analysis.
- Philosophy 104H: an introduction to ethics
that emphasizes classical as well as contemporary sources.
- Comparative Literature 101H: Great works
of Ancient Literature and Culture.
- Four
HTH courses on the history of ideas and cultures: HTH 210, 220, 230, 240:
In each of these courses the instructor will choose,
on the basis of his or her own interest and expertise, materials
that illustrate a core issue, and, by placing these in their
cultural and historical context, will use them as a basis
for an investigation of the historical period and its potential
contribution to our modern understanding of the humanities. As part of the study of the sequence, students
will confront the problem of differing interpretations and
on-going debates regarding the choice and transmission of
canonical texts, and study how ideas and forms both retain
and lose value over time.
HTH
210. Antiquity. 3hr. 3 cr. Prereq.: By permission only.
A close study of some influential classical texts exploring
their understanding of the human condition and its ethical
and political consequences as well as the relation of gods
and mortals and the limits of knowledge. Topics will
include the place of the Greek and Roman literature and thought
in relation to other ancient Mediterranean cultures, the character
of oral literature and of the transition from the oral to
the written, and the significance of reevaluating ancient
ceremonial or religious literature as literature in the humanistic
tradition.
HTH
220. [formerly
151] The Middle Ages. 3hr. 3 cr. Prereq.: By permission only.
A
study of material illustrating the encounters between Christianity,
Judaism, and Islam, and the development of vernacular and
courtly culture from the fourth through fifteenth centuries.
Topics of interests include the transmission of ancient
knowledge through the Byzantine and Islamic empires, the expansion
of cultural contact through trade, and the emergence of new
theological and philosophical discourses.
HTH
230. [formerly
201] The Early Modern World 3hr. 3 cr.
Prereq.: By permission only.
An examination
of the ideas of Renaissance and Reformation in the literature,
theology, and philosophic thought of the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries as well as the effects of the
encounter with the New World in the age of exploration; materials
to be studied may include authors, texts, and art from both
the Old and the New World.
HTH
240. [formerly
301] Modern Eras.
3 hr.; 3 cr.
Prereq.:
By permission only.
An examination
of ideas of enlightenment and science, the development of
secular philosophy, and the consequences of the political
and industrial revolution for literature, thought and art
from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. Topics will include the effects of the encounter with Asian and
African civilizations and the concept of “post-modern.”
3. A senior seminar:
HTH
300. (Formerly HTH 351). Senior Seminar. 3
hr.; 3 cr. Prereq.: By permission only.
An
intensive and interdisciplinary exploration of a major literary
theme, philosophical issue and/or historical concern (e.g.,
The Problem of Evil, Literature and Memory, Utopias/ Dystopias,
Music as Intellectual History).
The course may include both ancient and modern and
both Western and non-western texts and art.
Students
who complete the full sequence of 8 courses receive an HTH
certificate that is listed on their final transcript. Students
who complete a selected sequence of 6 courses, one of which
must be the Senior Seminar, qualify for a minor in HTH, which
is indicated on their final transcript.
Eligibility:
A 3.3 GPA is required for admission to and retention in the
Program. Although most
students enter the courses in their freshman year, sophomore
entry is permitted.
The
sequence satisfies the following Liberal Arts and Sciences
Area Requirements: Humanities I, Tier 1 and Tier 2, Humanities
III, and Pre-Industrial and/or Non-Western Civilization. In
addition, completion of the entire sequence will satisfy one
of the social science course requirements. Any social science
course on the LASAR list may be used to complete the social
science requirement.
Courses with Townsend Harris High School
HTH 101, 102. Freshman Humanities Colloquium. 3 hr.; 3 cr. each sem. Prereq.:
Passing grade on the CUNY Assessment Test. Open only to Townsend
Harris High School
seniors.
Selected
readings from the classic texts of the Western Tradition,
from the Bible and the Greeks to the present.
The course will emphasize reading, writing and student discussion.
Townsend Harris High School
graduates who elect to matriculate at Queens
College and who continue in Honors in the Humanities may use HTH
101 and 102 in lieu of English 140 and one of the HTH senior
seminars to complete the ten-course sequence in HTH. For Townsend
Harris graduates who do not choose to complete the sequence
in Honors in the Humanities, HTH 101 and 102 will satisfy
the Hum. I, Tier 1 and Pre-Industrial and/or
Non-Western Civilization components of LASAR.
HTH 375, 376. Honors
Seminar for College Teaching. 4 hr.; 4 cr. Prereq.: Permission of Director.
Students participate in teaching the Freshman Humanities Colloquium
with two other instructors: A Queens College professor and
a Townsend
Harris High School
teacher. Includes planning and conducting seminar sessions, holding conferences,
commenting on students’ papers, and attending a weekly workshop.
Requirements for the Sequence in Honors in the Humanities:
English
140, Introduction to Poetry; Comparative Literature 101, Great
Books; Philosophy 104, Introduction to Ethics; HTH 210, 220,
230, 240, and 300.
Requirements for the Minor in Honors in the Humanities:
A
minor consists of any six courses (18 credits) from among
HTH offerings, one of which must be the Senior Seminar.
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