Division of Humanities

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Division of Humanities

Chair(s):

Johanna Meehan

 Majors: 

• Art  
• Chinese and Japanese  
• Classics  
• English  
• French  
• German  
• Music  
• Philosophy  
• Religious Studies  
• Russian  
• Spanish  
• Theatre  

 Divisional and Interdivisional Courses

Ranging from great texts of the western tradition to a more global exploration of the rich diversity of human expression, courses designated “Humanities” employ both traditional and contemporary approaches to the close analysis of cultural texts, practices and media and their relation to meaning and value. Many of the courses included here cultivate knowledge that provides a basis for many other courses in various departments. All these courses- with respect to their breadth of knowledge, their interdisciplinary nature, or their experimentation with new areas of inquiry- exceed the confines of any single department within the Division of Humanities or any single concentration currently existing at the College. And as they do so, they provide models for the critical thought and creative inquiry that is at the heart of a liberal arts education.

These courses do not in themselves constitute a major program of study. Students should consult with the relevant department about acceptance of these courses as cognate credit for their proposed major or for inclusion in an independent major.

General Literary Studies is a program in the Division of Humanities. This program reflects the assumption that educated persons will wish to extend their experience of literature beyond what has been written in their native tongue and beyond what they can read in the foreign languages they have mastered. The education of any student can be enriched by exploring literature in translation. Courses in General Literary Studies make possible the discovery of a variety of illuminating relationships among works in different languages. While the program does not offer a major, its courses serve the literary interests of all students and provide greater breadth for majors in the foreign languages and in English.

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