Master of Arts in Liberal Studies

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	Email	mals@wfu.edu
	Phone:	(336) 758-5232
	Fax:	(336) 758-4669
	Mail:	MALS, PO 6103 Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC 27109

Summer 2010 Courses

MLS 774 The History and Culture of Venice

This course is full, with a waiting list. Please call the MALS Office if you wish to be placed on the waiting list.

Venice is a miraculous city, where palaces filled with priceless artistic treasures rise in the most improbable way from the ocean, where streets are water and boats replace cars, and where for centuries some of the world’s greatest works of art and music were created.  This course is an in-depth introduction to Venetian culture and history, ranging from its unlikely origins in the lagoon in the seventh century to the present day.  Musical and visual masterpieces will be viewed in cultural and historical context.  Emphasis will be placed on the period of 1450 to 1800, including works by Giovanni Bellini, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Canova, and compositions by Gabrieli, Monteverdi, Vivaldi, Marcello and others.

NOTE:  The course will meet for five sessions on campus, and nine days at Casa Artom, Wake Forest’s beautiful facility on the Grand Canal in Venice.  An additional fee of $1250 will cover lodging in Venice, guided tours, museum entry tickets, concert tickets, and group meals (including 6 lunches and 5 dinners).  Price does not include travel to Venice and additional meals.  Regular, degree-seeking students will be given first priority for the spaces available in the class, followed by Provisional students then Unclassified students, and registration will be done on a first-come, first-served basis within these categories.  Students must make a non-refundable deposit of $500 by December 1, 2009, in order to secure a space in the class.

Classes to meet on campus in Scales Fine Arts Center M306:
Tuesday, May 25, Thursday, May 27, Tuesday, June 1, Thursday, June 3,
Tuesday, June 8.      
Depart Friday, June 11 (arrive at Casa Artom Saturday, June 12)
Depart Casa Artom June 20
Peter Kairoff, D.M.A.          kairoff@wfu.edu

Peter D. Kairoff (D.M.A. Southern California) is a pianist who performs frequently in the United States, Europe, and South America to great critical acclaim, and is considered “One of America’s finest keyboard performers” (Oxford, MAIL, England).  He studied in Italy for two years as a Fulbright Scholar and Rotary International Fellow, and returns frequently to Italy to perform and in his capacity as the Director of Wake Forest University’s Venice Program.

MLS 839       Human Rights and the Humanities

(Summer I)

This course will examine a topic of ever-increasing global significance, Human Rights, from the point of view and with the resources of the Humanities.  By examining works of history, literature, film, and philosophy, this course will study the origin and spread of the idea of rights in the eighteenth century, the active suppression of rights in colonial contexts in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the revival of rights by the UN after WWII, and the current state of rights and “states of exception” in the era of Guantanamo and “rendition.”  Our course will consider the following questions:  What artistic practices helped establish the “self-evidence” of rights?  How did the invention of biological “race” help advance or halt the spread of rights?   How can rights be universal, yet applied in limited instances?  Given that international law has limited reach, can literature and other arts teach us new forms of community, recognition, and responsibility?  Some of our course texts will include The Invention of Human Rights (Lynn Hunt), Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, Tony Kushner’s Homebody/Kabul, as well as a course-reader including documents related to the history of rights in Europe, the US, and the UN.  

MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS, 6:00-9:00 pm

          Tribble A 209
          Wednesday, May 26 – Wednesday, June 30     Summer I session only
          Dean Franco, Ph.D.
          francodj@wfu.edu 

Dean Franco (Ph.D. University of Southern California) is an Associate Professor of English, whose research and teaching focus on American ethnic literature, the social history of multiculturalism, political theories of pluralism, and the ethics of civil and human rights.  Professor Franco's first book, Ethnic American Literature:  Comparing Chicano, Jewish, and African American Writing, is a comparative study of different ethnic literatures, and his current work is on contemporary Jewish American literature and civil and human rights.  Professor Franco has published widely on authors such as Philip Roth, Toni Morrison, and Helena Maria Viramontes.

MLS 840       The Psychology of Art  (Summer II)

Ever wonder why one painting is so appealing while another seems unpleasant?  Likewise, why do individuals vary so much in the art they prefer?  To answer such questions requires considering a broad range of psychological processes that underlie the execution and appreciation of art.  Toward that end this course will take an interdisciplinary approach and explore what draws us to the aesthetics of painting, sculpture and architecture.  It will expose students to a number of psychological theories, both current and historical, across multiple domains.  These interpretations will include readings from psychoanalysis, personality development, cognitive psychology, social psychology, biopsychology, symbolic-cultural psychology, transcendental psychology, and visual perspective psychology.
                                              

MONDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS, 6:00-9:00 pm

          Greene Hall Room 312
          Wednesday, July 7 – Monday, August 9
          Summer II session only
          James Schirillo, Ph.D.          schirija@wfu.edu

James A. Schirillo (Ph.D. Northeastern University) is a Professor in Psychology, and has been teaching at Wake Forest since 1996.  His research specialty is in the study of visual and auditory perception in humans, and he currently works on projects related to the perception of color and illumination, multi-sensory integration, Gestalt grouping principles, and the perception of aesthetics in portraits by Rembrandt and paintings by Mondrian. Dr. Schirillo has a natural interest in aesthetics, and has conducted experiments and published papers in both science and art journals.  He also has training in psychological counseling and is a recipient of the University’s Excellence in Research award.

Spring 2010 Courses

MLS 835   Contemporary Views of Mental Illness:
                     Exploration of Fact and Fiction

One in four adult Americans suffer from a mental illness such as mood disorder or thought disorder each year, a staggering figure that is reflected in the numerous books and movies devoted to mental illness in our culture. In this course, we will explore specific mental illnesses as portrayed in recent literary and cinematic works (fiction) and survey the recent scientific research relevant to the selected illness (fact). Combining fictional portrayals with scientific fact will provide the unique opportunity to delve into ethical and philosophical issues of stigma related to mental illness, the emotional and financial burden of mental illness on individuals and their families, and the impact of mental illness on society as a whole.

MONDAY, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.  Greene Hall Room 310
January 11 – April 26
(no class on January 18 – MLK day; no class on March 8 – spring break)
Jacqueline Friedman, Ph.D.
friedmjn@wfu.edu

Dr. Jacqueline Friedman completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Virginia in 2005, with a research specialization in the area of personality disorders and with clinical specializations in assessment and in treatment of adults with a wide range of presenting difficulties. Following her graduate training, Dr. Friedman pursued post-doctoral training at the Salisbury VA Medical Center to further expand her clinical experience and expertise. She has taught courses at Wake Forest in the Psychology Department as an adjunct professor since 2008, covering a broad range of topics and issues of interest to undergraduate students. Dr. Friedman continues to practice clinical work on a limited basis in order to maintain her knowledge base of current research and treatment practices. This particular course will tap into Dr. Friedman’s academic and research knowledge of various mental disorders, as well as her clinical experience in assessing and treating these disorders. 

MLS 836 Early Modern Venice: Intellectual and Artistic Culture

Venice’s prosperity during the early modern period helped made it a center of cosmopolitan culture between the 15th and 18th centuries.  We will concentrate on the work of such figures as the libertine writer Pietro Aretino; Rabbis Judah Messer Leon, Judah del Bene and Leon da Modena; the women poets Gaspara Stampa and Veronica Gambara; composers including the Gabrielis and Monteverdi and visual artists such as Titian, Veronese and Giorgionewho flourished in Venice during this era.  We will also give attention to Venice’s complex Jewish community and to life in the Venetian ghetto.
Student contributions to the seminar will include reports on special topics in their areas of interest.

TUESDAY, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.  Tribble Hall A201
January 19 – April 27   (no class on March 9 – spring break)
Andrew V. Ettin, Ph.D.
ettinav@wfu.edu

Professor of English Andrew V. Ettin (Ph.D., Washington University) specializes in 16th and 17th century literature.  He is particularly interested in the music and art of the Renaissance and has a great love of Venice and Venetian culture.  An ordained rabbi, he also teaches Jewish studies in the Divinity School and Religion Department.  This interdisciplinary course, dealing in part with the Venetian ghetto, brings together several areas of study to which he is especially devoted.

MLS 837  Globalization at the Crossroads

Globalization is at the crossroads.  With the onslaught of the current global financial crisis and the ensuing recession in many of the world’s leading economies, the time has come to step back and assess the true benefits and costs of a globally integrated world.  Have the global advances been solely a process of westernization, or have developing countries been allowed their place at the table? Will a more humane globalization improve world poverty? What does the continued development of China, India and others mean for our sustainable future? This course will enable students to discuss the importance of cultural awareness in a globally integrated society, to elaborate on the ethical challenges of globalization, and to discern the challenges to further integration given the current economic climate. This seminar on Globalization will blend practical, cultural, political, and ethical issues in an effort to uncover the best pathway forward for our times. 

WEDNESDAY, 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.   Kirby B01-A
January 13 – April 28
(no class on March 10 – spring break)
Jason Goddard
Jason.goddard@wachovia.com

G. Jason Goddard is currently a Vice President at Wachovia Bank (a Wells Fargo Company), where he has been a commercial lender for over ten years. Mr. Goddard teaches the investment real estate course at the Calloway School of Business and Accountancy at Wake Forest University. He is also the Assistant Editor of the Journal of Asia-Pacific Business, where he has authored numerous articles including “Outsourcing: Which Way Forward?,” and “The Poverty Curtain Revisited,” among others.  Mr. Goddard teaches annually in Ludwigshafen Germany at the University of Applied Sciences. Mr. Goddard has co-authored three books:  “International Business: Theory and Practice, Second Edition,” “Customer Relationship Management: a Global Perspective,” and “The Psychology of Marketing: Cross-Cultural Perspectives.”

MLS 838    The City in American Literature and Culture

This course examines the attempts of U.S. urban intellectuals to find meaning in the historical processes of urbanization and the social landscapes that these processes created.  These intellectuals have transformed “cities of fact”—such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami—into “cities of feeling” through a variety of literary genres and aesthetic forms: fiction, drama, journalism, memoir, photography, film, architecture and landscape design.  We will discuss how urban intellectuals such as Frederick Law Olmsted, Theodore Dreisser, Jane Addams, Charlie Chaplin, Raymond Chandler, Jane Jacobs and Joan Didion attempt to make sense of the city.  The course will also familiarize you with some of the critical approaches that scholars have used to analyze this body of urban literature and culture.  In addition to encountering methods of analysis drawn from literary studies, we will learn from critical methodologies practiced by scholars working in history, urban planning, architecture, political science, geography and sociology.

THURSDAY 6:30 – 9:00 p.m.      Tribble A 202
January 14 – April 29  (no class on March 11  - spring break)
Jamin Rowan        

Jamin Rowan (Ph.D., Boston College) is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of English, where he teaches courses in American literature, urban studies and food studies.  His research explores the intersection of literary texts with urban history, design and architecture.  He has published articles on Stephen Crane and the New Yorker, and is currently writing a book entitled Urban Sympathy: The Death and Life of an Intellectual Tradition.