Liberal Arts 102
Course Descriptions by Section Number
Spring 2002 Information

Content last modified in Spring 2002.

LIBA 102, Section 1: Ecotourism in the Caribbean Basin
Location: Turner 239
Course Code: 0217
Instructor: J. Gilbert, Exercise & Leisure Management
Contact Information: 915-5553; dgilbert@olemiss.edu

Course Description: A seminar-oriented exploration of the popular trend of ecotourism. Consideration will be given to environmental awareness, and the social, cultural, and economic impacts associated with ecotourism in the developed and emerging tourism market nations in the Caribbean Basin. Class discussion will be based on assigned readings and audiovisuals.

LIBA 102, Section 2: A History of Social Issues Reflected in Music for the Stage During the Twentieth Century
Meeting Times: MWF 8:00 - 8:50
Location: Bishop 328
Course Code: 0218
Instructor: R. Aubrey, Music
Contact Information: 915-5278; raubrey@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The seminar will view and discuss the setting in which each stage work was written, and include the music, the lyrics and dialogue, and the composers and authors of innovative musical drama of the 20th century. Music to be studied include the 1927 production of Showboat, the efforts of Rodgers and Hammerstein which recall cultural discrimination, Bernstein's West Side Story, the treatment of the Jews in Fiddler on the Roof, the impact of rock on musical theatre during the early 1970's, Protest Musicals of the same era, and John Adams' opera, Nixon in China. The major innovations of the past twenty-five years, including the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stephen Sondheim, and Claude-Michel Schoenberg will also be among the twenty musical dramas to be discussed during the semester.

LIBA 102, Section 3: Drugs, Science, and Culture
Meeting Times: MWF 8:00 - 8:50
Location: Hume 215
Course Code: 0219
Instructor: M. Hamann, Pharmacy School
Contact Information: 915-5730; pghamann@sunvis1.vislab.olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will examine the science and culture of the world's most popular drugs of natural origin. It will explore the historical, scientific, and public policy references on legal and illegal drug usage and the role of naturally derived drugs and herbal products on society. Historically tolerated psychoactive drugs such as coffee and tobacco will be contrasted with prohibited drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and the opiates, with an emphasis on the chemistry, biology and pharmacology of these drugs. The class will provide a forum for discussion and readings about the scientific, economic, political, and cultural impact of drug use.

LIBA 102, Section 4: Heroes: Journeys and Quests
Meeting Times: MWF 9:00 - 9:50
Location: Bryant 307A
Course Code: 0220
Instructor: M. Arrington, Modern Languages
Contact Information: 915-7713; marringt@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The story of the hero who sets out on a journey in search of a great treasure, secret knowledge, or elusive ideal is one of the most enduring themes in literature. From ancient times to the present, storytellers from all over the globe have told of the hero's pursuit of his goal and the adventures he encounters along the way. In this course students will identify and analyze the basic elements and patterns common to all quest narratives and seek to discover why this type of story has remained popular up to the present.

LIBA 102, Section 5: The Oxford American's Interpretation of Southern Culture
Meeting Times: MWF 9:00 - 9:50
Location: Bryant 307A
Course Code: 0221
Instructor: B. Hobbs, English
Contact Information: 915-7439; vhobbs@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will focus on the ways in which Southern writers explore various aspects of this culture. We will read an assortment of essays published in The Oxford American, and these essays will generate the class's discussion about such topics as music, food, religion, art, family, and gender. Along with discussing content, we will also closely analyze the ways in which writers go about finding information for their work. We will borrow the research techniques of professional writers--library reading, interview, investivation--and apply these techniques to our own writing methods. Students in this class will write several formal essays on the topics of Southern culture and will also record their thoughts about class readings in a journal. A special feature of this class will be visits from The Oxford American's writers and staff.

LIBA 102, Section 6: Sending Voices: Contemporary Native American Literature
Meeting Times: MWF 9:00 - 9:50
Location: Coulter 260
Course Code: 3697
Instructor: D. Neal, English
Contact Information: 915-7439; mneal@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will explore major themes and issues in contemporary Native American Literature including fiction, poetry and essays. A belief that the human voice, our life-breath, can call, pray, chant, ceremonialize, reason with and admonish the world's powers, if the petitioner lives in accord with natural rituals, underlies some 500 Native American Literatures. We will trace connective threads to see ways that past concept finds expression in contemporary Native American Literature. Students will explore how the threads of the Native American oral tradition, with its tricksters, witches, warriors, lovers, and healers, has extended into the written word. At the center of our readings will be Leslie Marmon Silko's novel, Ceremony, but our study will also include works by other contemporary Native American writers including N. Scott Momaday, Joy Harjo and Simon Ortiz. Students will develop critical thinking, research and oral presentation skills while reading these voices of continuance, survival and community.

LIBA 102, Section 7: Microbes & Man
Meeting Times: MWF 9:00 - 9:50
Location: Shoemaker 408
Course Code: 3698
Instructor: J. Williamson, Pharmacy School
Contact Information: 915-7142; mcjsw@cotton.vislab.olemiss.edu

Course Description: We will examine and discuss the role of microorganisms in our cultural evolution. Some of the topics to be examined will be the cultural implications in topics such as: The Fruit of the Vine and Fluffy Dinner Rolls (fermentation); Hey Where Is that Smell Coming From (decomposition); The Leper's Two Fingers (leprosy); The Pope's Personal Ring of Fire (plague); When The Prostitutes And Politicians When Nuts (syphilis); In War It Takes Two Soldiers to Care for One Wounded Soldier but Only One Soldier to Care for A Hundred Dead Ones (gangrene and gripe); The Conquistadors Invisible Sword of Annihilation in the New World (viruses); Snake Oil and The Public is a Capital Idea (effective drugs); This Town Isn't Big Enough For The Two of Us (antibiotics); How I Used China In My Science Project (bioterrorism); Goodbye to The Long Augusts and Those Thieves of Our Youth (polio and smallpox); Trying To Spoil Johnny's Coming-Out Party (HIV); A Dark Disease From A Dark Continent (ebola and west Nile virus); Oops, Maybe I Shouldn't Be Killing Germs On Contact (ecology); Why Cows Get Mad When They Are Served Hamburgers (prions); Sorry, But We're All Sold Out (superbugs and drug resistance); Boy, Is It Raining Bombs And Bacilli Out There (anthrax as a weapon); And The Newest Fashions In Biohazardous Protective Gear (where we are headed from here).

LIBA 102, Section 8: The Danzig Trilogy
Meeting Times: MWF 10:00 - 10:50
Location: Barnard 202
Course Code: 3699
Instructor: G. Everett, Modern Languages
Contact Information: 915-1213; mlgae@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This course will study "The Danzig Trilogy," Nobel Prize winner Guenter Grass' three novels concerning Europe before, during and after the Nazi "Third Reich" and its relevance to modern times - including ethical, sociologic, and political considerations. Texts to be read: The Tin Drum, Cat and Mouse, Dog Years and assorted selections from journals, histories, etc.

LIBA 102, Section 9: Cryptography from Ancient Times to the Present
Meeting Times: MWF 10:00 - 10:50
Location: Bishop 326
Course Code: 3700
Instructor: R. Gordon, Electrical Engineering
Contact Information: 915-5538; eegordon@vm.cc.olemiss.edu

Course Description: Since humans first began to communicate they have sought to conceal certain of their communications through the use of such devices as codes, ciphers, and hidden messages. Examples include the use of a code to warn Athens and Sparta of the impending invasion by the Persians in 480 B.C., the German Enigma cipher, the breaking of which by British cryptanalysts in World War II was critical to Allied success, and the codes used every day to encrypt e-mail and commercial data on the Internet. In this course, the students will study the history of codes and ciphers from ancient times to the present, learn some of the basics of encrypting messages, and investigate some of the techniques used to break secret codes. The required texts for the course are The Code Book: The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography by Simon Singh and In Code: A Mathematical Journey by Sarah Flannery. Students will be required to read these texts, selections from various books, and journal articles.

LIBA 102, Section 10: Women Writing About the Sacred in World Literature
Meeting Times: MWF 10:00 - 10:50
Location: Coulter 260
Course Code: 3701
Instructor: M. Gordon, English
Contact Information: 915-5670; eggordon@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This interdisciplinary liberal arts course offers students an introduction to techniques of literary study, research, and writing, as well as to core issues of feminist literary theory and global gender studies. Central to the course will be the close reading of a variety of literary texts - poetry, fiction, drama, memoirs, spiritual autobiography, and other literary nonfiction - by women writing about spirituality from a diversity of world religions including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, African and New Age religions; our literary analyses will be informed by a primer on women in world religions and a collection of letters exploring the relationship between the feminine and the sacred by psychoanalyst Julia Kristeva and anthropologist Catherine Clément.

LIBA 102, Section 11: Attitudes and Institutions of Antebellum Mississippi
Meeting Times: MWF 10:00-10:50
Location: Holm 132
Course Code: 3702
Instructor: B. Wynne, History
Contact Information: 915-7148; brw22@meta3.net

Course Description: This seminar will trace the social, political, and religious progression of Mississippi from the state's entrance into the Union in 1817 to its break with the Union just forty-four years later. The attitudes and institution that culminated in secession evolved over time, and the course will explore the sometimes dramatic twists and turns of the state's history during the period. In the context of the topic, the class will cover issues such as Indian removal, intrastate sectionalism, growing concerns over the slavery issue, religious influences, Mississippi's reaction to pivotal national events, the growth of the state's rights movement, and prevailing attitudes at the time of secession. Readings for the course will include period newspapers, letters and diaries along with general secondary works.

LIBA 102, Section 12: The United States in the 1920s
Meeting Times: MWF 11:00 - 11:50
Location: Shoemaker 401
Course Code: 3703
Instructor: C. Eagles, History
Contact Information: 915-7733; eagles@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The examination of American society and culture in the period between World War II and the great depression will start with Frederick Lewis Allen's popular classic, Only Yesterday: An Informal History of the 1920s (1931). It will be followed by Lynn Dumenil's more recent The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s (1995). Topics covered in the class will include the post-war red scare, the "revolution in manners and morals," prohibition, H. L. Mencken, the "lost generation" of writers, Charles Lindbergh, the bull market on Wall Street, the decade's presidents (Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover). Writing assignments will be based on the two books and research assignments.

LIBA 102, Section 13: Finding American Voices: the Nineteenth Century
Meeting Times: MWF 11:00 - 11:50
Location: Bishop 106
Course Code: 3704
Instructor: J. Neff, History
Contact Information: 915-3969; jneff@olemiss.edu

Course Description: In this course, we will explore the lives and imaginations of Americans living in the Nineteenth Century. Although our subject will be largely biographical and historical, we will be most concerned with the ways in which these Americans expressed their hopes and anxieties, their dreams and disappointments. We will explore the expressions -- written, oral and artistic -- of a diverse spectrum of Americans communicating their experiences and ideas about their nation and society. We will find these ideas communicated to us in a variety of forms, including (but not limited to) letters, diaries, fiction, poetry, political speeches, and even folklore and art. Throughout, our main focus will be to experience something of the lives of nineteenth-century Americans across the boundaries, real and imagined, of time, region, gender, class, ethnicity, religion and politics, and to interpret their expressions in our own words.

LIBA 102, Section 14: Social Issues in 20th Century Musical Theatre
Meeting Times: MWF 11:00 - 11:50
Location: Bryant 307A
Course Code: 3705
Instructor: R. Pulliam, Theatre Arts
Contact Information: 915-6991; rpulliam@olemiss.edu

Course Description: An exploration of Twentieth Century American Musical Theatre and its reflections on the racial, gender, sexual identity, political, and economic issues of the era in which it was written. The course will cover basic script/libretto analysis and examine the form as well as the content of each libretto. The musical libretti/script will be examined as literature and theatre, as well as used as a springboard for discussion of current vs. historical American issues. The Musicals chosen are all indicative of the social/political status of their own historical era, many commenting on current prevailing social issues. Some have either changed the direction of theatre in general or awarded for their excellence as literature.

LIBA 102, Section 15: The Relationship among Rivalry, Violence, and Religion in Literature
Meeting Times: MWF 12:00 - 12:50
Location: Hume 215
Course Code: 3706
Instructor: J. Baker, English
Contact Information: 915-7439; jabaker@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will explore the relationship among rivalry, violence, and religion in works of literature. Our readings will include novels and short stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Flannery O'Connor, and Graham Greene, as well as excerpts from the Bible. We will also relate these moral and philosophical issues to life circumstances. The course work will help students develop their critical reading, writing, research, and oral presentation skills.

LIBA 102, Section 16: Hemingway in Smyrna
Meeting Times: MWF 12:00 - 12:50
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3707
Instructor: D. Babington, English
Contact Information: 915-5837; babingtn@olemiss.edu

Course Description: As a young reporter for the Toronto Star, Ernest Hemingway covered the bitter struggle between Greeks and Turks that unfolded in Asia Minor following World War I. This experience had a lasting effect on his development as a novelist. Our seminar discussions will focus on Hemingway's news dispatches, letters, essays, and fiction in order to understand and evaluate his "naturalistic" moral code. We will explore not only the connotations of "naturalism" but also the challenges facing war correspondents throughout the twentieth century.

LIBA 102, Section 17: Public Schools in America
Meeting Times: MWF 1:00 - 1:50
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3708
Instructor: M. McCready, English
Contact Information: 915-5837; mccready@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This course provides opportunities for students to explore, reflect on and write about current trends and issues related to k-12 public education in America. Students will read and analyze research articles and other selected texts which address the following topics: Resolving Ethical Dilemmas in the Classroom; Teaching and Social Equity; Reducing the Effects of Racism; Home Schooling; The Constructivist Classroom; Emotional Intelligence; The Effects of Standards and Assessment on Education; Understanding Youth Culture; Working Constructively With Families; and Integrating Technology into Teaching.

LIBA 102, Section 18:Youth Violence
Meeting Times: MWF 1:00 - 1:50
Location: Barnard 202
Course Code: 3709
Instructor: A. Finn, Education School
Contact Information: 915-7221; afinn@olemiss.edu

Course Description: Murder and suicide are among the leading causes of death for adolescents. The youth violence seminar will explore violence from the perspective of history, biology, psychology, social environment, gender, race, age, and culture. The class discussions will explore topics such as: the impact of domestic violence on adolescent violent behavior; the possibility of biological predisposition towards violence; and social and cultural influences that increase or decrease the likelihood of violent behavior. Violence from the vantage point of prosocial (i.e. sports and military service) and antisocial (i.e. gang related) violence will be examined. The reading assignments will come from historical works, scientific writings, journals, short stories, and current news reports. These assignments will serve as a basis of the written and oral assignments.

LIBA 102, Section 19: American Dialects
Meeting Times: MWF 1:00 - 1:50
Location: Hume 106
Course Code: 3710
Instructor: A. Burkette, English
Contact Information: 915-7439; burkette@olemiss.edu

Course Description: Differences between American English dialects can be as obvious as saying "y'all" versus "you guys" as a plural pronoun or as subtle as using "quarter til" versus "quarter to" in telling time. This course surveys the wide range of information available about the different dialects found in American English. We will talk about what a dialect is (and is not), how dialects are formed, and where today's American English are going. We will examine what the different American English dialects are and who uses them. In addition to the 'what' and 'who," we will also explore the 'why' of dialects - the relationship between language and social factors (such as age, sex, ethnicity, social class, and region), as well as the way that speech is connected to identity. This class offers students the unique opportunity to learn about the dialect diversity present in American English and, more importantly, to appreciate that diversity is a natural part of any language.

LIBA 102, Section 20: American Utopias
Meeting Times: MWF 1:00 - 1:50
Location: Shoemaker 114
Course Code: 3711
Instructor: C. Shearer, English
Contact Information: 915-7439; cshearer@watervalley.net

Course Description: This course is intended to give students an overview of utopian themes in American literature and its manifestations in the various genres of essay, fiction, drama, and poetry. Students will explore the hypothesis of America as utopian experiment, by comparing a range of texts from the Norton Anthology of Literature, from early Native American myths and songs, through canonical and non-canonical works, as well as contemporary music and film.

LIBA 102, Section 21: The Women of the Bible
Meeting Times: TTh 8:00 - 9:15
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3712
Instructor: M. Harrington, Philosophy and Religion
Contact Information: 915-7020; prmlh@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This course will be taught from a scholarly rather than a dogmatic perspective. The course will rely upon the Bible, scholarly texts and works of fiction to introduce these often overlooked matriarchs. Students will learn how and why the female significance was deliberately downplayed, and the ways in which these women were the feminists of their times. Lecturing will be minimal to allow student discussion and presentations of essays and research papers.

LIBA 102, Section 22: The Student and the Law
Meeting Times: TTh 8:00 - 9:15
Location: Hume 203
Course Code: 3713
Instructor: T. Letzring, Education School
Contact Information: 915-7070; tdl@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This course will provide students an opportunity to study the legal aspects of higher education. The course will emphasize college students and the legal issues surrounding them, including free speech, search and seizure, discipline, privacy, and liability. Court cases, legislation, and constitutional law will serve as the foundation for this course in developing students' reading, writing, and oral communication skills.

LIBA 102, Section 23: Stress Management and Mental Health
Meeting Times: TTh 8:00 - 9:15
Location: Hume 230
Course Code: 3714
Instructor: J. Hallam, Exercise Science
Contact Information: 915-5140; jhallam@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the topic of stress and its impact on their lives; further, to develop behavioral skills in which to manage stress. The course focuses on traditional, therapeutic, alternative methods to manage stress. Enhancing the students' perceptions of self and psychosomatic health are included. The course will help students develop and understand the human condition.

LIBA 102, Section 24: Social Issues in Contemporary Drama
Meeting Times: TTh 9:30 - 10:45
Location: Anderson 011
Course Code: 3715
Instructor: M. Cuomo, Theatre Arts
Contact Information: 915-5745; mcuomo@olemiss.edu

Course Description: An exploration of contemporary American drama and its reflection of current racial, gender, sexual identity, political, economic and family issues and conflicts. The course will cover basic script analysis, and examine the form as well as the content of each play. The plays will be examined as literature and theater, as well as used as a springboard for discussion of contemporary American issues. The plays are challenging in terms of their form; the feminist model of playwrighting, the multicharacter one person show and traditional modern realism are all represented. They are also challenging in terms of content, the works discuss such topics as the L.A. riots, clitoral mutilation practices, the medical establishment, AIDS and the nuclear family.

LIBA 102, Section 25: Poe and Romanticism
Meeting Times: TTh 9:30 - 10:45
Location: Bishop 333
Course Code: 3716
Instructor: B. Fisher, English
Contact Information: 915-7672; bfisher@olemiss.edu

Course Description: My seminar topic is Edgar Allan Poe and Romanticism. In our course we'll read some of Poe's writings, along with others from his era (usually thought of as the Romantic era in Western Culture), some Hawthorne probably, maybe some British authors, too. There will be one component of independent choices from suggested readings provided in list form. Students will be expected to keep current with reading assignments, to prepare for writing projects emanating from their readings, and to be ready for plenty of classroom discussion.

LIBA 102, Section 26: The Law and Lawyers in Literature
Meeting Times: TTh 9:30 - 10:45
Location: Farley 303
Course Code: 3717
Instructor: T. Hall, Law School
Contact Information: 915-6847; lwhall@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The law and lawyers are popular subjects in contemporary writing and film, and this popularity is nothing new. Lawyers and the legal worlds they inhabit have often been at the center of literary works. This seminar will use a variety of literary texts (plays, novels, short stories, and poems) as a basis for reflection about the nature of the law and about the lives of lawyers. What is the law and where does it come from? What is it like to be a lawyer, and is it possible to be a virtuous one? We will read works such as Billy Budd, To Kill a Mockingbird, and A Man for All Seasons with an eye focused on the legal aspects of these works. This seminar should be of interest to anyone who has thought about becoming a lawyer, or to anyone who finds the law intriguing.

LIBA 102, Section 27: Economic Thought in Action: 20th Century American Economic Policy
Meeting Times: TTh 9:30 - 10:45
Location: Bishop 326
Course Code: 3718
Instructor: M. Namorato, History
Contact Information: 915-7488; hsmvn@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This course will study modern economic thinkers and how they have impacted 20th-century American governmental fiscal and monetary policies. Students will be introduced to classical economics initially and, then, they will read selected works of modern economic thinkers. Given the broad range of modern economic thought, students will be exposed to a fairly wide variety of economists ranging from Irving Fisher, J. R. Commons and J. M. Keynes to Milton Friedman, J. K. Galbraith, and Lester Thurow. Each economist will be looked at in terms of his life, his specific economic writings, and his contributions to modern economic policy-making in the United States. Students, moreover, will be expected to attend class, do assigned readings, hand in weekly written papers, and participate in class discussions.

LIBA 102, Section 28: "Coming of Age" in American Literature
Meeting Times: TTh 11:00 - 12:15
Location: Barr 317
Course Code: 3719
Instructor: D. Barker, English
Contact Information: 915-7758; dbarker@olemiss.edu

Course Description: In this course we will focus on four very different coming of age novels: Alice Walker's Meridian, Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Susanna Kaysen's Girl, Interrupted. We will examine the novels' cultural, political, and historical contexts in order to read them as cultural commentary and their personal, psychological implications to read them as stories of individual development. Students will write research papers on historical aspect of the novels, write analytical papers interpreting the novels, and write a personal essays about their own coming of age.

LIBA 102, Section 29: An Introduction to Observation, Reflection, and Writing
Meeting Times: TTh 11:00 - 12:15
Location: Bishop 324
Course Code: 3720
Instructor: C. West, Consumer/Family Science
Contact Information: 915-5321; cwest@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The overall purpose of this course is to provide undergraduate students with a basic introduction to qualitative research methods and the importance of good writing to all research. Each class will engage the participant in hands-on activities and discussions designed to help her/him observe, reflect on, and then write about various internal experiences, social experiences, and reading experiences. In this process students will explore the biases brought to observation and research.

LIBA 102, Section 30: History of American Higher Education
Meeting Times: TTh 11:00 - 12:15
Location: Bishop 328
Course Code: 3721
Instructor: M. Ponton, Education School
Contact Information: 915-7350; mponton@olemiss.edu

Course Description: The seminar on the history of American higher education will require the student to develop a perspective of many of the events that have shaped our current system of postsecondary education. Topics will include the colonial colleges, the curriculum and elective system, graduate education, land grant institutions, women in higher education, community colleges, minorities in higher education, philosophy of higher education, and religion in higher education. Using the library, students will be required to develop a perspective associated with each week's topic as well as be prepared to engage in scholarly dialogue with their peers. Weekly writing assignments and a research paper will be required in addition to a classroom presentation on the researched topic of interest.

LIBA 102, Section 31: "No religion and politics at the dinner table!": Religion and History in the Americas
Meeting Times: TTh 1:00 - 2:15
Location: Bishop 333
Course Code: 3722
Instructor: D. Sullivan-González, History
Contact Information: 915-7109; dsg@olemiss.edu

Course Description: In 1925, cultural war heroes squared off in a courtoom in Dayton, Tennessee. Two prominent national lawyers debated the legality and moral implications of teaching evolution in the classroom as secularization threatened religiously-oriented folk in the United States. Meanwhile, in Mexico, the revolutionary and secular government attempted to crush the Catholic Church and spawned a religious insurrection that lasted three years. This seminar looks at how historians have captured these tense moments in words. Students will work on crucial writing skills as they respond to various historic vignettes that capture the conflict between secularization and sacrilization in the Americas.

LIBA 102, Section 32: Culture and Personality
Meeting Times: TTh 1:00 - 2:15
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3723
Instructor: M. Snow, Education School
Contact Information: 915-7063; mssnow@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will investigate the basic elements of personality and how culture influences the development of self. The class will explore whether people share on some psychological level ways of experiencing the world, distinctive needs, and modes of thinking. We will examine how such characteristics as gender identity, body image, the experiences of pain and trauma develop within a cultural frame. Readings for the course will include the book Rethinking Psychological Anthropology along with assigned readings from other cultures. Students will also have an opportunity to explore different cultures through movies and experiential exercises.

LIBA 102, Section 33: Wellness: Facts, Fads and Fallacies
Meeting Times: TTh 1:00 - 2:15
Location: Hume 215
Course Code: 3724
Instructor: M. Dupper, Exercise Science
Contact Information: 915-5844; mad@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This class will explore from the perspective of the consumer the facts, fictions and fads regarding health and wellness in our society. The areas of exercise, nutrition and dietary supplements, surgical enhancement and self-responsibility will be investigated from a proactive and highly selective approach. Class members will research and review both written and media-produced materials pertaining to the areas of health promotion in our society.

LIBA 102, Section 34: Reading Green: Contemporary Environmental Literature
Meeting Times: TTh 2:30 - 3:45
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3725
Instructor: A. Fisher-Wirth, English
Contact Information: 915-5929; afwirth@olemiss.edu

Course Description: In this class we will read poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. We will read works by some of the following writers: Rick Bass, Wendell Berry, Franklin Burroughs, Linda Hogan, Edna Lewis, Barry Lopez, Ellen Meloy, Mary Oliver, Janisse Ray, Pattiann Rogers, Scott Russell Sanders, Gary Snyder, Terry Tempest Williams. The course will include discussion of various current environmental issues and conflicts, and give students some sense of the rich variety of writings in this field. Students will also do environmental research and writing.

LIBA 102, Section 35: The Role of Dance in Culture
Meeting Times: TTh 2:30 -3:45
Location: Hume 215
Course Code: 3726
Instructor: J. Mizenko, Theatre Arts
Contact Information: 915-5969; jmizenko@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will focus on the relationship between social dance and theatrical dance through the ages. We will examine how dance evolved from the spiritual to the secular to the stage, and the historical and cultural influences surrounding this evolution. "Why do we dance?" Class discussions will include defining culture, society's relationship to art, the significance of personal expression, and the function of dance in society in the year 2001. Readings will include historical dance texts and articles and essays published concerning the above topics.

LIBA 102, Section 36: Britain, Ireland and "The Troubles"
Meeting Times: TTh 2:30 - 3:45
Location: Hume 230
Course Code: 3727
Instructor: F. Laurenzo, History
Contact Information: 915-7529; hsfel@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will explore the relationship between Britain and Ireland in the 20th century and in particular the development of the current political situation in Northern Ireland. Within the context of this topic, the class will discuss issues such as the nature of prejudice, the meaning of nationalism, and the impact of history and religion on politics. Readings for the course will include a general introduction to the topic and articles from newspapers and magazines published during the period.

LIBA 102, Section 37: The New Biotechnology
Meeting Times: TTh 4:00 - 5:15
Location: Hume 200
Course Code: 3728
Instructor: R. Sindelar, Pharmacy School
Contact Information: 915-5879; sindelar@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will explore the impact of biotechnology on all aspects of human life. Among the topics to be explored in readings and research are: the technologies of biotech; healthcare and consumer products of biotechnology; gene therapy; transgenic animals and cloning; tissue engineering and stem cell research; genomics and gene testing; and biotech in the public eye. The course will provide a forum for active discussion and learning at a general level about the scientific, cultural, economic and political impact of modern biotechnology on our lives today and in the future.

LIBA 102, Section 38: Creation Myths in World Cultures
Meeting Times: TTh 4:00 - 5:15
Location: Hume 230
Course Code: 3729
Instructor: S. Bellin, English
Contact Information: 915-5052/915-3174; sbellin@olemiss.edu

Course Description: This seminar will explore the creation myths of a variety of world cultures in an attempt to ascertain what these myths have in common, what humankind's purpose may have been in developing and retaining them, and what they might tell us about how we see ourselves and our place in the cosmos. Our readings will include the creation myths of several Native American and Central American tribes and draw from Japanese, Mongolian, and Scandinavian mythology. We will also read the texts at the root of our own creation stories-the Hebrew story from Genesis, and its Christian version in the book of John. We will finish by considering creation stories from other ancient Near Eastern cultures, the Babylonians and the Egyptians. Students will develop critical thinking, research, and oral presentation skills within the context of studying these myths.

LIBA 102, Section 39: Freedom in a Free Society
Meeting Times: MW 4:00 - 5:15
Location: Bishop 324
Course Code: 3730
Instructor: J. Winkle, Political Science
Contact Information: 915-5406; jww@olemiss.edu

Course Description: Our seminar will explore the tension between liberty and order in the American democracy. In particular, we will examine the Constitutional freedoms of speech and religion, and their limits. Given the context of September 11 and its aftermath, the study of freedom in a free society is ever so timely. Our readings will include both primary documents (such as Supreme Court opinions) and secondary sources (such as scholarly and popular commentaries). Our goal is to use our conversations about freedom to become better thinkers and better writers.

LIBA 102, Section 40: Shakespeare and the Nature of Man
Meeting Times: MW 4:00 - 5:15
Location: Holm 132
Course Code: 3731
Instructor: L. Murchison, English
Contact Information: Not available

Course Description: In King Lear, the characters each take a stab at answering the basic question, "Why do these things happen to me?" The final answer to the question Shakespeare puts into the mouth of the villain in the play. Edmund says, "We do it to ourselves." What Shakespeare seems to be saying is that each person's choices in life determine his/her fate. This is the question this course will examine. Is Shakespeare right; does each person cause his/her own fate? Students would look at character development in the plays we read and then look for examples of that character type/behavior in the news events of the day.