Humanities Program
GES145, Freshman Fall SemesterWestern Humanity In Christian Perspective I |
| This is the first of a four-course sequence centered on great writings and works of art, music, and theatre from the Greeks through the present. Humanities stresses first-hand experience with great works that are read or experienced in their entirety when possible. Emphasis is placed on personal interaction with the texts and works of art through student writing, classroom discussion, and visits to local arts venues. As an interdisciplinary team, the Humanities faculty models the practice of learning how to learn, so that faculty and students can open themselves to new knowledge, skills, and ways of expression and perception. Emphasis is placed on how Christians have shaped and responded to civilization. |
| The books and works of art and music in Humanities will often bring us back to some of the central questions of human existence: what is the nature of the human being? What is the nature of the divine? |
| The first question asks both about the nature of the individual self and about society: What should be the proper relation between reason and passion in a well-ordered soul? How has human creativity been expressed? What kinds of societies make the full development of humanity possible? What expressions of love (and practices of marriage) have thinkers considered most beneficial to the good life and the good society? |
| The second question introduces the nature of God (or “the gods”) and God’s interaction with humanity: what is true holiness? How does God look upon human shortcomings and evil? How do humans attain salvation? |
| The ways in which different cultures approach these questions is of the utmost importance. In Humanities, we will treat a number of Western and American approaches, from Greco-Roman times to the present. We hope this program raises those questions in ways that are both intriguing and troubling to you. We hope it shows you the necessity of entering the “conversation” that these writers and artists have begun, as you find your own role as a thoughtful citizen and faithful Christian. |
Sample Texts: |
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Plato, Apology. Euripides, Bacchae. Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War. Plato, The Republic. Virgil, The Aeneid. Augustine, Confessions. Dante, Purgatory. Justin Martyr, "Apology." Anselm, "Proslogion" and "Cur Deus Homo." St. Catherine, "The Dialogue." The Martyrdom of Perpetua. John Walford. Great Themes in Art. Roger Olson. The Mosaic of Christian Belief. |
Sample Lectures that support the reading: |
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History of the Greek Polis The Philosophy of Socrates Greek Drama in Fifth Century Athens Greek Art and Architecture Plato's Forms Greek History Through Alexander Roman Art Roman Republic and Empire Jesus and the Early Church Theological Disputes of the Early Church: Trinity and Incarnation Augustine Medieval Synthesis: sacraments, feudalism, Islam Medieval Philosophy and Theology: the Atonement and Ontological Argument Dante, Courtly Love, and the Great Chain of Being Medieval Art Sacred Polyphony and Secular Medieval Music |