Join Professor Lanin Gyurko as he explores the life and films of one of the greatest film directors, Alfred Hitchcock, master of suspense, mystery, and intrigue. Films from the silent and sound eras, in black and white and color, and biopics will be discussed. The course will highlight both the films’ spellbinding content and their use of dazzling cinematic techniques, as well as Hitchcock's adroit utilization of star power--from Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier to Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant, Grace Kelly, and Kim Novak. Films that will be...

This course analyzes the evolution of Chinese urban space to show how both Chinese people and outsiders viewed the evolving form of the city as the symbol of China’s progress, its position in the world, and its internal social dynamics. From the walls of the Forbidden City to the Western buildings of Shanghai, from the massive squares and the drab structures of communism to the incredible expansion in the last thirty years, we will investigate the shifting meanings of architecture and city life. We will look at how such notions as...

John Milton was one of England’s most controversial, celebrated, and reviled writers. As the course title suggests, we will study Milton’s poetry and prose within the context of the many revolutions in which he was a major figure: revolutions in politics, theology, poetics, and philosophy. One of our goals will be to examine not only how Milton–and the culture in which he was embedded–constructed meaning but also why it is important for us to undertake such an examination. We will read works from many of the different genres in which Milton...