Spring 2020
This course will survey the fundamentals of ancient Egyptian religion from the Predynastic period (ca. 4000 BC) to the end of the New Kingdom (ca. 1000 BC). Material will be covered both as an overview of how things unfolded over the various periods as well as how religion was practiced at key moments in Egyptian […]
The Ring cycle is Wagner’s triumphant realization of the ideal he called the “total art work,” combining music and drama with poetry, dance, painting, and even architecture. But it’s not just formal spectacle. The plot extends from the beginning of creation to the apocalyptic end of the world and centers on Wotan’s effort to secure […]
Please Note: This course will be held in Oro Valley at the Western National Parks Association (12880 N Vistoso Village Dr). The relationship between humans and insects can be antagonistic. Only about 6% of people said that they enjoyed having insects in their yards. But they fail to see how these animals often provide useful […]
Sorry! This course has sold out. Click here to join the course waitlist Many of us are familiar with and may have even visited the seemingly mystical places in the Four Corners of the U.S. Southwest on the Colorado Plateau, including Mesa Verde, Chaco Canyon, Canyon de Chelly, and many more. These were the long-ago […]
Sorry! This course has sold out. Click here to join the course waitlist This course explores the nuances and key features of the Russian cultural-societal-historical experience often called “the Russian Soul.” Caught between East and West, Asia and Europe, and experiencing its own unique socioeconomic-political developmental experience, Russia continues on its one-of-a-kind historical odyssey that […]
Please Note: This is an evening course. Sorry! This course has sold out. Click here to join the course waitlist Alexander Hamilton wrote that the federal courts “will always be the least dangerous to the political rights of the Constitution; because it will be least in a capacity to annoy or injure them” (Federalist No. […]
Homer’s sublime epics, Iliad and Odyssey, fire the imagination. We’ll explore how these stories develop from an ancient prequel to modern sequels. Homer’s poetic tradition harkens back to the Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh: the part-divine conflicted hero who wrestles with his destiny. Homer’s poems then sparked new masterpieces: Virgil’s Aeneid reweaves Homer’s tales into the […]
Sorry! This course has sold out. Click here to join the course waitlist How did Buddhism change world civilization? This is a puzzling question for many people interested in philosophy, spirituality, and practice. As a major religious tradition, Buddhism deserves our attention because of its increasingly strong presence in the West and its power to […]
African American literature has engaged consistently with the relationship between being black and being American. W. E. B. DuBois asked if that was even possible. Many writers and artists believed that control of representations of black Americans through art would lead to greater representation in political and social spheres. This course will examine some of […]
Sorry! This course has sold out. Click here to join the course waitlist Music from Haydn and Mozart to Beethoven and Brahms forms a canon of works held dear by performers and concert-goers alike. While each of these composers has his own distinct style, structurally their music derives from a set of principles known as […]
Please Note: The class session originally scheduled for March 19th has been moved to March 12th (during the UA Spring Break) due to a conflict in the Professor’s schedule. The dates listed above are correct and there will be NO CLASS on March 19th. Come explore the history and significance of American musical theater dance. […]