One of the hallmarks of a liberal arts education is to draw on a broad base of knowledge in order to interrogate common assumptions. No one exemplifies this critical approach better than French philosopher Michel Foucault. One of the most influential thinkers of recent times, Foucault revolutionized several academic disciplines and even questioned the very notion of a discipline itself. He did so by revealing the history and transformations of ideas now viewed as self-evident. This first-year seminar invites students to develop similar analytical skills.

Abstract algebra is the study of the common;principles that govern computations with;seemingly disparate objects. One way to begin is;by studying rings, which are sets with two;operations, typically addition and;multiplication. Examples include the integers,;the integers modulo n, and polynomials in n;variables. Our goal is to study a definition of;rings that unifies all of the important examples;above and more.

Learn to speak with confidence and clarity about;your summer internship or research project.;Connect it to you academic coursework. What have;you learned? How is it useful? What are your next;steps? Students will reflect on their experience;and collaborate with others to generate useful;knowledge. Required for the Nexus but open to all;students. For more information, email;nexus@mtholyoke.edu.

What is secularism? For many of us, the answer is;obvious: the world without religious belief, or;the separation of church and state, or even the;"really real" world. In recent years, scholars in;number fields have begun to question these common;sense notions about secularism. In this course,;we will investigate this rapidly expanding;literature and the critical lines of inquiry it;has opened up: Under what specific cultural and;historic conditions did secularism first emerge?;Is secularism experienced today in the same way;throughout the world?

Latin America has undergone massive political,;economic and cultural transformations since the;end of the Cold War. Indeed, during the final;decades of the twentieth century, much of the;region embraced neoliberal governance and free;market capitalism. However, by the turn of the;millennium, many Latin American governments had;made a sharp "turn to the Left," as states began;to intervened more directly in the economy,;promote alternative imaginings of modernization,;and recognize greater rights for Indigenous and;Afro-descendent peoples.

This course will examine arguments for;reparations for slavery with an eye towards;understanding what withholding and extending;reparations have meant for American democracy and;citizenship. We will contextualize arguments for;reparations within a larger conversation about;repairing democratic norms, institutions, and;social conditions within recent democratic;theory.

In this course, students will learn the skills of;journalism by applying themselves to extensive;reporting projects focused on the city of;Holyoke. Long known as the "Paper Capital of;America," Holyoke was historically the home to;some of the nation's busiest industrial wool and;paper mills, which were supported by an elaborate;system of municipal canals.

Over the last century, religionists have labored;to discover the meaning of African dispersal;beyond the continent and its accompanying;spiritual lineages. What theories of encounter;sufficiently adjudicate the synthetic religious;cultures of African-descended persons in North;America, South America, and the Caribbean? What;are the cross-disciplinary methodologies that;scholars utilize to understand African religious;cultures in the Western hemisphere? Firstly, this;course will introduce the field of Africana;religious studies.

Over the last century, religionists have labored;to discover the meaning of African dispersal;beyond the continent and its accompanying;spiritual lineages. What theories of encounter;sufficiently adjudicate the synthetic religious;cultures of African-descended persons in North;America, South America, and the Caribbean? What;are the cross-disciplinary methodologies that;scholars utilize to understand African religious;cultures in the Western hemisphere? Firstly, this;course will introduce the field of Africana;religious studies.

Over the last century, religionists have labored;to discover the meaning of African dispersal;beyond the continent and its accompanying;spiritual lineages. What theories of encounter;sufficiently adjudicate the synthetic religious;cultures of African-descended persons in North;America, South America, and the Caribbean? What;are the cross-disciplinary methodologies that;scholars utilize to understand African religious;cultures in the Western hemisphere? Firstly, this;course will introduce the field of Africana;religious studies.