On what basis have women claimed the authority to speak and to lead? From the founding of the United States to its arrival as a superpower, women have taken it upon themselves to act on their visions of a just--or a righteous--world. Some have gained entry into the halls of power, some have petitioned or agitated for change, others have planted their feet on colonized ground and stood against the injustices they felt and saw. How did they persuade others and move them to action? What historical circumstances aided or impeded their efforts?

On what basis have women claimed the authority to speak and to lead? From the founding of the United States to its arrival as a superpower, women have taken it upon themselves to act on their visions of a just--or a righteous--world. Some have gained entry into the halls of power, some have petitioned or agitated for change, others have planted their feet on colonized ground and stood against the injustices they felt and saw. How did they persuade others and move them to action? What historical circumstances aided or impeded their efforts?

This course will trace the emergence and expansion of Greek civilization in the Mediterranean between the Bronze Age and Alexander the Great. Among themes to be explored are political structures, trade, slavery, gender relations, and religion, as well as the contributions of ancient Greeks to literary genres (drama, rhetoric, historiography, philosophy) and to the visual arts. Throughout we will consider how the history of the ancient Greeks can speak to modern concerns.

Centered on great powers in the web of the Silk Roads prior to the nineteenth century, this course seeks to present a history of incessant communication at a trans-regional level. Three vast empires dominated the heart of the Eurasian continent: the Tibetan empire (7th-9th centuries), the Mongol empire (1206-1370), and the Manchu Qing (1644-1911). Each of them cultivated and encouraged cultural exchanges in the landlocked regions that are now divided into many modern nation-states. Important questions include: is seaborne trade the only form of global circulation of knowledge?

Europe embodies crossroads of multiple cultures, memories, migrations, and political demarcations. Taking a critical view of conventional paradigms of European nation states and "master" narratives, we study shifting European cultures and identities through multiple perspectives across time and space. What remains of the ancient and modern regimes? How have global movements, historical upheavals, and shifting boundaries within and adjacent to European borders from early empires to contemporary global networks affected the transformation of lives? Where is Europe heading today?

For students who wish to acquire a working knowledge of German to prepare for an internship or research in a German-speaking country. Some knowledge of German affords students access to better placements in internships, especially DAAD RISE summer internships (http://www.daad.de/rise/en/rise-germany/) sponsored and supported by the German government. Focus on vocabulary and structures used when interacting with German speakers in specific cultural contexts or discipline-specific situations.

We will read plays by Shakespeare, watch films based on those plays, and study the plays, the films, and the plays-as-films. "Shakespeare" comes first, of course, both historically and as the source/inspiration for the films. Yet each film has its own existence, to be understood not just as an "adaptation," but also as the product of linked artistic, technical, and economic choices.

This course offers an historical survey of film theory, from the work of its earliest authors and practitioners at the birth of the 20th century (who first struggled to define the medium), to those who are working still to elucidate the place of the cinema in relation to new media in its ever-evolving and ever more complex place in culture. As a way of focusing the discussion of the various theoretical positions, we will watch and discuss films that represent that most modern of phenomena--the city.

A fundamental problem we face as humans is how we should relate to the natural world. Why not turn Yosemite into a parking lot? Should we control nature by applying scientific and technological expertise? Or should we strive for noninterference and preservation of the wild? How do we balance the pressing needs of people for food, energy, and other resources with the needs of other species or whole ecosystems?

Music and the Irish Novel introduces students to Irish novelists from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In these novels music plays a significant role, as a thematic, formal, or aesthetic inspiration. Traditional, opera, ballads, jazz, classical, pop, and contemporary music; all play a role in this literature. What do we mean when we say that a language, or a piece of literature, is "musical"? Why do writers of contemporary historical fiction favor musical references?