What can fiction teach us about how to live?  This course will explore the possibilities and limitations of narrative fiction as a source of instruction, the cultivation of judgment, and the opportunity for self-reflection.  There are no prerequisites, and students of all majors are welcome to enroll; however, the course is open to seniors only.  We will read and discuss a wide range of novels (as well as some short stories) with particular attention to the ways that these works illuminate the navigation of key stages of life — youth, education, parenthood, aging. 

Fall semester. The Department.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Intensive reading, writing

Independent reading course.

Fall and spring semesters. The Department.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Intensive reading, writing

(Offered as ARHA 432 and CLAS 432) Sicily holds a special place in the ancient Mediterranean world, geographically and culturally. It’s location as a stopover point in the Western Mediterranean made it into a site of fierce colonization by Greeks, Carthaginians, and eventually Romans, demonstrating along the way the complexities of cultural interactions among these rival groups. Rome in essence learned to become an empire there, in and after the First Punic War (264-241 BCE).

Independent reading course.

Fall and spring semesters. The Department.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Intensive reading, writing

A survey of the gods and heroes of ancient Greece, their representation in Greek art and literature, and the sanctuaries and rituals in which these divine figures were worshipped. We will give particular attention to myths that live on in Western art and literature, in order to become familiar with the stories which were part of the repertory of later artists and authors. 

Three class hours per week. Limited to 75 students. Fall semester. Professor R. Sinos.

Independent Reading Course.

Fall and spring semester. Members of the Department.

How to handle overenrollment: null

This course, along with Chinese 402 in the spring semester, is the most advanced class in our Chinese language curriculum. Giving consistent emphasis to listening, speaking, writing, and grammar, the course focuses on advanced reading of authentic and idiomatic texts of Mandarin Chinese. With a balanced consideration to various topics, genres, and speech types, literary works will make up the principal part of the fourth-year reading materials.

This course, alongside Chinese 302 in the spring semester, is our third-year class offered for students who have completed the first two years of Mandarin Chinese. We continue to emphasize pronunciation and intonation, practice listening and speaking, and work to improve our command of grammar with more complex syntax structures. The class will see a switch from textbook materials to selective authentic texts for the general Chinese reader, and introduce the students to a variety of topics, genres, and speech types ranging from literary works to media and popular cultural materials.

This course is designed for students who have completed first-year Chinese classes. The emphasis will be on the basic grammatical structures. The course reinforces the four skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) through vigorous drills and practices. There will be three class meetings and two drill sessions each week.

Requisite: CHIN 102 or equivalent. Fall semester. Senior Lecturer Teng.

How to handle overenrollment: Majors, Amherst seniors, juniors, and then sophomores and first-years