Spring '09 Courses----March 16 –May 8
monday
Stumbling Toward Happiness 9:30-11:30 am (this course begins on March 23 and ends May 11)
What do the literary giants Tolstoy, Solzhenitsyn, and Huxley have to say about living a meaningful, happy life? Work your way through Tal Ben-Shahar's book Happier, based on his popular Harvard course on happiness. What can we learn from the Zen, Buddhist and yogic approach to happiness? Through discussion and some reflective in-class writing, we will strive to better understand how happiness works in our own lives. Ann Kimmage has taught literature, composition and autobiographical writing and is the author of the memoir, An Un-American Childhood. Limit 14.
Animal Behavior: Evolution and Adaptiveness 9:30-11:30 am
Why do leopards have spots and moths ears? Why do birds sing and bees dance? Why do ravens share and humans laugh? The course explores the diverse – and sometimes bizarre – strategies and mechanisms that animals use to solve the same basic problems of life: getting food, avoiding predators, finding and keeping mates, raising offspring, living in groups. From hornets to hornbills, from humpbacks to humans, we study the origins of these behaviors and discuss the adaptive reasons behind their similarities and differences. Barbara Snapp has taught and researched in science for over 35 years since receiving her PhD in ecology and evolutionary biology from Cornell University. Limit 20.
Japanese Art 1:00-3:00 pm
This course will cover the history of Japanese art as produced or simply enjoyed by various classes in Japanese society. Disciplines of the arts to be covered include: painting, printmaking, sculpture, architecture, costume, and ceramics. Although the topics (Art of the Priest, Emperor, Naturalist, Zen Monk, Warrior, Artisan, Merchant, Courtesan) cover hundreds and even thousands of years, a rough chronological order will be maintained so as to give the student a sense of the evolution of Japanese art. Clif Olds is the acting director of the Bowdoin Museum of Art and the Edith Cleaves Barry Professor of the History and Criticism of Art, Emeritus. Limit 24.
Espionage in Fact, Fiction, and Film, Part I 12:30-2:30 pm
This two-part course will examine the history, nature, and practice of espionage. (You need not take the first part to enroll in the second part in fall 2009). After examining how secret information-gathering fits into the larger endeavor of strategic intelligence, in Part I we discuss examples of spying from classical times up to World War II. Readings include analyses, case studies, short stories, and one novel. Every other week students may attend, after class, an optional showing of a feature spy film. For the last class each student will be asked to imagine and plan one information-gathering covert operation. Jack Thompson, an historian and a teacher at Indiana University and MSC, has long had an avocational interest in spy stories. (The final class will be held on May 11th.) Limit 36.
tuesday
Painting Still Life with Acrylics 9:30-11:30 am
From Vermeer to Andy Warhol artists have painted the stuff of everyday life, often achieving uncommon artistic ends. Working from a new still life each week, we will explore the materials and techniques of acrylic painting in an effort to turn common objects into art. Some painting experience is desirable. A list of reimbursable materials will be provided before the first meeting. Stu Ross, a painter and printmaker, has been teaching and making art in mid-coast Maine for many years. Limit 10.
The Canterbury Tales 9:30-11:30 am
Geoffrey Chaucer’s classic poem, The Canterbury Tales, is one of the earliest and most fascinating works in English literature. We will read the tales in modern translation for what they tell of English life and the human condition in the fourteenth century. We will also examine selected passages in the original to see what Middle English looked and sounded like. Bill Brown has been a regular faculty member since the inception of MSC. Limit 12.
Spring Awakenings! 12:30–3:00 pm
Here is an opportunity to welcome spring – in poetic descriptions, portraits of first bloomers, and photographs of amphibian antics! We will scout the first spring flowers, trees in bloom, animal activity and arrival, plus so much more. What flower produces an acorn? Why is there so much croaking of frogs in this season? When does the first butterfly take flight? What’s a catkin? What is the importance of vernal pools?
We will take forays into the woods and along the shore to chronicle the surge of spring and new life. Be prepared to share your writings, photographs and drawings each week. Ronnie Kamphausen was a biology major in college and studied at Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory. She considers herself a self-taught naturalist, having learned by exploration and discovery. Limit 12.
wednesday
Lincoln and His Generals 9:30-11:30 am
The focus is on the important role that Pres. Abraham Lincoln played as Commander-In-Chief of the Union Armies during the Civil War in securing his war aims and Union victory. We will be examining the military careers of ten of his generals including Grant, Sherman, McClellan, Meade, and Hooker. Charles Plummer, a regular MSC faculty member, is a well-known Civil War living history performer. Meets at Thornton Oaks. Limit 20.
Understanding the Basics of Music 9:30-11:30 am
This course is designed to be a "fundamentals of music" class. We will study musical vocabulary, concepts of music, musical form, and theoretical structures. As we listen to a variety of pieces, we will analyze the technical characteristics of the music. In essence, this will be a combination Music Theory - Music Appreciation course. Stuart Gillespie, a regular MSC faculty member, has been a choral director and college music teacher for the past 31 years. Meets at The Highlands. Limit 36.
Collective Memory 12:30–2:30 pm
How do individuals, groups, and societies remember and think about the past? “Collective Memory” is a new focus developed over the past 20 years by sociologists, historians, psychologists, humanists, and others interested in “social memory.” There are now significant studies of changes in American beliefs about Columbus, Jefferson, and Lincoln; of the effects of Watergate on law, language, and journalism; on the nature and impact of the Vietnam Memorial and other important commemorative efforts; on the discovery of a “critical period” in our lives for memories of both public events like the 9/11 attack and personal events like one’s first day in college.
This seminar-style course calls for reading and discussion of studies of social memories, as well as consideration of the nature of “collective memory” itself. Howard Schuman is a social psychologist engaged in research and writing in the field. Limit 12.
thursday
Environmental Ethics 9:30-11:30 am
Environmental ethics studies the moral relationship of human beings to the non-human contents of the environment. Ethical thinking is too often obscured by beliefs that Homo sapiens is a separate creation (anthropocentrism) and that Western man is the apex of that creation (ethnocentrism). All humans are not only descended from ancient evolutionary processes, but also share with all life on earth the genetic substance DNA. We are increasingly aware that the human contract with the environment must be based on interaction rather than subjugation. This interdependence will be examined in the classroom as well as in field observation of the night sky and the daytime awakening of the Maine spring. Ted Allen is a physical anthropologist with wide ranging interests in science and the history of science. Limit 36.
Women: From Liberation to Leadership 9:30-11:30 am
Worldwide, women’s options today expand via education, contraception, credit, technology, or public office; and their micro-banking amazes all. In the USA, women constitute in excess of 50% of science and law graduates. Hillary, Nancy and Condoleezza lead the way. Women can offer collaborative and consensus-building strengths to any endeavor. We will explore K.G. Schiff’s Lighting the Way: Nine Women Who Changed Modern America; and A.H. Eagly and L.L. Carli’s, Through the Labyrinth: ...How Women Become Leaders. Guest speakers and class stories will reflect most human struggles for respect and power sharing. Barclay Palmer, graduate of Oxford University, has taught the human condition in the USA since 1957. Esther Lacognata has had a long career in planning and policy-making, both in state and local government and the non-profit sector. Limit 24.
Clearing the Air on Global Climate Change 12:30-2:30 pm
Cut through the hype, rhetoric and controversy surrounding this, the most crucial environmental and political challenge of our time. Step beyond "An Inconvenient Truth" for a better look at the science behind global warming. Learn how to take climate change skeptics to task. Explore the public policies that might really make a difference before we reach a point of no return. Fred Cichocki, a PhD Zoologist, has most recently held curatorial positions at natural history museums in Florida. Limit 24
Supreme Court in American Life 3:00-5:00 pm
Learn more about what Alexander Hamilton called “the least dangerous” branch of American government. Topics to be considered include the appointment process, life in the “marble temple,” the decision-making process, and opinion days. Jeffrey Toobin’s best seller, The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court,” and the 2007 PBS documentary, The Supreme Court, will provide the structure for our discussions on the contemporary court as well as its historic role. Howard Whitcomb, a retired political science professor, served as a Supreme Court Fellow in 1973-74. Meets at The Highlands. Limit 36.
friday
Homer’s Iliad 9:30-11:30 am
This course entails a close reading of Homer's Iliad in a verse translation by Richmond Lattimore, with consideration of the historical, mythical, cultural and religious context of this poem. We will explore the heroic values in Homer's world, the relationships of mortals to immortals, and the Greek tragic sense of the human condition expressed in this epic of the Trojan War. Illustrations from Greek art depicting Homeric and related subjects will be introduced as time permits, revealing the pervasive and lasting influence of the Homeric world in Greek culture. Mark Davies taught classics for three decades after receiving his PhD in Classical Archaeology at Princeton. Limit 12.
The Artist in the Studio 9:30-11:30 (this 4 week course begins March 20)
This class will visit the studios of four artists to observe their working methods and discuss their ideas about creating art: painter, sculptor, fibre artist and book artist. We will see first-hand what each art form is about and why. Students will be notified in advance of the logistical arrangements for this off-site course. Ed McCartan is a painter and educator in studio art and art history, who has taught and exhibited nationally. Limit 12.
Science of Horticulture 12:30-2:30 pm
This course will provide an in-depth look at the science behind the common practices of plant husbandry. The course will cover: taxonomy, morphology, plant adaptations, soils, soil fertility and pay special attention to pruning and transplanting. Ed Corbett has 45 years of experience in the field at US Department of Agriculture and as a faculty member at the University of Connecticut. Limit 24.