HUM 122 Syllabus

HUM 122 Introduction to Humanities
MWF 9:00 AM - 9:50 AM GEB 342
MWF 2:00 PM - 2:50 PM CC 344
Dr. Timothy Hoare, CC 342, ext. 4526
Homepage: http://staff.jccc.edu/thoare
E-mail: thoare@jccc.edu

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This interdisciplinary study begins with a look at artistic and technical elements of several artforms including painting, sculpture, architecture, music, theatre, film, dance and literature. Major themes expressed in the works and their reflection of the values of their culture are also examined. Credit hours: 3. Contact hours: 3. Lecture: 3. Lab: 0. Course type: Transfer. Most recent date revised: Spring 2000. Fees/supplies: None.

REQUIRED TEXT

Sporre, D. Perceiving the Arts. 8th Edition. Prentice Hall. 2003. ISBN: 0-13-193114-8. Adoption Date: Fall 2005.
(additional readings will be distributed periodically as supplements to primary text)

COURSE OBJECTIVES

After completing this course, the student should be able to:

1. Define and identify artistic elements of selected visual, performing and literary arts.

2. Discuss the relationship between the subject matter, the formal elements and the meaning of artistic works.

3. Identify the human values exemplified by works from various times and cultures.

4. Explore the role of these works in influencing or reflecting the state of a given society.

5. Describe what the arts have in common.

6. Identify the uniqueness of each of the arts studied.

7. Analyze, through critical writing and oral expression, specific works of art.

8. Explore the variety of human aesthetic expression.

9. Develop a background for continued exploration of the arts.

10. Increase one's own aesthetic awareness.

GRADING AND EVALUATION

1. All assigned readings are to be read, which implies critical reflection, analysis and preparation for discussion. This further implies that your in-class participation can well make the difference between one grade and another.

2. The necessity for regular attendance should go without saving. As Woody Allen put it, "Eighty percent of success is showing up." More details about this below.

3. As study aids for major exams, there will be weekly quizzes and/or in-class exercises that will focus on the subject matter of the given week, i.e., painting, sculpture, dance, etc.

4. Four exams, both objective and subjective in content.

5. One paper of three to five pages, dealing with the analysis of a visual artform (e.g., painting, sculpture) that is on exhibit in the area and that you therefore have seen first hand (e.g., Nelson-Atkins, Kemper, Spencer, JCCC's Nerman Museum or permanent on-campus collection). Please note: this means that you may not write about an image that you have simply viewed on the internet. Specific format criteria and guidelines for this paper are available on this website at Analysis Paper Guidelines (click from here or from homepage).

6. Grading will be based upon the following point distributions:

Attendance/participation in discussions: 25 points. I will allow a maximum of 3 "no questions asked" absences; I will deduct 2 points for each absence beyond this.
Weekly quizzes and exercises: 100 points. This includes 8 chapter quizzes and 2 in-class exercises @ 10 points each. The number of exercises may increase as new concepts or ideas arise; in such cases, the point value will increase accordingly. Weekly quizzes may be made up, but not in-class exercises.
Arts analysis paper @ 50 points
Four exams (quarterly) @ 65 points each = 260 points.
Total: 435 points.
If the student deems it necessary, he/she may submit an extra credit visual arts or performing arts paper for a maximum of 25 points-- due on the last day of class PRIOR to Finals Week.
No assignments, extra credit papers, etc. whatsoever will be accepted following the last day of scheduled classes (i.e., prior to Finals Week)

TENTATIVE WEEKLY SCHEDULE

Page numbers refer to required text for this course.

Dates shown in parentheses refer to Monday of the given week,
except for WEEK 1, as the JCCC semester begins on Wednesday, January 16.

WEEK 1 (1/16): Introduction to course; basic principles of fine arts; no class on Friday 1/18 (this is not campus wide- I have to be out of town)

WEEK 2 (1/21): No class on Monday 1/21 (Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday); What Are the Arts and How Do We Respond to Them?, p.1-26; analysis exercise

WEEK 3 (1/28): Pictures: Painting, Printmaking and Photography, p. 27-68

WEEK 4 (2/4): Pictures, etc., cont.

WEEK 5 (2/11): REVIEW, EXAM

WEEK 6 (2/18): Sculpture, p.69-90; campus sculpture exercise

WEEK 7 (2/25): Sculpture, cont.; Architecture, p. 195-225

WEEK 8 (3/3): Architecture, cont.; REVIEW FOR EXAM

WEEK 9 (3/10): REVIEW, cont., EXAM ON FRIDAY 3/14

WEEK 10 (3/17): SPRING BREAK

WEEK 11 (3/24): Theatre, p.118-140

WEEK 12 (3/31): Film, p. 141-158

WEEK 13 (4/7): REVIEW, EXAM

WEEK 14 (4/14): Dance, p. 159-175

WEEK 15 (4/21): Music, p. 91-117; ARTS ANALYSIS PAPER DUE BY FRIDAY 4/25

WEEK 16 (4/28): Music, cont.; focus on American jazz

WEEK 17 (5/5): REVIEW FOR FINAL EXAM

WEEK 18 (5/12): FINAL EXAM WEEK

EXAM TIMES FOR EACH SECTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:
MWF 9:00 AM: Monday May 12 @ 9AM
MWF 2:00 PM: Wednesday May 14 @ 2PM

SOME ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES

1. All JCCC students are issued a college e-mail account that is accessed through MyJCCC. This account is used by the college to communicate course, grade, financial aid, enrollment and other important college information. It is your responsibility to check your JCCC e-mail account regularly for important information.

2. I am a strong proponent of the liberal arts. I approach material in a holistic and interdisciplinary manner. In this Humanities course, religion, philosophy, ethics, art, literature, theatre, psychology, the media, history, political science, et al. will inevitably come into conversation with one another. Education is about gaining proficiency with the tools to discern and explore these interrelationships, to interpret and evaluate them critically, and to continue to do so throughout your lives. In short, there's a world of people, places, ideas and books out there; after you graduate, you have to be able to go to a dinner party and talk competently about something besides your job!

3. I am not simply a lecturer who loves the sound of his own voice. Expect me to ask questions of you and to generate discussion with you. While I most certainly want you to understand my ideas and opinions on the material, I value your efforts, your opinions, your input and your reflections as well.

4. I am a gracious host who likes gracious guests. It's not enough simply to arrive, sign the register and then sit in an out-of-the-way corner. Be prepared to take part in the class.

5. We all have doctor appointments, childcare concerns, or "just one of those things" that come up now and again. If you have to leave a session early, please inform me before the class begins. It is simply the courteous thing to do.

6. I care about the ambience in which I teach and in which students learn. I expect you to be attentive, to turn off your cell phones, and to treat one another with respect while you are here, and to pick up after yourselves when you depart (papers, soft drink cans, etc.).

7. Last but not least, academic dishonesty, i.e., cheating on exams, intentional plagiarism on written assignments, will not be tolerated. A first offense will result in an "F" on the exam, paper, etc. concerned. A second offense will result in an "F" for the course.

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