| Semester and Year | FA 2011 |
| Course Number | FIRST-UG323 |
| Section | 001 |
| Instructor | Yevgeniya Traps |
| Days | Tue,Thu |
| Time | 6:20 PM - 7:35 PM |
| Units | 4.0 |
| Level | U |
| Foundation Requirement |
Open to Gallatin first-year students only.
What is the relationship between art and life, between the luxury of creating and the necessity of surviving? In this writing seminar, we will explore the many ways artists’ experiences and the circumstances of creation influence artists’ work. How are artists shaped by the societies in which they live? How do family background, historical events, political movements, social disruptions, and celebrity influence our creations? How do artists, in turn, shape their societies’ attitudes and values? Focusing on how art and writing reveal the effects of race, gender, sexuality, and politics in the second half of the twentieth century, we will consider a number of works in their contexts. Using writing as a way of thinking critically, students will produce descriptive, analytical, and literary-critical essays. Readings may include works by Richard Wright, James Baldwin, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Sylvia Plath, Andy Warhol, Susan Sontag, and Joan Didion.
First-Year Program: Writing Seminars (FIRST-UG)