Master of Liberal Arts courses
MLAR 7010 Classics of Ancient Political Thought
Classics of Ancient Political Thought
This course will be devoted to a study of classical works of ancient political philosophy in the Western tradition, with an emphasis on Plato and Aristotle.
credit hours: 3
Classics of Ancient Political Thought
MLAR 7020 Classics of Modern Political Thought
Classics of Modern Political Thought
This course will be devoted to a study of classical works of modern political philosophy in the Western tradition, covering such thinkers as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Marx, or Mill.
credit hours: 3
Classics of Modern Political Thought
MLAR 7030 Masterworks of Western Literature I
Masterworks of Western Literature I
This course will exmine literary works, ancient and medieval, that have played an important role in shaping Western thought and imagination.
credit hours: 3
Masterworks of Western Literature I
MLAR 7040 Masterworks of a Western Literature II
Masterworks of a Western Literature II
This course will examine literary works cenral to the Western tradition from the Renaissance to the 20th century.
credit hours: 3
Masterworks of a Western Literature II
MLAR 7050 Understanding America 1
Understanding America 1
This course is an intense analytical investigation of social, political, economic, religious, and philosophical issues in the early years of the American republic. The course examines the people and events of the founding of the American republic from the revolution, through the creation of the American Constitution, and culminating in the election of 1800. This course is primarily an intellectual history course and the main scholarly work that we will read is the work of historians, but the course also delves deeply into issues in political theory, political economy, and political and social philosophy. The course charts the development of American political ideas about constitutionalism, governance, political freedom, economic freedom, representative democracy, republicanism, and federalism primarily from the vantage point of the careers of two of the main figures from this period, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The views of other figures will also be central to our investigation, particularly the views of James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. The student will be challenged to examine fundamental assumptions about these topics in order to rethink the intellectual origins of the American political tradition in its founding years.
credit hours: 3
Understanding America 1
MLAR 7060 Understanding America 2: Philosophy of Richard Rorty
Understanding America 2: Philosophy of Richard Rorty
This course is an intense encounter with the work of perhaps the most significant, original, and influential philosopher in American history, Richard Rorty (1931-2007). The material that we read will cover all the main aspects of Rortys philosophical and political work. The main focus of the course will be an attempt to come to terms with Rortys critique of the cult and culture of professional philosophy. We will also be concerned with an attempt to understand Rorty as a major figure in the American intellectual tradition and locate him within the history that includes such figures as Emerson, Whitman, William James, John Dewey, and other figures considered to be exemplars of naturalism, pragmatism, or neo-pragmatism in one form or another.
credit hours: 3
Understanding America 2: Philosophy of Richard Rorty
MLAR 7080 The Economic World: Causes and Consequences of the Great Recession - Spring 2011
The Economic World: Causes and Consequences of the Great Recession - Spring 2011
This course examines the causes and consequences of the Great Recession, the economic crisis of 2008 and beyond. Over the past thirty years, the economic and political landscape of the world has been transformed by sweeping economic changes that reflect the influence of the once marginalized but now dominant ideology of neo-liberalism and free market fundamentalism. These changes have created the greatest accumulation of individual wealth in human history, but also have arguably created greater suffering, poverty, inequality, anti-democratic developments, and the growing potential for the catastrophic failure of the global economy, as evidenced by recent events. We will consider a variety of political and economic views of the Great Recession, from a broad spectrum of economic and political thinkers.
credit hours: 3
The Economic World: Causes and Consequences of the Great Recession - Spring 2011
MLAR 7100 The Representation of War in Literature and Film
The Representation of War in Literature and Film
In this course we will look at the ways war has been portrayed by writers or film directors and address a number of important questions: Why do countries go to war? When, if ever, is resorting to war legitimate or necessary? What are the psychological effects of the experience of battle? What standards of human character are invoked in time of war?
credit hours: 3
The Representation of War in Literature and Film
MLAR 7111 Knowledge and Society
Knowledge and Society
This course examines several related questions about knowledge and belief in society. We begin by asking what knowledge and truth might be, and how they have been classically understood. We then ask core questions about what we know: Is knowledge or truth relative to culture,society or tradition? How should an individual knower treat the fact that other equally intelligent people disagree? And since we rely on others for knowledge, when can we trust them? Finally, we ask what the political and ethical repercussions might be o relativism or disagreement.
credit hours: 3
Knowledge and Society
MLAR 7122 King Arthur: History and Legend
King Arthur: History and Legend
In this course, we will investigate the evidence, both textual and archaeological, for the existence of an historical Arthur, King of the Britons, and will then consider how that evidence was transformed into an imaginative cycle of stories concerning kingship and chivalry that were highly influential within and beyond the Middle Ages. We will pay particular attention to three themes: the ideals of monarchy and knightly behavior that inform the Arthurian stories (e.g. the medieval theory of the divine right of kings); the development within the Arthurian materials of ideas about medieval romantic love or fin amor, especially in representations of the passionate but doomed relationship between Lancelot and Guinevere; and the mystical dimensions ofArthurian romance, as these emerged from writings about the Round Table fellowships pursuit of the Holy Grail. We will read Sir Thomas Malorys late medieval revision of the Arthurian story cycle, but with reference to other non-Malory materials to be introduced and explained by the instructor (e.g. a long alliterative poem concerning Arthurs battle with the giant of St. Michaels Mount). We will also deal briefly at the end of the course with Victorian adaptations of the Arthurian materials, especially those by Tennyson in his Idylls of the King and William Morris in his Defence of Guenevere.
Three written assignments: a midterm and final examination (essay format) and a short critical paper (5 pp. typed, double-spaced).
Required Text: Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte Darthur: The Winchester Manuscript, ed. by Helen Cooper (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008).
credit hours: 3
King Arthur: History and Legend
MLAR 7123 Robin Hood
Robin Hood
This course will explore the legendary history of the medieval outlaw figure, Robin Hood, as it developed through the Medieval and Early Modern periods and into our own century. We will begin by examining historical and archaeological evidence for the person Robin Hood (including pre-Christian influences on his character) and then will consider Robin Hoods complex literary and cultural identity. We will also be concerned with various political uses to which the figure of Robin Hood was put in the Medieval and Early Modern periods and with Robin Hoods persistent role in modern British and American popular culture, especially the movies.
Three written assignments: a midterm and final examination (essay format) and a short critical paper (5 pp. typed, double-spaced).
Required Texts: Stephen Knight and Thomas Ohlgren, eds., Robin Hood and Other Outlaw Tales, 2d ed. (Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, 2000) and Stephen Knight, Robin Hood, A Mythic Biography (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2009).
credit hours: 3
Robin Hood
MLAR 7130 Love, Romance, and Marriage in Literature and Film
Love, Romance, and Marriage in Literature and Film
In this course we will look at the portrayal of love, romance, and marriage in modern society in short stories, plays and films.
credit hours: 3
Love, Romance, and Marriage in Literature and Film
MLAR 7133 Culture and the Politics of Marriage
Culture and the Politics of Marriage
Although today there are numerous ways to construct a family in America, marriage continues to be the preferred option. Nearly 100% of Americans routinely report a desire to marry at some point in their lives. Roughly 90% of them do marryat least once, and over half do it more than once. Yet soaring divorce rates point to a disconnect between what we expect marriage to be and what it actually is. As young children, were told that marrying our prince/princess will ensure us a happily ever after, as it did for Cinderella, and this cultural message only gets stronger as we grow up. Were so bombarded by these assurances that we take it for granted that we must marry our prince or princess just to be happy. For this reason, we rarely stop to consider that marriage is a social institution that creates, reinforces, and reflects power and hierarchy.
This is a masters level seminar on the social institution of marriage. This course engages questions such as: What is marriage? Where does our notion of marriage come from? How does popular culture act to construct and reinforce that notion and make it part of our taken-for-granted stock of knowledge? How do our idealized notions of marriage differ from our practice of marriage? What politics are implicated in our idealized notions about marriage, and how do those politics play out in the practice of marriage? Drawing on class readings, discussions, and exercises, we engage these issues (and more) as part of the ongoing family values debate that questions whether marriage is in crisis or simply in transition. The intent of this course is to make students aware of some of the hidden forces that shape our contemporary attitudes and ongoing cultural debates about marriage and family.
credit hours: 3
Culture and the Politics of Marriage
MLAR 7160 Contemporary Culture in Literature and Film
Contemporary Culture in Literature and Film
In this course we will look at problems in our contemporary culture as they have been represented in short stories, plays, and films.
credit hours: 3
Contemporary Culture in Literature and Film
MLAR 7161 Civil War New Orleans
Civil War New Orleans
This course is a seminar which emphasizes reading, discussion, research, and writing. Despite the contentions of some historians, the Civil War had a profound impact on the people and history of New Orleans. During the late antebellum period (1840s-1850s), the city was the principal slave market in the nation. This domestic trade fueled the lower south and New Orleanss economic development. Slavery shaped the economic and social character of the south, over the years creating not only a society with slaves, but also a slave society. Despite its dominance and apparent unanimity, slavery was also a contentious and divisive institution. Slavery in New Orleans was no exception to these twin dynamics. The historical recordnewspapers, acts of sales, successions, census records, and private correspondencedemonstrate the centrality of slavery to New Orleanss antebellum society. On the other hand, the citys complex racial, ethnic, and sectional composition heightened political and social tensions, raising suspicions and fears about racial identity, naturalization and citizenship, and loyalty. Slavery and ethnicity shaped issues of civil liberties, criminal justice, and politics.
The presidential and secession elections of 1860 and 1861 sharply divided New Orleans, as they did throughout much of the urban south. These divisions did not disappear with mobilization and civil war, but were only intensified in the hothouse of occupation, reunion, reconstruction, and, above all, loss. New Orleans suffered greatly during and after the Civil War. Thousands of men were killed or died from wounds and disease and even more were maimed physically and scared emotionally. The fighting ended, but the war continued beyond Appomattox Court House. To this day, the privileges and immunities of American citizens are intensely debated, bringing not only hope but also rancor and division, as much as they did in antebellum New Orleans and America.
credit hours: 3
Civil War New Orleans
MLAR 7200 Liberty and Diversity
Liberty and Diversity
This course examines some traditional philosophical grounds for accepting liberty, and then considers contemporary challenges. Along the way, we will discuss the role that community and tradition should play in a pluralistic society.
credit hours: 3
Liberty and Diversity
MLAR 7240 Justice, Law, and Public Policy
Justice, Law, and Public Policy
This course will examine considerations of justice and morality that help shape law and public policy. Issues to be discussed may include: crime and punishment, drugs, gun control, treatment of enemy combatants, torture, surveillance and privacy, free speech and national security.
credit hours: 3
Justice, Law, and Public Policy
MLAR 7245 Medieval New Orleans
Medieval New Orleans
By way of numerous Power Point tours of on and off campus sites and materials, as well as our reading of a popular American novel, Mark Twains A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court, this course will consider the influence of medieval culture and ideas on New Orleans and, to some extent, Southern culture in general, especially during the post-Civil War period and Reconstruction. For instance, we will discuss medieval architectural styles preserved in Tulane and other local buildings (Richardsonian Romanesque and Gothic Revival), experience medieval music by New Orleans Musica da Camera (a special guest performance), and explore real medieval manuscript materials from the Tulane Rare Books Room in Jones Hall. We will also talk about medieval influences on such pre-Lenten festivals as Mardi Gras and on such regional foods as gumbo and turducken. Class will conclude with our viewing of a musical film version of Connecticut Yankee, which suggests how Hollywood adapted medieval experience to bring it in line with certain nineteenth-century attitudes toward the Middle Ages.
Three written assignments: a midterm (essay format), short critical paper (5 typed pp.), and a final examination (on course terminology).
Required Text: Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court, ed. byMLAR Justin Kaplan (New York: Penguin, 1972).
credit hours: 3
Medieval New Orleans
MLAR 7250 Verbal and Visual Rhetoric
Verbal and Visual Rhetoric
This course will focus on theories and practices of verbal discourse in comparison with visual imagery and technology. While concentrating on rhetorics of western cultures, some comparison will be made with rhetorical discourse and imagery in other cultures. The course will examine topics such as the interfaces of religion and politics, mass media and persuasive campaign, or the role of values in institutional leadership and issue campaigns.
credit hours: 3
Verbal and Visual Rhetoric
MLAR 7500 Independent Study
Independent Study
For specific topics, see Schedule of Classes.
credit hours: 3
Independent Study
MLAR 9980 Master's Research
Master's Research
credit hours: 0
Master's Research