The works of metaphysical poet John Donne abound with highly unusual similes and metaphors, often from science, engineering, and cosmology. He wrote erotic (and often cynical) love poems as well as religious verse and prose, including what are regarded as the greatest sermons of his era. Humanities scholar Clay Jenkinson draws on and interprets Donne’s timeless poetry and prose as he discusses his life and achievements.
As the American Revolution broke out in New England in the spring of 1775, dramatic events unfolded in Virginia that proved as decisive as the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill in uniting the colonies against Britain. Journalist and author Andrew Lawler offers a new perspective on the roots of the American Revolution as he describes the impact of the actions of Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia.
Overshadowed for many decades, women artists who made important contributions to the Abstract Expressionist movement are finally getting their due. Most notable were five painters whose work was featured in the groundbreaking Ninth Street Art Exhibition of 1951. Art historian Nancy G. Heller examines the art and lives of these “Ninth Street Women,” their relationships with their male counterparts, and the gender-related obstacles they had to overcome to claim their place in a changing art world. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)
No art better exemplifies the Belle Époque than the lavish portraits of the rich, famous, and fashionable on both sides of the Atlantic created by John Singer Sargent. Art critic Judy Pomeranz presents an overview of Sargent’s range of work in the context of his time, as well as an examination of the stylistic and formal elements that set his paintings apart from those of his contemporaries and even successors. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)
As soon as television began in the late 1940s, advertising was a vital part of the picture. Media historian Brian Rose examines how advertising evolved during television’s first two decades and the important role it played in convincing viewers that the key to happiness was to buy their way into the American dream.
The life of Eleanor of Aquitaine is the stuff of legend. But what’s true? Tudor and Renaissance scholar Carol Ann Lloyd-Stanger considers some of the stories—such as going on a Crusade dressed as an Amazon—that have grown from the real life of the ambitious and powerful woman who managed to become queen consort of England and France and shaped the reigns of two of England’s most famous kings: Richard the Lionheart and King John.
The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, or Cathedral Museum, in Siena, Italy, houses works of art and architectural fragments that were formerly in, or a part of, the Duomo of Siena (Siena Cathedral). These include a number of Italian Gothic sculptures by Giovanni Pisano and his school from the façade of the cathedral; the Maestà of Duccio di Buoninsegna, which was the altarpiece for about 200 years; and works by Ambrogio and Pietro Lorenzetti. Italian Renaissance art expert Rocky Ruggiero highlights this lesser-known museum and its treasures. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)
After months of contentious negotiations among American, British, and French delegates, the Treaty of Paris was signed in November 1783, formally ending the War for Independence and creating the United States of America. Historian Richard Bell examines the complex diplomatic evolution of one the most important founding documents in this country’s history—as well as the least well-known and the most misunderstood.
