Washington and Lee University
Selected Courses that will count toward the four upper-level subject areas of the major:
Area 3a: History and the History of Science:
Hist. 295, "Media and Politics in Early Modern England" MW 2:30-3:55
The invention of the printing press has been credited with revolutionizing the world, but long before there was print, the people of England were exposed to and participated in the creation of a variety of forms of media. This course examines the use of media in early modern England, investigating the political effects of England's transition from an oral and scribal culture to a literate culture. This class also involves an extensive introduction to the use of early modern source materials. Prof. Schnepper
Area 3b: Literature:
ENGL 240
Surveys the origins and development of the legend of King Arthur, one of the most enduring traditions in Western literature. Readings commence with early Latin chronicles and Celtic sources before progressing to later medieval adaptations by Chrétien de Troyes, Marie de France, and Thomas Malory. Central characters and icons, such as Lancelot, Guinevere, the Round Table, and the Grail studied in light of moral, political, and theological questions. The term concludes with Tennyson's Idylls of the King and the place of Arthur's Camelot in Victorian England. All foreign language and most medieval texts are read in modern English translation. Prof. Jirsa
ENGL 311
Why do we say "brought" not "brang"? Why is "children" the plural of "child" or "feet" the plural of "foot"? What happened to the pronoun "thou"? How did the printing press change spoken language? This course pursues these and other questions by exploring the linguistic history of the English language from its early Germanic origins through its present-day proliferation into World English(es). Particular attention is devoted to the internal development of English (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, graphics, and vocabulary) in the medieval and early modern periods. Course work includes reading texts and facsimiles from a variety of historical periods and provenances and also exploring the linguistic, social, cultural, and historical forces that induce language change. No prior knowledge of foreign languages or linguistics is required or expected. Prof. Jirsa
Area 3d: Fine Arts:
ARTH 254, "Medieval Art in Northern Europe" TR 10:10 - 11:35 am. This course examines the artistic and architectural projects that shaped the cultural landscape of France, Germany, Spain, and the British Isles from the fall of Rome to the Gothic Age of the fourteenth century. Topics of interest include Irish manuscript illuminations, artistic programs for the court of Charlemagne, pilgrimage sites along the routes to Santiago de Compostela, and the cathedrals of central France. Prof. Bent
ARTH 255 (Northern Renaissance Art): TR 1:25 - 2:50 pm. The paintings of Jan van Eyck, Albrecht Durer, and Pieter Breughel - and a host of others - are here considered within the cultural context of the social, political, and economic resurgence of Northern Europe during the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries. Prof Bent
Courses that will count toward the four upper-level subject areas of the major:
Area 3a: History and the History of Science:
Phys. 150, "Journey: Harmonices Mundi," Prof. Boller
Area 3b: Literature:
Engl. 313, "Chaucer's Canaterbury Tales," Prof. Jirsa
Latin 327, "Medieval and Renaissnce Writers," Prof. Carlisle
Span. 322, "Spanish Golden Age Drama," Prof. Campbell
Area 3c: History of Ideas:
Rel. 283, "Sufism: Islamic Mysticism," Prof. Hatcher
Area 3d: Fine Arts:
ArtH 354, "Early Renaissance Art in Florence," Prof. Bent
ArtH 357, "Caravaggio and Artemisa Gentileschi," Prof. Lepage
Students may also register for:
MRST 403, "Directed Individual Study
MRST 473, "Senior Thesis"
MRST 493, "Honors Thesis"
Courses that will count toward the four upper-level subject areas of the major:
Area 3a: History and the History of Science:
Hist. 229, "History of Witchcraft and Magic," Prof. Schnepper
Area 3b: Literature:
Engl. 317, "Fantasies of Untamed Nature," Prof. Craun
Area 3c: Ideas:
Hist. 307, "The Machiavellian Moment," Prof. Peterson
Relig. 180 (FS), "Lives of the Prophet Mohammad," Prof. Hatcher (open only to first-years,
but counts towards the major).
Area 4d: Fine Arts:
Arth. 385, "Leonardo da Vinci," Prof. Bent
Courses that will count toward the four upper-level subject areas of the major:
Area 3b: LiteratureEngl. 326: "Seventeenth Century Poetry", Prof. Gertz
Germ. 318: "Medieval and Renaissance Literature," Prof. Crockett
Span. 320: "Don Quijote," Prof. Campbell
Span. 333: "El Cid in History and Legend," Prof. Bailey
Area 3d: Art
Music 201: "Music History I," Spice.
400 Level MRST Courses:
MRST 403: Directed Individual Study
MRST 473: Senior Thesis
MRST 493: Honors Thesis