Beauty
Facilitator: Timothy Lukes, Political Science
We value love, money, fun, faith, work, thought, inspiration, community, and friendship. Why? Is it enough to say that these things help us to survive in the world, or do we value these things for reasons that are much more difficult to explain? In this Pathway, we explore a more complex and controversial motivation for human energy, an interest in beauty. It is an interest we do not always embrace, often preferring the less risky concepts of "cute" or "cool." But while Thomas Kinkade and Kenny G might fit right in, Beethoven sonatas and Michelangelo sculptures are difficult to characterize with such perfunctory terms. We encourage students setting off on this Pathway to consider whether there is a realm of the beautiful and, if there is, identify some of its characteristics and manifestations.
Associated Courses
Foundations Courses
(Please note that only the specific Foundation course topics qualify for the Pathway requirements,
and only one Foundations course may be applied to a Pathway)
ARTH 12A Art, Politics & Propaganda
ARTH 12A Art, Trade & Cultural Exchange
ENGL 2A Media, Self & Society
PHIL 4A Ethics and Gender (cross-listed with WGST 58)
Art History
ARTH 26 Introduction to the Arts of Asia
ARTH 144 18th & 19th Century American Art and Visual Culture
ARTH 145 20th Century American Art and Visual Culture
ARTH 185 Post-Modern Art
ARTH 186 History of Photography
* ARTH 188 Women in the Visual Arts (cross-listed with WGST 156)
Arts
ARTS 43 Basic Painting (cross-listed with ARTS 143)
ARTS 143 Painting (cross-listed with ARTS 143)
English
ENGL 25 Reading Film
ENGL 121 Studies in American Film
ENGL 167 Modern Fiction
History
HIST 84 Women in American Society (cross-listed with WGST 57)
Mathematics and Computer Science
MATH 4 The Nature of Mathematics
Music
MUSC 8 Introduction to Listening
MUSC 190 Music of the Middle Ages
MUSC 191 Music of the Renaissance
MUSC 194 Music of the Romantic Period
Philosophy
PHIL 115 Feminism and Ethics (cross-listed with WGST 184)
PHIL 155 Aesthetics
The normal prerequisite for all Philosophy upper division courses is upper division standing.
Political Science
POLI 107 American Political Thought
POLI 193 Seminar in Political Philosophy (topic: "Aesthetics and Politics" only)
Religious Studies
*RSOC 33 Maya Spirituality
*RSOC 91 Native Spiritual Traditions
*RSOC 136 Religion in Latin America
Theatre and Dance
THTR 30 Introduction to Design
THTR 122 Acting Styles II:Acting for the Camera
THTR 133 Scene Design
THTR 164 Women in Theatre
Women's and Gender Studies
WGST 57 Women in American Society (cross-listed with HIST 84)
WGST 58 Ethics and Gender (cross-listed with PHIL 4A)
* WGST 156 Women in the Visual Arts (cross-listed with ARTH 188)
WGST 184 Feminism and Ethics (cross-listed with PHIL 115)
* Indicates Course Has Prerequisites
