BLS 221 Know Slow - Countering the Culture of Speed 3

This course examines the recent cultural movement of "slow," which includes Slow Food, Slow Looking, and Slow in the Arts, Literature, and Contemplative Practices. Slow arts and practices can help support students' metacognitive learning and their individual mental health and wellness.

MAC: MAC Health and Wellness

BLS 222 Notes from Underground: Resistance and Everyday Culture 3

Explores Cold War culture through the everyday ways Soviet citizens responded to official state narratives through literature, music, dress, and economic and consumer practices. Includes a comparative component with American culture of the same era.

MAC: MAC Global and Intercultural

BLS 241 Visualizing Disability 3

This course examines methods, drawn from core disability studies criticism, to analyze visual representations of disability. Students will compare cultural frameworks for representing disability in fine art and other forms of visual culture. Assigned readings draw connections between disability and other aspects of identity, especially gender.

MAC: MAC Diversity and Equity

BLS 300 Seminar in Humanities 3

Interdisciplinary online seminar designed to introduce students to substantive concerns in the Humanities and methods of investigation they employ. Topics vary by semester.

Notes: May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

BLS 301 Pathways: Reading and Writing in the Humanities 3

Introduction to different modes of enquiry that make up the Humanities: Literature, Fine Arts, Philosophy/Religion/Ethics, and History. Emphasis on the development of academic skills in an online learning environment.

CIC: CIC College Writing

BLS 320 Selected Topics: Literature 3

Online course that examines selected topics in world literature exploring works of prose and/or poetry from diverse cultural traditions and periods. Topics vary by semester.

Notes: May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

BLS 321 Narrative Ethics: Literary Texts and Moral Issues in Medicine 3

Exploration of individual experience, interpersonal relationships, and cultural identity through the reading and critical analysis of works of short fiction from the 19th through the 21st centuries.

BLS 322 Revolutionary Lives 3

Examination of 19th–20th century Russian novels of conscience within their historical contexts and as related to the broader struggle between authority and conscience throughout history.

BLS 323 Short Reads 3

21st-century stories and other short writings from around the world, with a focus on current social, cultural, and global issues.

BLS 324 Banned Books 3

A study of books that have been banned or censored in the US, the reasons for those restrictions, and the legal and social forces that opposed them.

BLS 325 Mystery, Mayhem, and Murder 3

Examination of mystery and detective fiction from British and American authors throughout the history of the genre. Considers theory about narrative and mystery, and genre fiction as social commentary.

BLS 326 Telling Stories: The Memoir 3

Examination and analysis of contemporary book-length memoirs, personal memory essays, and self-portrait paintings; includes some creative writing.

BLS 327 Contemporary Asian Literature 3

Exploration of novels by major authors from South Asia and East Asia in the last half century. Examines cultures and politics, and relationships with the Western world.

BLS 340 Selected Topics: Fine Arts 3

Online course that examines selected topics in the fine arts exploring the aims and methods of artistic expression and the role of cultural traditions and artistic values in human society.

Notes: May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

BLS 342 Painting on the Page 3

Studies literary texts about works of Western art; explores the relationship between the interpretation of pictures and written texts, and considers questions about art, beauty, truth, and aesthetic experience.

BLS 343 Big Plays, Big Ideas 3

Examines great plays, classic to modern, that grapple with significant issues and ideas, and illuminate the human experience on the page and on the stage.

BLS 345 Photography: Contexts and Illusions 3

Examines the history, theory, and contexts of photography since its development. Explores uses and abuses of photography in science, art, and media; examines how photography crosses and confuses visual genres.

BLS 346 The Art of Life 3

Explores the relationship between the creative arts and human values, ideas, and emotions. Theme of "getting lost" in the creative process, which leads to discovery and insight—the accidental masterpiece.

BLS 347 Shakespeare Off the Page 3

Examines a selection of Shakespeare's major plays not only as universal and timeless works of literature, but as blueprints for live theatre productions and film performances for modern audiences.

CIC: CIC College Writing

BLS 348 Representing Women 3

Focuses on women as producers, consumers, and subjects of visual culture. Examines the Feminist art movement, Feminist critiques of popular culture, and the significance of visual representation to political representation.

BLS 360 Selected Topics: Philosophy/Religion/Ethics 3

Online course that examines selected topics in philosophy, religion, and ethics; compares assumptions, modes of thought, and attendant practices, and analyzes their effects on behavior and human society.

Notes: May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

BLS 361 American Dreams 3

Study of the "American Dream," its origins and historical development through its contemporary relevancy. Themes include freedom, immigration, nationalism, commercialism, class in America, the Dream's corollary: the American Nightmare.

BLS 362 Vice, Crime, and American Law 3

An examination of the moral concept of "vice" and its application in American criminal law. Topics include gambling, prostitution, pornography, drugs, hate speech, and laws prohibiting gay marriage.

BLS 363 Ethics and Technology 3

An examination of ethical problems created by technology. Additional emphasis given to the historical, legal, and cultural impacts technology has had on our society.

BLS 364 Mystics in America 3

Investigation of popular trends in contemporary American spirituality with attention to the historical roots that may or may not lie behind them.

BLS 365 Divided We Stand 3

Exploration of the relationship between religion and democracy in America. Topics include religion in the nation's founding, America as a secular state, religious pluralism, and religion in public discourse.

BLS 366 Life, Death, and Meaning 3

An examination of philosophical writings concerning death and the meaning of life. Plays, poems, art, literature, and films that apply or illustrate the philosophical works are also examined.

BLS 380 Selected Topics: Historical Perspectives 3

Online course that examines selected topics in history and explores the context of events (social structure, economics, political systems, culture, or beliefs) in a specific region and period.

Notes: May be repeated for credit when topics vary.

BLS 381 Old Europe/New Europe 3

Interdisciplinary cultural history of Europe from the French Revolution to the present. Introduction to key historical figures, cultural movements, and artistic developments.

BLS 382 The Sixties 3

Exploration of the cultural and political changes in American society during the 1960s and early 1970s.

BLS 383 Religious Resistance to Political Power 3

Explores religious resistance to atheist Soviet doctrine within the Soviet Union itself, in Communist Poland, and in Soviet-occupied Afghanistan. Examines relationships between religion and society in each context.

BLS 384 Great Trials in American History 3

Explores changes in American culture, society, and legal customs through the study of specific trials throughout American history, from the colonial period through the twentieth century.

BLS 385 American Motherhood 3

Examines representations of motherhood throughout American history in the media and in scholarly and creative literature. Explores the mothering experiences of women of different races, classes, and generations.

BLS 386 Women, War, and Terror 3

Examines women as victims and critics of war and terror in the 20th century, primarily through autobiographical writings, and explores broader questions of gender, language, power, and resistance.

BLS 387 Entrepreneurship in American History 3

This course will examine entrepreneurs who shaped the contours of the American economy from the first transatlantic trade routes to the World Wide Web. We utilize entrepreneurship to analyze the development of American capitalism from a string of coastal colonies to an economic world power.

Prerequisites: None.

Notes: Students who have prior credit for ECO 387 or ENT 387 may not take BLS 387 for credit.

BLS 400 Senior Seminar in the Humanities 3

Online, capstone experience for majors. Students compile Web portfolio of work from classes in the major. Course serves as a method of assessment for majors.

CIC: CIC College Writing

Prerequisites: Admission to major. Written Permission Required.

BLS 401 Individual Study 1-3

Directed program of reading and/or research in the humanities. Available to majors upon recommendation of an instructor and approval of the program directors.

Prerequisites: Admission to major. successful completion of one semester of course work at UNCG; permission of an approved, cooperating instructor.