Making a Difference

Instructor

Melissa Etzler

Course Description

Inspired by the ambiguity of “breaking bad,” this course explores intersections of crime and madness. We will examine texts featuring issues of guilt, justice, abnormality, and deviance to uncover particular and universal social commentaries on moral values and community constructs. Focusing primarily on written and visual texts from the 18th century to the present, multidisciplinary fields will inform our interpretations.

This course is offered as an Honors First-Year Seminar course.

Instructor

Robert Norris

Course Description

This course will examine the power of communication. Down through human history, communication has been used by some to exercise power over others. The evolution of speech, the advent of writing, the invention of printing, the ability to broadcast, the ability to post information on the internet–all these represent more than the exchange of information and messages; they have all been used as tools of influence which some seek to appropriate, and others seek to outwit.

Instructor

Barbara Campbell

Course Description

This course will examine representations of disability in American culture in the 20th and 21st centuries through literary texts, film, art, music, and dance. Our class will use disability studies theory to analyze how artists with disabilities critique ableism and complicate conventional narratives of disability. Stereotypical depictions of the disabled figure in literature, art, and popular culture reinforce, sometimes inadvertently, discrimination towards people with physical, intellectual, and psychiatric disabilities.The disabled subject is often represented as the object of pity, scorn, or as heroic inspiration for ableist culture. Works by artists with disabilities tend to challenge these depictions in content and form in unconventional and radical ways. We will engage with a variety of texts to discuss how artists draw attention to inclusivity, access, and social justice.

Instructor

LuAnne McNulty

Course Description

Food. Food is essential for the survival of all living things. But, it’s more than just a source of sustenance; the idea of food is interwoven with our thoughts, our emotions, and our actions. We celebrate with food, mourn with food, and covet food. From family gatherings to food blogs, the way we talk about food and culture has changed with the rise in social media. How does food nourish our bodies? What should we know about nutrition? What should we know about taste and flavor? How does food impact health, behavior, and communities? How do we reconcile the food culture propagated by social media with the understanding that many live in food deserts and go to bed hungry? We will consider all these things and more in this course. 

Instructor

Ashley Mack-Jackson

Course Description

Are you a dancer, musician, visual or multimedia artist, performer, writer, creative of any kind, or an enthusiastic lover of the arts? Explore Butler University and Indianapolis’s diverse arts scene, engage in enriching discussions with local creatives, and join with Indianapolis-based arts organizations and artists to create your own artistic projects in “From the HeARTland.” Throughout this course you will investigate your own artistic identity as it relates to your community of origin and the Butler University and Indianapolis communities, consider how art impacts and is impacted by artists’ identities and the community’s culture, reflect on the role that the arts play in creating more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just communities, and share with and learn from your peers as you all enter together into the vibrant Butler University and Indianapolis arts communities.

This course fulfills an Indianapolis Community Requirement (ICR) credit.

Instructor

Janis Crawford

Course Description

“Speech is civilization itself.  The word, even the most contradictory word, preserves contact—it is silence which isolates.” -Thomas Mann

Speech can be a very powerful medium of persuasion and communication. Just like producing a written paper, a speech must be concise, present a compelling argument, and use the proper tone, and format to have a lasting effect on its audience. We will examine the orations of such great American speakers as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., President Ronald Reagan, Hilary Clinton, and Barbara Bush. This course will focus on the speech as a template for how to develop effective writing skills. In the course of reading and discussing the works of American orators, students will cultivate the skills necessary for critical thinking, oral communication, and effective writing. Class will involve discussion, student presentations, and writing assignments.

Instructor

Tonya Bergeson

Course Description

Is music the universal language? Is music independent of language? This class will examine the relationship between music and language from the perspective of philosophy, psychology, communication science, and neuroscience. We will explore the relevant data and theories from various perspectives such as linguistics and music cognition, and we will investigate music and language across the lifespan and in different populations, such as aphasia and amusia.

Instructor

Karly Keiper

Course Description

Many people do not realize that the laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability are younger than most of our grandparents. In this course, we will explore the life of the “mother of the disability rights movement”, Judy Heumann. We will analyze how her unique personal story, life experiences, and fierce advocacy have shaped the law-making around disability and civil rights. We will discuss the evolution of the movement beyond Judy’s “birth” of it, exploring what accessibility meant, currently means, and what Judy (and many, many others) hope for it to one day mean.

Content warning: abuse, neglect, and violence against people with disabilities

Instructor

Felicia Williams

Course Description

I chose this topic because it is important to be cognizant of our individual process and habits. It is imperative that one knows how to articulate their voice and be comfortable doing so. I also think it is important that we seek to hear the voices of others. Listening to and thinking about others can be both educational and transformative on multiple levels.

This course fulfills an Indianapolis Community Requirement (ICR) credit.

Instructor

Natalie Carter

Course Description

This seminar introduces students to critical thinking and a discussion of values, and develops oral and written communication skills through an investigation of contemporary women’s literature written in a variety of global cultures. Through contemporary literary texts, the course will explore women’s perspectives on current issues influencing women’s sense of self, relationships, worldviews, opportunities, and challenges; we’ll consider the ways that sexual politics intersect with the politics of race, class, ethnicity, sexual orientation, nationality, and other markers of difference. By examining literary texts and other cultural materials, we’ll consider possibilities for understanding and changing the cultural, political, and social systems that define women in the world.

This course is offered as a Social Justice and Diversity course.

This course is offered as an Honors First Year Seminar course.