FSEM Courses

Unlike post-Nazi Germany, post-dictatorial Spain has never been officially compelled to confront the violence, repression, and human rights abuses of its twentieth-century past. As a result, the victims of the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) and the Fran …

Fairy tales and fantasy novels have their origins in a centuries-old folk traditions that continue to attract twenty-first century readers and cinemagoers. The literary fairy tales that were popular in Italy, France, and Germany centuries ago have found new fans in recent television shows such as Once Upon a Time and films like Shrek, Maleficent, and Frozen.

In this FSEM, we will examine the major directors and films of this movement, as well as the the themes and social issues that animate these works. We will explore how these films revolutionized film production, form, and the portrayal of political and social changes.

Through the close examination of eight landmark theatrical texts of the twentieth century, this course explores the major contributions of composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim to the American musical.

In this course, we will explore the life and work of James Farmer, an exemplary leader of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement who taught at Mary Washington during the 1990s. We will investigate the history of the concept of race and its impact on how we perceive ourselves and the world.

This course begins with the question of how we ought to remember the Holocaust. Some see Steven Spielberg’s film Schindler’s List as kitsch, for example, while others praise it as a monument to humanity. Are the monumental concrete steles of the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin an appropriate way to remember the victims? Or do they reduce the victims to an anonymous mass?

Where does evil come from? This FSEM will discuss what evil is and where it comes from, allowing students to study a real-life villain of their choosing.

This FSEM is an exploration of forbidden texts, defined broadly, through in-depth examination of texts which were banned at some point, somewhere, in some fashion.

I have been involved with the study of languages since I decided that I would take English as my college language requirement. Learning English proved more difficult than I anticipated (I thought I would learn it in a semester!), but it showed me how intricate and fascinating languages can be (i.e., messy). Ever since I started learning English, I became interested in other languages, how adults learn a second language, and lately, how our attitudes towards languages and dialects are shaped by our own ideas about the people who speak them.

Fairy tales are a literary genre that encompasses the world. While often considered to be part of children’s literature, fairy tales reflect the culture of the region they originate from. On the other hand, as Vladimir Propp shows, fairy tales share common structures that transcend national and cultural boundaries. This course has a closer look at the structure, meaning, and function of international fairy tales and their enduring influence on popular culture.