Fall 2026 Syllabus
Each section of the course will comprise no more than 15 students and 2-3 faculty members from various disciplines. Sections meet for two hours one evening per week. In the first week of the semester, we will have a brief organizational meeting with all the sections to give everyone a chance to get acquainted.
Books are available in the bookstore, and a few copies of each text will be on reserve in the library. Texts should be read and brought with you to each class session (paper or ebook is fine). Please also consult the "possible topics" PDFs to help orient you to considering each text in the context of Hum 411.
Requirements
The requirements of the course are attendance and active participation. You are expected to be present at, prepared for, and to contribute to every session, although illness or family emergencies will be taken into consideration. If you have to miss a session, you are expected to attend another section after having first coordinated with all section leaders. At the end of the semester, you will be given a questionnaire about the readings. Completion of this form is a requirement for course credit.
Schedule
Mandatory Meeting: Monday, August 31 at 7 p.m., Eliot Chapel
Week of September 7
Julie Schumacher, Dear Committee Members
possible topics
Week of September 14
Kerry Howley, Bottoms Up and the Devil Laughs: A Journey Through the Deep State
possible topics
Week of September 21
Paul Kalanithi, When Breath Becomes Air
possible topics
Week of September 28
Robin Schiff, Information Desk
Week of October 5
Lowry Pressly, The Right to Oblivion: Privacy and the Good Life
Week of October 12
Eloísa Solaas, Las Facultades (documentary) and interview
possible topics
Week of October 19
Fall Break
Week of October 26
Svetlana Alexievich, Voices from Chernobyl
possible topics
Week of November 2
Carlo Rovelli, There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness, And Other Thoughst on Physics, Philosophy and the World
Week of November 9
TBD, TBD
Week of November 16
Edel Rodriguez, Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey
Week of November 23
Thanksgiving vacation: no class
Week of November 30
Samantha Harvey, Orbital