"Cultural
Identities and Global Consciousness"
This will be the 41st year of Merrill College. Approximately 11,500 students have begun their college careers at Merrill by studying both peoples' struggles to preserve their cultural identities, and social change beyond and within the borders of the United States.
Students in the Merrill Core Course will study the great movements of nationalism, imperialism, and globalization, with their attendant cultural clashes, religious conflicts, and social inequalities, and will explore theories that seek to explain the persistent underdevelopment of many countries of the world, as well as increasing poverty in the US. The selected readings are engaging and diverse. Students will read about one woman's views of conflict, but also the role of forgiveness, in her native land of Vietnam, within a work of remarkable dignity, breadth of vision, and compassion. Morocco, and the role of tradition, culture, religion, and colonialism, will come alive in the work of Fatima Mernissi, an enchanting tale of childhood that honors the art of story telling and the ancient wisdom of women as survivors, and interpreters, of Islamic cultural traditions. One more volume, by a native Sudanese addresses the genocide in Darfur. Finally, in a striking work out of the L.A. barrios, we follow the intricate details of successive gang-related traumas of a young Chicano who finds through art, writing, and community work, powerful ways to put a stop to a life of "always running."
This seminar course is designed as an introduction to university-level work, and, as such, it stresses the skills of reading, writing, and clear thinking. For Fall 2008, we will read and discuss five books: The Translator: A Tribesman's Memoir of Darfur by Daoud Hari; selected chapters from John Isbister's Promises Not Kept; When Heaven and Earth Changed Places, by Le Ly Hayslip; Always Running, by Luis Rodriguez; and Fatima Mernissi's Dreams of Trespass. We will assign frequent papers, and we will work throughout the quarter to improve writing skills. We will also view one or two feature films and a couple of documentaries.
For those interested in expanding the topics presented by the written texts, there is a Visual Lab offered in conjunction with the Merrill Core course. The Visual Lab will take place on Wednesdays from 7-9:30 PM on those evenings when there is not a core course lecture or a film. All students in the Core course are encouraged to attend these viewings; however, those wishing to receive credit for the additional work, are urged to enroll in Merr 80L, for an additional two units. Please contact Connie Creel, conleth@ucsc.edu, or Dr. Carole Gerster, cgerster@ucsc.edu for further information.
Core Course Assignment #1
How to Enroll in the Merrill Core Course
Reading List
Visual Lab Information
First-Year Writing Requirements at UCSC
