Western Washington University · Bellingham, Washington
Humanities - History of Culture Concentration, BA
What Is the Study of Humanities?
The humanities include the disciplines which study philosophy, religion, history, literature, and the arts. The B.A. in Humanities programs attracts students who want to major in more than one Humanities discipline, and who want to investigate interdisciplinary problems. The department supports study of religions and of cultural history in Europe and the Americas, China, Japan, South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and in predominantly Islamic areas. Its courses give attention to historical development and cross-cultural interaction, both in the past and in the modern period.
The small size of classes and seminars in the Humanities B.A. programs encourages close relationships between students and faculty. Students conduct independent research on topics of their own choosing. Working closely with faculty, students learn to formulate problems clearly, to consider and evaluate different methods and concepts, to do efficient and thorough research, and to write clearly, concisely and effectively.
Graduates have gone on to a variety of professional graduate schools and careers, including teaching, law, library science, archive administration, and research and administrative positions with business and non-profit organizations. Students who have done excellent work in the department have succeeded in graduate academic programs in literature, history and the study of religion.
Why Should I Consider this Major?
The History of Culture Concentration focuses on how cultures change. Students acquire a substantial knowledge of religious, philosophical, literary and aesthetic movements in the history of Western culture. Students also study works of the humanities in at least one other culture, and that culture’s history. Using methods from different humanities disciplines, students learn to analyze individual works of the humanities and to relate them to social and cultural developments. Learning how to understand cultural differences and cultural change helps students exercise leadership in a more closely knit, global world.
Students acquire skills which are broadly applicable to professional careers. These skills include problem solving, critical thinking, research skills, integrative skills, and written and oral communications skills. The History of Culture Concentration has proved to be excellent preparation for professional careers in teaching, law, library science, archive administration, and for research and administrative positions with businesses and non-profit organizations.
Students who plan a career in secondary education should contact the department for advising as soon as possible.
How to Declare:
Students interested in the Humanities degree should contact the Liberal Studies Department as soon as possible.
Coursework
Core 23-25 credits
- One course from:
- LBRL 121 - THE WESTERN TRADITION I: THE ANCIENT WORLD
- HNRS 103 - MAJOR CULTURAL TRADITIONS I
- One course from:
- LBRL 122 - THE WESTERN TRADITION II: MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN EUROPE
- HNRS 104 - MAJOR CULTURAL TRADITIONS II
- LBRL 123 - THE WESTERN TRADITION III: THE MODERN WORLD
- LBRL 302 - METHODS OF INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDY
- LBRL 498 - READINGS FOR RESEARCH IN HUMANITITES
- LBRL 499 - RESEARCH IN HUMANITIES
Concentration 38-45 credits
- One course (4-5 credits) from
- LBRL 231 - INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF RELIGION
- LBRL 243 - ART AND IDEAS
- LBRL 301 - HISTORICAL METHODS IN THE HUMANITIES
- LBRL 303 - METHODS IN THE STUDY OF RELIGION
- Two courses (8-10 credits) from
- LBRL 271 - HUMANITIES OF INDIA
- LBRL 272 - RELIGION AND SOCIETY IN CHINA AND JAPAN
- LBRL 273 - ART AND SOCIETY IN CHINA AND JAPAN
- LBRL 275 - HUMANITIES OF JAPAN
- LBRL 276 - HUMANITIES OF AFRICA
- LBRL 277 - HUMANITIES OF CHINA
- LBRL 278 - HUMANITIES OF ISLAMIC CIVILIZATION
- LBRL 281 - REPRESENTATIONS OF OTHERNESS
- LBRL 360 - CHINA AND THE EMERGING WORLD ECONOMY: FROM ANTIQUITY TO THE EARLY MODERN
- LBRL 362 - ISLAM AND MUSLIMS IN THE INDIAN OCEAN WORLD
- LBRL 372 - POSTCOLONIAL NOVELS: ART, RHETORIC AND SOCIAL CONTEXT
- Two courses (10 credits) from
- LBRL 421 - SENIOR SEMINAR: APPROACHES TO CULTURAL HISTORY
- LBRL 422 - SENIOR SEMINAR: LITERARY TRADITIONS IN WESTERN CULTURE
- LBRL 423 - SENIOR SEMINAR: SELF, CULTURE AND SOCIETY
- LBRL 424 - SENIOR SEMINAR: SOCIAL CHANGE IN CROSS-CULTURAL CONTEXTS
- Four courses (16-20 credits) under advisement from
- LBRL 321 - BETWEEN RENAISSANCE AND INQUISITION: CENSORSHIP AND RELIGIOUS CONFLICT IN SPAIN'S GOLDEN AGE
- LBRL 323 - THE ROMANTIC PARADOX: LOVE, LIFE AND DEATH
- LBRL 325 - SURVEILLANCE, VOYEURISM AND THE CULTURE OF SUSPICION
- LBRL 332 - UNIVERSAL RELIGIONS: FOUNDERS AND DISCIPLES
- LBRL 333 - RELIGION IN AMERICA
- LBRL 334 - HEBREW BIBLE AND THE RELIGION OF ANCIENT ISRAEL
- LBRL 336 - NEW TESTAMENT AND EARLY CHRISTIANITY
- LBRL 338 - MYSTICISM
- LBRL 340 - SUFISM: THE ISLAMIC MYSTICAL TRADITION
- LBRL 360 - China and the Emerging World Economy: From Antiquity to the Early Modern
- LBRL 362 - Islam and Muslims in the Indian Ocean World
- LBRL 372 - Postcolonial Novels: Art, Rhetoric and Social Context
- LBRL 375 - BUDDHISM
- LBRL 378 - RELIGION AND SOCIETY IN INDIA
- LBRL 478 - RENEWAL AND REFORM IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD SINCE THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY
- Or other appropriate upper-division courses in Humanities and Social Sciences, under advisement.
- LBRL 360, 362, and 372 may be counted in one group only.
GURs:
The courses below are offered within this major and may also be used to satisfy GUR or Writing Proficiency Requirements.
- CCOM: LBRL 340
- HUM: LBRL 121, 122, 123, 231, 243, 321, 323, 325, 332, 333, 334, 336; HNRS 103, 104
- ACGM: LBRL 271, 272, 273, 275, 276, 277, 278, 281, 338, 360, 362, 372, 378
Sample Careers
- Attorney
- Teacher
- Professor
- Librarian
- Writer
- Business Administrator
- Historian
- Non-Profit Organization Administrator
- Congressional Aid
- Research Assistant
- Editor
- Lobbyist
Department
Contact
Department Chair:
Scott Pearce
BH 152A
360-650-3897
Scott.Pearce@wwu.edu
Administrative Assistant:
Valerie Worthen
BH 152
360-650-3031
Valerie.Worthen@wwu.edu