Robinson Professors

Aerial View of the George Mason Fairfax Campus

Fall Courses 2009

What Are Robinson Professors?

Since 1984, a large bequest from the late Clarence J. Robinson has allowed George Mason University to appoint to the faculty distinguished professors in the liberal arts and sciences. Clarence J. Robinson Professors are outstanding scholars who are dedicated to undergraduate teaching and whose teaching and scholarship concern broad and fundamental intellectual issues. They have chosen to come to George Mason University from senior positions elsewhere to become closely involved with the education of undergraduate students. For further information, please contact the Robinson Professor office in 207 East Building, call (703) 993-2171, or e-mail Denise Napoliello at dnapolie@gmu.edu.

Please see the department listing for information for registering. All courses taught by Robinson Professors are open to anyone meeting department prerequisites.

SHAUL BAKHASH

Robinson Professor of History

HIST 387: Modern Iraq

Iraq has had a turbulent history ever since it was carved out of three provinces of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I. In this course, we will examine the politics of Iraq under the British mandate, as an independent state under the monarchy, and as a republic after the revolution of 1958, with special emphasis on the social composition of Iraq's people and of its ruling elites; the ideologies that shaped these elites; and the various attempts to create a cohesive nation out of Iraq's disparate ethnic and religious communities. We will study in some detail the Iraqi revolution of 1958 and its legacy; the rule of the Baath and Saddam Hussein; Iraq as a player in the region and the international system; and the American invasion of Iraq and its aftermath. (TR 12:00-1:15p.m.)

HNRS 240: Reading the Past: Political Islam.

The destruction of the twin towers at the World Trade Center in New York on 9/11, the U. S. government's "war on terror," and America's war in Iraq have focused considerable attention on the Islamic world and on what is often termed "political Islam" or "Islamic radicalism.” This course is designed to help students place these developments in an historical context. It examines the relationship of politics and religion in the Islamic world in the past, competing interpretations of politics in the Islamic world today, the organization and various uses of terror for political purposes, intellectual and political attempts at democratic reform in the Islamic world, and the different ways in which Western scholars and commentators have defined and understood "political Islam." (TR 3:00-4:15 p.m.)

SPENCER CREW

Robinson Professor of American, African American, and Public History

HIST 300: Introduction to Historical Methods - Underground Railroad and Abolition

The course will introduce students to the theory and practice of history. It will use the Underground Railroad as the vehicle for teaching skills in historical thinking, research, and writing. The Underground Railroad was a loose secret network of individuals dedicated to undermining the institution of slavery and gaining freedom for African Americans enslaved by the institution. Studying it will provide an opportunity for using historical skills and methodology to separate myth from truth in the process writing a research paper. (W 1:30-4:15 p.m.)

HIST 691 The Museum: Myths and Realities

This course introduces the history graduate student to the theory and practice of museums in America. We begin with a history of museums, with readings that help students define what roles museums have played and presently play in American life and culture. We will study the function of art and history museums, and will investigate how research, collections, education, and community outreach contribute to the vitality of a modern museum. We also will examine the challenges currently faced by museums in a dramatically changing environment. In addition to readings, short papers, and visits to museums, students will be expected to produce an exhibition proposal and an online interactive exhibition on a topic of their choosing. (W 7:20-10:00)

PAUL D'ANDREA

Robinson Professor of Theatre and English

ENGL 336: Shakespeare: Tragedies and Romances.

Shakespeare is one of the most important cultural resources we possess; we need the vision embodied in his work to help us as we create our own aesthetic and ethical lives. The course deals with practical stagecraft, Elizabethan context, and relevance to contemporary art and moral vision. (TR 12:00-1:15 p.m.)

HNRS 122: Reading the Arts

What elements came together to create the Renaissance? Do we have similar or analogous elements in our social, intellectual and artistic life today? What energies brought about the Renaissance? Can we use those or parallel energies to create an American or perhaps an international renaissance? Would that be a satisfactory substitute for war? We will study primary sources only, reading and viewing Petrarch, Donne, Rabelais, Erasmus, Montaigne, Pico. Machiavelli. Castiglione, Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Milton, Luther and Calvin. Lectures will set these creative figures in context. Disciplines such as art and literary criticism, history or ideas, will be used to interpret the works and try to identify for our use the sources of Renaissance energy. (TR 3:00-4:15)

ROBERT HAZEN

Robinson Professor of Earth Sciences

UNIV 301: Great Ideas in Science

A non-technical introduction to the ideas that have shaped the growth of science. The idea behind each major advance is treated in its historical context, with special attention to its importance in mankind's understanding of the nature of the universe. Examples are taken from the physical, geological, and biological sciences. (M 4:30 - 7:10 p.m.)

HUGH HECLO

Robinson Professor of Public Affairs

HNRS 131: Contemporary Society in Multiple Perspectives

Our seminar will focus on the interlocking claims of religious faith and human reason in Western culture. In a light-hearted romp across the centuries, we will first clarify the meanings attached to faith and reason and make our first stop at the medieval synthesis. We then consider the breakdown of that synthesis at the beginning of the modern era, the impact of the Enlighenment and Romantic movements and the search for a "reasonable" natural religion. With the nineteenth century we will encounter the intellectual mainstreaming of atheistic reason for the first time in human history and consider the alleged confrontation between modern science and religion. Through scandalously brief reading selections, we will listen to the tension between faith and reason discussed by, among others, Augustine, Acquinas, Descartes, Pascal, Locke, Hume, Kant, Kierkegaard, Dostoevsky, Freud, C.S. Lewis and Charles Taylor. We will also discuss Pope John Paul II's recent treatise on the subject (Fides et Ratio). Must we ultimately choose between making Athens or Jerusalem our home? Have we already chosen? (MW 1:30-2:45 p.m.)

GOVT 471: Millennialism and Philosophies of History in Western Culture

Is there purpose in human history? Are we really going anywhere as humanity moves through time? This seminar will study major patterns by which thinkers in the West have discerned meaning in humanity's temporal existence. The survey will extend from the Jewish roots of historical understanding, through Christian millennialism, to contemporary naturalism. Also listed as HIST 389 and SOCI 395 (MW 12:00-1:15 p.m.)

CARMA HINTON

Robinson Professor of Visual Culture and Chinese Studies

ARTH 384: Arts of China

Explores the complex and dynamic history of China by examining ways in which social, religious, and political shifts have given rise to new and variant forms of material culture. (W 4:30-7:10 p.m.)

CHIN 320: Introduction to Chinese Cinema

This course is an introduction to Chinese cinema from the 1930s to the present, focusing on feature films made in Mainland China. The study of Chinese film is a relatively new field in international film scholarship, and the range of choices for a course such as this one is limited by the availability of English-subtitled films as well as by English language writings on the subject. Within these constraints, this course will provide a broad historical overview of 20th-century Chinese cinema, combined with in-depth exploration of selected topics, focusing on issues of national, cultural, and gender identities, the relationship between art and politics, and cross-cultural communication. Considerable emphasis will be given to the so-called Fifth Generation filmmakers, whose works constitute a key turning point in Chinese cinematic history. Course is taught in English. (W 7:20-10:00 p.m.)

HAROLD MOROWITZ

Robinson Professor of Biology and Natural Philosophy

JOHN PADEN

Robinson Professor of International Studies

GOVT 430: Comparative Political Leadership

Comparative political leadership, relationships between political culture and types of leadership, patterns of leadership recruitment, and linkages between political elites and citizenry. (TR 10:30-11:45 a.m.)

GOVT 490: The Globalization Debate

Seminar focuses on the multiple actors and actions in today's international system, to develop an understanding of the relationships and themes that characterize and condition the existing field of international transactions, exploring its parameters and conceptual approaches from different disciplines. (TR 1:30-2:45 p.m.)

JAMES TREFIL

Robinson Professor of Physics

UNIV 301: Great Ideas in Science

PHYS 122: Inside Relativity.

Introductory course describing Einstein's theories of special and general relativity intended for majors and nonmajors. (Term 1F , TR 9:00-10:15 a.m.)

PHYS 123: Inside the Quantum World.

Introductory course describing quantum theory intended for majors and nonmajors. (Term 1N, TR 9:00-10:15 a.m.)