Meets the following requirements: HS   

Part of human ecology is the stories we tell each other  Rather than dividing the world into simply 'fiction' and 'truth,' literature can provide multiple perspectives on humans and their landscapes.  The team teaching this course brings together very different views of literature and the environment in an attempt to explore the relationship between human ecology and 'environmental' literature.  We aim to look closely, argue actively, and have a lot of fun asking seriously irreverent questions.  These include, but are not limited to:  What is Environmental Literature?  Is it literature about environments, or about environmentalism?  To what extent is literature of the environment obligated to some kind of objective truth?  Can literature be about the environment without being political?  What about Nature Writing? How does a writer's social position (gender, class, race, etc.) determine how he/she sees the environment or nature?  Correspondingly, how deeply does a particular 'environment' determine what can happen to people in that environment?  Are there universal human stories and how does environment influence these?  What is the relation of 'environment' to 'landscape' to 'place'?  This course requires extensive reading, writing and discussion.  There are also occasional field trips.  Evaluation is based on class participation, weekly response papers, and a final project. 

Level: Intermediate.  Prerequisite:  Permission of instructors.  Class limit: 20  Lab fee $20.  *HS*