The Myth of Antaeus:

Antaeus was the son of Poseidon and Ge (or Gia, mother earth).  He was a giant who wrestled Hercules.  Whenever he was thrown to the ground, he arose stronger than before from the contact with his mother.  Perceiving this, Hercules finally lifted Antaeus into the air and crushed him to death.  The myth of Antaeus simply refers to anyone who is replenished, and restored by returning to nature.  As a romantic notion, the myth is used to refer to a process of revitalization whereby an individual, once oppressed and overwhelmed by society, seeks solace in nature.  In literature, characters often seek such restoration in nature through the simple rituals of hunting, fishing, and camping.

Notes on the Perception of Wilderness

Wilderness was the basic ingredient of American culture. 

Wilderness is in danger of being loved to death.

Civilization created wilderness.  For the nomadic hunters and gatherers, who represented our species for most of its existence, wilderness had no meaning.

Lines [between civilization and wilderness] began to be drawn with the advent of herding, agriculture, and settlement.   Distinctions made between controlled and uncontrolled animals, plants, and spaces.

The intellectual consequences was the application of “wild” to those parts of nature not subject to human control.  The concept of wilderness emerged as a way of thinking about nature with the beginnings of the pastoral style of life some twelve thousand years ago.

A pastoral lifestyle (see pastoralism) is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music that depicts such life in an idealized manner, typically for urban audiences. A pastoral is a work of this genre, also known as bucolic, from the Greek βουκολικόν, from βουκόλος, meaning a cowherd.

Wilderness became the unknown, the disordered, the dangerous.  The largest portion of the energy of early civilization was directed at conquering wilderness.

Nature lost its significance as something to which people belonged and became an adversary.

There was too much wilderness for appreciation.

Wilderness was instinctively understood as something alien to man, an insecure and uncomfortable environment against which civilization waged an unceasing struggle. 

If paradise was early man’s greatest good, wilderness was his greatest evil.

While inability to control or use wilderness was the basic factor in man’s hostility, the terror of the wild had other roots as well.  Pan, satyrs, centaurs, trolls, ogres, werewolves, monstrous beasts, wild men.

The Bible gave wilderness a central position in its accounts both as a descriptive aid and as a symbolic concept. 245 times in OT, 35 times in NT.

Drought and barren land associated with wilderness were thought of as cursed areas—God withheld life-giving waters.

The identification of the arid wasteland with God’s curse led to the conviction that wilderness was the environment of evil, a kind of hell.  The Hebraic imagination made the wilderness the abode of demons and devils . . . Presiding over all was Azazel, the arch-devil of the wilderness.

Treks and Texts: Journeys into Nature

HCOL 40023

Wednesday, 2:00 PM to 4:40 PM

Scharbauer 3019

In wildness is the preservation of the world. --Thoreau, "Walking"

This interdisciplinary colloquium will involve both classroom and outdoor experiences.  There will be assignments, discussions, and activities in several areas.  From the Humanities, students will closely read and respond to a variety of relevant texts in the genre of Nature and Environmental Writing.  In the Sciences, they will be introduced to current issues of Environmental Studies, particularly those that relate to local natural habitats.  On the Co-Curricular side, they will also be introduced to the methods and practices of Outdoors Leadership.  In the arts they will be introduced to landscape painting, particularly nineteen-century American landscapes.  This course intends to immerse students into both natural and textual environments in order to enhance student experiences by offering rich, reciprocal connections between the two.  What is discussed in the readings will be experienced in local environments.

Much of the colloquium will take place outdoors.  Six times during the semester students will travel to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work, helping to maintain its trail system and facilities.  At least twice during the semester, students will take short field trips to parks and natural habitats near TCU (Overton Park and Fort Worth Botanic Garden), and at least once during the semester students will also travel to the Amon Carter Museum to view its landscape collection.  Additionally, for one class students will be required to take part in an evening canoe trip on the Trinity River.  As an extra-credit option, students will have the opportunity to participate in one of the Rec Center’s Fall Break excursions.

At its heart, this colloquium is a discussion-based reading and writing course, and its subject matter is the natural environment we all inhabit.  The intent is to help students become aware of, and more sensitive to, their essential relationship with the outdoor world.  All classes, even the excursions and volunteer work, will involve discussions intended to integrate academic classroom learning with experiential learning and service.  The exchange of ideas through dialogue is a fundamental component of this colloquium.

Outcomes:

--a familiarity to current environmental issues and how these issues have been reflected in literature, film, and popular media

--a familiarity with the genre development of Nature and Environmental Writing from early exploration accounts to the present

--a familiarity with several major texts and writers of the Nature and Environmental Writing genre and their various cultural contexts

--a familiarity with the characteristic techniques, themes, styles, conventions, and tropes of the Nature and Environmental Writing genre

--an ability to reflect on personal observations and experiences in natural environments and to connect such experiences with their reading assignments

--a general knowledge of a specific natural environment

--a general understanding of the basic issues and practices in Environmental Studies

--a general understanding of Outdoors Leadership skills and best practices in wilderness areas

--a general understanding of how Nature is depicted in art and film

--a general understanding of literature as it reflects and impacts society and the individual

--an ability to use writing to gain and express an understanding of discipline-specific content

Required Texts:

The Norton Book of Nature Writing

The Cambridge Introduction to Literature and the Environment

The Best of Edward Abbey

Wednesday, August 28

--Introduction, an overview of the course, its schedule, its requirements, and its outcomes

--Nature Observation

Wednesday, September 4

--popular songs, Woody Guthrie, Joni Mitchell, and Marvin Gaye (handout for the texts, songs are available on YouTube)

--Nature poems (handout of several nature poems, e.g. Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Whitman)

--Clark, from Cambridge Introduction, 1-34

--Standing Bear, from Nature Writing, 326-331

--After the Flood (video)

Wednesday, September 11

            --Clark, from the Cambridge Introduction, 35-62

--early American attitudes towards Nature (handout)

            --two Ted Talk videos on environmental issues

--Nature observation

Wednesday, September 18

--Henry David Thoreau, from Nature Writing, 172-204 plus class handout

--Ted Talk on Thoreau and Walden

--Nature observation

Wednesday, September 25

-- Carson, Stegner, Merton, from Nature Writing, 479-484, 514-519, 545-553

--Clark, from Cambridge Introduction, 63-95

            --canoe trip

Wednesday, October 2

-- Abbey, from Nature Writing, 614-627; --Abbey, from The Best of Edward Abbey, 40-73, 118-130, 426-432

            --Outdoor Leadership skills

Wednesday, October 9

--excursion to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work

Wednesday, October 16

--excursion to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work

Wednesday, October 23

--excursion to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work        

Wednesday, October 30

--excursion to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work

Wednesday, November 6

--excursion to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer work

                                                                                                                                               

Wednesday, November 13

-- Leopold, Berry, and Dillard, from Nature Writing, 376-396, 718-736, 867-876

--Clark, from Cambridge Introduction, 130-164

--Excursion to the Amon Carter

Wednesday, November 20

--McPhee, Lopez, Hogan form Nature Writing, 684-609, 900-914, 966-971

--Clark, from Cambridge Introduction, 165-191

--Nature Observation

Wednesday, November 27

--Thanksgiving Break

Wednesday, December 4

--Ackerman and Erdrich from Nature Writing, 979-983, 1043-1048

--Clark, from Cambridge Introduction, 192-203

            --instructor and peer review of final Nature Essays

Wednesday, December 11

            --final presentations

Course Requirements:

1)    Attendance and Participation.  This colloquium is discussion-based, and thus you are required to take an active part in it and to contribute to its success.   Participation credit is given by taking part in class discussions (I keep track of who contributes) and class activities, including in-class writing assignments.  In every classroom class there will be either an in-class writing assignment or an in-class activity.  Anyone absent will not receive credit for these activities.

Outside excursions are required and attendance will count as participation.  Missing more than three classes during the term will result in failure. 

2)    Familiarity with the Texts.  A reading knowledge of the texts is essential and expected.  Please read.

3)    Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge Excursions:  For six classes during the semester (October 9, 16, 23, and 30, November 6 and 13) students will meet at the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge for volunteer conservation work.  Students will be divided into work crews, and each crew—accompanied by a FWNCR staff person—will experience different parts of the Nature Center (woods, prairie, and water/shoreline habitats), sharing various assignments and tasks. 

4)    Lead Respondent Assignment: Throughout the semester students will be asked to help lead discussions concerning the assigned reading texts, and these assignments will be done as group work (teams of 2 or 3).  Each group will choose a text or group of texts that are assigned on specific class days, and it will be expected to make a presentation to the class that will encourage insight and discussion.  These presentations may include biographical or historical information about the author, the text’s composition, summaries of the text’s print history and reception, and an analysis of its themes and issues.  More importantly, these presentations should also include a discussion of what the group thinks is relevant and/or interesting in the text and a list of questions for discussion.  These presentations should be informative, creative, and engaging.  A brief handout summarizing key points and pertinent information and listing the discussion questions is required.  Worth 20% of the final grade, the lead respondent assignments will be graded according to the quality of the information presented and, equally important, on how effectively the presenters are able to engage the class in discussions.  Students must take responsibility for leading the class discussions on their assigned days, and thus weak class discussions will lower the amount of credit given.

5)    Nature Observations: Three times during the semester students will be sent outside to observe something specific in the natural environment.  The assignment is to carefully describe what students have observed—an animal (bird, squirrel), an insect (beetle, ant), a plant (flower, weed), such luminous things as clouds or sunshine, or even a rock.  How an item or entity is described is more important than what is described.  These observations must be labeled “Nature Observation” and added to the Nature Journals.

6)    Nature Journals:  Nature writers often keep meticulous journals, and for this field-intensive colloquium, students will be asked to keep a blog to post their observations and thoughts.  Nature journals not only describe specific physical settings, including specific flora and fauna, but also how individuals react to  and interact with their environments.  Entries should be a minimum of 1-2 pages in length, and by the end of the semester students will be expected to have written and uploaded a minimum of 14 journal entries (in addition to the three Nature Observation assignments).  These entries should comment on class activities, class readings, field trips, and individual outside activities.  For the readings, students should honestly describe what their reading experiences were like and remark on what they thought was interesting, provocative, or relevant in the texts.

At least 4 of the journal entries should be descriptions of a physical activity students

have engaged in outside, such as walking, biking, canoeing/kayaking, and paddle boarding.  Student participation must be documented with photographs of their activities, and the photos should be included with their journal entries. 

For all of the journal entries, careful observations of the natural environments are

expected, and self-reflections are encouraged.  Student should write about their

thoughts, perceptions and responses concerning their outside experiences.  Throughout the semester students will receive credit for their journal entries, and at the end of the semester the cumulative holistic quality of their journals will be evaluated and graded.  Please note: 7 of the journal entries should be posted before midterms and fall break. 

Worth 25% of the final grade, the journals will be graded according to the quality and level of both natural description and personal reflection.  An exemplary journal will demonstrate a student’s capacity to closely observe environmental contexts and connect these descriptions with class discussions and texts as well as personal experiences.  I do not expect or require sudden or surprising insights into either experiences or texts but a sustained engagement to reflect on all experiences, both inside and outside the classroom, and a capacity to articulate clearly the personal relevance of these reflections.  A less-than-exemplary journal will demonstrate less detailed observations and reflections.  This is not a matter of how much is written, but how it is written.

7)    Nature Essay.  In order to practice their own nature writing, students will be asked to submit a Nature Essay at the end of the semester.  This final essay should be a careful extension and revision of one of their journal entries, and it should be 6 to 10 pages in length.  These essays must demonstrate several of the stylistic techniques from one or several of the assigned Nature writers, and they must also reflect a strong structure and overall thesis. Specific, closely detailed descriptions of environment[s] should be mixed with self-reflection describing how the students reacted to, and interacted with, their environments.

Worth 25% of the final grade, the Nature Essay should be the culmination of student work throughout the semester.  I ask for, and expect, the best possible writing. I encourage students to be ambitious and creative.  An exemplary essay will be well written and well-structured with an organized theme, demonstrate the skills of environmental writing, mixing closely detailed descriptions with personal reflection, provide accurate subject information, and engage readers.  A less-than-exemplary essay will have less of the texture and depth of discussion, less of a sustained examination of either observations and reflections, offer superficial subject information, and exhibit less capacity to engage readers.

8)    Final Presentation.  For the final assignments, student teams (2-3 students) are required to create and present a brief video project (8 to 10 minutes) that offers a concluding reflection of their thoughts, observations, and experiences throughout the semester.  There is no specific format or formula, but students are asked to reflect on what they experienced as learners that was interesting, striking, memorable, and/or relevant. These videos should be engaging and creative.  Along with the video presentation, student teams must submit a 1-2-page justification of their presentation.  Both videos and justifications must be uploaded to the Nature Journals.

Worth 20% of the final grade, the presentations will be expected to demonstrate a thoughtful reflection juxtaposing the course outcomes with student learning experiences.  Presentations will be graded according to how students are able to express what they have learned and how well they are able to use video to present their most relevant learning experiences back to the class.  As in the Lead Respondent Assignments, students will be assessed according to how well they express what they have learned and how well they can engage the rest of the class in discussion.

9)    Never Use the Non-Word “Very.”  For the rest of the semester, at least in our class, this four-letter non-word is forbidden.  It is a useless word, and the English vocabulary is rich with specific, vivid qualifiers and descriptors.  “The day was very sunny” is a weak sentence.  One of the best and easiest ways to improve your writing is to eliminate this word.

Please note: all deadlines are firm.  Unless there is an emergency, no extensions will be possible.

Final Grade:

Nature Journals                                  25%

Lead Respondent Assignments          20%

Nature Essays                                     25%

Final Presentations                             20%

Attendance/Participation                   10%

Using the non-word “very”                 -10%

Concerning grades, I do make use of the plus/minus system.  Also, I expect Honors students to demonstrate excellence in all of their work.  Weak, sloppy effort is always difficult to mask and will always receive less than full credit. 

Extra Credit: For Fall Break, The Rec Center is planning two outside excursions.  Signing up for one of these trips is optional, but students who take part in one or the other will receive extra credit if they document their excursions in their Nature journals and include photos. Extra credit will be 3 points on the 100-point scale.

Dan Williams

TCU Press (3000 Sandage) and 1238 Library

d.e.williams@tcu.edu

817-257-5907 (office)

817-239-1376 (cell)

Office hours: By appointment.  Please verify where I am holding office hours before trying to locate me.  I am most often found at TCU Press, located at 3000 Sandage on the far eastern edge of campus.

TCU Mission: To educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens in the global community.

Honors Pledge: “As a member of the John V. Roach Honors College, I pledge to dedicate myself to intellectual inquiry, life-long learning, and critical thinking, to demonstrate personal and academic integrity, and to engage others in earnest and respectful discussion with an open mind.”

Netiquette: Communication Courtesy Code

All members of the class are expected to follow rules of common courtesy in all email messages, discussions, and chats. If I deem any of them to be inappropriate or offensive, I will forward the message to the Chair of the department and appropriate action will be taken, not excluding expulsion from the course. The same rules apply online as they do in person. Be respectful of other students. Foul discourse will not be tolerated. Please take a moment and read the basic information about netiquette (http://www.albion.com/netiquette/).

Participating in the virtual realm, including social media sites and shared-access sites sometimes used for educational collaborations, should be done with honor and integrity. This site provides guidance on personal media accounts and sites (https://tinyurl.com/PersonalMedia).

Academic Misconduct

Academic Misconduct (Sec. 3.4 from the TCU Code of Student Conduct): Any act that violates the academic integrity of the institution is considered academic misconduct. The procedures used to resolve suspected acts of academic misconduct are available in the offices of Academic Deans and the Office of Campus Life and are listed in detail in the Undergraduate Catalog. Specific examples include, but are not limited to:

·       Cheating: Copying from another student’s test paper, laboratory report, other report, or computer files and listings; using, during any academic exercise, material and/or devices not authorized by the person in charge of the test; collaborating with or seeking aid from another student during a test or laboratory without permission; knowingly using, buying, selling, stealing, transporting, or soliciting in its entirety or in part, the contents of a test or other assignment unauthorized for release; substituting for another student or permitting another student to substitute for oneself.

·       Plagiarism: The appropriation, theft, purchase or obtaining by any means another’s work, and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of that work as one’s own offered for credit. Appropriation includes the quoting or paraphrasing of another’s work without giving credit therefore. 

·       Collusion: The unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing work offered for credit.

·       Abuse of resource materials: Mutilating, destroying, concealing, or stealing such material.

·       Computer misuse: Unauthorized or illegal use of computer software or hardware through the TCU Computer Center or through any programs, terminals, or freestanding computers owned, leased or operated by TCU or any of its academic units for the purpose of affecting the academic standing of a student.

·       Fabrication and falsification: Unauthorized alteration or invention of any information or citation in an academic exercise. Falsification involves altering information for use in any academic exercise. Fabrication involves inventing or counterfeiting information for use in any academic exercise.

·       Multiple submission: The submission by the same individual of substantial portions of the same academic work (including oral reports) for credit more than once in the same or another class without authorization.

·       Complicity in academic misconduct: Helping another to commit an act of academic misconduct.

·       Bearing false witness: Knowingly and falsely accusing another student of academic misconduct.

 

Anti-Discrimination and Title IX Information

Statement on TCU’s Discrimination Policy

TCU prohibits discrimination and harassment based on age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ethnic origin, disability, predisposing genetic information, covered veteran status, and any other basis protected by law, except as permitted by law. TCU also prohibits unlawful sexual and gender-based harassment and violence, sexual assault, incest, statutory rape, sexual exploitation, intimate partner violence, bullying, stalking, and retaliation. We understand that discrimination, harassment, and sexual violence can undermine students’ academic success and we encourage students who have experienced any of these issues to talk to someone about their experience, so they can get the support they need.

·      Review TCU’s Policy on Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment and Related Conduct or to file a complaint: https://titleix.tcu.edu/title-ix/.

·      Learn about the Campus Community Response Team and Report a Bias Incident: https://titleix.tcu.edu/campus-community-response-team/

Statement on Title IX at TCU

As an instructor, one of my responsibilities is to help create a safe learning environment on our campus. It is my goal that you feel able to share information related to your life experiences in classroom discussions, in your written work, and in our one-on-one meetings. I will seek to keep any information your share private to the greatest extent possible. However, I have a mandatory reporting responsibility under TCU policy and federal law and I am required to share any information I receive regarding sexual harassment, discrimination, and related conduct with TCU’s Title IX Coordinator. Students can receive confidential support and academic advocacy by contacting TCU’s Confidential Advocate in the Campus Advocacy, Resources & Education office at (817) 257-5225 or the Counseling & Mental Health Center at https://counseling.tcu.edu/ or by calling (817) 257-7863. Alleged violations can be reported to the Title IX Office at https://titleix.tcu.edu/student-toolkit/ or by calling (817) 257-8228. Should you wish to make a confidential report, the Title IX Office will seek to maintain your privacy to the greatest extent possible, but cannot guarantee confidentiality. Reports to law enforcement can be made to the Fort Worth Police Department at 911 for an emergency and (817) 335-4222 for non-emergency or TCU Police at (817) 257-7777.

Obligations to Report Conduct Raising Title IX or VAWA Issues

Mandatory Reporters: All TCU employees, except Confidential Resources, are considered Mandatory Reporters for purposes of their obligations to report, to the Coordinator, conduct that raises Title IX and/or VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) issues.

Mandatory Reporters are required to immediately report to the Coordinator information about conduct that raises Title IX and/or VAWA issues, including any reports, complaints or allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination and those forms of prohibited conduct that relate to nonconsensual sexual intercourse or contact, sexual exploitation, intimate partner violence, stalking and retaliation involving any member of the TCU community, except as otherwise provided within the Policy on Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment and Related Conduct.

Mandatory Reporters may receive this information in a number of ways. For example, a complainant may report the information directly to a Mandatory Reporter, a witness or third-party may provide information to a Mandatory Reporter, or a Mandatory Reporter may personally witness such conduct. A Mandatory Reporter’s obligation to report such information to the Coordinator does not depend on how he/she received the information. Mandatory Reporters must provide all known information about conduct that raises Title IX or VAWA issues to the Coordinator, including the identities of the parties, the date, time and location, and any other details. Failure of a Mandatory Reporters to provide such information to the Coordinator in a timely manner may subject the employee to appropriate discipline, including removal from a position or termination of employment.

Mandatory Reporters cannot promise to refrain from forwarding the information to the Coordinator if it raises Title IX or VAWA issues or withhold information about such conduct from the Coordinator. Mandatory Reporters may provide support and assistance to a complainant, witness, or respondent, but they should not conduct any investigation or notify the respondent unless requested to do so by the Coordinator.

Mandatory Reporters are not required to report information disclosed (1) at public awareness events (e.g., “Take Back the Night,” candlelight vigils, protests, “survivor speak-outs,” or other public forums in which students may disclose such information (collectively, public awareness events); or (2) during an individual’s participation as a subject in an Institutional Review Board approved human subjects research protocol (IRB Research). TCU may provide information about Title IX rights and available resources and support at public awareness events, however, and Institutional Review Boards may, in appropriate cases, require researchers to provide such information to all subjects of IRB Research.

911 for an emergency and (817) 335-4222 for non-emergency or TCU Police at (817) 257-7777.

Statement of Disability Services at TCU

Disabilities Statement: Texas Christian University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 regarding students with disabilities. Eligible students seeking accommodations should contact the Coordinator of Student Disabilities Services in the Center for Academic Services located in Sadler Hall, room 1010 or http://www.acs.tcu.edu/disability_services.asp. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations.

Further information can be obtained from the Center for Academic Services, TCU Box 297710, Fort Worth, TX 76129, or at (817) 257-6567.

Adequate time must be allowed to arrange accommodations and accommodations are not retroactive; therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the academic term for which they are seeking accommodations. Each eligible student is responsible for presenting relevant, verifiable, professional documentation and/or assessment reports to the Coordinator. Guidelines for documentation may be found at http://www.acs.tcu.edu/disability_documentation.asp.

Students with emergency medical information or needing special arrangements in case a building must be evacuated should discuss this information with their instructor/professor as soon as possible.