The majority of our third week was spent reading and discussing Nabokov’s infamous best-seller Lolita. For those not familiar with this work, it depicts hilariously-named Humbert Humbert and the gross, evil, and maliciously sexual relationship that he seeks out with Lolita. Lolita is just twelve years at the start of the novel, and fifteen by the end …
Week 3: Recollections of a Band Nerd or is it Band Geek?
As sixth block draws close, so does my time as a blogger for this course. The past few weeks and especially this previous week has been a comforting notion to my past as a band nerd/geek. The correct terminology has long been debated, with band geek having been notoriously prominent. Nonetheless, this week our class …
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Nabokov: Post-Week 2 Reflection
My tardy Week 2 post (it's now Week 3 on the Block Plan) for the Nabokov course reflects on nature. Nabokov frequently uses imagery from nature and the natural world in his writing. I mentioned that Nabokov was fascinated by butterflies throughout his entire life. As a child, he would spend time outdoors with his …
Week 2: Don Giovanni: A comical and serious opera
This week we watched Don Giovanni, an opera buffa collaboration arranged by the well-known Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the Venetian poet Lorenzo Da Ponte. Although Don Giovanni is categorized as an opera buffa because of its copious amounts of comedy, it is also accompanied by several somber and serious themes. The elements of humor integrated …
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Post-Week 1 Reflection: Nabokov
Hi, My name is Ryan and I will be blogging for the Block 6 class titled “Topics in Comparative Literature: Vladimir Nabokov”. This class will be focusing on the writings Vladimir Nabokov, the author most notoriously known for writing Lolita. We spent the majority of our first week reading and reflecting on Nabokov’s autobiography Speak, …
Week 1: The Class of Three Making Mistakes
Have you ever had a class fewer than five students? Well, our Music in Western Culture course (MU150) this block consists of only two students including myself! At the beginning of the first week, I was a little intimidated by the class size. A class this small means that class discussions are fueled by only …
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Week 3: Movements, Members and Music
For our last full week of class, we focused on art's ability to influence social movements. Art is extremely multifaceted, which makes it the perfect tool for communicating values, drawing interest, and motivating community members to take part or join a movement. A more simple work can easily and quickly communicate a paramount message. Complicated artworks …
Week 3: HIV Tomatoes?
Okay, so this title clearly requires a bit of context but don’t worry it all comes together in the end. Let’s start by talking about GMOs. Yikes. But what exactly is a GMO? Dubbed as “Frankenfood” it undoubtedly has a negative reputation among most today. But what is it that incites so much fear in …
Week 2: Gatekeepers, Bricolage, and Social Activism
This past week, we dove into the processes of how one enters and, more importantly, stays relevant in the art world. A variety of intricate social circles, firms, and gate keepers dominate the art world. To be a part of a movement, is to join and work in a specific stylistic group. To get one's work …
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Week 2: Genes are Accommodating
While it seems logical to think that gene expression is a fixed, unchanging thing, like the Rosetta Stone of human biology this isn’t necessarily the case. Genes are often viewed as sequences written into our DNA that remain unaltered through our lives, yet today we spent the majority of class time disproving this idea. As …
