Blast Courses in the Humanities are interactive, free summer courses offered by AGHI since July 2020. All members of the public are welcome to join an online, flexible, and fun group as you dive into five weeks of ideas, questions, and skills centered on a special topic. Early-career instructors lead these gatherings and offer interactive opportunities so that any student, especially those without any prior experience in that subject, can learn, discuss, ask, wonder, gather, and find a community of fellow curious folks just like you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short, every Blast Course is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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• Free<\/strong> to all students\u2014truly, everyone! Adults ages 16 to 116+ are welcome.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Interactive<\/strong>\u2014so you can ask questions and get feedback from the instructor, plus join a new community of fellow learners and discuss important ideas with them.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Online<\/strong> + Flexible<\/strong>\u2014only about 2 hours\/week, divided into 2+ videos (and for some courses, live Zoom sessions) that you can watch\/listen to while you work, drive, garden, work out, or whatever else you need to do.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Entry-level<\/strong>\u2014no homework, prior experience, or outside pre-reqs needed.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Question-focused<\/strong>\u2014asking big, thought-provoking questions about a range of topics, so that no matter what the subject (from ancient myths to current events to timeless art), you’ll find yourself looking at the world around you a little differently.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

  To learn more about our past courses, scroll down and find out full class list archive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  Past Courses<\/h2>

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  Summer 2024<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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  • “Don’t Lose Your Head!: Tracing the Disembodied Head Through Culture, Fairy Tales, Food, and Beyond” with instructor Rini Barman (Anthropology)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Truth & Historical Dramas: Slavery, Data & Film” with instructor Arianna Browne (History)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “\u2018Exquisite is her Splendor\u2019: Women in Ancient Egypt” with instructor Tori Finlayson (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “From Clay to Code: A Journey Through the History of Writing” with instructor Marc Flores (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Shakespeare on Screen and Stage: Adaptations and Us” with instructor Neah Lekan (English)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Fatal Allure: Imagining Death” with instructor Keisuke Nakajima (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “More Than a Feeling: Sensory Experience in Ancient Egypt” with instructor Maarten Praet (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Sushi, Ramen, and Tempura: The History of Food (Ex)Change in Japan” with Wesley Sampias (History)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Chess as Art\u2014 From Shakespeare\u2019s \u2018Tempest\u2019 to \u2018The Queen\u2019s Gambit\u2019” with instructor Jonah Shallit (English)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Ancient Highways: Trade Routes of the Middle East and North Africa” with instructor John L. Shannon (Archaeology\/Interdisciplinary Humanistic Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “2500+ Years of Artificial Life: A.I. and the Idea of the Human” with instructor Dr. Chris Taylor (CTL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “The Image of China Abroad and at Home” with instructor Shengshuang Wang (Modern Languages\/Interdisciplinary Humanistic Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • “Poetic Architectures, Building Worlds” with instructor Jess Yuan (Writing Seminars)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Summer 2023<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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    • “1000 Bread, 1000 Beer: Food & Drink in Ancient Egypt,” Instructor: Dr. Morgan Moroney (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Insurrection & Conspiracy: America & Ancient Rome,” Instructor: Juan Dopico (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Listening to the Past: Clues to the Social Lives of Ancient Egyptians,” Instructor: Alison Wilkinson (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “The Meaning of Extinction: Cinema and the End of the World,” Instructor: Brad Harmon (German\/Modern Lang. & Lit.)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Nature Poetry,” Instructor: Martin Mich\u00e1lek (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Power, Pleasure, Personhood: Indian Painting, 1500-2000,” Instructor: Meghaa Ballakrishnen (Art History)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Reform or Revolution: Political Rebellion in German Thought and Literature from Plato to Star Wars<\/em>,” Instructor: Luke Beller (German\/Modern Lang. & Lit)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “The Stories Maps Tell: Ancient Civilizations to Modern Readers,” Instructor: Paige Paulsen (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • “Writing Poetry of the Environment,” Instructor: Samantha Neugebauer (Writing Seminars)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Summer 2022<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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      • “The Atomic Age Today,” instructor: Ruoyu Li (Political Science)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Ancient Poetry at the End of the World,” instructor: Martin Michalek (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Fast Fiction,” instructor: Eric Emmons (Writing Seminars)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “A Voyage and the Marvel: Discovering Maryland in the 17th Century,” instructor: Ambra Marzocchi (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Glory of an Ancient, Storied Land: Tolkien and the Ancient World,” instructor: Kathryn H. Stutz (Classics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Cut and Paste: Remediating the DIY Archive through the Creation of Cyber-Zines,” instructor: Lauren Mushro (MLL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Where Are We at Home? Literature of Exile,” instructor: Marta Cerreti (MLL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Tomorrow Will Be Too Late: Reading The Second Sex<\/em>,” instructor: Thomas Mann (Political Science)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • “Talk Like an Egyptian: Introduction to Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs,” instructor: Maarten Praet (Near Eastern Studies)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • \u201cThe Production of Forensic Space in Crime Fiction,\u201d instructor: Antonia Grousdanidou (MLL)  <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Summer 2021<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        \n
        • \u201cExploring Uncanny Valleys in Contemporary Literature\u201d \u2013 instructor: Antonia Grousdanidou [Dept. of Modern Languages and Literatures]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cSurgery, Herbs, and Amulets: A Social History of Ancient Medicine\u201d \u2013 instructor: Dr. Lingxin Zhang [Dept. of Near Eastern Studies] <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cMedieval Irish Sagas\u201d \u2013 instructor: Daniel McClurkin [Dept. of English] <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cReading Poetry for Everyday Life\u201d \u2013 instructor: Martin Michalek [Dept. of Classics]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cLetters from Prison\u2014Homegrown Terrorism and Basque Nationalism\u201d \u2013 instructor: Lauren Mushro [Dept. of Modern Languages and Literatures]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cIntroducing Gilgamesh\u201d \u2013 instructor: Michael Chapin [Dept. of Near Eastern Studies] <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • \u201cScience and Utopian Fiction\u201d \u2013 instructor: Mitchell Cram [Dept. of English] <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          Summer 2020<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

          \n
          • \u201cModern Painting and Prostitution\u201d \u2013 instructor: Meghaa Ballakrishnen [Art History]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cHow to Read Poetry\u201d \u2013 instructor: Joel Childers [English]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cScience and Utopian Fiction\u201d \u2013 instructor: Mitchell Cram [English] <\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cWhat is Knowledge?” \u2013 instructor: Cara Cummings [Philosophy]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cDiscriminating Taste: Understanding the French Approach to Fashion, Conversation, Food, and Art\u201d \u2013 instructor: Nicole Karam [Modern Languages and Literatures]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cLatinx Immigration and Literature: Interpreting the Border\u201d \u2013 instructor: Alexandra Lossada [English]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cThe Northern Irish Troubles: Literature of Conflict\u201d \u2013 instructor: Daniel McClurkin [English]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cBad Mothers in Literature, On Screen, and Across History\u201d \u2013 instructor: Sarah Ross [English]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cConceptualizing the Pandemic: Emergency Humanities during COVID-19\u201d \u2013 instructor: Arpan Roy [Anthropology]<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • \u201cAstronomy and Astrology in Ancient Egypt\u201d \u2013 instructor: Lingxin Zhang [Near Eastern Studies]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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