http://www.stolaf.edu/depts/great-conversation/

Director, 2007-08: Edmund N. Santurri (Religion and Philosophy), ethics, theology, political philosophy, philosophy of religion, aesthetics, religion and art

Faculty, 2007-08: Kathryn Ananda-Owens (Music) piano; David Booth (Religion), theology; Christopher M. Brunelle (Classics), Latin poetry, classical languages and literature; Laurel Carrington (History), medieval, Renaissance and Reformation; Doug Casson (Political Science), political theory, American constitutional law; Elizabeth Galbraith (Religion), theology; Gary Gisselman (Theatre), acting, directing; Vicki Lynn Harper (Philosophy), ancient Greek philosophy, logic, ethics; Edward Langerak (Philosophy), ethics, Kant, social and political philosophy; Karen Marselek (English), medieval literature and linguistics; Anne G. Sabo (Norwegian), Norwegian literature and language; Charles Taliaferro (Philosophy), philosophy of religion, philosophy of mind, ethics; Mary Trull (English), 16th- and 17th-century literature; Charles Wilson (Religion), theology

An integrated sequence of five courses taken over two years, the Great Conversation introduces students to the major epochs of Western tradition through direct encounter with significant works. Beginning with the ancient Greeks and Hebrews, the program traces the development of literary and artistic expression, philosophic thought, religious belief, and historical reflections on Western culture into the modern world. Students respond to great works, challenging the ideas expressed in them and challenging their own ideas as well, thus joining the conversation of men and women through the ages about the perennial issues of human life.

The Great Conversation is open to students of all interests. This program appeals to those who like to read, discuss, and write about ideas; those who believe that learning about the past is profoundly relevant to understanding the present; those who want to examine the Western tradition in a unified way; and those who believe that an education ought to cultivate discriminating minds, inquisitive spirits, and moral sensitivity.

The faculty members who teach a Great Conversation cohort remain with the students through the courses in the standard sequence (113-218), as fellow participants in the conversation. Besides living in the same residence hall their first year, students in the Great Conversation enjoy eating meals together, attending films and theater, and going on field trips.

ADMISSION TO THE PROGRAM

Each year the faculty of the Great Conversation choose at least 66 first-year students to participate in the program. Selection is based on an essay describing the reasons for the student’s interest in the program. Great Conversation brochures and application forms are sent to students after they are admitted to St. Olaf.

GENERAL EDUCATION

By successfully completing courses 113-218 of the Great Conversation, a student fulfills the following general education requirements:

Biblical and Theological Study (one course)
First-Year Writing (one course)
Historical Studies in Western Culture (two courses)
Artistic Studies (one course)
Literary Studies (one course)
Courses with Writing (three courses)
Oral Communication (one component)

COURSES

Great Conversation 113-218 are offered only to first-year students and sophomores enrolled in the Great Conversation. Great Conversation students must take these courses in sequence.

113 The Tradition Beginning: The Greeks and the Hebrews

Students contrast the world views of the ancient Greeks and Hebrews: Greek polytheism and the hero with the Hebrew notion of one God and the believer; Greek notions of civic community and earthly life with the Hebrew ideal of a religious covenant and historical destiny; Greek thoughts about beauty, war, peace, justice, politics, metaphysics, art, architecture, and drama with the prophetic stance toward the past and the future. Students read and discuss works by Homer, Sappho, Thucydides, Sophocles, Plato, Aristotle, the writers of the Old Testament, and the artistry of the Parthenon.

115 The Tradition Continuing: The Romans and the Christians

Students explore the Greek and Hebrew legacies in Roman society and in the New Testament, discussing various attempts to find personal fulfillment in political life, in stoicism and epicureanism, and in the teachings of Christ and St. Paul. Students read works by Cicero, Horace, Virgil, Epictetus, the writers of the New Testament and study the artistry of Roman sculpture. Offered only during Interim.

116 The Tradition Redefined: The Medieval Synthesis

This course pursues the expansion of Christianity throughout the Roman world and the synthesis of the Judeo-Christian and the Greco-Roman in the early Middle Ages. Students consider the development of a unified world view as expressed in religious devotions, philosophy, literature, and art and in monasticism and feudalism in Church and Empire. Students discuss works by Augustine, Benedict, Hildegard of Bingen, Aquinas, Dante, Chaucer, and Christine de Pisan, medieval drama and the artistry of Chartres Cathedral.

217 The Tradition Renewed: New Forces of Secularization

Students examine the Renaissance's return to classical values and the Reformation's return to early Christian attitudes which challenge the authority of the medieval synthesis. Students trace the development of new sources of authority including the new science with its influence on art, literature, politics, and philosophy. Discussions consider Luther, Calvin, Descartes, Locke, Milton, Aphra Behn, Voltaire, Rousseau, Goethe, andTeresa of Avila and the artistry of Michaelangelo, Caravaggio, Bach, and Shakespeare.

218 The Tradition in Crisis: Dissenters and Defenders

Revolutionary changes occurred in economics, politics, philosophy, aesthetics and women's roles at the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century. Students consider the development of modern social and natural sciences and examine various attempts to restate the Western tradition in the face of continuing intellectual and social transformations. Students discuss Burke, Paine, Wollstonecraft, Shelley, Mill, Kierkegaard, Darwin, Marx, Freud, Nietzsche, Dostoevsky, Woolf, Proust, Niebuhr, and King and the artistry of Beethoven, Ibsen, David, and Picasso.

271 The Great Conversation on "The Grand Tour" in Greece and Italy

From 1600 to 1830, the "Grand Tour" to the natural and cultural wonders of continental Europe was widely considered the culmination of the best education. In this course, students visit archaeological sites and museums in Greece and Italy and study the works of art and architecture that were included as units of study in the Great Conversation. The idea of the Grand Tour is employed to frame discussion, study, and reflection on the roles of the Great Conversation and travel in a St. Olaf education. Prerequisite: Completion of Great Conversation 217 or permission of instructors.

310 Ethical Issues and Normative Perspectives: The Great Conv. Continued

This course examines ethical issues from perspectives that are contemporary expressions of or reactions to classic normative traditions covered in the two-year sequence of the Great Conversation program. Included among these are one or more contemporary representatives of the Christian theological tradition. Among the possible ethical issues considered are political morality, sexuality, gender, matters of life and death (war, euthanasia, abortion), economic justice, and environmental responsibility. Prerequisites: completion of Great Conversation 218 or permission of instructor required; completion of BTS-T.