11/3/2025 3:48:58 PM	HUM 4.1 Course Outline as of Summer 2025	Changed Course
CATALOG INFORMATION
Discipline and Nbr:  HUM 4.1	Title:  WESTERN HUMANITIES
Full Title:  Western Humanities: Arts, Ideas, and Values
Last Reviewed:1/27/2020

Units		Course Hours per Week			Nbr of Weeks	Course Hours Total
Maximum	3.00	Lecture Scheduled	3.00		17.5 max.	Lecture Scheduled	52.50
Minimum	3.00	Lab Scheduled	0		6 min.	Lab Scheduled	0
		Contact DHR	0			Contact DHR	0
		Contact Total	3.00			Contact Total	52.50
		Non-contact DHR	0			Non-contact DHR Total	0

Total Out of Class Hours:  105.00

Total Student Learning Hours: 157.50

Title 5 Category:  AA Degree Applicable
Grading:  Grade or P/NP
Repeatability:  00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP
Also Listed As: 
Formerly:  HUMAN 4.1

Catalog Description:

An interdisciplinary approach to the study of the arts, ideas and values of the West. Emphasis will be placed on the visual arts, drama, music, literature, philosophy and religion within a cultural context.  The course will cover prehistory, ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt,  Greece, Rome, and the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

Prerequisites/Corequisites:

Recommended Preparation:
Eligibility for ENGL 1A or equivalent

Limits on Enrollment:

Schedule of Classes Information
Description:

An interdisciplinary approach to the study of the arts, ideas and values of the West. Emphasis will be placed on the visual arts, drama, music, literature, philosophy and religion within a cultural context.  The course will cover prehistory, ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt,  Greece, Rome, and the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

(Grade or P/NP)
Prerequisites:
Recommended:Eligibility for ENGL 1A or equivalent
Limits on Enrollment:
Transfer Credit:CSU;UC.
Repeatability:00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP

ARTICULATION, MAJOR, and CERTIFICATION INFORMATION

Associate Degree:		Effective:	Fall 1998	Inactive:	Fall 2025
Area:	E L3 E	Humanities Arts and Humanities Humanities
CSU GE:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
	C2	Humanities		Fall 1998
IGETC:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
	3B	Humanities		Fall 1998
CSU Transfer:	Transferable	Effective:	Fall 1998	Inactive:
UC Transfer:	Transferable	Effective:	Fall 1998	Inactive:
C-ID:

Certificate/Major Applicable: Major Applicable Course

COURSE CONTENT

Student Learning Outcomes:
At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

1. Identify the major artists, writers, and thinkers of Western culture ca. 3000 B.C.E. to 1450 C.E.

2. Demonstrate knowledge of the chronological development of Western culture.

 

Objectives:

At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

1. Analyze representative works of visual arts, drama, music, literature, philosophy, and religion.

2. Compare and contrast the style of works of successive periods of

     Western culture.

3. Examine their own ideas, values, and beliefs and determine how these relate to the heritage of

    Western culture.

4. Integrate ideas, patterns, and information from two or more disciplines.

5. Demonstrate in writing the ability to analyze, compare and contrast, to weigh philosophical

    arguments, and to examine values.

6. Compare/contrast the works of Western culture with those of non-Western culture.

Topics and Scope

I. Introduction to Western Culture

    A. Arts

    B. Ideas

    C. Values

II. Overview of Chronology of Western Culture from Prehistory to 1450 C.E.

     A. Ancient Mesopotamia

    B. Ancient Egypt

    C. Ancient Greece

    D. Rome

    E. Middle Ages

    F. Renaissance

III. Analysis of Varied Primary Works of Enduring Significance in Western culture

    (legacy/heritage)

    A. Visual arts

    B. Philosophy

    C. Religion

    D. Literature

    E. Poetry

    F. Drama

IV. Brief Analysis of Varied Primary Works of Non-Western Culture

V.  Representative Primary Works

    A. Epic

         1. Apuleius' The Golden Ass

         2. Virgil's Aeneid

         3. Beowulf

    B. Literature

         1. Apuleius' The Golden Ass

         2. Arthurian romances

         3. Chaucer's Canterbury Tales

         4. Boccaccio's Decameron

         5. Christine de Pisan's City of the Ladies

    C. Poetry

         1. Greek and Roman Lyric Poetry - Sappho

         2. Medieval Lyric Poetry

              i. The Song of Roland

              ii. Boccaccio's Decameron

    D. Religious Works/Mythology

         1. Greek and Roman myths

         2. Passages from the Bible

         3. Selections from the Qur'an, Vedas or I Ching

    E. Drama

         1. Greek tragedy or comedy

              i. Aeschylus

              ii. Euripides

              iii. Sophocles

              iv. Aristophanes

         2. Medieval drama - morality play Everyman

     F. Philosophy and religious thought

         1.   Plato

         2.   Aristotle

         3.   Boethius

         4.   Augustine

         5.   St. Thomas

         6.   Cicero

         7.   Seneca

         8.   Juvenal

         9.   Hildegaard of Bingen

         10. Machiavelli

         11. non-Western thinkers such as Mohammad

     G. Visual Arts

         1. Prehistoric cave paintings

         2. Ancient and medieval sculpture and architecture

              i.  illuminated manuscripts

              ii. pre-Renaissance art

Assignments:

Assignments typically will include:

1. Reading and analysis of assigned primary texts to establish cultural

    context.  Reading amounts to 100 pages per week

2. Examinations, including quizzes, midterm, and/or take-home, and  final

    exams

3. Written essays requiring students to analyze representative works of

    literature, art, music, and philosophical/religious thought or

    requiring students to compare and contrast, integrate ideas, or

    examine ideas, values and beliefs.  Writing amounts to 3,000 words total

4. Participation in cultural activities, and response papers or reviews

     (including multimedia and annotated bibliography)

Methods of Evaluation/Basis of Grade.

Writing: Assessment tools that demonstrate writing skill and/or require students to select, organize and explain ideas in writing.		Writing 40 - 80%
Written homework, term papers, essays
Problem solving: Assessment tools, other than exams, that demonstrate competence in computational or non-computational problem solving skills.		Problem Solving 0 - 0%
None
Skill Demonstrations: All skill-based and physical demonstrations used for assessment purposes including skill performance exams.		Skill Demonstrations 0 - 0%
None
Exams: All forms of formal testing, other than skill performance exams.		Exams 15 - 55%
Multiple choice, True/false, Matching items, Completion, Short answer, Essay exams, Take-home essay exams
Other: Includes any assessment tools that do not logically fit into the above categories.		Other Category 5 - 20%
Cultural activities and/or multimedia projects, annotated bibliography

Representative Textbooks and Materials:

Arts and Culture--An Introduction to the Humanities. 4th ed. Benton, Janette Rebold and DiYanni, Robert. Pearson. 2011 (classic)

 

Arts and Ideas. 10th ed. Fleming, William. Harcourt Brace. 2004 (classic)

 

Experience Humanities Volume 1: Beginnings Through the Renaissance. 8th ed. Matthews, Roy and Platt, DeWitt and Noble, Thomas.

McGraw-Hill. 2013 (classic)

 

The Humanistic Tradition, Book 1: The First Civilizations and the Classical Legacy. 7th edition. Fiero, Gloria. McGraw. 2015 (classic)

 

The Humanities: Culture, Continuity & Change, Prehistory to 1600 Vol I. 3rd ed. Sayre, Henry M. Pearson/Prentice Hall. 2014 (classic)

 

The Humanities: Culture, Continuity, and Change. 2nd ed. Sayre, Henry M. Ingram. 2015 (classic)

Landmarks in the Humanities. 3rd ed. Fiero, Gloria. McGraw Hill. 2016

 

The Western Humanities, Vol. 1. 7th ed. Mathews, Roy and Platt, DeWitt and Nobel, Thomas. 2010 (classic)

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