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Course Catalog 2022-2023 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Course Search
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This is a comprehensive listing of all active, credit-bearing courses offered by Oberlin College and Conservatory since Fall 2016. Courses listed this online catalog may not be offered every semester; for up to date information on which courses are offered in a given semester, please see PRESTO.
For the most part, courses offered by departments are offered within the principal division of the department. Many interdisciplinary departments and programs also offer courses within more than one division.
Individual courses may be counted simultaneously toward more than one General Course Requirement providing they carry the appropriate divisional attributes and/or designations.
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Biology |
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BIOL 417 - Seminar: Why Humans Aren’t Immortal: Molecular Mechanisms of Aging FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
This student-led, discussion-based course will cover the breadth of molecular mechanisms that underlie the aging process. We will discuss how laboratory findings have been translated into human populations, including various biotechnologies and popularized lifestyle interventions purported to offset aging. Students will develop skills in reading primary scientific literature and in both written and oral scientific communication. The topics covered will introduce students to a variety of methodologies used not only in the aging field but across molecular medicine disciplines.
Prerequisites & Notes: BIOL 213
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BIOL 423 - Seminar: Biogeography FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
Why do species occur where they do? This question drives much of ecology and systematics and has been studied intensively for over two centuries, yet major controversies concerning the causes of biogeographic patterns remain. Through readings and discussions of the primary literature in ecology, systematics, and conservation, we will explore the causes and consequences of biogeographic patterns in a diverse array of organisms. Students will also gain experience in presenting critical analyses of primary research.
Prerequisites & Notes: BIOL 200
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BIOL 501F - Research - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Projects for original investigation are developed by students in consultation with a faculty member. Students in the Honors Program enroll for both semesters of their senior year. A maximum of two half-courses (or one full-course) and one laboratory unit may be earned in this course toward the requirements for a biology major. Consent of instructor required.
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BIOL 501H - Research - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Projects for original investigation are developed by students in consultation with a faculty member. Students in the Honors Program enroll for both semesters of their senior year. A maximum of two half-courses (or one full-course) and one laboratory unit may be earned in this course toward the requirements for a biology major. Consent of instructor required.
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BIOL 502F - Research - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Projects for original investigation are developed by students in consultation with a faculty member. Students in the Honors Program enroll for both semesters of their senior year. A maximum of two half-courses (or one full-course) and one laboratory unit may be earned in this course toward the requirements for a biology major.
Prerequisites & Notes: Consent of instructor required.
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BIOL 502H - Research - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Projects for original investigation are developed by students in consultation with a faculty member. Students in the Honors Program enroll for both semesters of their senior year. A maximum of two half-courses (or one full-course) and one laboratory unit may be earned in this course toward the requirements for a biology major.
Prerequisites & Notes: Consent of instructor required.
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BIOL 995F - Private Reading - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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BIOL 995H - Private Reading - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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Business |
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BUSI 100 - Foundations of Sustainable Business Management FC SSCI
4 credits
This course provides an introduction to the social, environmental, and governance risks and opportunities facing business and managers today. Emphasis is placed on analyzing the evolving role of business in society, corporate accountability, circular economy, impact investing, and social enterprises. Students will engage with management theory, case studies, and critical discussion while building the basic tools they will need to harness the potential of business to act as a force for good.
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BUSI 101 - Introduction to Business FC SSCI
4 credits
Introduction to Business provides broad exposure to the thinking, best practices, analytical tools, and vocabulary employed in today’s business world. Students will work independentlyand, as in the businessworld, in small collaborative teams. The approach of this course is practical, experienced-based, and hands-on. Since each class participant already has direct experience as a customer of various business enterprises and has also observed others in their interactions with organizations of all kinds, each student will bring these experiences to bear as part of the learning process.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
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BUSI 102 - Entrepreneurship Fundamentals FC SSCI
4 credits
This course provides an introduction to entrepreneurial concepts through experiential learning. Students will learn core entrepreneurial concepts including ideation, marketing strategies, securing resources, leadership and scalability in a range of contexts and apply these to their own solutions. Emphasis is placed on applying these concepts to grow organizations for sustainable impact.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
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BUSI 103 - Introduction to Business Management FC SSCI QFR
4 credits
Introduction to Business Management provides exposure to fundamental concepts, terminology, and problem-solving approaches used in managerial decision-making. The course is organized around typical problems faced by managers across a variety of settings. Students will practice integrating analytical techniques, judgment, and an appreciation for context-specific details into a holistic recommendation for action.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
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BUSI 104 - Real World Applications of Entrepreneurship FC SSCI
4 credits
This course uses real world challenges to teach students the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. Students will build entrepreneurial skills by working in small teams, engaging with experts in the field, and developing and pitching approaches to entrepreneurial challenges. Core entrepreneurial concepts covered in the course include ideation, marketing strategies, securing resources, leadership and scalability in a range of contexts.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
This course is appropriate for new students.
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BUSI 105 - Small Business Today FC SSCI
4 credits
The pandemic has further exaggerated the barriers faced by underserved small business owners who lack the resources to guide them in their growth efforts. In this course, students will learn the core small business skills of today through experiential learning, addressing real business challenges with the strategic mindset of an entrepreneur. Students will build a solid knowledge base in small business principles as they study business concepts, operations, marketing, accounting, finance, management, and scalability, utilizing these principles to assist underserved small businesses located in Lorain County. Emphasis is placed on the impact of small businesses on a local economy, encouraging students to regard small businesses as significant drivers of economic growth.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
This course is appropriate for new students.
Community Based Learning
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Chemistry |
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CHEM 051 - Chemistry and the Environment FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
A discussion of the natural and human origins of significant chemical species in the environment and the ultimate fate of these materials. Air and water quality will receive special attention. Chemical concepts will be developed as needed.
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CHEM 101 - Structure and Reactivity in Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Reactions, chemical periodicity, bonding, molecular structure.
Prerequisites & Notes: High-school chemistry or consent of instructors; high-school mathematics up to, but not including, pre-calculus. Students must register for both lecture and laboratory.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CHEM 102 - Principles of Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Equilibrium, thermodynamics, reaction rates and mechanisms.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 101. Note: Students must register for both lecture and laboratory.
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CHEM 103 - Topics in General Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Reactions, equilibrium, thermodynamics, reaction rates and mechanisms, and bonding. Takes the place of CHEM 101, CHEM 102.
Prerequisites & Notes: Concurrent enrollment or credit for MATH 133 or equivalent. For students with good pre-college preparation. Interested students should write to the department administrative assistant early in the summer. Students who earned a score of 4 or higher on the Chemistry Advanced Placement Test, or 6 or higher on the Higher Level International Baccalaureate Chemistry exam, automatically qualify for the course. Admission by examination during the orientation period. Students who have had chemistry in high school and plan to take both chemistry and calculus should take the examination.
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CHEM 205 - Principles of Organic Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
A one-semester introduction to the basic principles, theories, and applications of the chemistry of carbon compounds. Representative reactions, preparation, and properties of carbon compounds will be covered. The laboratory will provide experience with purification, physical and spectroscopic characterization, and synthesis of organic substances.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 102 or 103. Enrollment limit of 25 per laboratory section.
Sustainability
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CHEM 208 - Environmental Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
An in-depth consideration of the environmental issues of stratospheric ozone depletion, air pollution, acid rain, climate change, fossil fuel-based, nuclear and renewable energy production, surface and ground water pollution, and water treatment. The detailed chemical aspects of the environmental problems and their potential remedies will be discussed at a significantly higher level than Chem 051 and various models will be constructed to elucidate the key concepts.
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CHEM 211 - Analytical Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Principles of chemical measurements as applied to instrumental analysis, including spectrophotometry, mass spectrometry, and separations. Laboratory develops quantitative skills and provides experience with chemical instrumentation. Spreadsheets are used to treat and plot experimental data.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in MATH 133 and in CHEM 102 or CHEM 103. Enrollment limit 14 per laboratory section.
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CHEM 213 - Inorganic Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Development of the principles and theories of inorganic chemistry. Topics include atomic structure, structure and bonding in covalent and ionic compounds, periodic properties, acid-base concepts, coordination compounds, oxidation-reduction chemistry, and recent advances in inorganic nanotechnology. Laboratory involves synthesis and characterization of inorganic substances and activities illustrating principles covered in the lecture.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 102 or 103. Enrollment limit 16 per laboratory section.
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CHEM 254 - Bioorganic Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Organic chemistry of the major classes of biological substances. Emphases on structures and reaction mechanisms as they apply to biological transformations.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 205. By taking both BIOL 213 and CHEM 254, students are exposed to the material typically covered in an undergraduate introductory biochemistry course.
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CHEM 323 - Materials Chemistry HC NSMA QFR
2 credits
This course will provide an introduction to the chemistry of inorganic and organic materials, with an emphasis on how their properties can be understood based on their bonding and electronic structures. Synthetic strategies and methods of materials characterization, including X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy, will also be discussed. In covering these topics, we will discuss current literature on materials such as semiconductors, polymers, nanomaterials, and bioinspired materials with applications including batteries, solar cells, and sustainable plastics.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 205 and in CHEM 213, or instructor consent.
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CHEM 325 - Organic Mechanism and Synthesis FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
This second course in organic chemistry will systematically explore reactions of carbon-containing compounds and the mechanistic pathways involved in these processes. Reactions and topics that will be discussed include functional group transformations, oxidations, reductions, cycloadditions, stereospecific reactions and carbon-carbon bond formation. Strategies will be presented for the design of multi-step organic syntheses.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 205.
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CHEM 327 - Synthesis Laboratory FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
This course focuses on the development of advanced techniques to synthesize and characterize organic and inorganic compounds. A particular emphasis is placed on using spectroscopic analysis for chemical structure elucidation. Through journal-style lab reports and in-class presentations, students will further develop their ability to report and discuss scientific data.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 205 and CHEM 213. Students must register for both lecture and laboratory.
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CHEM 339 - Quantum Chemistry and Kinetics FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
Kinetics of chemical reactions, quantum theory of atomic and molecular structure, and molecular spectroscopy.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 102 or CHEM 103; PHYS 111 or PHYS 104 (may be taken concurrently); and in MATH 134. Students must register for both lecture and laboratory. Enrollment limit 12 per laboratory section.
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CHEM 341 - Trace Analysis FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
Principles of trace chemical analysis with laboratory. Trace analytical techniques and sampling as applied to environmental and biological samples, such as water, soil, tissue, and blood, among others. Lecture/discussion format in the classroom with the current research literature in analytical chemistry as a focus.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 211.
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CHEM 349 - Chemical and Statistical Thermodynamics FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
Thermodynamics, introduction to statistical thermodynamics, and kinetic theory. Application of mathematical methods and physical principles to chemistry.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 102 or CHEM 103, PHYS 111 or PHYS 104 and in MATH 134. Students must register for both lecture and laboratory.
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CHEM 361 - Bioanalytical Chemistry FC NSMA QFR WADV
4 credits
Recent developments in bioanalytical chemistry will be examined. Readings will be drawn from the chemical literature. Topics include biosensors (and other methods using molecular recognition), proteomics, and in vivo analysis. Class time will be divided between discussion and student presentation.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHEM 211
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CHEM 368 - Seminar in Atmospheric Chemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
This seminar course will discuss recent developments in atmospheric chemistry. Course readings will focus on published chemical literature. Student participation in discussions and presentations will be central to the course. Topics will include tropospheric chemistry (including from wildfire, marine, and urban sources), aerosol chemistry, atmospheric photochemistry, and indoor air chemistry. The environmental chemistry concepts from CHEM 208 will serve as a foundation to this course.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHEM 208 or consent of instructor.
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CHEM 374 - Biochemistry FC NSMA QFR
4 credits
Biochemistry has been described as both the ‘chemistry of life’ and ‘biology in atomic detail.’ This is the third of three courses in a biochemistry sequence that includes CHEM 254 and BIOL 213. Building on the biochemical fundamentals and experimental techniques learned in these earlier courses, CHEM 374 focuses on a deeper understanding of biochemistry through the rigorous study of the structures and functions of proteins and other biomolecules in such processes as enzymatic catalysis, signal transduction, metabolism, and gene expression. Includes topics of current scientific and societal interest such as gene editing and/or the biochemistry and ethics of pesticides.
Prerequisites & Notes: C- or better in CHEM 254 and BIOL 213. Students must register for both lecture and l
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CHEM 525F - Research - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Projects for original investigation are assigned. Interested students are encouraged to speak with faculty members about possible projects.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students in the Honors program are required to enroll. Consent of chair required.
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CHEM 525H - Research - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Projects for original investigation are assigned. Interested students are encouraged to speak with faculty members about possible projects.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students in the Honors program are required to enroll. Consent of chair required.
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CHEM 526F - Research - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Projects for original investigation are assigned. Interested students are encouraged to speak with faculty members about possible projects.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students in the Honors program are required to enroll. Consent of chair required.
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CHEM 526H - Research - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Projects for original investigation are assigned. Interested students are encouraged to speak with faculty members about possible projects.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students in the Honors program are required to enroll. Consent of chair required.
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CHEM 995F - Private Reading - Full FC NSMA
4 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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CHEM 995H - Private Reading - Half HC NSMA
2 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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Chinese |
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CHIN 101 - Elementary Chinese I FC ARHU CD
4 credits
First-year Chinese. Pronunciation and grammar of modern standard Chinese and an introduction to the writing system. Within the first year of study, students will be introduced to approximately 500 characters and the reading of simple texts in the vernacular style.
Prerequisites & Notes: Letter grades only. The P/NP option is not available. No Auditors.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CHIN 102 - Elementary Chinese II FC ARHU CD
4 credits
First-year Chinese. Continuation of Chinese 101. Pronunciation and grammar of modern standard Chinese and an introduction to the writing system. Within the first year of study, students will be introduced to approximately 500 characters and the reading of simple texts in the vernacular style.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 101 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 201 - Intermediate Chinese I FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Second-year Chinese. Development of skills in the vernacular language through oral recitation and reading of texts, with drills on special features of grammar and emphasis on vocabulary in the vernacular idiom. Students will be introduced to approximately 600 additional characters.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 102 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 202 - Intermediate Chinese II FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Second-year Chinese. Continuation of Chinese 201. Development of skills in the vernacular language through oral recitation and reading of texts, with drills on special features of grammar and emphasis on vocabulary in the vernacular idiom. Students will be introduced to approximately 600 additional characters.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 201 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 301 - Advanced Chinese I FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Third-year Chinese. This course aims to develop skills in reading, aural comprehension, speech, and writing. Vocabulary expansion and control of grammatical patterns are emphasized. Materials to be used include articles on various topics related to contemporary China . Conducted in Chinese.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 202 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 302 - Advanced Chinese II FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Third-year Chinese. Continuation of Chinese 301. This course aims to develop skills in reading, aural comprehension, speech, and writing. Vocabulary expansion and control of grammatical patterns are emphasized. Materials to be used include articles on various topics related to contemporary China. Conducted in Chinese.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 301 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 401 - Readings in Chinese Literature FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Fourth-year Chinese. Readings from contemporary Chinese literature, discussions, and writing assignments will further develop advanced skills in Chinese. Conducted in Chinese.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 302 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 402 - Readings in Society, History and Contemporary Events FC ARHU CD
4 credits
Fourth-year Chinese. Advanced skills in reading, writing, speaking and aural comprehension will be developed in this course through readings in expository prose, discussions and writing assignments. Conducted in Chinese.
Prerequisites & Notes: CHIN 401 or consent of instructor.
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CHIN 410 - Traditional Chinese Culture FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This advanced language course is designed primarily for students who have completed 400-level Chinese or equivalent. The course focuses on Chinese traditional culture, history, language, and current social issues. Through reading original Chinese materials, this course will strengthen students’ understanding of China and their reading and writing skills.
Prerequisites & Notes: 400-level Chinese language course or equivalent
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CHIN 421 - Advanced Chinese: Literary Language in Modern Chinese FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course teaches students the literary origins of classical and modern Chinese expressions. Students will learn from classical texts and contemporary Chinese media the best practice of using literary language in argumentative writing and speech.
Prerequisites & Notes: 300-Level Chinese Language or equivalent.
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CHIN 456 - Development of the Chinese Language HC ARHU CD
2 credits
This course is intended primarily for students who have completed 400-level Chinese or equivalent. It seeks to further improve reading and writing skills by introducing the history of Chinese language and the evolution of Chinese characters. In addition, it will introduce basic Chinese language and teaching pedagogy and applied linguistics.
Prerequisites & Notes: 400-Level Chinese language or equivalent
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CHIN 457 - Classical Chinese FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course focuses on reading classical Chinese materials, and it is designed for students who are interested in improving their modern language skills and deepening their understanding of Chinese philosophy and culture.
Prerequisites & Notes: 400-Level Chinese or equivalent.
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CHIN 458 - Traditional Chinese Culture HC ARHU CD
2 credits
This advanced language course is designed primarily for students who have completed 400-level Chinese or equivalent. The course focuses on Chinese traditional culture, history, language and current social issues. Through reading original Chinese materials, this course will strengthen students? understanding of China and their reading and writing skills.
Prerequisites & Notes: 400-Level Chinese language course or equivalent
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CHIN 500 - Capstone Project ARHU
0 credits
Normally completed in the senior year, the capstone project may be done in one of three ways: 1) as a research project in an upper-level seminar taught by an EAS faculty member, 2) as a project in a 400-level Chinese or Japanese language course, or 3) as a Winter Term project overseen by an EAS faculty member. Students must consult with their mentor before the start of the term.
Prerequisites & Notes: P/NP grading only.
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CHIN 995F - Private Reading - Full FC ARHU
4 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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CHIN 995H - Private Reading - Half HC ARHU
2 credits
Private readings are offered as either a half or full academic course and require the faculty member’s approval. Students who wish to pursue a topic not covered in the regular curriculum may register for a private reading. This one-to-one tutorial is normally at the advanced level in a specific field and is arranged with a member of the faculty who has agreed to supervise the student. Unlike other courses, a student cannot register for a private reading via PRESTO. To register for a private reading, obtain a card from the Registrar’s Office, complete the required information, obtain the faculty member’s approval for the reading, and return the card to the Registrar’s Office.
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Cinema Studies |
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CINE 109 - Topics in Chinese Film: Introduction to Modern Chinese Cinema FC ARHU CD
4 credits
A study of the booming cinema scene in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Topics include the history of popular Chinese cinema and the relationship between style and politics. Directors include Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Wong Kar-wai, Stanley Kwan, Ang Lee, and Tsai Ming-liang. Taught in English.
This course is cross-listed with EAST 109
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CINE 111 - Introduction to Media Studies FC ARHU
4 credits
Paintings, newspapers, novels, photographs, magazines, motion pictures, radio broadcasts, television shows, music files, art installations, podcasts, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, the Internet, these are some examples of what we think of, loosely, as media. These forms enable exchanges of information, ideas, emotions, and stories at global and personal levels. They profoundly shape our understanding and experience of the world. Indeed they stand, in meaningful ways, between the world and us, while also connecting us to one another. The purpose of this course is to explore, in both creative and critical ways, the ‘in between’ to study what mediates the relations among, for example, authors and readers, artists and audiences, filmmakers and spectators - even you and me. We will consider how media are composed and gain influence, what (literally) they are made of, and why they matter. In short, we will make and study media in order to become more reflective not only about the forms that structure our world (and online classroom), but also about our own actions as creators and consumers of those forms.
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CINE 112 - Intro to American Documentary: 1960 to the Present FC ARHU
4 credits
This course examines the movements, debates, and significant works of North American documentary film since its explosion in the 1960s. Each week we will discuss a film in relation to its style, aesthetic value and socio-political implications. Filmmakers to be studied include Fred Wiseman, Barbara Kopple, Ross McElwee, Errol Morris, Michael Moore, Marlon Riggs, and Laura Poitras.
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CINE 116 - Film Experience: The Cinematic World FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course serves as a broad introduction to issues in the study of cinema. This section will examine several types of films which depict the contemporary world: those which seek to document current life; films about specific cultural locations that successfully circulate across borders; films which are about the circulation of people and representations across boundaries. Such films both reflect and model our sense of global life and experience. Field trips required.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 117 - Sound and Cinema FC ARHU
4 credits
When moving pictures were invented, they were silent. In recent years, expressive sound technology has created cinematic experiences which can silence the screen. Throughout this evolution of the sonic lens, what is sound’s role in imagining the image that may or may not be visually present? How is this role continuous with the musical experience that preceded the moving image, and with the art of multi-sensory listening that accompanies the viewing experience? In addition to absorbing texts, sounds and films, the course will introduce students to audio editing and recording technologies. Students will also gain familiarity with soundscapes, sonic ethnography and sound-centric works of Artscience.
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CINE 118 - Film Noir: A Transnational Perspective FC ARHU
4 credits
In 1998, the late Jean-Claude Izzo argued that the murder of Abel by Cains hand made the Bible the first noir novel. By situating the origin of noir in the Mediterranean context, Izzo opened the door to a rethinking of the genre that included not only its Atlantic connections, but also its little-known influences east of Gibraltar. Through the exploration of works from Great Britain, Italy, Spain, and France, this course will reposition film noir in a transnational and global context.
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CINE 119 - Exilic Cinema FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course surveys global cinema through the lens of immigration, expatriation, and diaspora. It considers works ranging from Charlie Chaplins The Immigrant to the experimental filmmaker Sylvain Georges recent meditations on the migrant encampments in Calais. In investigating the uses of cinema to portray, and reflect, human displacement by the forces of neo-imperialism and global capitalism, we will address multiple geographies and practices, including global art cinemas, industrial narrative cinema, experimental films, and works created for the gallery. In considering the political and aesthetic stakes of exilic cinema, we will draw from cultural studies, continental philosophy, and film theory.
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CINE 125 - Hong Kong Cinema FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course surveys Hong Kong cinema from the post-war period to the present. We explore the themes, styles, genres, directors, the star system, and audiences of films and discuss how Hong Kong cinema, as one of the largest and most dynamic motion picture industries in the world, expresses the region’s complex, hybrid, and fluid cultural identity in the context of coloniality, globalization, and transnationalism. We also investigate the interactions between the Hong Kong film industries, Hollywood, and other East Asian regions.
This course is cross-listed with EAST 125
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 173 - American Cinema 1966-1990 FC ARHU
4 credits
This course is about American Cinema from 1966-1990, an era in which younger directors changed how movies were made and what they were about, largely, though not exclusively, from within the shell of Old Hollywood. Students will study the late 1970 and early 1980 in which “indie,” or independent cinema, became an important factor in American movies, marked by filmmakers working outside the Hollywood system, especially women and Black directors.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 180 - Selected Directors: Terrence Malick HC ARHU
2 credits
Few contemporary commercial filmmakers have as great a reputation for accomplished artistry and consistency of vision as Terrence Malick. Despite an unusually low public profile, and for much of his career a slow pace of output, Malick has created a body of work that seems apart from Hollywood conventions, both past and present. In this course we’ll look at a selection of his work closely, engaging in a conversation with and about the style and subjects of this director, with his unusually explicit focus on fundamental questions of existence. Frequent viewing, class participation, and regular writing assignments will be required.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 188 - Cinematography 1 HC ARHU
2 credits
The purpose of this course is to develop an eye for composition, movement and drama; to use the camera as a narrative tool; and to deepen familiarity with camera equipment. We will cover foundation skills with camera, lenses, lighting and sound that can be applied to a variety of projects and genres. This is a hands on, workshop style class.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 202 - Modern Latin American Cinema FC ARHU CD
4 credits
An overview of the cinemas of Latin America from 1950 to the present, with special emphasis on the revolutionary generation of the 1960s and contemporary cinema. Each week a significant Latin American film will be discussed in relation to aesthetic movements, social history and political change. Subjects to be explored include the cinema of poverty, Cinema Novo, Third Cinema, the memory of dictatorship, and the poetics of globalization. An abiding concern will be the relationship of film art to social activism.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 203 - Funny Women: Women, Comedy, and Film FC ARHU
4 credits
From Lucille Ball to Lena Dunham, Moms Mabley to Tyler Perry?s Madea, students will be asked to investigate what (theoretically) it means to be funny by exploring who (historically, culturally, economically, racially) is viewed as funny in our society. Readings will include selections from Bergson, Bakhtin, and Freud, as well as essays by Nora Ephron, Diablo Cody, and Tina Fey. The course also examined the careers of comedians such as Elaine May, Lily Tomlin, and Whoopi Goldberg.
This course is cross-listed with GSFS 206
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CINE 206 - Modern Chinese Literature and Film: The Art of Adaptation FC ARHU CD WINT
4 credits
This course studies Chinese film-fiction adaptation from 1984-2012 both as an aesthetic interaction between the literary and the cinematic and as a political negotiation between artists and the state. Authors and directors to include are Eileen Chang, Su Tong, Mo Yan, Stanley Kwan, Zhang Yimou, Hou Xiaoxian and others.
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CINE 211 - What is Media? FC ARHU
4 credits
Paintings, newspapers, novels, photographs, magazines, motion pictures, radio broadcasts, television shows, music files, art installations, podcasts, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, the Internet these are some examples of what we think of, loosely, as media. These forms enable exchanges of information, ideas, emotions, and stories at global and personal levels. They profoundly shape our understanding and experience of the world. Indeed they stand, in meaningful ways, between the world and us. The purpose of this course is to explore, in both creative and critical ways, the in between to study what mediates the relations among, for example, authors and readers, artists and audiences, filmmakers and spectators, friends and lovers, you and me. We will consider how media are composed and gain influence, what (literally) they are made of, and why they matter. In short, we will make and study media in order to become more reflective not only about the forms that structure our world, but about our own actions as creators and consumers of those forms.
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 212 - Social Media Explorations FC ARHU
4 credits
The last 20 years have brought on an exponential shift in the media landscape due to the rising use of social media. In this course we will look at what defines ‘social’ media vs traditional media, we will look into how social media borrows from and alters previous mediums, and we will critically look at how social media affects individuals and the larger society. We will also create our own decentralized social media platform to explore how platform rules and algorithms can be modified to the benefit or detriment of the community.
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CINE 243 - Introduction to African Cinema FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course provides a general introduction to the histories and theories of filmmaking in sub-Saharan Africa. With a continent as large and diverse as Africa, we cannot cover the filmmaking practices of every region, but through the close analysis of the form and content of influential African films, historical texts, statements by African filmmakers, and the theoretical arguments of African media scholars we will begin to understand what is at stake-politically and socially-in the development, distribution, and use of moving images on the continent. In this course we will consider African filmmakers’ cinematic responses to colonial images, from the social realism of Ousmane Sembe to the avant-gardism of Djibril Diop Mamby and Akosua Adoma Owusu. We will also look at how funding, piracy and distribution, and technological change have impacted the production and reception of African popular cinema.
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CINE 244 - When Old Media Were New: Global Histories of New Media FC ARHU
4 credits
In this class we will take a critical approach to contemporary media technologies by unearthing failed and forgotten media oddities of the past. We will theorize what media were and speculate about what they can potentially become by putting our historical studies of old media (pre-cinematic optical devices, gramophones, and panoramas) in juxtaposition with our explorations of new media (PS5, 3D cinema, Zoom). Course topics will include considerations about whether media can “die,” the specter of zombie media, and new media in their geographic contexts.
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CINE 250 - French Cinema, Intersectional and Feminist FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This historical survey of French cinema tells a story that has long been suppressed but rewritten by feminist scholars who did nothing less than excavate the many artistic and cultural contributions of women filmmakers from the beginning of film to its present. Students learn about the usual periods of French cinema (Surrealism, 1930s Poetic Realism, Occupation, New Wave, contemporary film), but also study film direction, stardom, acting, editing, and producing-all through its leading women. A study of the history of industrialization, cultural policy, state regulation, and colonialism helps address the conceptualization of French cinema as a ‘national cinema,’ despite its international artistic heritage and audiences. It also foucses on opportunities for intersectional and feminist approaches that value discussions of race, gender, and class.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 110 or another course in French is strongly recommended, but not required.
This course is cross-listed with FREN 320
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 251 - New Zealand Film FC ARHU CD
4 credits
An overview of New Zealand film, tracing the development of a national cinema in New Zealand by analyzing the cinematic and cultural significance of key films and asking the question: How does film project a sense of national identity? We will begin by examining some of the abiding myths and images used to define New Zealand cinema, and then explore the representation of race and gender in key examples of contemporary New Zealand film ultimately focusing on how New Zealand cinema attempts to reconcile the commercial imperatives of the international market with the cultural demands of the national audience.
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CINE 267 - Narrating and Documenting the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course examines cinematic narratives and documentations of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, drawing on critical, historical, and sociological writings.
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CINE 277 - Visual Storytelling for Directors FC ARHU
4 credits
Directing is the art of composing the elements of time-based media (e.g. film and theater) to serve a narrative. Effective direction marshals the diverse disciplines that contribute to a narrative in a way that evokes a particular theme, mood, or experience. At the core of nearly every narrative is the mise-en-scène, the visual story that guides an audience’s moment-to-moment experience of a film, play, or interdisciplinary performance piece. With a strong emphasis on the importance and organization of the pre-production process, students will hone the skills necessary to critically analyze mise-en-scène across media and to create pre-production resources using the many visual elements that contribute to narrative.
Prerequisites & Notes: This counts as an elective for Cinema students
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
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CINE 280 - Technophobia and Occult Media FC ARHU
4 credits
This course explores the uncanny characteristics that have been attributed to emerging media forms from photography to the internet, and relates them to theories about media effects and ontology.
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CINE 282 - Hollywood Narrative & Genre FC ARHU
4 credits
This course explores the art, craft, business, and ideology of popular screen narratives from Hollywood’s classical period to the present. Topics to be discussed include three-act structure, storyworld, perspective, agency, temporarality, emotion, suspense, resolution and surprise. Our discussions will connect significant films to both practical and philosophical texts, with an emphasis on the mechanics of story and the social ritual of genre. Finally, we will consider the challenge presented to traditional narrative by the rise of on-demand streaming services and interactive entertainment.
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CINE 284F - AOI Workshop-Full FC ARHU
4 credits
Surrounded by computers, video games, and cell phones, children often have little chance to use media to express themselves or connect with their communities. Today’s kids are tomorrow’s storytellers, and to become responsible citizens in a digital age they need tools to communicate through text, image, and sound. We’ll explore community outreach models and media education projects, lead a video poetry residency at Langston Middle School, and prepare the Apollo Outreach Initiative’s Summer Media Workshop. Field trips required.
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CINE 284H - AOI Workshop-Half HC ARHU
2 credits
Surrounded by computers, video games, and cell phones, children often have little chance to use media to express themselves or connect with their communities. Today’s kids are tomorrow’s storytellers, and to become responsible citizens in a digital age they need tools to communicate through text, image, and sound. We’ll explore community outreach models and media education projects, lead a video poetry residency at Langston Middle School, and prepare the Apollo Outreach Initiative’s Summer Media Workshop. Field trips required.
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CINE 288 - Cinematography 2 HC ARHU
2 credits
The purpose of this course is to gain an understanding of cinematography for narrative, documentary and television production. We will cover the responsibilities of a Director of Photography along with all crew positions in the camera and lighting departments. Further study will include: general knowledge of how to work on a film crew, cinema camera set up and operation, lighting and grip equipment usage. This is a hands on, workshop style class.
Does this course require off campus field trips? Yes
This course is appropriate for new students.
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CINE 290 - Introduction to the Advanced Study of Cinema FC ARHU WINT
4 credits
This course focuses on ways to engage critically with cinema. We examine elements of film form, style, and technique and explore how these produce meaning. Through theoretical and critical readings we consider cinema as art, industry, technology, and politics. We also study approaches to watching and assessing movies, concepts and contexts in cinema studies as a discipline, and film in relation to other media. We also pay special attention to writing about cinema.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students should have completed a Writing Intensive course or gained Writing Certification in any course in the humanities. Requirements can be waived with instructor consent.
This course is cross-listed with ENGL 291
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CINE 291 - Fundamentals of Cinema Production FC ARHU
4 credits
This course is a hands-on workshop that exercises every step of contemporary cinema production. By utilizing the practical skills native to the technology and artistry of cinema, students will be creating a series of short, narrative films from beginning to end. Students will study the principles of cinema production process while working in teams to produce a series of narrative short films, from the germ of a story to the final export. Each project will build upon previously acquired skills through the practice of creation, including preproduction, camera, lighting, sound, and editing. A selection of work will be screened at the end of the semester.
Prerequisites & Notes: Students can repeat this course twice for credit.
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CINE 293 - Covering Crisis: Storytelling Across Media HC ARHU
2 credits
As we retreat to our homes and socially distance ourselves from each other, we rely more than ever on public media to connect us to society and to inform us about the world. Indeed, the virtual networks to which we belong have now become our primary communities, as well as our chief sources of knowledge, and nonfiction storytelling has never been more consequential. In this course students will use print, audio, and video technologies to render their observations and experience of this uniquely turbulent, rapidly changing moment in history. On the assumption that stories derive their power more from the quality of their composition than from the gear used to produce them, the course will be decidedly low-tech, focusing on how to choose subjects and craft narratives that will prove most meaningful for public audiences. Students will study examples of written, audio, and video storytelling, critically examining the material and rhetorical powers and limits of each technology while learning the skills needed to effectively employ them. Students will also complete short assignments in written, audio and video storytelling, then produce longer projects in the mode of their choice. They will meet three times weekly with faculty on Zoom to discuss the assigned work and to workshop their projects, which we will endeavor to make public through online campus publications and other internet venues.
This course is cross-listed with WRCM 255
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CINE 295 - Cinematic Storytelling Workshop FC ARHU WINT
4 credits
This introductory screenwriting course explores the roles of narrative in cinema. To better understand what cinematic stories are and how they work, students will explore basic principles, methods, and techniques for composing them, paying special attention to character development and narrative structure. In addition to reading published screenplays and watching selected films, they will create their own original short screenplays.
Prerequisites & Notes: Recommended preparation: CINE 290
This course is cross-listed with CRWR 365
Community Based Learning
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CINE 298 - Video Production Workshop I FC ARHU
4 credits
This course introduces students to the practical relationships among form, style and meaning in cinema through hands-on experience with the medium’s technical elements. Students will not only read about cinema but design, compose, and edit their own sequences using sound and image.
Prerequisites & Notes: Recommended preparation: at least one General Interest Course (two are preferred). Consent of instructor required.
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CINE 301 - Sound for Moving Picture HC ARHU
2 credits
This course explores the relationship between sound and its affect on visual perception in relation to moving images. By practicing the creative application of audio post-production techniques (foley, ADR, sound design, surround mixing) the class will learn about various conceptual elements of sound (diegetic, non-diegetic, on and off screen, visual magnetism). Students will learn to approach sound in film with a better understanding in both theory and application.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 298 or consent of instructor required.
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CINE 302 - Montage in Thought & Practice FC ARHU
4 credits
This course brings together theory and practice to explore the role played by montageminimally defined as the editing together of images and soundsin moving image media. As they explore the history and theory of montage, students will also be invited to do montage, for instance by recreating famous sequences from film history, or by repurposing theory toward novel ends. In doing so, students will draw upon a range of both analog and digital production tools, from the film splicer to the popular smartphone app Vine. Course will culminate in a final project consisting of a critical text and an accompanying creative work.
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CINE 303 - Back to the Future: The French New Wave FC ARHU CD
4 credits
An in-depth study of one of the most inventive and pioneering movements in French and international cinema. We will consider its founding film theories and practices, its representative directors, its post-WWII historical context, and its lasting legacies in cinema today. Conducted in English.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 290 or CINE 250 or FREN 320
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CINE 306 - Global Women’s Documentary FC ARHU CD
4 credits
This course explores themes in global women?s documentary including historical intervention, autobiography, and activism. It also examines formal experimentation with compilation, animation, and reenactment. Students will be asked to investigate a breadth of industrial issues and critical questions, ranging from how women documentarians are trained and gain access to film financing, to the historical, social, political, and cultural issues they project on the screen.
Prerequisites & Notes: Cine 290 or consent of instructor
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CINE 309 - Chinese Popular Cinema and Public Intellectualism FC ARHU CD WINT
4 credits
Does Chinese popular cinema function as public intellectualism? This course examines the history, genre, aesthetic, and politics of the post-reform Chinese fiction films and documentaries from 1982 to 2014. Studying the works of Zhang Yimou, Jia Zhangke, Wu Wenguang, Wong Kar-wai, Ann Hui, He Zhaoti, Wei Desheng and others, we examine the extent to which influential directors have become a new class or organic intellectuals who raise political questions to propel social change.
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CINE 311 - Silent Cinema: Technology, Industry, Modernity FC ARHU
4 credits
The thirty years between the cinemas invention in the 1890s and the institution of synchronized sound in the late 1920s constitute a dynamic and contested era of film history. This course will seek to understand the silent cinema from a variety of perspectives, including the cinema as a representative technology of modernity, the formation of the cinema as industry and cultural institution, and the relationship between the cinema and other media.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 290 or consent of instructor.
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CINE 312 - Experimental Ecocinema FC ARHU
4 credits
If cinema mediates the relation between human beings and the world, how does it fulfill that function with respect to the natural world? If nature is a category we can no longer take for granted, but must actively construct, what cinematic forms are best suited to this work? We will answer: experimental cinema. Key producers discussed include Stan Brakhage, Dahi Sao, Rose Lowder, James Benning, Jane and Louise Wilson, Babette Mangolte, and Bill Viola. Key themes include landscape and the ecological sublime; animals and wildlife; the materiality of the natural world; toxicity and pollution; energy and resource extraction; scarcity and conservation; and dwelling.
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CINE 313 - ANIMATION WORKSHOP : Stop Motion Animation from Analog to Digital FC ARHU
4 credits
Animation is an ever-present element in the language of moving pictures and is applied in a broad spectrum of visual culture in our daily life. You find animation in news media, education, science and in all aspects of the global film industry. This hands-on course will introduce students to the history and practice of stop-motion animation. As a starting point, we work closely with the Media Archeology Collection in Mudd Library Special Collections to study examples of early sequential art technology, optical toys and magic lanterns. Student will learn a variety of approaches to create their own animations, which include creating flip-books, hand drawn/painted cell animation, claymation, model-making and collage, and will be exposed to a wide range of art materials. We will explore many analog techniques and incorporate the work into a digital workflow using Adobe Photoshop and After Effects. Each student will create several original short animations to be screened publically.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 298
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CINE 314 - Bardot, Seyrig, Fonda: Stardom and Activism Before #MeToo FC ARHU
4 credits
The film actress emerged as a principal figure in the 2017 #MeToo movement and helped amplify the voices of other women who grabbed the microphone in solidarity and told their lived experiences of coercion, abuse, exploitation, and silence. Drawing from media studies, stars studies, and cultural history, this course traces the relationship between film stardom and activism for three French or Francophone actresses (Fonda included) during the 1960s and 1970s, and more specifically during the feminist and anti-war movements of their time. Taught in English (although readings in French will be made available to students of French.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 290 or CINE 250/FREN 320
This course is cross-listed with FREN 414
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CINE 315 - Queer Media, Activism and Thought in France: Case Studies HC ARHU CD
2 credits
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the birth of the feminist movement in France, this half-course offers case studies of queer media activism and thought from 1970 to 2020. Oberlin professors and guest speakers will present on a variety of topics, ranging from militant film collectives and militant television to queer cinema, from the Front homosexuel d?action revolutionnaire (FHAR) to the AIDS movement and French queer theorist Monique Wittig. The half-course will consist of public lectures, a film series, and small discussion groups. Taught in English.
Prerequisites & Notes: FREN 320. CINE 101, 298, or 299, or consent of instructor.
This course is cross-listed with FREN 315, GSFS 315
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CINE 316 - Usership Media FC ARHU
4 credits
Media is increasingly being used rather than consumed. Users are no longer passive viewers, but now also act as individual, or collective, producers and critics. In this course, we will attempt to understand how this shift to users from consumers is actively altering the media landscape and the ways in which we interact with and understand it. By becoming producers of useful content ourselves we will engage in a cyclical pattern of media production and consumption.
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CINE 320 - Video Production Workshop II: Documentary Production FC ARHU
4 credits
This course explores documentary work in both critical and creative ways. The class introduces students to various ways to think about and understand documentaries (in terms of structure, purpose, audience, etc.) and then gives them the opportunity to practice basic documentary production (camera, lighting, sound, non-linear editing). After engaging in various individual and small group exercises, students spend the balance of the semester working together to produce a short festival-quality documentary film.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 290, CINE 298, and consent of instructor.
Community Based Learning
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CINE 321 - Contemporary World Auteurs FC ARHU
4 credits
In the last twenty years, the rise of World Cinema, as a category, has gone hand in hand with the resurgence of auteurship and realism. In this course we will study the emerging canon of contemporary cinema through the work of its most significant auteurs, including Wong Kar Wai, Jia Zhangke, Lucrecia Martel, Jafar Panahi, Abderrahmane Sissako, and the Dardennes Brothers. How do these filmmakers engage with the local, the national and the global? What role do film festivals play in cultural exchange? Can we imagine a World Republic of Cinema?
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CINE 322 - Experiments in Moving Image & Sound I FC ARHU
4 credits
This is a hands-on advanced media production course that aims to activate and amplify students’ creativity, and to stir passion for time-based media that transcend mainstream conventions. Students will be introduced to both 16mm film and advanced HD video production techniques and post-production strategies. We will screen a wide range of works by independent film directors and artists and will examine closely cinematic strategies and experimental approaches to the medium that span from early cinema to present day. Each student will create a fully realized short film ready for film festivals or exhibition.
Prerequisites & Notes: CINE 290, CINE 298, and consent of instructor.
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