DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

The Modern Flâneur

 

COURSE:

HUMN 3165-001

CO/PREREQUISITE:

NONE

SEMEMSTER:

SPRING 2013

CREDITS:

3

DAYS:

TR

TIME:

4:00-5:15

BEGINS:

JANUARY 17, 2013

ENDS:

May 7, 2013

CENSUS DATE:

JANUARY 31, 2013

FINAL

TBA

INSTRUCTOR:

Roberta Jean Molyneux-Davis

PHONE:

719-691-1433 (Message)

OFFICE:

Office hours by appointment

E-MAIL ADDRESS:

molyneux_davis@yahoo.com

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Nineteenth Century Paris was instrumental in shaping Modernism. In order to better understand the historical and cultural components that gave birth to our world today, this course will walk through the art, literature, culture and history of the Nineteenth Century Parisian Arcades. Throughout the semester, as we immerse ourselves in Nineteenth Century Paris, we will keep a walking journal where we will record sketches/ideas/perceptions, assimilating the course reading material with our own observations from our community. The journal will provide the springboard for our final studio art project. We will first delve into the history and culture of the Salon through Ross King’s Judgment of Paris. We will then embark on an exploration of the visual art and literature through the lens of the Flâneur and the Dandy based upon readings drawn from Walter Benjamin’s Arcades Project and Charles Baudelaire’s Flowers of Evil.

 

REQUIRED TEXT AND MATERIALS:

  • The Arcades Project. Benjamin, Walter. (1927-1940). Eiland, H., McLaughlin, K., ed. (1999). Cambridge, MA: Bleknap Press. ISBN: 0-674-00802-2
  • The Flowers of Evil. Baudelaire, Charles. (1857). Mathews, M., Mathews, J., ed. (1989). New York, NY: A New Directions. ISBN 0-8812-1117-7
  • The Judgment of Paris. King, Ross. (2007). New York, NY: Walker and Company. ISBN 978-0802714664
  • Journal/Notebook to record reflections on reading as you walk 30 minutes each week through our community
  • Materials for final studio project (See attached Assignment Sheet; please keep expenses to a minimum)
  • Flash Drive

 

CO/PREREQUISITE: Although the course has no prerequisites, you must have rudimentary web browsing skills and regular access to a computer in order to conduct research, prepare group presentations, and submit peer critiques. If you have any questions or concerns regarding your aptitude, feel free to discuss them with me. Since we will work in groups, your group leader may be able to mentor you. If you are confident in your computer skills (audio/video editing in PowerPoint, Keynote or Prezi) and are interested in serving as a group leader, please visit with me.

 

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

  1. Focus (Final Project Analysis): Demonstrate knowledge of the major values and concerns of 19th Century Paris
  2. Flexibility (Group Work): Develop and execute ideas in a collaborative setting while evaluating the effects of geography, economics, politics, religion, philosophy, and science on the values of the culture and the stylistic features of the arts of the period
  3. Organization (Group Work and Artist’s Statement): Write and speak clearly and logically in presentations and written assignments based upon visual art, history and culture in 19th Century Paris.
  4. Inventiveness (Studio Project): Express Key Concepts discussed throughout the course in a creative visual, audio, digital or performative piece and relate the created material back to those Key Concepts in a written artist’s statement that adheres to English conventions, including spelling, punctuation and grammar.
  5. Execution (Group and Final Presentations): Read, analyze, and assimilate written material while analyzing the predominant feminine and masculine artistic representations of 19th Century Paris.
  6. Curiosity (Final Project Research): Understand and apply Key Concepts through independent research by identifying the key historical events that advanced or hindered creative energies during the time period
  7. Insight (Final Presentation/Studio Project/Artist’s Statement): Exhibit the ability to select and employ contemporary forms of technology while articulating visual literacy and improved analytical and critical thinking skills.

 

  1. Tenacity (Improvement throughout the semester): Display a progressive level of appreciation for arts and their traditions within the context of 19th Century Paris.

 

LEARNING OUTCOMES (PURPOSE OF THIS COURSE):

  • Reading Skills: We will focus on key concepts contained within the assigned text in addition to researching pertinent details from primary texts relevant to the art you discuss in your Group Presentations.
  • Communication Skills: You will work in small groups that emphasize flexibility within a collaborative setting. Each group will present their analysis and research to the class in two oral presentations that exemplify cohesive organization. For the final studio work, you will submit a written artist statement adhering to typical English grammar conventions.
  • Interpersonal Skills: In addition to small group research projects, you will assess one another, critiquing each project based upon content as well as participation. Our classroom is democratic: we will, as an education community, develop each assessment rubric based upon what we identify as the Key Concepts for each of the two group projects.
  • Technology Skills: You will conduct on-line research and submit on-line Peer Critiques. Additionally, you will use PowerPoint, Keynote or Prezi (group’s choice) for Group and Final Presentations.
  • Aesthetic Responsiveness/Craftsmanship: Each presentation is assessed in part upon its aesthetic appeal. You will also produce a studio-based work of art, thereby displaying your own inventiveness through your interpretation of the time period. Your studio project may be visual, digital, audio or performative art.
  • Critical Thinking: Each skill listed above builds upon this key component of any educational endeavor. In this class, we will analyze art through the lens of cultural purpose and definition, through the lens of artistic mediums, and through the lens of the historical period, the manifestation and execution of our shared knowledge. Each project is designed to build upon the Key Concepts from each of the three units discussed, culminating in a final project expressing your continued curiosity of the art and literature of the time period. Final Project includes comparisons, contrasts and critical analysis of at least five works of art from the nineteenth century. You will discuss these works from the perspective of the assigned reading, drawing from your own additional independent research and analysis, thereby providing additional insight into the time period we are studying. Additionally, your final project must tie into the final studio project, and the written artists statement will analyze the correlation between material presented and material created.

 

SPECIAL NEEDS NOTIFICATION:

The school is committed to accommodating the needs of persons with documented disabilities.  It is the responsibility of the student to make the College aware of a documented disability and the need for accommodation(s).  To allow reasonable time for arranging services, you should provide documentation to the Affirmative Action Office as soon as possible.

 

 

 

SYLLABUS APPROVAL

 

 

SIGNATURE OF INSTRUCTOR

 

 

DATE

 

SIGNATURE OF DEAN OR CHIEF ACADEMIC OFFICER

 

 

DATE

 

 

BY ENROLLING IN THIS CLASS, YOU, THE STUDENT, AGREE TO THE TERMS AS ESTABLISHED IN THIS SYLLABUS


CALENDAR

Date

Class Activity

Assignment

Jan 17

Review: Syllabus

Discuss: Group Assignments, Peer Critiques, Rubrics, Studio Project, and Final Project

In-Class Activity: Introduction: “Which Artist Am I?”

Read: Judgment of Paris: Chapters 1-7 (pp. 1-72)

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas

 

Jan 22

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic and hardcopy)

Discuss: Preliminary Motions: The Paris Salon

In-Class Activity: Hobbies, Interests and Specialties: Choosing your subject

Read: Judgment of Paris: Chapters 8-14 (pp. 73-143)

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas

 

Jan 24

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic and hardcopy)

Discuss: Case Law: Paris Academie

 

 

Read: Judgment of Paris: Chapters 15-22 (pp. 144-216)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas

 

Jan 29

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

Discuss: A Case Study: Manet

In-Class Activity: Building a Community Rubric

Read: Judgment of Paris: Chapters 23-31 (pp. 217-292)

Jan 31

Discuss: Co-Defendants: A Unique Exhibit

In-Class Activity: Elements of a Critique

Read: Judgment of Paris: Chapters 32-Epilogue (pp. 293-374)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: My Critique

 

Feb 5

DUE: My Critique (Anonymous Electronic: I will send you the link via email)

Discuss: Final Arguments: Visual Dialogue

Review: Your Judgment

 

Read: Arcades: “Paris, the Capital of the Nineteenth Century” (pp. 3-26)

 

Feb 7

Discuss: Arcades: “The great poem of display” in 19th Century Paris

Read: Flowers: “Three Drafts of A Preface,” “To the Reader” (pp. ix-4)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas contained within this week’s readings

 

Feb 12

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

Discuss: Art “Not made for my women, my daughters or my sisters”

Read: Arcades: “Baudelaire,” selections (pp. 228-231, 234-239, 244, 246, 256-7, 262, 266-8, 272, 275-6, 285-6, 291, 299-301, 314-9, 324-5, 328-9, 332-5, 345-50)

 

Feb 14

Discuss: Modernity as “bizarre, violent, excessive, but always full of poetry”

Read: Flowers: “ Spleen” (all), “Beauty,” “The Ideal” (pp. 24-5, 90-2)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas contained within this week’s readings

 

Feb 19

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

Discuss: Poets that “pray in austere studious moods”

Read: Arcades: “The Flâneur” (pp. 416-55)

Feb 21

Discuss: The Flâneur: Drunken by the “Ananmestic intoxication” of “abstract knowledge”

Read: Flowers: “The Voyage,” “Giantess,” “The Cat,” “Cats,” “The Sun,” “The Red-Haired Beggar Girl” (pp. 26, 64, 83, 106-7, 179)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas contained within this week’s readings

 

Feb 26

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

Discuss: The Cat: “In whom…all is…subtle as harmonious!”

 

Read: Arcades: “Prostitution, Gambling” (pp. 489-515)

Feb 28

Discuss: The vagabond who reinterprets “the image of the city”

Read: Flowers: “Comes the Charming Evening,” “The Gaming Table, “Lesbos,” “Lesbians” (both) (pp. 120-22, 148-58)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

 

Mar 5

Discuss: Workers who earn “a few day’s living and…clothes on their whores”

In-Class Activity: Building our Rubric

Prepare: Slides for Group Presentation. Include Title, Date, Author and Key Concepts from Rubric

 

Mar 7

In-Class Activity: Group Work Day

Complete: Group Presentation: Walking through Paris

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

 

Mar 12

DUE: Group Presentation (100 PTS): Walking through Paris

Complete: Group Presentation: Walking through Paris, Cont.

 

Mar 14

DUE: Group Presentations, Cont. (100 PTS): Walking through Paris

Travel SAFELY!

Mar 19

Spring Break: Relax!

Do Something FUN

Mar 21

Spring Break: Rejuvenate!

Read: Arcades: “Arcades, Magasins de Nouveautes, Sales Clerks” (pp. 31-61)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

Complete: Peer Critiques

 

Mar 26

DUE: Peer Critiques (100 PTS)

Discuss: Art that “enters the service of the businessman”

Read: Flowers: “A Madrigal of Sorrow,” “What a Pair of Eyes Can Promise,” “The Paranymph” (pp. 202-3, 212-216)

 

Mar 28

Discuss: Parisian love of “cold steel”

Read: Arcades: “The Streets of Paris,” “The Commune” (516-526, 788-796)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

 

April 2

Discuss: la ville qui remue — the city that never stops moving”

Read: Flowers: “Parisian Dream,” “Abel and Cain,” “Litany to Satan” (pp. 129-30, 168-174)

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas contained within this week’s readings

Apr 4

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

Discuss: “The great intoxicating monotone” of painting

Read: Arcades: “Haussmannization, Barricade Fighting” (pp. 120-150)

Record: sketches/ideas/perceptions from your weekly 30 minute walk

 

Apr 9

DUE: Walking Journal Timeline

Discuss: Revolt: “The mighty” who “seek to secure their position with blood, with cunning, with magic”

Read: Flowers: “The Ragpickers’ Wine,” “Destruction,” “Epigraph for a Condemned Book,” “The Death of Artists” (pp. 136, 145, 189, 176)

Complete: Bulleted summary of three Key Ideas contained within this week’s readings

 

Apr 11

Discuss: “Sculptors damned and branded for disgrace”

DUE: Key Ideas (electronic)

 

Read: Arcades: “Photography” (pp. 671-692)

Complete: Studio Project Proposal

 

Apr 16

DUE: Written paragraph describing proposed studio project and supply list

Discuss: The photographer creating Art “pour l’artiste

In-Class Activity: Building our Rubric

 

Prepare: Slides for Group Presentation. Include Title, Date, Author and Key Concepts from Rubric

Apr 18

In-Class Activity: Group Work Day

Complete: Group Presentations

 

Apr 23

DUE: Group Presentations (100 PTS): Riots and Revolution

Complete: Group Presentations

 

 

Apr 25

DUE: Group Presentations, Cont. (100 PTS): Riots and Revolution

 

Complete: Peer Critiques

Apr 30

In-Class Activity: Field Trip: DAM

 

Compile: Materials for Studio Project

May 2

DUE: Peer Critiques (100 PTS)

In-Class Activity: Studio Work Day

 

Write: Artist Statement

Prepare: Final Presentation

May 7

Final Presentations  — (500 PTS, MUST SUBMIT FINAL STUDIO ART PROJECT, WALKING JOURNAL and ARTIST’S STATEMENT)

 

Complete: Final Presentation

TBA

Final Presentations, CONT.

 

Have a Great Summer!

 

Note: This schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor. 

Students will be informed of any changes.


COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

Teaching Philosophy:

In my courses, students don’t just strive toward mastery of knowledge in an academically rigorous classroom, but learn how to learn within a creative, self-generated framework built upon three key components: multiple learning modalities, democracy, and community.

Classes are comprised of student-generated questions. We think aloud together developing discourse built upon critical close analysis. We work in groups to prepare projects ranging from community-wide symposiums to student-generated discussions: sharing our ideas with our extended community so we are prepared to actively engage with issues important and relevant to our society as a whole.

My courses appeal to all learning modalities with assessments that span tactile, visual, cultural and audio expression. I believe students learn best in a safe environment. As a community, I ask that students avoid disparaging comments regarding race, religion, sex, gender, culture and politics.

Students assume full responsibility for creation and authorship of their work, looking to outside sources, choosing primary texts over secondary sources, keeping in mind that plagiarism includes borrowing an author's or artist's ideas as well as the order in which he/she presents them.  In research-driven activities, students give credit where credit is due and assimilate as much information as possible in the process.

 

Class Meeting Requirement:

As stated in the College Catalog, you are expected to attend all sessions of each course in which you enroll. When circumstances make regular attendance impossible, you should report such absences to the instructor as soon as possible. Late assignments are not accepted. You will not pass the course if you are absent more than three times throughout the semester. All class sessions will be held in order to meet credit and contract hour requirements. Class cancellations will be made up at the convenience of the instructor and students.

 

Plagiarism Policy:

MLA Format establishes that if two or more consecutive words are borrowed from a source, they must be included in quotation marks with the source listed in a Works Cited page. Additionally, students must include the sources for all images they include in their presentations. For each group assignment, please make sure the final slide includes ALL works used as references, listed according to image being discussed.

 

The first time you are caught plagiarizing, you will receive a failing grade for that assignment. The second time you are caught plagiarizing, you will fail the course, and you will be referred to administration for academic disciplinary action. Please see the school catalogue for additional academic sanctions.

 

A single assignment may not be submitted for more than one course; if you intend to “recycle” your research for separate courses, you must visit with BOTH professors before proceeding.

 

Cell Phone/Electronic Device Policy:

Use of cell phones and other electronic devices during class is strictly prohibited.  If your cell phone rings, if you are text messaging, or if you use other electronic devices (including surfing the web on your laptop/ iPad), I will ask you to leave and you will be counted absent for the day.

 

EVALUATION CRITIERIA

Grading Procedures:

  • Attendance and participation in class discussion develops your mastery of the subject matter.  Please come to class prepared to participate. If you are absent, when you return to class, you must submit a one-page précis of the assigned reading
  • Your grade is weighted to favor tenacity through perseverance exemplifying upward progress throughout the semester. The key to success is consistent improvement (unless, of course, you are exemplary throughout the entire semester).
  • I will notify you of your current grade after each group presentation.
  • I do not accept late work. If you are going to be absent on the day of group presentations, it is up to you to arrange for your material to be presented on that date. Your grade will reflect the way your material is presented by your substitute presenter. Key to success: be well prepared in advance so someone else may cogently present your section of the presentation.
  • Group Presentations and Final will be graded using rubrics. We will adapt the Rubrics together to meet the needs of each assignment. As a class, we will, through democratic process, determine what the objectives are for each unit.
  • Oral group presentations are evaluated on peer critiques that assess application of Key Concepts, equal participation of students, accuracy, and aesthetic and textual appeal.
  • Although each assignment and project is assessed a point value, each component of the grade is weighted:
    • Attendance: 10%
    • Key Concept Summaries: 10% (Due at the beginning of class, no exceptions)
    • Peer Critique (3 Total): 10% (Note: if you are absent on the days of Group Presentations, you will be unable to complete the peer critiques, so you will receive a 0 for that particular assignment)
    • Group Presentations (2 Total): 30% (15% Content, 15% Participation)
    • Studio Work (Including Walking Journal and Artist’s Statement): 20%
    • Final Presentation: 20%
    •  

Course Assignments:

  • Key Concepts (20 Points Each):
    • Bulleted summaries based upon the readings from which we will compose our class Rubrics for the assessments
    • Must be submitted electronically
    • See calendar for listed due dates
  • Weekly Walking Journal (See Below)
  • Studio Project Proposal (See Below)
  • Peer Critiques (50 Points Each):
    • Must be completed for ALL Presentations based upon class-generated Rubrics
    • Three total, including one of me based upon a Rubric we build from the Key Concepts contained within Ross King’s Judgment of Paris

 

Course Assessments:

Rather than assessing learning through a series of exams or written assignments, your progress throughout the course will be evaluated through the following projects:

 

  • Group Presentations (100 Points Each): Multi-media Oral In-Class Presentations
    • Two due throughout the semester
    • Grade based solely upon Peer Critiques: 50% Content, 50% Participation
  • Final Studio (300 Points): Visual, Audio, Digital or Performative Art Project
    • Creative Art Making Component: 200 Points
    • Walking Journal (10 entries): 50 Points
    • Written Project Proposal (Due April 16): 25 Points
    • Written Artist’s Statement: 25 Points
  • Final Oral Presentation (200 Points): Modern Flâneur

 

Grading Scale:

Your weighted point values from the above listed criteria will be calculated into a final percentage, which will determine your overall grade for the course:

 

100 – 93 % = A

92 – 85% = B

84 – 77%= C

76 – 69% = D

68% & Below = F

 

Since I allow for EC to be earned and accumulate throughout the semester, I do not round up your grade. If you earn a 92.8, you will still receive a “B” for the course.

 

EXTRA CREDIT POLICY:

  • I provide extra credit opportunities throughout each class discussion, usually in the form of a question that arises during our discussion. Since these extra credit questions are generated by our discussion, I will not know in advance nor at the end of the class what these questions may be.
  • Your key to earning extra credit is dependent upon your active listening skills in class. If you are absent, you may not submit any extra credit based upon discussion generated on the day you are absent.
  • If you earn “A’s” on all of your assignments, EC points will apply toward your final presentation. Normally, throughout the course of the semester, I provide enough EC opportunities to cover your total Final Presentation.
  • Even if you are exempt from the Final Presentation, you are, however, still required to complete (and present) your studio project and your written Artist’s Statement on the day it is due.

 

 

SUGGESTED READINGS:

  • o Brombert, Beth Archer. (1996). Edouard Manet: Rebel in a Frock Coat. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago.
  • o Clark, T.J. The Painting of Modern Life: Paris in the Art of Manet and His Followers. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1999.
  • o Collins, Bradford. (1996). Twelve Views of Manet's Bar. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
  • o DeVonyar, Jill and Richard Kendall. (2007). Degas and the Art of Japan. New Haven: Yale University Press.
  • o Driskel, P. M. “Manet, Naturalism, and the Politics of Christian Art,” Arts Magazine, vol. 60, no. 3. (Nov. 1985), pp. 44-54.
  • o -----. Representing Belief:  Art, Religion, and Society in l9th-Century France. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1992.
  • o Dumas, Ann, Ed. (2008). Inspiring Impressionism The Impressionists and the Art of the Past. London: Yale University Press.
  • o Foucault, M. (2012) Manet and the object of painting. Bourriaud, N, Trans. London: Tate.
  • o Kendall, Richard, Ed. (2004). Degas by Himself. London: Time Warner Books.
  • o -----. (2004). Monet by Himself. New York: Barnes and Noble.
  • o Matlock, Jann. (1994). Scenes of Seduction:  Prostitution, Hysteria, and Reading Difference in Nineteenth-Century France.  New York: Columbia University Press.
  • o Roos, J.M., "Edouard Manet's 'Angels at the Tomb of Christ':  A Matter of  Interpretation," Arts Magazine, vol. 58 (April 1984), pp. 83-91. Print.
  • o Sondergaard, Sidsel Maria, Ed. (2007). Women in Impressionism: From Mythical Feminine to Modern Woman. Milano: Skira.
  • o Stromber, Susan. (2006). “Manet’s Portrait of Jeanne Duval, Baudelaire’s Mistress Reclining: Femininity, Modernity and New Painting.” Printed in Women in Impressionism. Sidsel Maria Sondergaard, Ed. Milano: Skira.
  • o Thomson, Belinda, Ed. (2004). Gauguin by Himself. London: Time Warner Books.
  • o Tucker, Paul. (1998). Manet's Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.
  • o Wilson-Bareau, Juliet, Ed. (2004). Manet by Himself. London: Time Warner Books.

 

 

BIBLIOGRAPY: If you are interested in a particular subject drawn from my comprehensive bibliography on Nineteenth Century Paris, please visit with me.

 


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

 

  • Special Thanks to my mentor and Humanities Honor’s Thesis Advisor, Jill Heydt-Stevenson, Ph.D., for teaching me to incorporate all learning modalities into the university classroom setting. The Studio Project is built upon her final project in her Fall 1998 19th Century Art and Literature Course, HUMN 4082
  • Thanks to Marilyn Brown, Ph.D. for the rigorous reading component in her Research Seminar: Manet Course, ARTH 6939 from which I have in part derived my suggested reading list
  • Thanks to Jim Elniski, SAIC Instructor, for providing the eight key terms upon which I have built the course objectives

 

 

A Berthe Morisot

 

N Jean-Leon Gerome

B Pierre-August Renoir

 

O Edgar Degas

C Berthe Morisot

 

P Claude Monet

D Edouard Manet

 

Q Pierre-August Renoir

E Edgar Degas

 

R Edouard Manet

F John Singer Sargent  

 

S Edgar Degas

G James McNeill Whistler

 

T James McNeill Whistler

H Edouard Manet

 

U Meissonier

I Claude Monet

 

V Claude Monet

J John Singer Sargent

 

W Paul Cezanne

K Paul Cezanne

 

X Edgar Degas

L John Singer Sargent

 

Y Claude Monet

M Meissonier

 

Z Caillebotte

 

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.