This week was the last week of classes in my undergraduate career, a time that has managed that nefarious trick of the past, of seeming to have taken no time at all, but also contain a lifetime's worth of experiences. Sometimes I think I arrived at Notre Dame last week, but when I remember my everyday life during freshman year- living in Fisher Hall, actually visiting Inside ND more than twice a semester, the mysterious and fateful search for friends- it seems to belong to some remote past.
It is often said that college would be perfect if not for the classes. I've sometimes felt this way, but ultimately some of my most rewarding experiences in college have been in the classroom. Therefore, as a sort of tribute to my years here, I want to list those courses that stand out as being particularly outstanding. To make the selection process easier, I decided to choose one from each semester.
Fall 2007: University Seminar on The Iliad
The University Seminar is Notre Dame's attempt to make sure every student gets at least one taste of the small, discussion-based classes that liberal art-types dream of having in college. I can't vouch for the quality of all of these, but I can imagine no better introduction to college than my seminar, in which we spent an entire semester perusing and discussing Homer's Iliad. Spending so much time on the Iliad allowed us to dedicate a full class to each book (the Iliad's equivalent of a chapter), and although there were times the violent descriptions of death by spear and sword became repetitive, I think it was well worth the time. Even now, four years later, a chance encounter with another member of the class prompted recollections of what may have been the best class of my college time.
Spring 2008: Foundations of Theology
Another landmark of a Notre Dame education is the two classes apiece that each student is required to take in Theology and Philosophy. My standard first Theology course is another case of getting lucky in what is essentially a jackpot. I signed up for a class with a brand-new professor, always a risky endeavour, but one that paid off. He only taught at Notre Dame for the one year, before leaving for Harvard and, presumably, great things. This class did everything it was meant to, providing a solid understanding of the Old Testament, from the Pentateuch to the Prophets, with plenty of insights along the way. The professor's teaching was clear, fair, and entertaining, and success was very achievable without being easy.
Fall 2008: Dostoevsky
This class is a bit of an aberattion in my education, a class that filled my Literature Requirement but is very loosely connected to any other part of time in college. It was a great detour, for it introduced me to one of the world's greatest authors, and my understanding greatly benefited from the insights of class and professor. In other words, the class time and readings were wonderful. The papers, perhaps not so much. Professor Marullo, infamous for his introdutory Russian classes, assigned fiction writing exercises that could be resubmitted until an A was received, a policy that led to countless office visits, criticisms, and revisions. I did get better at writing how he wanted us to, in a cheap, almost pulp style, by the end. While i was frustrated by this at the time, I am now mostly amused by the memory of trying to overcome every academic fiber of my being in writing a scandalized newspaper report of a Russian party interrupted by an insance office worker.
Spring 2009: Reading the Quran
This was my first class on Islam, a topic I've learned about by parts: this class, Islamic Law, Islamic Art and Architecture, Intro to Sufism, etc; while steadfastly avoiding any introductory class. I think it was a good thing to start at the beginning, in order to understand what an strange and opaque text the Quran is on its own, before being introduced to the wide body of traditional exegesis and hadith that serves to explain its meaning, which occupied the last third of the class. Professor Gabriel Reynolds is an excellent instructor, who brings considerable energy into the classroom, and carries high but realistic expectations of his students. My paper concerning the role of the mysterious Dhulqarnain in the Quran may be one of the best I've written.
Fall 2009: One Jesus, Many Portraits
My second Theology course was also a lucky find. The professor, John Meier, is one of the world's foremost experts on the quest for the historical Jesus, but in this class we examined various portrayals of Jesus found in the New Testament. Not that Meier argued that there were inconsistencies, one of the first points he mentioned was that any man, much less the Son of God, is bound to leave different impressions on different people. Along the way I learned an immense amount about the Gospels and the letters. Perhaps what was most impressive was the occassional class when Prof. Meier would manage to make twenty five-odd college students during a morning class really feel the power of a passage from the New Testament, whether a description of the Crucifixion or the Christ-hymn of Philippians.
Spring 2010: Semester in Cairo- There were several good classes here, and the Islamic Art and Architecture was great, but since this is a Notre Dame tribute, I'll leave AUC out. Plus this is already a long entry.
Fall 2010: Books Under Suspicion
This class fulfilled one of my Medieval electives, and it was a great addition to my normal Islamic Middle East courses. The class focused on various controversial works in medieval literature, all but one in English. We started with the Canterbury Tales, but really got going when we entered material that was new for all of us students, including several works by women. The class was small and discussion lively, easy, and informative. If all of that weren't enough, the professor took the whole class to the premiere of Harry Potter VII, and delighted in pointing out that the Tales of Beedle the Bard are directly related to our course readings.
Spring 2011: Medieval Iran
And finally we reach the current, and last, semester. Professor Tor has a bit of a fearsome reputation, but her introduction to the widely underappreciated role of Medieval Iran has been invaluable. The history of Central Asia may be the last great frontier of historians: as Tor often points out, the controversies on the topic are often between three or four scholars who are familiar with the sources. But this course has done more than introduce me to Iran's role in early Islam, it also filled in significant gaps left in other courses which chose not to delve into the messy details of early Muslim political history, and instead fill in gaps with vague generalities. Getting into those details made this course more challenging, but I feel that I'm coming away from it with a much better understanding of Medieval Islam, which is a very good thing considered my focus in Medieval Studies is Islam.
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