 |
Back to 313Y Syllabus |
|
http://classes.colgate.edu/csoja/darwin/ |
|
Core Distinction 313 Darwin and the Victorian Age of Discovery |
| Textbooks: | Appleman, P. ed. 2001.
Darwin: A Norton Critical Edition (3rd edition).
Keynes, R. 2001. Annie's Box: Charles Darwin, His Daughter and Human Evolution. Osborne, R. 1999. The Floating Egg: Episodes in the Making Geology. |
| Week | Topic | Invited Lecturer |
Date/Field Trip |
| 1 30 Aug |
The meaning of fossils & pre-Darwinian ideas about evolution | Hascall Hall and Linsley Museum in Lathrop Hall |
|
Readings: Appleman text; Gregory's article on Changing Concepts
of the Nature and Significance of Fossils: 108-118;
The Floating Egg: Ch. 3
Assignment: Choose dates for group and final presentation; What are fossils and explain their
cultural significance in the 17th and 18th centuries? (Before our first class
meeting, choose two specimens on display in the Linsley Museum and two evident in the building stones of Hascall
Hall to explore in greater detail how fossils were interpreted within a nascent scientific-"evolutionary" context before Darwin
Ñ pls draw sketches to indicate your specific specimens).
|
| 2 6 Sept |
UK's prehistoric bestiary & the map that changed the world | 8 Sept: Field trip to Geer Road "quarry" and to the Museum of the Earth, Ithaca |
|
Readings: Appleman text; The Floating Egg: x-348
Assignment:
In what ways did discoveries of fossils of extinct vertebrates in the UK in the late 18th - early 19th
centuries and William Smith's map pave the way for Darwin?
Field Trip Assignment:
Compose your 1st letter to Darwin as per instructions given during the field trip (for ideas, refer to Blackboard
copy of G. Dover's book, Dear Mr. Darwin: Letters on Evolution of Life and Human Nature); e-copy due next class.
|
| 3 13 Sept |
Charles Darwin, the voyage of the Beagle, & Annie's box | Local cemetery (do on own before class) |
|
Readings: Appleman text; Annie's Box:xi-211
Assignment: Selection/discussion of final research topic; Use the cemetery data to explain the
influence that rates of juvenile mortality in the Victorian age had on Darwin's emerging ideas about evolution, and
explain how Darwin's scientific activities connected to some aspect of his life - (choose one) privileged background; career
expectations and disappointments; travels; domestic life; fragile health; delayed publication of his ideas.
Field Trip Assignment:
e-copy due at beginning of class (see field trip handout and description above).
|
| 4 20 Sept |
The Origin of Species | Species & finch exercises |
|
Readings: Appleman text; Annie's Box: 212-297; Mayr's ariticle Darwins's
Influence on Modern Thought: 79-83 (available thru Blackboard)
Assignment: Proposal (1 page) of final research paper due; Explain Darwin's
concept of "species", his evidence for evolution, and the basis for his ideas about "natural selection"; draft outline due
by presenters of next week's group presentation
|
| 5 27 Sept |
Political ramifications in Victorian Britain v. US | Student presentations |
|
Readings: Appleman text
Assignment: Group presentation by students:
In what ways did Darwin's ideas together with the Industrial Revolution - fuel political unrest in the Victorian age
(Britain v. US)?; draft outline due by presenters of next class's group presentation
|
| 6 4 Oct |
Social reform & eugenics in Victorian Britain v. US | Student presentations |
|
Readings: Appleman text
Assignment: Group presentation by students:
In what ways did Darwin's ideas - together with the Industrial Revolution - fuel social reformation and
the eugenics movement in the Victorian age (Britain v. US)?; draft outline due by presenters of
next class's group presentation
|
| 7 11 Oct |
Expression of Darwinian concepts in literature |
|
Readings: Appleman text
Assignment: Group presentation by students:
How did Victorian writers respond to and resist Darwin's ideas?; draft outline due by presenters of next class's group presentation
|
| 8 18 Oct |
Expressions of Darwinian concepts in Victorian art and music | Student presentations |
|
Readings: Appleman text
Assignment: Group presentation by students:
How did Victorian artists - painters and musicians - respond to and resist Darwin's ideas?; draft outline due by presenters of next class's group presentation
|
| 9 25 Oct |
Research papers: ethics, sociobiology, and evolutionary psychology | R. Keynes1 | Video conference with Darwin's great-great-grandson, author of Annie's Box |
|
Readings: Appleman text
Assignment: Draft outline of research paper, 2nd letter to Darwin (3-5 pgs), and annotated reference list due
Field Trip Assignment: Compose your 2nd letter to Darwin as per instructions given during the
teleconference (for ideas, refer to Blackboard copy of G. Dover's book, Dear Mr. Darwin: Letters on Evolution of Life and Human Nature); copy due next class
|
| 10 1 Nov |
Religious reactions in Victorian Britain & the modern creationist movement |
|
Readings: Appleman text; articles on "intelligent design" (paper copies
to be distributed or on Blackboard)
Assignment: What was so "dangerous" about Darwin's ideas, and in what
specific ways did Darwin's ideas challenge
Christian beliefs in the Victorian age and today?
Field Trip Assignment:
teleconference essay due at beginning of class (see handout and description above)
|
| 10 30 Nov |
Did Darwin get it all right? Revolutionary insights from genetics & the Galápagos & the fossil record | D. McHugh2 |
|
Readings: Appleman text; Dear Mr. Darwin: x-118; Grant's article on Adaptive
Radiation of Darwin's Finches: 130-139; Prothero's article on The Fossils Say Yes in Nov 05 Natural History issue on
"Darwin & Evolution":52-56 (paper copies to be distributed or available thru Blackboard)
Assignment: How did the discovery of genetics amplify or change Darwin's theory?
What kinds of new genetic evidence suggest that factors other than natural selection contribute to the evolutionary process?
What are the implications for (and beyond) science?
|
| 12 15 Nov |
Catch up, review, and prep for the symposium |
| 13-14 29 Nov, 6 Dec |
Student symposium (presentations of final research) + SETs | Final research paper due by 5 pm on Friday, 7 December |
|
Back to 313Y Syllabus |
|
http://classes.colgate.edu/csoja/darwin/ |
