Wright State University
Master of Humanities Program
Fall 1998 Newsletter
The Master of Humanities Newsletter is published quarterly by the Master of Humanities Program, College of Liberal Arts, Wright State University, for the purpose of providing information to graduate students in the Program, to Faculty, to Administration, and to Alumni. While all submissions are welcome, emphasis and priority are given to articles of interest to those associated with the Program and to articles pertaining to Liberal Arts. Please forward submissions to the Graduate Assistant.
Graduate Assistant Diane Dunham
Program Secretary Joan Mullins
Director: Dr. Charles Taylor
Phone - 937-775-2740
Winter Course Offering
A first-time seminar on Willa Cather will be offered Winter Quarter 1999 by Dr. Carol Loranger on Wednesday evening from 7:00 - 9:50 pm. The seminar will focus on major novels and short works of this American writer, with attention given to CatherÕs development of her craft and use of materials. The theoretical perspective will draw from feminist and Bakhtinian approaches to literature. Students will prepare several short discussion papers, participate in a newsgroup and collaborate on producing a fully annotated critical edition of one of the novels. Readings will include the novels My Antonia, O! Pioneers, The Song of the Lark, Death Comes to the Archbishop, A Lost Lady, The ProfessorÕs House, and the stories and essays in Collected Stories of Willa Cather, and Willa Cather on Writing, plus selected theoretical essays and standard essays in Cather criticism.
Prospectus Submission
Two program meetings are scheduled for this Fall Quarter. Any student wishing to submit a prospectus for consideration should do so one week before any of the following meeting dates:
Wednesday, October 28, 1998 - 2:00 - 3:30 pm
(Submit by Wed. Oct. 21 - Humanities Office, 400 Millett)Wednesday, November 18, 1998 - 2:00 - 3:30 pm
(Submit by Thurs. Nov. 12 - Humanities Office, 400 Millett)
Thesis/Project Submission
For December 5, 1998 Commencement, submit by December 4, 1998
For March 20, 1999 Commencement, submit by March 19, 1999
For June 12, 1999 Commencement, submit by June 11, 1999
Please notify the Humanities Office of any change of address
The Master of Humanities Program is pleased to welcome the following new students:
Amy Anderson BFA, Painting/Sculpture, 1996, School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Primary interests are the fine arts, literature, philosophy, and science.
Tammy Bowman BS, Cum Laude, Business Administration, 1984, Cumberland College; MS, Education, University of Dayton, 1987. Primary interest is American politics.
Diana Compston BS, General Studies, 1986, Lock Haven University. Primary interest is health care and the elderly.
Jude Demers BA, Cross-Cultural Studies/ Performance Arts, 1997, Antioch College. Primary interest is society and life.
Bryan Ertsgaard BA, Philosophy/Political Science, 1993, Pacific Lutheran University. Primary interest is classical philosophy.
Jennifer Messer BFA, Electronic Media, 1995, University of Cincinnati. Primary interest is business communication.
Bobbie Mixon BA, Summa Cum Laude, Journalism, 1988, Central State University. Primary interests are political science and creative writing.
Karen Pearce BSN, Magna Cum Laude, Nursing, 1981, Wright State University. Primary interests are art, literature, and music.
Susan Rogers BFA, Magna Cum Laude, Art, 1997, Wright State University. Primary interest is art and how it interacts with other disciplines.
Matthew Schultz BA, English/Political Science, 1998, Wright State University. Primary interests are history and political science.
Kristen Skopek BA, Comparative Literature, 1997, California State University at Long Beach. Primary interest is English literature.
Joan Spain BA, Humanities, 1997, Antioch University. Primary interests are philosophy and world religions.
We have a new logo for the 1998-99 edition of the Master of Humanities Newsletter. It is a Native American version of the symbol of the ouroboros [yorÕoÕborÕos]. Whereas one might not care much for snakes--much less one eating its own tail--it is interesting to note how frequently the symbol of the ouroboros occurs in cultures past and present. For many, including Carl Jung, the ouroboros represents the birth/death continuum, as well as the ideas of regeneration, perfection, and completeness.
Master of Humanities Student Profile
Robert Darrow: Scientist and Humanist
When Robert Darrow attended Amherst College from 1948-52, he found that his pursuit of a degree in Biology and his love of the humanities were not mutually exclusive things. ÒWay back then,Ó says Bob with a wry smile of acknowledgment for the passing years, Òyou had to take classes in literature and the arts to receive any degree.Ó It was one such class in the works of James Joyce and T.S. Eliot that moved Bob to realize that alongside a lifetime of scientific pursuits, he would always be a Òcloset humanist.Ó This particular humanist, far from being in the closet, is now among our ranks in the Master of Humanities Program in addition to still being active in the field of science. And for Bob, these are still not mutually exclusive things.
After receiving his AB in biology from Amherst in 1952, a series of fellowships (National Science Foundation) and graduate teaching assistantships enabled Bob to earn his PhD in biochemistry from The Johns Hopkins University in 1957. These were the Korean War years, and in order to fulfill the National Service requirement, Bob then went to work for two years at the National Institutes of Health, specifically, the National Cancer Institute.
Now we must hop on the S.S. United States with Bob and go with him to London, where Dr. Darrow spent the years 1959-61 working at the National Institute for Medical Research. It was here that he met his now and future wife, Ruth Coyle, who was working at the lab as a technician. Bob came back to the States before he proposed marriage, so this feat had to be accomplished over transoceanic telephones lines to her place of employment, where Òthe whole damn Institute knew what was happening.Ó Ruth and Bob married in May of 1962, and both of them went to work for Harvard Medical School--Bob at Massachusetts General Hospital working on a five-year grant. He lent his teaching services to medical students at Harvard through the biochemistry department, and this brings us to 1967, which brought Bob and Ruth to Yellow Springs, Ohio.
At that time, the Charles F. Kettering Research Laboratory was loosely connected with Antioch University, and Bob was brought on to do research there as a specialist in protein science. Before Bob arrived in Ohio, daughters Jessica and Claudia had been born in 1963 and 1965. Once here, son John appeared in 1967. As a protein chemist, Bob worked with Òeverything from yeast to bugs to livers and eyes.Ó When the Kettering Laboratory began to change its focus from research to the work of a Foundation, the laboratory closed, and Bob went to work for the Batelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, from 1988-89.
During that time, Ruth worked first for the Fels Foundation at Antioch, then at Ohio State University, before receiving an offer of a position as Senior Research Associate in the biochemistry department at Wright State University. For that same department, Bob became an Adjunct Associate Professor, with duties as a researcher and research writer. Ruth is still active in the department, but Bob reduced his work load to writing the odd science paper here or there, his most recent one completed just this summer. Most academicians could appreciate the title of this one in some way: ÒRetinal Light Damage: Differential Effects of Dimethylthiourea on Apoptosis, DNA Oxidation, and Photoreceptor Survival.Ó
Trying to pin Bob down for his current focus in the Humanties Program is a delightfully difficult task. He Òhopes to find [his] own true love,Ó but he would also like to Òretain [his] amateur status.Ó ÒI like too many things, Ò he explains, among them being Shakespeare, Yeats, Eliot, Italian Opera, history, languages, the classics--Òmost everything.Ó For Bob, the idea of le frisson--the shiver of recognition when experiencing art--is the fascinating thing. He enjoys making connections between the past and present through the voice of literature; he is interested in Òhow it speaks to us through the ages.Ó With this focus on the experiential nature of art and literature, it is no wonder that Bob finds this completely compatible with the experiential nature of the science tasks he has enjoyed performing throughout his life. After talking with Bob Darrow, one might come to the conclusion that there is nothing unusual at all about this PhD in biochemistry merging his lifeÕs work with the Humanities. D.D.
Bob as Ògrandpa,Ó with daughter, Claudia and granddaughter, Rachel at BobÕs homestead in Yellow Springs. There has since been an addition to this family: on September 20th of this year, Claudia gave birth to Jason Scott, joining Kristen and Rachel to make Bob grandpa-times-three.
for the next issue
LetÕs talk Òthesis.Ó The graduate assistant is interested in hearing from any and all Master of Humanities Program students about the woes and wonders of selecting (or being selected by) a thesis topic. How have you decided on your topic, or have you? What sort of criteria are you using; what are your ideals and anxieties about the whole process? Please send your thoughts and comments to the graduate assistantÕs e-mail address on the front of this newsletter, or feel free to stop her in the hallway to deliver them in person. Anonymity will be assumed.
