Deb Evans

Constructing Memory: American Monuments and Memorials
“Democracy has no monuments,” John Quincy Adams once famously argued. “It strikes no medals; it bears the head of no man upon its coin; its very essence is iconoclastic.” Yet nearly 250 years after America’s founding, monuments and memorials surround us. In this course we will explore the memorializing impulse; the complexity and depth of emotion evoked by memorial acts; and the oftentimes heated controversies about modes, placement, and subject of representation. We will consider how and why America chooses to memorialize certain people and events, and what is gained—and sometimes erased—in the process. By choosing among a broad range of traditional and non-traditional modes of representation, we will consider how public memorials both reflect and shape Americans’ shared cultural values. The course will include site visits to local monuments and projects in which we propose designs or redesigns of memorials for a 21st century audience.

Portraits of the Lady: The New Woman in American Literature & Culture
At the end of the 19th century, women fought against restrictions limiting their sphere of influence. As they sought to exercise more control over their lives personally, socially, and economically, this “New Woman,” and the way she was changing the face of society, became a popular subject in literature and art. In this course we will consider portraits of women by well-known American authors (such as James, Chopin, Wharton, Sui Sin Far, Cather, Larsen, Hurston) alongside those by prominent painters, sculptors, photographers, illustrators, and filmmakers. We will consider how representations of women through the early twentieth century embodied the values of the nation and codified both the fears and aspirations of its citizens. 3 hrs. lect.

Reacting to the Past: America in Turmoil - From Chicago, 1968 to Watergate
In this course students will dive deep into the politically charged landscape of the 1960s and 1970s via two Reacting to the Past games—Chicago, 1968: The Democratic National Convention and Watergate, 1974-1975. As participants, students will research and present the perspectives of historical characters—sometimes with values quite different from their own—in lively debate. These games do not have a fixed script: students will find themselves examining classic documents, collaborating, making public speeches, plotting—and in the end, perhaps even rewriting history. As students deepen their understanding of this era, they will also gain insights into what might be at stake in present and future historical inflection points.