Writing 5 Section Descriptions for Winter Term 2025

Writing 5 introduces Dartmouth students to the writing process that characterizes intellectual work in the academy and in educated public discourse. Each section of Writing 5 organizes its writing assignments around challenging readings chosen by the instructor. The course focuses primarily on the writing process, emphasizing careful reading and analysis, thoughtful questions, and strategies of effective argument. Below you will find a list of the courses being offered next term.

Writing 5 -- Expository Writing

Section 01

Hour: 12; Instructor: John Barger

Course Title: A Poetry of Horror
Description: Traditionally marginalized, horror nowadays creates a unique space for artists to explore challenging questions about gender, race, disability, and queer bodies. Though horror is often associated with film, our course will discuss where film (traditionally focused on the “outside”) and poetry (traditionally “inside”) intersect. We’ll examine two poetry collections (Ariel by Plath, and Killing Floor by Ai) and two films (A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night by Amirpour, and Trouble Every Day by Denis).
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Plath, Sylvia. Ariel. Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 1965. ISBN: 9780060732608.
Ai. Killing Floor. Tavern Books, 1978. ISBN: 9781935635727.

Section 02

Hour: 2; Instructor: John Barger

Textbook(s)Required:

Plath, Sylvia. Ariel. Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 1965. ISBN: 9780060732608.
Ai. Killing Floor. Tavern Books, 1978. ISBN: 9781935635727.

Section 03

Hour: 11; Instructor: James Binkoski

Course Title: What is Knowledge?
Description: Epistemology is the study of knowledge, evidence, and justification. Its questions are of basic, primary importance—and they’re everywhere. Can you know that climate change constitutes an existential threat even if you’re not completely certain? Can two people disagree over the existence of God and yet both be rational? Why do groups that share evidence, like the American public, nonetheless polarize? We'll pursue these questions and more as we study the methods of academic writing.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 04

Hour: 3A; Instructor: Eugenie Carabatsos

Course Title: Understanding the Craft of Dramatic Writing
Description: What makes for a good story? Whether it’s a fictional podcast, television show, film, or play, all dramatic mediums start from the same storytelling fundamentals. This course will explore how writers from each medium craft dramatic stories. Throughout the term, students will discuss and write essays about the essentials of dramatic writing including structures, characters, and worldbuilding. Class will be discussion based and centered around the creative materials and student essays.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 05

Hour: 10A; Instructor: Rebecca Clark

Course Title: Image and Text
Description: This class will look at a variety of works—including ekphrastic poetry, graphic novels, and advertisements—that combine images with text to tell stories. How, we will ask, do words and images play with and/or against one another when we read these hybrid works? How does their combination help authors create fantastical new worlds, document quotidian realities, or navigate and narrate difficult histories? And how, most importantly, can we analyze, research, and write about them?
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Bechdel, Alison. Fun Home. Mariner Books Classics, June 5, 2007. ISBN: 9780618871711.
Luiselli, Valeria. The Story of My Teeth. Coffee House Press, September 15, 2015. ISBN: 9781566894098.
Nguyen, Diana Khoi. Ghost of. Omni Dawn, April 3, 2018. ISBN: 9781632430526.
Rankine, Claudia. Citizen. Graywolf Press, October 7, 2014. ISBN: 9781555976903.
Tomine, Adrian. Shortcomings. Drawn and Quarterly, April 28, 2009. ISBN: 9781897299753.

Section 06

Hour: 2A; Instructor: Rebecca Clark

Textbook(s)Required:

Section 07

Hour: 10; Instructor: Sara Chaney

Course Title: Stories of Neurodiversity
Description: How does the changing story of autism and ADHD impact the experience of writers who identify as neurodivergent? How have race, gender and sexuality been included (or excluded) from our understanding of neurodivergent identity? In this Writing 5, we will think together about how neurodivergence is expressed in literature, with a particular focus on recent memoirs. What can we learn about perception, thought, and identity through close readings of these works?
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Higashida, Naoki. The Reason I Jump. Random House Publishing Group, 2016. ISBN: 081298515X.
Prahlad, Anand. The Secret Life of a Black Aspie. University of Alaska Press, 2017. ISBN: 1602233217.

Section 08

Hour: 3A; Instructor: William Craig

Course Title: Wild Hopes: Anarchism in Popular Culture
Description: Most of us know very little about anarchism, but we're quick to declare, "It can't work." For more than two centuries, artists and writers have offered real and imagined anarchies as histories, inspirations and warnings. We'll survey representations of anarchism in both "high" and "low" literature, from journalism to poetry. We'll sharpen our writing, critical thinking and research skills as we appreciate artworks that have kept anarchism alive in our fears and in our dreams.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Camus, Albert. The Plague. Vintage. ISBN: 9780593082096
Le Guin, Ursula K. The Dispossessed. Harper Perennial Modern Classics. ISBN: 9780060512750
Moore, Alan. V for Vendetta. DC Comics. ISBN: 9781779511195
Ward, Colin. Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. ISBN: 978-0192804778
Williams, Joseph and Bizup, Joseph. Style: The Basics of Clarity and Grace, 5th edition. Pearson 2014. ISBN: 0321953304: Attention: This ISBN number is for the 5th Edition. Please buy this edition and no other. Other editions differ in many ways.

Section 09

Hour: 9L; Instructor: Phyllis Deutsch

Course Title: Gender and the Holocaust
Description: This course examines the writing process through the lens of Gender and the Holocaust. At first, Holocaust writing was male generated, but by the 1980s, women and gay historians and survivors began to challenge the templates created by their more traditional male predecessors. Three extraordinary memoirs – one male, two female - two films and a range of secondary sources bring the topic to life.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Levi, Primo. Survival in Auschwitz. Simon & Schuster, 1996. ISBN: 9780684826806.
Bruck, Edith. Who Loves You Like This. Paul Dry Books, 1959. ISBN: 9780966491371.
Kluger, Ruth. Still Alive. The Feminist Press at CUNY, 1992. ISBN: 9781558614369.

Section 10

Hour: 10; Instructor: Phyllis Deutsch

Textbook(s)Required:

Section 11

Hour: 10A; Instructor: Christopher Drain

Course Title: Ethics of the Internet
Description: Topics include “platform” and “surveillance capitalism;” algorithmic harms and digital surveillance (whether governmental or private); disinformation and echo chambers in social media; and first amendment issues in the wake of trolling and social media bans. We will also explore more philosophical aspects of technological mediation, including questions concerning agency, design, and the political status of technical artifacts, with the goal of coming to terms with whether technology can ever be a morally neutral enterprise.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Srnicek, Nick. Platform Capitalism . Polity, 2016. ISBN: 9781509504879.

Section 12

Hour: 2A; Instructor: Christopher Drain

Textbook(s)Required:

Srnicek, Nick. Platform Capitalism . Polity, 2016. ISBN: 9781509504879.

Section 13

Hour: 3B; Instructor: James Godley

Course Title: Truth in Fiction
Description: This class examines what it means that works of fiction can touch on subjective truths or even distort them. In creative fiction and theoretical studies, we will explore questions such as what "truth" exactly means when we're talking about made up things, fantasies and myths of everyday life, distinctions of truth and lie, how stories contribute to our individual and collective accounts of ourselves, and what the status of fiction is in our "post-truth" era.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Barnes, Julian. A History of the World in 10 \u00BD Chapters.Vintage, 1989. ISBN: 978-0224031905.
Graff, Gerald and Birkenstein, Cathy. They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing, 8th edition W.W. Norton & Co., ISBN: 978-1324070030.

Section 14

Hour: 2; Instructor: Emily Kane

Course Title: Future Fantasies: Imagining the Posthuman
Description: Science fiction creates worlds in which the seemingly impossible is made real. How might representations of the future address current anxieties raised by technological advances like A.I.? This course examines the ethics of confronting otherness in science fiction. It also considers the real processes of “othering” across cultures, ethnicities and genders. Through writing and revising three analyses, you will learn to examine and refine your own ideas and form strategies for forming a convincing analysis.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Vandermeer, Jeff. Annihilation. Picador, 2014. ISBN: 978-1250824042.
Ishiguro, Kazuo. Klara and the Sun. Vintage, 2022. ISBN: 978-0593311295.
Butler, Octavia. Dawn. Grand Central Publishing, 2021. ISBN: 978-1538753712.

Section 15

Hour: 9L; Instructor: Clara Lewis

Course Title: Authenticity: Self & Society
Description: Social scientists argue that authenticity is now more highly valued than ever. Realness is idealized. Yet the same social forces that make the performance of authenticity a valued marketing ploy also make us crave connection and self-knowledge. These tensions take center stage in our seminar, which includes readings by social scientists and journalists on how we perform our identities, conform to social expectations, and change overtime.
Divisional Affiliation: Social Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 16

Hour: 10; Instructor: Clara Lewis

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 17

Hour: 12; Instructor: Erkki Mackey

Course Title: What is Consciousness?
Description: Consciousness is both familiar and mysterious. We know what it’s like to be conscious, but science hasn’t explained why we are, and there is reason to doubt it ever will. Where does that leave us? We’ll examine some philosophical and scientific reasoning that might lead us to a conclusion—or, more likely, to more questions—as we read two short essays on consciousness and excerpts from Quantum Enigma and Why Materialism is Baloney.
Divisional Affiliation: Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 18

Hour: 12; Instructor: Douglas Moody

Course Title: Foundations of Dartmouth: Samson Occom, Edward Mitchell, and the History and Cultures of Native American, African American, and “Minority” Students at Dartmouth College
Description: Samson Occom (1723-1792) was a protégé of Eleazar Wheelock, and although he was never a student at Dartmouth College, Occom’s involvement with the college was crucial. Another trailblazer at Dartmouth was Edward Mitchell, Class of 1828, who was the Dartmouth's first Black student. We consider these foundational stories as they relate to civil rights and educational access for Natives, African Americans, and other minorities at Dartmouth and in the U.S.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 19

Hour: 10A; Instructor: Rachel Obbard

Course Title: Machina et Deus: Sport, Technology, and Ethics
Description: This course examines the intersection of sport, technology, and ethics. Students will read many types of sources, including scholarly writing from the fields of philosophy, bioethics, gender studies, and science/engineering. We will first examine the dilemma of doping through a close reading of pro cyclist David Millar’s memoir “Racing Through the Dark” (2015). In the second part of the course, we will compare scholarly papers on the topic of hyperandrogenic athletes in women’s sports.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

Millar, David. Racing Through the Dark. Touchstone, 2011 or 2012. ISBN: 978-1501133657.

Section 20

Hour: 2A; Instructor: Rachel Obbard

Textbook(s)Required:

Millar, David. Racing Through the Dark. Touchstone, 2011 or 2012. ISBN: 978-1501133657.

Section 21

Hour: 10A; Instructor: Katherine Riley

Course Title: Word Meaning in Context
Description: Each of us knows thousands of words. We use them without stumbling on their meaning; we must to some degree, or we wouldn’t speak at all. But sometimes we’re struck by words, halted by meanings heretofore unremarked. What is word meaning? What are the contexts of its use? Are these different questions or the same? We’ll consider scientific, philosophic, cultural, artistic, artificial intelligence and other perspectives, examining the new questions that arise when they’re juxtaposed.
Divisional Affiliation: Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 22

Hour: 2A; Instructor: Katherine Riley

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 23

Hour: 9L; Instructor: Ellen Rockmore

Course Title: Free Speech on the College Campus
Description: Who is allowed to say what on college campuses? We will learn about the right to free speech and why it is considered essential to liberty and democracy. We will read judicial opinions defining the legal parameters of the first amendment, particularly as it pertains to “hate speech.” Then we will consider the specific case of the university, where values such as equality, inclusion, and pedagogy may sometimes be in tension with freedom.
Divisional Affiliation: Social Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 24

Hour: 10; Instructor: Sarah Smith

Course Title: Food for Thought
Description: Brillat-Savarin wrote “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you who you are.” Indeed, food choices can reflect our families, religious beliefs, ethics, and emotions. Our decisions may be influenced by the media, our peers, or simply by convenience. What we eat also influences how food is grown, and therefore has wider reaching effects, such as on the environment, the economy, and public health. Readings include personal stories, popular press, and scholarly papers.
Divisional Affiliation: Social Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 25

Hour: 11; Instructor: Sarah Smith

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 26

Hour: 11; Instructor: Amanda Wetsel

Course Title: Religion and the State in the Kyrgyz Republic
Description: How should we think about the end of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the Kyrgyz Republic’s more than three decades of independence? How have Kyrgyzstanis represented and discussed the continuities and changes? How can careful writing and thinking about Kyrgyzstan challenge simple ideas about modernity, tradition, belonging, hope, and faith? This course explores how Kyrgyzstanis represent their country. We will analyze a film, a novella, an anthology of interviews, and scholarly articles.
Divisional Affiliation: Social Sciences

Textbook(s)Required:

Chingiz Aitmatov. Jamilia. Telegram Books, 2008. ISBN: 9781846590320.
Sam Tranum. Life at the Edge of Empire: Oral Histories of Soviet Kyrgyzstan.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, June 16, 2012. ISBN: 978-1469961132.

Section 27

Hour: 12; Instructor: Amanda Wetsel

Textbook(s)Required:

Section 28

Hour: 10A; Instructor: Leigh York

Course Title: Literatures of Refusal
Description: Melville’s scrivener Bartleby refuses every request with “I would prefer not to.” Toni Morrison argued that there is a “free space opened up by refusing to respond [to] somebody else’s gaze.” And for Audre Lorde, refusal is central to “Learning to Write.” By analyzing literature that performs different modes of refusal—that writes against and around normative expectations and hierarchies—we will see how diverse authors have tackled questions of power and resistance.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 29

Hour: 2A; Instructor: Leigh York

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 30

Hour: 11; Instructor: Rosetta Young

Course Title: Interaction Ritual: the Novel and Sociology
Description: How do we define social interaction? How do we know the difference between a successful and an unsuccessful encounter? In this course, using both novels and works of sociology, we will think through these questions. Novels will include Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Nella Larsen’s Passing, Danzy Senna’s New People, Sally Rooney’s Normal People; the sociology will include work by Erving Goffman, W.E.B. Du Bois, Pierre Bourdieu, Kimberlé Crenshaw, and Shamus Khan.
Divisional Affiliation: Arts & Humanities

Textbook(s)Required:

None

Section 31

Hour: 2; Instructor: Rosetta Young

Textbook(s)Required:

None