THE UNITED STATES:
ITS PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE
CHINA AND JAPAN:
LOOKING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK
PSYCHOLOGY AND THE HUMAN CONDITION
CULTURE TIME:
APPRECIATING MUSIC AND ART
The conference fee is $1,425 and includes all seminars below. (Each seminar is 90 minutes.) Classes generally take place when we’re at sea, between the hours of 8:30am and 7:30pm.
Speaker: Louis Masur, Ph.D.
This course will examine the Presidency of Andrew Jackson, one of the most admired and vilified leaders in American history. His administration addressed fundamental questions in American society: states rights, banking, industrialization, the plight of the Indians, and party politics. His White House also witnessed scandal over ladies’ reputations and cabinet intrigue. The nation he left in 1837, after his second term, was a far different place than the one he began to lead in 1829, a nation quite recognizable to us still today.
Speaker: Louis Masur, Ph.D.
Abraham Lincoln is considered our greatest President. He is also one of the most controversial. From the time he was elected down to this day, people have debated various aspects of his personality and politics. Was he depressed? Why did he tell so many stories? Was he truly opposed to slavery? Did he free the slaves? Did the Union prevail because of his leadership or despite him? In this class we will take a close look at Lincoln, seeing the role joke-telling played in his life, assessing his political style and temperament, and focusing on the question of Lincoln and slavery. In the end, we will hope to uncover the man and not the myth.
Speaker: Louis Masur, Ph.D.
It’s nearly impossible to remember the most significant events in our nation’s history without having specific images immediately appear in our mind’s eye: photographs in color and in black and white that tell stories of spectacular achievement and stunning tragedy. However, there is far more information and misinformation in a classic photo than most of us realize. Professor Masur explains how it’s possible to view photographs in an entirely new and fascinating way, but how taken together, the three are nothing short of a blueprint of the transformation of the United States from World War II through the Bicentennial to the catastrophe of 9/11.
Speaker: Wendy Schiller, Ph.D.
Is the United States the democratic republic that our Founders envisioned? What would the Founders have to say about the current struggle over war powers between the executive and congressional branches? What would their position be on modern-day gun control, gay marriage, and the role of religion in civil and political life? This class explores the ideas and beliefs that influenced key actors in our nation’s founding and assesses the state of American democracy today in light of their expectations. We will look at the writings of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and others.
Speaker: Jennifer Lawless, Ph.D.
More people can name the judge who presided over the O.J. Simpson case than the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. More women and men know the color of Monica Lewinsky’s infamous dress than the statute that conferred investigative power on Kenneth Starr. And each year, more Americans watch American Idol than the State of the Union Address. Yet Americans are polled — on a daily basis — about their attitudes regarding troop levels in Iraq, fiscal policy, and the best way to bring about universal health care. Considering how little Americans know about politics, why have politicians, policy makers, and pundits come to rely so heavily on public opinion polls? Better yet, why are Americans so disgruntled when the pollsters get it wrong? Professor Lawless explains the common pitfalls associated with gathering “snapshots” of what Americans are thinking and suggests that we should raise an eyebrow to everything we read.
Speaker: Wendy Schiller, Ph.D.
If you landed on Earth today and someone tried to explain the U.S. Congress to you, it would be baffling to say the least. You might walk away remembering two terms: The Speaker of the House, and the Filibuster. The truth is that the machinery of federal legislating is vastly more complex than these two terms, but they represent fundamental differences between the House and the Senate that are vital to understanding how Congress works, and evaluating whether it works. This class will delve deep into the halls of Congress and take participants from the personal offices of members to the back rooms of committees to the House and Senate floors themselves. It is a journey that requires stamina, but at the end, students will walk out with the tools to make informed judgments about whether Congress is equipped to govern in the 21st century.
Speaker: Wendy Schiller, Ph.D.
If you were asked to draw a roadmap for President Obama for the next two years, where would you start? The midterm elections sent a strong signal to President Obama that voters were unhappy with the direction of the country, but that message did not include a clear signal about which way to turn. Obama will have to make choices about when to compromise, as in the case of extending the Bush tax cuts, and when to stand President Obama’s ground. The factors that explain those choices include the economy, ideology, partisanship, the Electoral College Map, party activists, and his own personal beliefs. How he balances all these factors will be the focus of this class, and we will discuss the potential costs and benefits of his choices, not only to Mr. Obama, but to the nation. We will also compare and contrast President Obama’s second two years to those of Presidents Reagan, G. W. Bush, and Clinton.
Speaker: Alan Wachman, Ph.D.
China is an undeniable economic superpower. Even as the economies of other countries fell into recession, China’s growth barely slowed. What does the rise of China mean for the future of the world and for the United States? The question is one being actively debated inside the White House and Congress, the corridors of the Pentagon, the halls of American industry, and in family living rooms around the country. The reality is, what is happening now in China, and what will happen in the future, will affect all of us in a myriad of ways. This course looks at China’s rise, examining how it brings with it both benefits and grave challenges.
Speaker: Alan Wachman, Ph.D.
In the 1980s, it seemed that Japan was an economic juggernaut that could not be stopped. From Rockefeller Center to Columbia Pictures, to CBS Records, Japanese snapped up the icons of American prosperity. Japanese consumer products filled American homes and Japanese cars displaced American autos on U.S. highways. American factory workers imitated Japanese teamwork and discipline, as an erstwhile adversary appeared a future master. And then? By the mid-1990s, Japan went from being what one Harvard professor called “Number One” to number “none.” This presentation will review the apparent rise, recession, and re-emergence of Japan. It will consider the influence of history, patterns in Japanese civilization, American self-image, racism, and the implications for strategic re-alignments in Pacific Asia.
Speaker: Paul Bloom, Ph.D.
We struggle with moral issues every day of our lives, as we decide how to treat our friends and family, what foods to eat, how much to give to charity, and which political party to support. Some intuitions about right and wrong are universal and automatic. But others vary dramatically. For instance, Americans strongly disagree about whether abortion is immoral, whether gay people should be permitted to marry, and whether torture is ever acceptable. This course reviews the latest psychological research that explores what occurs in our brains when we make these moral judgments. The goal of this class is to better understand the psychological foundations of our moral sense.
Speaker: Paul Bloom, Ph.D.
Religious beliefs are universal — most people on Earth believe in God, life after death, and the divine creation of humans and other animals. In fact, for a great number of people these subjects reflect their strongest and most basic core beliefs. But where does this belief come from? Why is religion so popular? Will its popularity ever change? This class will discuss evidence from several psychological studies — including cross-cultural research and experiments with young children — that suggest that religious belief is a fundamental part of human nature.
Speaker: Alan Wachman, Ph.D.
Can war ever be morally justified? If so, under what conditions? If not, why not? If war can be morally justified, are there limits to what measures one can use in war to accomplish one’s aims? Or, is it really the case that “all is fair in love and war”? Who gets to decide? What is the status of international law that seeks to limit what measures are used in war? Does the effort to distinguish just and unjust wars apply only to states, or can non-state actors also justify war under certain conditions? If non-state actors, such as a minority seeking independence, are also justified in making war, how does one distinguish just war and terrorism? Is there really a difference, or does our perception of difference depend on whether we sympathize with the cause or oppose it? This presentation will introduce participants to the vigorous moral controversies about the concept of “just war” and “justice in war.”
Speaker: Paul Bloom, Ph.D.
Why is it that people will praise an original Rembrandt, but will dismiss a perfect forgery as inferior? Why do some people enjoy modern art? Why do young children like to draw pictures? Many psychologists and art critics have argued that our appreciation of art is mostly due to early exposure to culture. Professor Bloom’s experimental research challenges this view. He argues that there is something hard-wired in all of us that underpins why we like the art we like and why we don’t like even perfect knock-offs. Indeed, there are hints that our capacity to understand and take pleasure in art is a human universal that emerges spontaneously in human development.
Speaker: Michael Rose, Ph.D.
The beauty of classical music is mysterious, but there’s no mystery to developing skills for listening to it. All you need is love — that is, a loving attention to all the signs composers are always giving us, inviting us inside their music, right to the heart of how they’ve put together their symphonic and chamber music. Professor Rose will show you how Bach turns a simple bass line into a universe of spiritual insight, how Mozart sets off the brightest orchestral fireworks of all time, how Schumann throws a party for all his favorite composers, and how Béla Bartók takes on Beethoven, matching the Master note for note, death-defying risk for risk. These are just a few of the "audible signs" always waiting for us in classical music.
Speaker: Michael Rose, Ph.D.
What do the finale of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and the Beatles song “Hey Jude” have in common? For one thing, the scope of each work is unprecedented: a vast choral movement and a seven-minute song are radical breakthroughs for symphonic music and rock ’n roll. But it’s the spiritual message shared by these pieces that binds them together across time and stylistic difference. Professor Rose will help you hear the connections between them, along with a powerful link to a sonnet by Shakespeare.
Speaker: Michael Rose, Ph.D.
Just like the first troubadours of the late 12th century, these four great songwriters of the late 20th century tell stories of impossible love, made possible by the singing imagination. There is no limit to the generosity of these composers, whose great songs stand at the emotional center of so many lives, giving strength, teaching courage, speaking wisdom, and bearing witness to suffering. Professor Rose will dig into one or two songs by each artist with you. Like a good cruise lounge lizard, he’ll also take requests.
264 S. Meridith Ave., Pasadena, CA 91106 • 650-787-5665 • Copyright 2011 © InSight Cruises
