The Valente Roundtable includes 12 to 15 highly motivated students and four professors, each one bringing a different form of expertise to the study of important books that enrich student understanding of the arts, history, literature, business, politics, and life in general. The Seminar is a three-credit course that meets every week. The books chosen are ones that the faculty members do not already know and that do not come from their field of expertise. This way the seminar has no “teacher” in the usual sense. Students and faculty members read and learn together, and it is the student participants who lead the discussion.
The Valente Center Undergraduate Roundtable Seminar is a three-credit course in which a small group of dedicated students meets every week with five members of the faculty, representing different disciplines, to read and discuss challenging books of recognized importance and value. The books are ones that the faculty members do not already know and that do not come from their field of expertise. This way the seminar has no "teacher" in the usual sense. Students and faculty members read and learn together, and it is the student participants who lead the discussion.
Have questions about how the Seminars work? See FAQ or contact Prof. Johannes Eijmberts
Spring Semester 2020 Undergraduate Roundtable
Pursuits of Capital
Faculty: Ernesto Schirmacher [Department of Mathematics], Johannes Eijmberts [Department of Global Studies], Ralph Pennel [Department of English and Media Studies], Katie Leahy [Bentley University Library]
Books:
How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Moshin Hamid
The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
The topic of the Spring 2020 roundtable is: How do we measure success? Is it accumulated wealth? Is it emotional well-being and happiness? This course will broadly investigate the corruptibility or incorruptibility of the human spirit, when the influences of cultures which prioritize pursuits of financial and cultural capital press upon us in nearly all social, personal, and professional contexts. We will examine these themes in a variety of ways through a wide range of media, including two novels, films, podcasts, and other literatures, which explore the concerns expressed by the themes and their greater interpersonal and sociopolitical impacts. In this course, students will develop or build on emerging presentation and reading and analysis skills through engagement with the texts and the corresponding assignments. Classroom methods will include discussion, student presentations, a midterm, and a reflection paper at semester’s end.
Grades for the seminar are based on participation, a reflection paper, and a final research paper. The seminar meeting time is to be determined. The Valente Center provides lunch and covers the cost of all books as well as the cost of trips to local cultural events and/or dinners as selected by students and faculty.
Johannes Eijmberts
Coordinator of the Valente Roundtable
Office Adamian 247, extension 2585