Close Reading: Sharpening Assessment and Alleviating Isolation
NUEL 594, Spring 2024 (Hybrid, 3 hours)
Instructors:
Geraldine Gorman, RN, PhD & Shirley Stephenson, APRN, MS, MFA
Course Description:
The Humanities complete the sciences. They tell the story behind the data. Close reading is a method which invites the reader to slow down, pay attention, and observe the details that comprise meaning. We all have much to learn from this approach. The details often lead to fuller discovery of what it means to be human, both individually and collectively. In a time defined by what our surgeon general has characterized as an “epidemic of loneliness and isolation,” the Humanities remind us of our commonality.
In this interdisciplinary course, we will use short stories, poetry and creative nonfiction to consider the ways in which we assess, observe, and interpret. Immersing ourselves in a close reading methodology, we will explore what can be excavated and dissected when we take the time to pay attention. We will also consider: What happens if we don’t do this?
For those in Chicago, classes will be in-person. A Zoom link will be provided for students in the regional campuses.
Contact ggorman@uic.edu for more information.
