Faculty Page

What is the Humanities?

(1) the ways in which humans document or represent their experiences through artistic or scientific expression;

(2) the fictive impulse: how humans use their imagination to represent the world around them through language, stories, music, literature, history, mathematics, philosophy, science, art, religion, dance, tragedy, comedy, film, media, architecture, space, etc.

Dylan Eret, Ph.D.

Present interests: The mathematics and science of art-making, music, and dance; underground art movements; play and game theory; humor; narrative theory; folk knowledge; ritualized movement and bodily resistance; everyday religious experience; improvisational forms of art and aesthetics; queer histories; historiography (how history is shaped and told); disciplinary fusions and fissures within the academy; experimental models of education and learning

 

“Much of the creative process in art and in science is exactly the same – What would sound good? If I mix orange with blue what kind of color am I going to get? The schism between art and science is an artificial construct; perhaps it was made by people who don’t walk in either world. The enthusiasm and obsessiveness of scientists who devote their whole lives to one tiny little question is very similar to an artist’s passion which is needed co-produce something great that is ever elusive, just a little bit out of reach. The epiphanies in each field are very much the same.”
                 
Irene Moon, Entomological Artist and Scientist, The Begonia Society

 

Email: deret@peralta.edu

Educational Background:

Ph.D., Folklore & Folklife, University of Pennsylvania
M.A., Folklore, University of California at Berkeley
B.A., Mathematics, University of California at Berkeley

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Why Choose These Courses?

I pledge to provide a safe, focused, friendly, organized, present, historically-rich, project-based, adventurous, and surprising learning environment, regardless of the modality of the course. By taking these courses, you’ll enhance your skills to become a more interdisciplinary thinker, engaging storyteller, empathic listener, and clear writer. Join me and enjoy a vibrant learning experience that goes beyond the classroom, away from your computer screen, and into the world-at-large (either in the presence of others or on your own time)!

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Here is a list of courses I’m teaching for the Spring 2024 Semester.

Use the five-digit course control numbers listed below to enroll in any of the courses through Passport.

HUMAN 1 – INTRODUCTION TO THE HUMANITIES – 20184 – 3 UNITS

Instructor: Dylan Eret

FRIDAYS, 10:30AM – 12:20PM, ONLINE SYNCHRONOUS (1/22/24 – 5/25/24)

Humanities seen through various forms of expression: The arts and society, such as dance, painting, music, sculpture, and mythology; theory and practice in artistic creation to stimulate personal awareness.  1599.00

We will explore ritual and artistic performances around the world from an interdisciplinary perspective (mathematics, biology, psychology, cognitive science, anthropology, education, history, geography, folklore, linguistics, information theory, digital humanities). We will do this by examining the role both imagination and improvisation play in our everyday lives and during specific cultural events.

This an Online Class. This class has both required online meetings and required online learning activities. Students must be available to meet online for the days/hours listed for this section and log into their course site multiple times a week to complete the online learning activities as directed. To access Peralta e-mail and Canvas, please visit https://web.peralta.edu/portal/.

Cost Cutter Alert: This course section uses only zero-cost course materials. Course materials are provided digitally free of charge. Printed materials are sometimes available for purchase.

3 Units, 3 hrs lecture (GR or P/NP). Acceptable for credit: UC/CSU AA/AS area 3; CSU area C2; IGETC area 3B; UC Berkeley 7-Course Breadth Requirements Area 1: Arts and Literature.

HUMAN 1 – INTRODUCTION TO THE HUMANITIES – 20467 (ASYNCHRONOUS ONLINE) – 3 UNITS (1/22/24 – 5/25/24)

Instructor: Dylan Eret

Humanities seen through various forms of expression: The arts and society, such as dance, painting, music, sculpture, and mythology; theory and practice in artistic creation to stimulate personal awareness.  1599.00

We will explore ritual and artistic performances around the world from an interdisciplinary perspective (mathematics, biology, psychology, cognitive science, anthropology, education, history, geography, folklore, linguistics, information theory, digital humanities). We will do this by examining the role both imagination and improvisation play in our everyday lives and during specific cultural events.

This an Online Class.  This class has no required online meetings.  Students are expected to log into their course multiple times a week and complete learning activities as directed.  To access Peralta e-mail and Canvas, https://web.peralta.edu/portal/.

Cost Cutter Alert: This course section uses only zero-cost course materials. Course materials are provided digitally free of charge. Printed materials are sometimes available for purchase.

HUMAN 1 – INTRODUCTION TO THE HUMANITIES – 20480 (8W2 ONLINE) – 3 UNITS

Instructor: Dylan Eret

Humanities seen through various forms of expression: The arts and society, such as dance, painting, music, sculpture, and mythology; theory and practice in artistic creation to stimulate personal awareness.  1599.00

We will explore ritual and artistic performances around the world from an interdisciplinary perspective (mathematics, biology, psychology, cognitive science, anthropology, education, history, geography, folklore, linguistics, information theory, digital humanities). We will do this by examining the role both imagination and improvisation play in our everyday lives and during specific cultural events.

2nd 8 wks section, 03/18 – 05/18/24. This an Online Class.  This class has no required online meetings.  Students are expected to log into their course multiple times a week and complete learning activities as directed.  To access Peralta e-mail and Canvas, https://web.peralta.edu/portal/.

Cost Cutter Alert: This course section uses only zero-cost course materials. Course materials are provided digitally free of charge. Printed materials are sometimes available for purchase.

HUMAN 15 – POPULAR CULTURE –  20226 – 3 UNITS

WEDNESDAYS, 10:30AM – 12:20PM, IN-PERSON, HYBRID COURSE (1/22/24 – 5/25/24) – BCC ROOM 052, GROUND FLOOR

Instructor: Dylan Eret

Meaning and impact of American popular culture in the twentieth century: The cultural evolution of consumerism, amusement, leisure, media, and entertainment industries.  1599.00

This is a Hybrid Class: W, 10:30 A.M. – 12:20 P.M., BCC 52, + 1 hr/wk online. This class has both required in-person meetings and required online activities. This class has no required online meetings.  Students are expected to log into their course multiple times a week and complete learning activities as directed.  To access Peralta e-mail and Canvas, https://web.peralta.edu/portal/. Cost Cutter Alert: This course section uses only zero-cost course materials. Course materials are provided digitally free of charge. Printed materials are sometimes available for purchase.

3 Units, 3 hrs lecture (GR or P/NP). Acceptable for credit: UC/CSU AA/AS area 3; CSU area C2; IGETC area 3B; UC Berkeley 7-Course Breadth Requirements Area 1: Arts and Literature.

HUMAN 40 – RELIGIONS OF THE WORLD – 3 UNITS – 20122 – ONLINE, 14-WEEK COURSE (2/12/24 – 5/25/24)

Instructor: Dylan Eret

Comparative study of the world’s great religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam; original sources stressed.  1599.00

14 wk class, begins Mon, 2/12/24. This an Online Class.  This class has no required online meetings.  Students are expected to log into their course multiple times a week and complete learning activities as directed.  To access Peralta e-mail and Canvas, https://web.peralta.edu/portal/.

3 Units, 3 hrs lecture (GR or P/NP). Acceptable for credit: UC/CSU AA/AS area 3; CSU area C2; IGETC area 3B; UC Berkeley 7-Course Breadth Requirements Area 5: Philosophy and Values. A restricted elective in the Associate in Arts Transfer Degree Program in Anthropology (A.A.-T).

Cost Cutter Alert: This course section uses only zero-cost course materials. Course materials are provided digitally free of charge. Printed materials are sometimes available for purchase.

 

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