Junior Colloquium: Early Modern (fall)

This age is the first in which a recognizably "modern" world, as we know it, becomes nascent, one in which the unmarried "virgin" Queen Elizabeth plays power politics, a recognizably modern view of the universe emerges, science challenges the authority of religion, national identities emerge along with imperialism, and people begin thinking of themselves as individuals with complex inner lives. The colloquium invites students to consider the simultaneously strange and familiar culture of the early Modern period as it is manifested in new genres such as the novel as well as traditional but reworked and renewed forms such as the epic and tragedy. From the nostalgic wanderings of the antimodern Don Quixote to the specter of modern racism in Othello to Mary Wollstonecraft's foundational feminist treatise to Swift's simultaneously funny and horrific satires of English imperialism and "scientific" "solutions" to unwanted populations, to the burgeoning of democracy and the declaration of Human Rights, this colloquium can be a mirror in which modernity is duskily visible. 

For a sample of syllabi for the JUNIOR COLLOQUIUM (fall), click below:

COL243 Early Modern Colloquium 2022

Comps (November-December)

Junior COL majors take comprehensive exams in November (written part) and December (oral part). The Junior Comps (as they are known and beloved) are based on the material studied in the first 3 colloquia (Antiquity, Medieval, Early Modern), but allow students to draw on the work they have done in the college to that point. The examination is given and evaluated by two examiners from other universities and is intended to encourage students to integrate the work they have done up until that time. Junior comps can receive citations of Honors, High Honors, Highest Honors (in exceptional cases), Credit (No Honors). An ungraded option (pass/fail) is available. 

In the past, COL students have created study groups to prepare for these exams. Each new class also benefits from using the questions asked by previous examiners that are available in the binder on the Junior shelf in the COL Library. Make good use of it, and don't worry too much. It's a nice opportunity to review what you know.

Past Junior Comp Exam Questions

Study Abroad

COL majors spend one semester abroad in Europe, Israel, and the Middle East, Northern Africa, or Central or South America. Study Abroad takes place in the spring of your junior year. Exceptions are granted for athletes who can study abroad in the summer. The purpose of the semester abroad is not merely to enhance language proficiency, but also to enhance the understanding of a foreign culture and to give students a new perspective on their own culture. 

Additional Study Abroad Information