Topics will vary by semester. Consult the course descriptions provided by the department for current offerings. EXAMPLE: Fall 2008 This course is designed to consider art as an investigation of the self and the world. In a 2005 presidential address to the Society of American Archivists, Randall C. Jimerson reminded his colleagues, "archives are not neutral or objective." Jimerson¿s concerns regarding these repositories of collective memory echoed previous undertakings of archivists, historians, and writers as varied as George Orwell and George Lucas. In this course we will examine the inherent power dynamics of the collection process while engaging in the art of writing. Through a series of rigorous creative writing exercises in poetry and prose, we will mine newspapers, used bookstores, online audio exhibits, and personal artifacts to draft several new works. Students will compose weekly annotations or responses to texts, and will submit a creative project at the end of the course. No previous creative writing experience is required.