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B.S. in Actuarial Science

Otterbein University Course Catalogs

2015-2016 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
2015-2016 Undergraduate Catalog [Archived Catalog]

FYS 1019 - A Thousand Cuts: Bullying, Power, and Hope

Hours: 4
Fat, gay, poor, or just different. As anyone who has ever survived middle and high school knows, adolescence can be a difficult and jagged experience, especially when bullying occurs. According to national surveys, 30% of U.S. students in grades 6 through 12 report that they have been involved, either as victims or bullies, in bullying, and the numbers are growing at an alarming rate, even at the university level. Bullies can also dominate the workplace, families, and cyberspace. This course will focus on narratives and films that examine some of the underlying causes of bullying, explore bullies and victims’ responses to this destructive behavior, and engage questions of individual and collective empowerment in the face of the pain and fear that bullying creates. While not all experiences of bullying bring happy endings, they can offer moments of healing, growth and transformation. Readings will range from traditional fiction such as Jane Eyre and Alice in Wonderland to contemporary works such as Jodee Blanco’s Please Stop Laughing at Me, Ann Dee Ellis’ This Is What I Did, Gus Van Sant’s Elephant, Walking On the Moon, and the documentary, Bullies and Rats.