COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
Subject: HUMANITIES PROGRAM
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Degrees offered:
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N/A
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Number of faculty:
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4*
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Number of majors in the program:
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N/A*
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Faculty Liaison:
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Ron Weber
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Library Subject Specialist:
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Abbie Weiser
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Department Chair:
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Ron Weber
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* Fall, 2000 data as reported in The University of Texas at El Paso FACT BOOK, 2000-2001, Office of Institutional Studies, University of Texas at El Paso, 2000
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Program Description
The Western Cultural Heritage Program supports three classes and one variable topics course. WCH 3301, 3302, and 3303 are required of all Liberal Arts majors. WCH 3302 is a selection for core courses. The aim of the program is to "situate the student in his/her cultural environment." The classes attempt to articulate understanding of Western cultural heritage by examining the thinkers, ideas, texts, and cultural works of selected Western epochs. The epochs include: WCH 3301: The Roots of Western Culture from Ca. 2000 BCE to ca. 200 CE, which examines significant cultural developments in Classical Greece and Rome, and compares the two to some Near Eastern cultures; WCH 3302: Medieval and Renaissance Culture, which surveys the matrix of concepts that inform the political and religious institutions of Western Culture of that time; WCH 3303: Modern Western Culture, which studies the complexity and diversity of the western cultural heritage through a survey of four major revolutions - scientific, social, industrial and artistic - instrumental in shaping the modern world; and WCH 3490: Variable Topics in Humanities, which addresses topics outside the core courses including investigations of technology and culture, and the cultures of India or the Far East.
Description of Existing Collection
NCIP Code: 2a
The Western Cultural Heritage Program is interdisciplinary in nature; thus the books are located throughout the collection, but mainly in the B's for religion and thought, D's for history, N's for art, and P's for literature. Most of the collection is in English. Collection resources available for WCH 3301, include history, art, mythology and civilization for the Ancient Near East, and art, architecture and history for the Byzantine Empire. Classical Greece includes a wider variety of resources, especially art and antiquities, civilization, and history. Also covered are such topics as philosophy, religion and mythology, social life and customs, and literature. There is critical and interpretative material on specific topics such as Euripides, Homer, and Plato's Republic.
WCH 3302 covers the periods of the middle ages, the Renaissance and the Reformation. Coverage of England and Europe as one geographic entity is quite thorough. Supported subjects include history, Christianity, social life, the arts, and literature. Italy and Spain, as separate geographic entities, are not as well documented. Coverage of the history and arts of the Byzantine Empire is adequate.
The third course, WCH 3303, covers a wide range of disciplines including technology, science, history, literature, and the arts. The collection includes current titles about industrialization and the Industrial Revolution, social change, sociology, the advances in the sciences, and the changes in the arts from 1600 to the present. Coverage of the topics of political science, geography and technology is broad, but titles are not especially current. Many periodicals have been canceled. The study of Eastern Europe is a part of this course also. Coverage of Eastern Europe focuses on economics, foreign relations, ethnic relations, and politics and government.
For the fourth selection, WCH 3490, coverage is harder to determine because the topic changes. However, India's history, religion and social conditions are subjects of the monographic collection. The time period is from ancient times to the present. For other cultures of the Far East see the Asian Studies collection development policy. For more detailed description of the sociology, science and technology materials see the Sociology, Science and Engineering collection development policies.
Current Collecting Intensity
NCIP Code: 2a
Monographic titles regarding the history, social customs, and culture of Italy and Spain, from 500 to 1700, should be of primary importance for purchase when available. The broad topics of industrialization, advances in the sciences and technology, and political science should also be bought, but are second highest in priority. Materials concerning the Ancient Near East, the Byzantine Empire, Classical Greece and Rome, England, and Europe in the appropriate time frames, will continue to be purchased. When variable topics courses are planned, professors could contact the subject specialist, several semesters in advance, to concentrate on purchasing specific subject titles if the collection is weak in those areas. Current collecting intensity is adequate for this subject.
Other Resources
The Library subscribes to 15 journals that cover topics in this program. There are canceled titles that also relate to the program, but considering the status of the budget, re-subscription is not of primary importance. Access to full text journals through JSTOR and Project Muse (located on the Reference Department's webpage) is an option to the dearth of current subscriptions. The Reference Department holds several dictionaries, atlases and monographs that are relevant to the program. The Judaica Collection holds titles about the Jewish diaspora and the Holocaust. For very specific topics, the Inter-library Loan Department is a valuable resource, as is the Internet.
Last updated: 03/06/01
