In Search of the American Scholar ~ch/4CJfn~ Kindred Spirits ·.'#!Jd6cf ,·dlf~ ~Q't'knf A Deep Breath? ~~cf ·.~ltl'hA',;n Blown Away! , , The NCHC Conference in Chicago ...___..::::~~~ .z-1~ cl-?'~~~ ~- --1~ ~ut2 ,C(m/1 ~t@Jr?tfJX Sigh, a poem · ~it~~ aJ:mf~?~ CONTENTS 3 Letter from the Editor Kathryn Tyranski 18 The Truth About Christmas Dr. Elisabah Brinkmann 4 Director's Letter Dr.Amy Bass 20 Kindred Spirits Betsy and Megan Skrip 6 A Deep Breath? Cindy Bastien 21 My First Semester Sarah H. Murray 7 Blown Away: The NCHC Conference in Chicago 21 Centennial Thought. .. Leslie Paola Gonzalez and Amy Gutierrez Nisha Feliz 8 NCHC in Chicago: The Professor's 22 Celebrating Art Perspective Dr. Stephen O'Rourke 23 Sigh Christina Simpson 10 In Search of the American Scholar Richelle Fiore 23 Untitled Amy Perry 13 Every Damn Day Alana Ruptak 24 The Human Stain-A Review Nisha Feliz 14 Family Weekend 2003 &: Medea 25 Subway 16 She's Got France on Her Mind! Samantha Young Emily Williams Contributors Editor-in-Chief Contributors Dr.Amy Bass Kathryn T yranski Dr. Stephen O'Rourke Cindy Bastien Amy Perry Dr. Elisabeth Brinkmann Alana Ruptak .. Nisha Feliz Advisor Christina Simpson Richelle Fiore Dr. Anne Ferrari Betsy Skrip Leslie Paola Gonzalez Megan Skrip Maria Gonzalez Emily D. Williams Amy Gutierrez Printing Samantha Young Sarah H. Murray CNR Print Shop The front and back covers were designed by Communication Arts Major .Maria Gonzalez LETTER FROM THE EDITOR "I want copy in my e,mailbox by 9 p.m. to, each issue, Femmes, only becomes greater and nightt It is every editor's dream to get all the greater. copy for the publication they are producing on I would like to thank all those who have con, time, by the deadline. It is a rare and distant tributed to Femmes, past and present. Your reality. As the editor of Femmes d'Esprit, I made dedication, talent, and vision is undoubtedly the rather large promise at the end of last se, what makes this magazine great. mester (Spring 2003) to produce three issue of Enjoy the third and final issue for the semes, Femmes in Fall 2003. As I look back on the se, ter, "Taking a Deep Breath." Finish you final mester, I can smile, because I did it! p~pers and exams, go home, then sit and read. The most important piece with producing You will, again, be amazed at the content of this this publication is that I didn't do it alone. issue. The semester is gone and January pro, There are so many students and faculty whose vides a month's break before we return for the contributions make the pages of Femmes d'Esprit spring. Take the time to take that deep breath, so popular. I find with the publication of each to relax, and come back refreshed and rested. issue, more College Community members want May you get home safely and enjoy the holiday to eagerly read the magazine. season with those closest to you. Femmes d'Esprit has been published three As I reflect on the semester, I must say that times this semester, a great accomplishment. producing publications, especially Femmes, is my Each issue, the talents of Honors Students and favorite thing to do at CNR. Sure, it's a lot of Faculty met to produce a magazine that truly long hours in front of the computer, typing, ed, celebrates the knowledge and wisdom that iting, and laying out, but the end result is most CNR stands by and for. rewarding. I love being able to pass to you your The first issue of Femmes, entitled copy of Femmes and watch as you read it, taking "Continuing the Journey," concentrated on in the knowledge and talents that those who welcoming the new year and new faces. The wrote and contributed worked so hard on. second issue, entitled "Defining Centennial," Femmes is a forum for your thoughts and hard took a deeper look at what traditions, anniver, work Come. Write. Contribute. saries, and centennials are all about. The heri, A small tip and favor before I leave you to tage of CNR, as well as the Honors Program, read this edition. If you want a jump start on was examined in the first of two Centennial next semester's issues of Femmes, just e,mail at editions. The second Centennial Femmes will [email protected]. I'll be sure you be published as the second issue next semester. have an assignment in no time and maybe we This final issue of Femmes brings the Honors can all meet our deadlines a little early! Thank Program full circle to the end of the semester. you for a rewarding semester. Can you believe how fast it has come? As edi, tor, it has been a difficult and rewarding ex, perience producing this publication. No one Sincerely, person could possibly make Femmes d'Esprit the Kathryn M. T yranski magazine it is alone. I have found that with DIRECTOR'S LETTER Dr.Amy Bass Time, according to Mick holidays, being careful not to December 25th emerged as Jaggar, is on my side. Jaggar, cross the line between 'the the date for Christmas in the of course, was neither a pro- laudable educational goal of fourth century, when the fessor nor a college student. promoting a student's knowl, church attempted to Chris, If he was, then he would edge of and appreciation for tianize and take control of know that time simply ceases this nation's cultural and reli- midwinter pagan feasting to exist toward the end of any gious diversity, and the imper, rituals that usually followed given semester. missible endorsement of relig, the harvest. Because the For faculty, the end of a ion forbidden by the Estab- crops were in, it tended to be semester means scuttling lishment Clause.' Teachers, as a time of drinking and merri- about trying to grade hills of specified by the Clever case, ment, as there was little to do papers and exams. For stu- must not embrace a single in the fields. Through time, dents, it means producing holiday, but instead teach stu- the frivolity - and debauchery said papers and exams. dents of many traditions. - swelled to such degrees that And all, of course, while How daunting a task is this? it was banned by many. The engaging in the high spirits of Let's take a walk with the Massachusetts Bay Colony, December. usual suspects: for example, so feared the rev, December is perhaps our Kwanzaa, a seven-day Pan- elry of December 25th that it most diverse month, a vivid African festival enjoyed outlawed Christmas celebra, demonstration of just how throughout the world, began tions and closed churches for many different kinds of folks in 1966 as part of the Black the day, hoping to avert the we live with. Imagine the Nationalist push to regenerate bar brawls altogether. Grin- responsibility of public African traditions. A cultural ches, indeed. It wasn't until school systems this time of holiday, rather than a solely the 1820s, in our beloved New year, with so many things to religious one, Kwanzaa cele- York City, that the increasing acknowledge in December. brates family, community, and consumer interests of Victo- Charged by the Constitution heritage, with origins in an- rian America combined with to never endorse religious life cient African harvest, or "first Progressive reform move, over the secular or one faith fruits," celebrations. It does ments to produce the celebra- over another, the population so via the reinforcement of the tion we all know: a time of of the United States demands Nguzo Saba, or seven princi, family, charity, and shopping that if holidays are going to ples, which include self, - the perfect holiday for a be recognized, an increasingly determination, creativity, co, society experiencing both the diverse set of events must operative economics, and fruits and vices of industriali- accompany. faith. zation. In Cleverv. Cherry Hill Town, Founded in 1966, one might While these Christmas ship Board of Education (1993), say? How traditional is that? traditions might be relatively the Supreme Court warned Well. ...s ome holiday tradi- recent, others are not. Far that public schools could tions simply aren't as old as older than Christmas cus- teach but not observe religious we think. toms are the origins of Bodhi "December is perhaps our most diverse month, a vivid demonstration ofjust how many different kinds off olks we live with." Day, December 8th, designed days are linked in some way to tional Children's Memorial to honor the enlightenment of it. During solstice, daytime Day (12/14), Jane Austen's Siddhartha Gautama. It is the hours are few and nighttime Birthday (12/16), Underdog ancient teachings of Gau- hours are many ( except in the Day (12/19), Humbug Day tama, the first Buddha, upon southern hemisphere, of (12/21), Feast of the Radishes which Buddhism is founded course, where the opposite is (12/23), and Boxing Day Buddhists observe his trans- true and summer solstice is (12/26) also have seemingly formation through prayer, celebrated). In ancient Greece, little to do with solstice. meditation, and teachings, winter solstice was called Le- What is missing, of course, but in the United States, naea, the Festival of the Wild is "Do-You-Have-Any-Idea- many incorporate it with Women, while Persians still How-Busy-Students-and- Christmas traditions, such as observe Shabe-Ya lda. Ancient Professors-Are Day." So we decorating ficus trees with Incans celebrated Inti Raymi, will just have to dedicate the shiny bulbs to represent the or the Festival of the Sun, until next several days to this new jewels of Buddhism or string- Catholic conquistadores in the holiday. To celebrate, please ing lights around their homes 16th century banned it, but a engage in the following: to represent enlightenment. group of Quecia Indians in budget your time; spread your lights, of course, also play Cusco, Peru, revived the party energy wisely; make lists and a key role in Chanukah - the in 1950. check them twice, three Festival of lights. Chanukah Ramadan, however, the ho- times, as many as it takes to begins on the 25th day of liest of Islamic observances, complete them; say "NO" Kislev on the Jewish calendar, does not, contrary to popular (politely) when you can; ex- but moves between Novem- belief, revolve around solstice. ercise ( and yes, shopping is ber and December on the Designed to honor the lunar exercise for those who do it Western calendar. Designed month in which Allah revealed correctly); bake cookies; see a to celebrate the victory of the the Koran to humans, it is only movie; do a good turn; stay Maccabees and the rededica- in recent years that it has flexible; work your head off; tion of the Jerusalem Temple fallen during December. Bill of ponder your accomplish- and commemorate the mira- Rights Day, December 15th, ments; eat dinner with a cle of the oil that burned for 8 also has nothing to do with friend; browse the web for days, Chanukah has slowly solstice, but rather was signed sunny vacation sites; reflect became part of the Victorian into being by Franklin Delano on your year; and reward consumer juggernaut of De- Roosevelt on the 150th anniver- yourself early and often. And cember, with a focus on deco- sary of the document. Bath- if you have time, please tell rations and gift giving. tub Party Day (12/5), The Liz- me what Feast of the Rad- Many find the glue to such ard King's Birthday (12/8), ishes is. December days to be winter Weary Willie Day (12/9), Hu- solstice, as most winter holi- man Rights Day (12/10), Na- A DEEP BREATH? Cindy Bastien So, finals are around the corner and projects and our lungs expand more, ensuring that and papers have to be done at the last minute. more oxygen is taken in and more carbon diox- Yup, I know. We're all stressed. But there's ide released. In this process, our breath rates hope! And it's so simple. ..j ust take a deep breath. slow down. Remember, a slow breath rate is 'A deep breath?' I hear one mumbling ... so cliche. always good. Our body knows that, that's why But have we ever taken the time to find out we go to sleep! Our breathing slows down what really happens when we take a deep when we are asleep and we thereby get rest. So breath? Sit back and let those dendrites tingle a whenever you feel the adrenaline rushing, take bit, as I take you into the~----------------~ a moment and slow world of the science of /--\ down your breath rate. breathing. / Remember, it's good for First off, some back- you! ground information. We ) And since we use not -----~:h-c,,L--~l- all know that OUr lungs only the respiratory Nasal Cav,ty _ Ph•ryn• are major organs used to . " ~ . muscles of our chest, breathe, at least for us but also those of the humans. The lungs are belly, ribcage, and suspended in the tho- lower back in rhythmic racic cavity. On the sides ~ ---\-- Lelt Lung motions it is the belief Of them you'll find your -~~h',--;-----'\-Broncnus that those motions, ribs and on the bottom, help to «massage" and the diaphragm. When detoxify our internal we inhale or breathe in, organs. The rhythmical our ribs rise and our dia- pumping involved in phragm lowers to in- deep breathing also crease the volume of the helps turn on our thoracic cavity. As a re- ~elaxation response," ';'Q.;'---J'---Alvoolar sacs sult of this, the pressure and atveoli or parasympathetic in the lungs decreases, The respiratory system is the biological system of the hu- nervous system. Deep and air is drawn into the man that allows us to take that deep breath we all needl breaths call relaxation. lungs. The opposite hap- Unbelievable right? Not pens when we exhale or Clipart: http://www.chkd.com/respire/anatomy_rm.asp really, especially since breathe out-the ribs it's the basis of medita- press in closer to the lungs and the diaphragm tion practices and exercise practices like Yoga. rises, thereby decreasing the volume of the tho- So, the conclusion? Our breathing works rax (thoracic cavity): The pressure in the lungs with our nerves to help reduce stress! The increases and air is expelled from the lungs. deeper our breaths, the better! Just letting y'all But what happens when we take a deep know! breath? Well, when we breathe deeply, the dia- phragm moves farther down into the abdomen, BLOWN AWAY: THE NCHC CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO Leslie Paola Gonzalez and Arny Gutierrez As the day approached to It's not until you leave have that diversity. If they depart for Chicago, the antici- New York that you realize were to study a different relig- pation and excitement seemed how lucky you are to be able ion, it would be impossible for to build more and more with to experience the diversity them to have a first hand ex- each passing moment. We around you. When we got to perience. One student actually were going to be able to ex- the conference, we spoke to expressed to us that the near- perience the excitement of the other participants about our est worship place outside of "'Windy City," Chica~o, while topic, "'Psychology and Relig- his own faith was more than taking part of the 38 Annual ion." We started off our dis- an hour and a half away. He Conference of the National cussion by explaining that was not the only one to tell us Collegiate Honors Council, CNR is a traditionally Catho- such a thing; many others ap- "'Finding Common Ground". lic college, and describing the proached us, asking if anyone The realization of meeting relationship between psychol- was ever opposed to such a students who were going ogy and religion through the class. They asked how we ever through similar types of semi- various philosophers that we got permission from the Dean. nars brought up mixed emo- studied. By explaining the They could not envision the tions. Would we be on their theories of James, Freud, All- fact that we had been study- academic level? Would they port, Maslow, and Fromm we ing not only one religion, but be on ours? We were excited were able to express that their the concept of religion all to- to have been given the oppor- ideas were universally appli- gether and actually partaking tunity to present the collec- cable in terms of religion in a ceremony of a faith out- tive ideas based on the semi- rather than closing in on one. side of our own. nar we had taken part in last It was amazing to hear What was even more amaz- semester. But little did we other's comments as we re- ing was hearing the story of know that this idea would be counted the experience we one biology teacher that the root of controversy. had, for example, visiting a talked to us about the diffi- ~ ----- --------- ~ synagogue. They culty she was having teaching expressed to us Darwin's theory of evolution. how fortunate This has been her most prob- we were to be lematic topic for the simple .,..~ able to partake in reason that the parents of the such an in-depth community are firm believers endeavor. For in their faith and do not want many of them, it it challenged. When she lec- would be impos- tures on Darwin's theory, the sible to hold a parents feel as though she is class that dis- imposing her beliefs on their cusses religion as children. The situation has a question be- reached the point where she cause they do not Continued on Page 20 7 NCHC IN CHICAGO : THE PROFESSOR'S PERSPECTIVE Dr. Stephen O'Rourke I recently attended the National Collegiate airport security delays, we had wake-up calls Honors Council (NCHC) annual meeting in that didn't quite do the job, etc. But once we got Chicago, along with two students from the it all together, the presentation went quite well. CNR Honors Program (Amy Gutierrez and Les- Some very friendly and fascinating people took lie Gonzalez). The theme of this year's confer- the time to stop and talk with us about our ence was .. Finding Common Ground." I defy you work, helping us forget about the obstacles and to come up with a theme that could be broader, headaches of preparation. more inclusive, and less specific. Perhaps next Upon returning to CNR, I was asked to write year's convention will be centered around the a short piece about NCHC for Femmes d'Espri.t. topic .. Oh, Those Humans" or maybe ..T he Bene- My first thought was .. I'm all 'Psychology and fits of Thinking." But as usual, I digress. Religion-ed' out." I had just spent the last two Amy, Leslie, and I gave a breakfast presenta- or three weeks re-reading, re-writing, and re- tion about our Spring 2003 Honors Seminar in thinking that topic. But as I thought back over Psychology and Religion. In particular, there my experience at NCHC, I realized I did have was one element of the class that particularly something to write about. Actually, what I'd lent itself to the theme of .. Finding Common really like to tell you about has nothing to do Ground." I arranged for Rabbi Bernstein from with the conference itself. It's about trying to do Beth-El Synagogue Center in New Rochelle to one small thing differently than you normally come to our class as a guest speaker. He very would and seeing the effect it has on others. It's generously spent two hours with us, answering about making a conscious effort to change how our questions about the beliefs and traditions of you interact with people and seeing how it Conservative Judaism and telling us in detail makes you feel. about the elements of their worship service. At every convention I've ever attended, I al- Two weeks later, we accepted his invitation to ways try to do something outside the crush of attend Shabbat services. The students wrote scheduled events at that professional meeting. If papers linking the psychological theories and you allow it to do so, a conference will take you research we were covering in class with the to a fabulous new metropolitan area and then events and experiences we had at Beth-El Syna- proceed to dominate your time to the point that gogue Center. Our presentation at NCHC was you see absolutely none of sites and sounds of on this particular assignment. that fair city. The Scottish poet Burns wrote, ..T he best laid NCHC was ,---::;c::::--c-.;~~~~iiJirp~ schemes o' mice an' men/ Gang aft a-gley." In no excep- other words, you can organize, prioritize, and tion. On strategize all you like. It still doesn't mean that every day, things will come out according to plan. Our there were preparations for NCHC did not go as smoothly talks, pres- as we had hoped We had trouble scheduling entations, j..-ll!a!IIIII times to meet and prepare for the presentation, luncheons, we had difficulties determining who was going governmen- to be responsible for each task, we encountered tal activities, Photo: http://www.sunflower.com/-cjonts/ i;! ; and all manner and unknown. Sure, I can talk to strangers, but ? ~----------~ of student- it's typically a rather strained conversation of ~ r faculty events pleasantries and idle chatter. That's not a lot to [ scheduled rely on while you very possibly might have 1l" from sun-up to hours to kill before the first sight of seviche . ;r lil well into the In "get-to-know-you" conversations such as night. This these, there's oftentimes a point where I think was my first to myself, "We seem to be hitting the wall here." 5~ G R I L ,L visit to Chi- When a conversation with a new acquaintance f ~ cago. I don't becomes labored and awkward, I'm frequently ~ know when I'll have the chance to get back and tempted to excuse myself with a polite, "Well, [ I wanted to meet more of the town than just the it's been very nice talking with you." But on this hotel and conference rooms. night, I wondered if I had to follow that same One thing that I wanted to do before leaving pattern. It's the person I've been for a long time, was to eat dinner at a fine Chicago restaurant. but did it have to be the pattern I would con- The night before we were to fly home, I realized tinue to follow? What would happen if I the clock was ticking on that opportunity. So worked a bit harder at the conversation and just after a wonderful presentation by Dr. Sally Boy- asked two more questions than I normally sen ( a leading researcher on chimpanzee cogni- would have? I decided to try doing just that. I tion and intelligence), I left the hotel and made a willful choice to not be that same per- started walking uptown. In the River North son. I decided to be a slightly different self. area of the city, you'll find Frontera Grill and I know this must sound like a minor episode Topolobampo, two restaurants owned and op- in the grand scheme of a person's life experi- erated by celebrity chef, Rick Bayless. That was ences, but I was quite struck by how different where I wanted to go. I was on my own that the environment became when I changed my night and the words 'table for one" just own actions and outlook. I spent 30 minutes sounded terribly tragic. But because I really talking with a married couple from Kentucky ( a wanted to eat there, I decided to brave it. vice president for institutional advancement at As the wait for a table was going to be an a liberal arts college and a stay-at-home Mom hour and a half, the simple solution to my di- for their three kids). I talked for another half an lemma was to try to get a seat at the bar and hour with a woman and her two daughters from order from the menu there. While waiting, I Kansas. They were in Chicago school-shopping ordered a drink and walked around in crowd of for the younger daughter who will be starting foreign faces. Now, I'd like to think that I'm a college next fall. Conversational cul de sacs be- fairly sociable person, but the fact is that it's came wide-open thoroughfares. It may sound easy to be outgoing and gregarious when you simplistic and ruuve, but I think I became more already know and like the people you are with. interesting to others when I showed more inter- This was a horse of a different color. Being abso- est in others. lutely honest with myself ( and apparently with All of a sudden, what had been taxing in my all of you, as this essay has taken on a confes- previous experience became quite free, easy, and sional tone), I very quickly turn from an extra- fulfilling. Asking a couple extra questions of vert into wallflower when the company is new people led to meaningful Continued on Page 27 IN SEARCH OF THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR Richelle Fiore Amy: "I thought you were a doctor." Rachel: "Yeah, no. Ross has a PhD." Amy: "Ew!" (1) -Friends My youngest brother Ben is a junior at En- reading Michael Crichton's latest potboiler, he rico Fenni High School, enrolled in many of the read a cookbook (100 pages) before scouring same classes that I was five years ago. Our lives my bookshelves to find Charles Dickens' Great at times paralleled the others, as we even have Expectations. He chose it for length and ended had some of the same teachers. Yet, our educa- up enjoying the story, completely in opposition tional experiences remain vastly different. In to his original intentions. A history buff with tenth grade, I read John Knowles' A Separate aspirations to teach the subject as a profession, Peace and Shakespeare's King Lear. Ben read he recently purchased a copy of Howard Zinn's Nicholas Sparks' A Walk to Remanber and San- A People's History of the United States. It was not dra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street. Espe- the desire to read something outside of his as- cially in high school English classes, the ques- signed schoolwork that made my mother drive tion of Canon must come under discussion. For him to Barnes and Noble, it was the persuasive John Guillory in "Canon," the classic texts we argument that AJ Soprano recently had read it imagine, Moby Dick and Edgar Allan Poe, are with the same Penguin Classics cover. canonical texts. However, the designation into I received a decent high school education the canon is not immediate, for the texts must from a liberal arts high school. My English withstand time. The writing must become classes were not simple surveys of moldy tran- timeless (2). scendental poetry. We also took topic specific After three years, Shakespeare is still some classes where we discussed the individual's old dead guy who wrote the screenplay to that role in society as represented in literature, Leonardo DiCaprio movie, who wrote the reading Reviving Ophelia, Brave New World, and monologue he helped me memorize in the 9th Slaughterhouse Five. The texts broadened our grade. Ben has yet to read one of Shakespeare's understanding of literature and social theory, texts. When at Fermi, the focus of my English contextualized and discussed. Links to previ- classes were for my classmates and me to have ously read literature, W.H. Auden's "Unknown a foundation in the classics, the Canon, in ad- Citizen" and Thomas Hardy's Tess of theD'urber- dition developing our analytical skills. I read villes, were demanded. I had read certain as- Thomas Hardy, Emily Bronte, James Joyce, pects of the Canon, had some understanding of Toni Morrison, and Albert Camus in addition the works, and could analyze an argument. to the theoretical texts of Paulo Freire and Such skills, I was told in Freshmen Orientation Walker Percy. The focus of Ben's classes are and my orientation to the Honors Program, pages read, not content. Once he completed were the building blocks of a liberal education. I seemed prepared and was able to capitalize f()