Humanities & the Arts

fall 2025

If you entered college as a freshman in Fall 1994 or later, you need to complete six hours of Humanities & the Arts courses in order to graduate. Humanities & the Arts courses are divided into two subcategories: Historical & Philosophical Perspectives and Literature & the Arts.

Effective for entering freshmen in Fall 2004, all courses on this list are approved for General Education credit on a campus wide basis. However individual Colleges or curricula may require specific courses or course categories. Students should consult their advisors about selecting the general education courses which best fit their programs of study.

Courses are added as they are approved.

  • ACP - Advanced Composition

  • HUM - Humanities and the Arts
  •     HP - Historical and Philosophical Perspectives
  •     LA - Literature and the Arts

  • SBS - Social and Behavioral Sciences
  •     BSC - Behavioral Sciences
  •     SS - Social Sciences

  • NAT - Natural Sciences and Technology
  •     LS - Life Sciences
  •     PS - Physical Sciences

  • CS - Cultural Studies
  •     NW - Non-Western Culture(s)
  •     US - US Minority Cultures
  •     WCC - Western/Comparative Culture(s)

  • QR - Quantitative Reasoning
  •     QR1 - Quantitative Reasoning I
  •     QR2 - Quantitative Reasoning II
COURSE section available TITLE ACP CS COMP1 HUM NAT QR SBS
AAS 211 section available Asian Americans and the Arts US LA
AAS 286 section available Asian American Literature US LA
AFRO 105 Black Literature in America US LA
AFRO 132 section available African American Music US LA
AFRO 224 Humanist Persp of Afro-Am Exp US LA
AFRO 228 section available Hip Hop Music: History and Culture US LA
AFST 209 Constr Afr and Carib Identity NW LA
AFST 210 Introduction to Modern African Literature NW LA
AIS 265 section available Intro to American Indian Lit US LA
AIS 275 Am Indian and Indigenous Film US LA
ANSC 120 The Art and Ethics of Animal Documentaries LA
ART 100 Understanding Visual Culture LA
ART 140 section available Introduction to Art LA
ARTH 110 section available Introduction to the History of Art and Visual Culture WCC LA
ARTH 212 East Asian Art History NW LA
ARTH 220 African Arts and Architecture NW LA
ARTH 241 section available Modern Art, 1880-1940 LA
ARTH 242 Art Since 1940 LA
ARTJ 301 section available Manga: The Art of Image and Word NW LA
ARTS 220 section available Introduction to Fashion LA
ASST 208 Cultures & Literatures of South Asia NW LA
CLCV 114 section available Introduction to Ancient Greek Culture WCC LA
CLCV 115 section available Mythology of Greece and Rome WCC LA
CLCV 120 The Classical Tradition WCC LA
CLCV 220 section available Exploring the Greek and Roman World WCC LA
CLCV 221 Odysseus and Other Heroes WCC LA
CLCV 222 section available Introduction to Greek and Roman Theater ACP WCC LA
CLCV 224 section available Greco-Roman Antiquity and US Minority Cultures US LA
CLCV 240 Gender & Sexuality in Greco-Roman Antiquity WCC LA
CLCV 323 section available The Comic Imagination ACP WCC LA
CW 100 section available Intro to Creative Writing LA
CWL 111 Bible as Literature LA
CWL 114 section available Global Consciousness and Lit NW LA
CWL 117 section available Russ & E Euro Science Fiction LA
CWL 119 Literature of Fantasy LA
CWL 151 Cross-Cultural Thematics LA
CWL 189 Literatures of the Islamic World NW LA
CWL 190 Modern Asian and African Literatures NW LA
CWL 201 Comparative Lit Studies LA
CWL 202 Literature and Ideas WCC LA
CWL 207 Indian Cinema in Context NW LA
CWL 208 Cultures & Literatures of South Asia NW LA
CWL 209 section available Jewish American and US Minority Literatures in Dialogue US LA
CWL 210 Introduction to Modern African Literature NW LA
CWL 211 The Arab-Israeli Conflict WCC LA
CWL 212 Israeli Cinema and Television WCC LA
CWL 215 section available Madness, Myth, and Murder LA
CWL 216 section available Legends of King Arthur WCC LA
CWL 217 Classical Chinese Lit NW LA
CWL 220 section available Exploring the Greek and Roman World WCC LA
CWL 223 The Qur'an (Koran) NW LA
CWL 225 Constr Afr and Carib Identity NW LA
CWL 226 Humanist Persp of Afro-Am Exp US LA
CWL 227 Golden Age of Russian Literature ACP LA
CWL 230 section available Popular Cultures of Contemporary East Asia NW LA
CWL 240 section available Italy Middle Ages & Renaiss LA
CWL 241 section available Early Masterpieces of Western Culture ACP WCC LA
CWL 242 Modern Masterpieces of Western Culture ACP WCC LA
CWL 249 Soviet and Post-Soviet Lit LA
CWL 252 Viking Sagas in Translation WCC LA
CWL 253 section available Medieval Literature and Culture WCC LA
CWL 254 section available Grimm's Fairy Tales in Context WCC LA
CWL 255 section available Renaissance Literature and Culture WCC LA
CWL 257 Enlightenment Literature and Culture WCC LA
CWL 262 Gender & Sexuality in Greco-Roman Antiquity WCC LA
CWL 263 Odysseus and Other Heroes WCC LA
CWL 264 section available Introduction to Greek and Roman Theater ACP WCC LA
CWL 267 The Short Story LA
CWL 272 section available Sexuality and Literature LA
CWL 273 section available The Holocaust in Context WCC LA
CWL 275 section available Masterpieces of East Asian Lit NW LA
CWL 276 Asian Film Genres NW LA
CWL 283 section available Jewish Sacred Literature LA
CWL 311 Japan Lit in Translation I NW LA
CWL 312 Japan Lit in Translation II NW LA
CWL 320 Responses to the Holocaust WCC LA
CWL 322 The Comic Imagination ACP WCC LA
DANC 100 section available Intro to Contemporary Dance WCC LA
DANC 200 section available Explore Music through Dance LA
EALC 207 section available Classical Chinese Lit NW LA
EALC 208 section available Chinese Cinema NW LA
EALC 212 East Asian Art History NW LA
EALC 230 section available Popular Cultures of Contemporary East Asia NW LA
EALC 275 section available Masterpieces of East Asian Lit NW LA
EALC 276 Asian Film Genres NW LA
EALC 305 Japan Lit in Translation I NW LA
EALC 306 Japan Lit in Translation II NW LA
ENGL 101 Intro to Poetry LA
ENGL 103 section available Intro to Fiction LA
ENGL 104 section available Introduction to Film LA
ENGL 109 section available Intro to Fiction-ACP ACP LA
ENGL 114 Bible as Literature LA
ENGL 115 section available Intro to British Literature WCC LA
ENGL 116 Introduction to American Literature WCC LA
ENGL 117 Shakespeare on Film LA
ENGL 119 Literature of Fantasy LA
ENGL 120 section available Science Fiction LA
ENGL 122 The Middle Ages in Popular Culture LA
ENGL 150 Black Literature in America US LA
ENGL 200 section available Introduction to the Study of Literature and Culture LA
ENGL 202 section available Medieval Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 204 section available Renaissance Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 206 Enlightenment Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 207 Romantic Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 208 section available Victorian Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 209 section available Early British Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 210 Modern British Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 211 Introduction to Modern African Literature NW LA
ENGL 213 Modernist Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 216 section available Legends of King Arthur WCC LA
ENGL 218 section available Introduction to Shakespeare LA
ENGL 219 Literature and Medicine LA
ENGL 220 section available Literature and Science LA
ENGL 222 section available Jewish American and US Minority Literatures in Dialogue US LA
ENGL 225 section available Intro to Latina/o Literature US LA
ENGL 245 The Short Story LA
ENGL 247 The British Novel WCC LA
ENGL 250 Nineteenth-Century American Fiction WCC LA
ENGL 251 section available The Twentieth-Century American Novel WCC LA
ENGL 253 Topics in Literature and New Media LA
ENGL 255 section available Early American Literature and Culture WCC LA
ENGL 265 section available Intro to American Indian Lit US LA
ENGL 266 section available Grimm's Fairy Tales in Context WCC LA
ENGL 269 section available The Holocaust in Context WCC LA
ENGL 270 American Film Genres LA
ENGL 275 Am Indian and Indigenous Film US LA
ENGL 276 Asian Film Genres NW LA
ENGL 285 section available Postcolonial Literature in English NW LA
ENGL 286 section available Asian American Literature US LA
ENGL 359 Responses to the Holocaust WCC LA
FAA 102 section available Design Beyond Boundaries LA
FAA 110 section available Exploring Arts and Creativity LA
FAA 201 section available Black Arts Today US LA
FR 156 section available Exploring Paris WCC LA
FR 240 Constr Afr and Carib Identity NW LA
GER 201 German Popular Culture WCC LA
GER 251 section available Grimm's Fairy Tales in Context WCC LA
GER 261 section available The Holocaust in Context WCC LA
GER 270 section available Sexuality and Literature LA
GRKM 260 Decolonizing the Body: Eros and the Erotic in the Poetry of C.P. Cavafy WCC LA
GWS 240 Gender & Sexuality in Greco-Roman Antiquity WCC LA
GWS 270 section available Sexuality and Literature LA
HIST 254 Vikings to Volvos: Scandinavia WCC LA
IS 312 section available Reading and Writing Data ACP LA
ITAL 156 section available Exploring Rome: History and Culture of the Eternal City WCC LA
ITAL 240 section available Italy Middle Ages & Renaiss LA
ITAL 270 Introduction to Italian Cinema LA
JS 209 section available Jewish American and US Minority Literatures in Dialogue US LA
JS 211 The Arab-Israeli Conflict WCC LA
JS 212 Israeli Cinema and Television WCC LA
JS 261 section available The Holocaust in Context WCC LA
JS 320 Responses to the Holocaust WCC LA
LAST 240 Constr Afr and Carib Identity NW LA
LLS 242 section available Intro to Latina/o Literature US LA
LLS 246 Gender & Sexuality in Latina/o Literature US LA
LLS 248 Latin American Diaspora through Film: Beyond Braceros, Narcos, and Latin Lovers US LA
LLS 250 Latina/os on the Bronze Screen US LA
LLS 360 section available Contemporary US Latina/o Lit US LA
MACS 100 section available Intro to Popular TV & Movies WCC LA
MACS 104 section available Introduction to Film LA
MACS 117 Shakespeare on Film LA
MACS 203 section available Contemporary Movies LA
MACS 207 Indian Cinema in Context NW LA
MACS 250 Latina/os on the Bronze Screen US LA
MACS 261 section available Survey of World Cinema I WCC LA
MACS 262 Survey of World Cinema II WCC LA
MACS 275 Am Indian and Indigenous Film US LA
MDVL 122 The Middle Ages in Popular Culture LA
MDVL 201 section available Medieval Literature and Culture WCC LA
MDVL 216 section available Legends of King Arthur WCC LA
MDVL 240 section available Italy Middle Ages & Renaiss LA
MDVL 252 Viking Sagas in Translation WCC LA
MUS 130 Music Then and Now WCC LA
MUS 132 section available Popular Music Studies US LA
MUS 133 section available Introduction to World Music NW LA
MUS 313 section available The History of Music I LA
MUS 314 The History of Music II LA
POL 115 Intro to Polish Culture WCC LA
REES 115 Intro to Polish Culture WCC LA
REES 116 Intro to Russian Culture WCC LA
REL 101 Bible as Literature LA
REL 208 Cultures & Literatures of South Asia NW LA
REL 223 The Qur'an (Koran) NW LA
REL 260 section available Mystics and Saints in Islam NW LA
REL 283 section available Jewish Sacred Literature LA
REL 320 Responses to the Holocaust WCC LA
RUSS 115 Intro to Russian Culture WCC LA
RUSS 220 Golden Age of Russian Literature ACP LA
RUSS 225 Soviet and Post-Soviet Lit LA
RUSS 260 section available Medicine & Literature LA
SAME 208 Cultures & Literatures of South Asia NW LA
SAME 211 The Arab-Israeli Conflict WCC LA
SAME 212 Israeli Cinema and Television WCC LA
SAME 223 The Qur'an (Koran) NW LA
SAME 260 Mystics and Saints in Islam NW LA
SCAN 215 section available Madness, Myth, and Murder LA
SCAN 225 Vikings to Volvos: Scandinavia WCC LA
SCAN 252 Viking Sagas in Translation WCC LA
SLAV 117 section available Russ & E Euro Science Fiction LA
SLCL 110 Introduction to Intercultural Competence WCC LA
SPAN 242 section available Intro to Latina/o Literature US LA
SPAN 246 Gender & Sexuality in Latina/o Literature US LA
SPAN 248 Latin American Diaspora through Film: Beyond Braceros, Narcos, and Latin Lovers US LA
THEA 101 section available Introduction to Theatre Arts LA
THEA 110 section available Broadway Musicals WCC LA
THEA 122 Theatre Foundations: Theory and Practice LA
THEA 208 21st Century Dramaturgy LA
THEA 209 section available Writing Performance & Culture ACP WCC LA
THEA 210 Introduction to Greek and Roman Theater ACP WCC LA
THEA 323 The Comic Imagination ACP WCC LA
TRST 201 section available Intro to Translation Studies LA
UKR 113 section available Ukrainian Culture WCC LA
YDSH 320 Responses to the Holocaust WCC LA
AAS 200 section available U.S. Race and Empire US HP
AAS 215 section available US Citizenship Comparatively US HP
AAS 281 section available Constructing Race in America US HP
AAS 283 Asian American History US HP
ACES 179 section available History of Ag in IL Since 1860 US HP
ADV 212 Advertising History HP
AFAS 120 section available Intro to US Armed Forces HP
AFRO 101 section available Black America, 1619-Present US HP
AFRO 106 Hist Arch Americas US HP
AFRO 215 section available US Citizenship Comparatively US HP
AFRO 221 History of the Prison WCC HP
AFRO 261 Intro to the African Diaspora US HP
AFRO 275 Afro-American History to 1877 US HP
AFRO 276 African American History Since 1877 US HP
AFRO 281 section available Constructing Race in America US HP
AFRO 340 section available Dancing Black Popular Culture ACP US HP
AFST 111 section available History of Africa to 1800 NW HP
AFST 112 History of Africa from 1800 NW HP
AFST 213 African Muslim Societies NW HP
AIS 101 section available Intro to American Indian Studies US HP
AIS 277 section available Encounters in Native America US HP
AIS 278 Native American History US HP
AIS 285 section available Indigenous Thinkers NW HP
AIS 288 section available American Indians of Illinois US HP
AIS 295 section available US Citizenship Comparatively US HP
ANSC 255 section available Animal Ethics HP
ANTH 105 section available World Archaeology HP
ANTH 106 Hist Arch Americas US HP
ANTH 108 section available Religion & Society in West I WCC HP
ANTH 109 Religion & Society in West II WCC HP
ANTH 130 section available History of South Asia NW HP
ANTH 157 section available The Archaeology of Illinois HP
ANTH 175 Archaeology and Pop Culture HP
ANTH 261 Intro to the African Diaspora US HP
ANTH 268 section available Images of the Other ACP WCC HP
ANTH 288 section available American Indians of Illinois US HP
ARCH 222 Islamic Gardens & Architecture NW HP
ARCH 314 History of World Landscapes ACP WCC HP
ARTH 219 Islamic Gardens & Architecture NW HP
ARTJ 302 Intro to Japanese Animation NW HP
ASST 104 section available Asian Mythology NW HP
CLCV 116 Introduction to Ancient Roman Culture WCC HP
CLCV 131 section available Classical Archaeology, Greece WCC HP
CLCV 132 Class Archaeology, Rome-Italy WCC HP
CLCV 133 Archaeology of Israel WCC HP
CLCV 160 section available Ancient Greek & Roman Religion WCC HP
CLCV 203 section available Ancient Philosophy HP
CLCV 231 section available Development of Ancient Cities WCC HP
CLCV 250 Sports and Society in Greece and Rome WCC HP
CMN 210 Public Communication in Everyday Life WCC HP
CWL 251 section available Viking Mythology WCC HP
DANC 340 section available Dancing Black Popular Culture ACP US HP
EALC 120 section available East Asian Civilizations NW HP
EALC 122 History East Asian Religions NW HP
EALC 132 Zen NW HP
EALC 220 Traditional China NW HP
EALC 222 Chinese Thought and Culture NW HP
EALC 225 section available Japanese Religions: Thought and Practice NW HP
EALC 227 section available Modern Japanese History NW HP
EALC 287 Introduction to Buddhism NW HP
EALC 367 section available History of Korea NW HP
ECE 316 section available Ethics and Engineering ACP HP
EDUC 202 section available Social Justice, School and Society ACP HP
EPOL 380 section available Education and Social Justice US HP
ESE 202 section available American Environmental History WCC HP
ETMA 311 section available Humanity in the Food Web ACP HP
GEOL 201 History of Geology ACP HP
GER 205 Germany and Europe WCC HP
GLBL 228 Terrorism, Past and Present WCC HP
GWS 215 section available US Citizenship Comparatively US HP
GWS 263 History of Medicine in the United States US HP
GWS 285 US Gender History to 1877 US HP
HIST 100 section available Global History NW HP
HIST 103 section available A History of Everything: The Big Bang to Big Data WCC HP
HIST 104 section available Black Music US HP
HIST 105 section available Latin America to Independence NW HP
HIST 106 section available Modern Latin America NW HP
HIST 111 section available History of Africa to 1800 NW HP
HIST 112 History of Africa from 1800 NW HP
HIST 120 section available East Asian Civilizations NW HP
HIST 130 section available History of South Asia NW HP
HIST 135 section available History of Islamic Middle East NW HP
HIST 140 section available Western Worlds: Ancient and Medieval Societies from the Mediterranean to N. Europe (ACP) ACP WCC HP
HIST 141 section available Western Worlds: Ancient and Medieval Societies from the Mediterranean to Northern Europe WCC HP
HIST 142 Modern Europe and the World WCC HP
HIST 143 Modern Europe and the World - ACP ACP WCC HP
HIST 164 The Automobile WCC HP
HIST 168 section available A History of Judaism ACP HP
HIST 170 section available US History to 1877-ACP ACP US HP
HIST 171 section available US History to 1877 US HP
HIST 172 US History Since 1877 US HP
HIST 173 US History Since 1877-ACP ACP US HP
HIST 174 section available Black America, 1619-Present US HP
HIST 202 section available American Environmental History WCC HP
HIST 203 section available Reacting to the Past HP
HIST 205 Lived Experience in Latin America NW HP
HIST 207 section available Digital Documentary Publishing HP
HIST 209 World War II: A Global History WCC HP
HIST 211 History of Southern Africa NW HP
HIST 212 History of Eastern Africa NW HP
HIST 213 African Muslim Societies NW HP
HIST 219 History of the Prison WCC HP
HIST 220 Traditional China NW HP
HIST 222 Chinese Thought and Culture NW HP
HIST 227 section available Modern Japanese History NW HP
HIST 228 From Genghis Khan to the Taliban: War and Peace in Central Asia NW HP
HIST 236 Madness and Modern Society WCC HP
HIST 241 section available History of Ancient Rome WCC HP
HIST 247 section available Medieval Europe WCC HP
HIST 252 section available The Holocaust WCC HP
HIST 253 Enlightenment to Existentialsm WCC HP
HIST 255 British Isles to 1688 WCC HP
HIST 257 Terrorism, Past and Present WCC HP
HIST 258 section available 20thC World to Midcentury WCC HP
HIST 259 section available 20thC World from Midcentury WCC HP
HIST 260 History of Russia WCC HP
HIST 262 section available Zionism: A Global History WCC HP
HIST 263 History of Medicine in the United States US HP
HIST 264 Technology in Western Society WCC HP
HIST 268 section available Biology and Society from Darwin to the Human Genome WCC HP
HIST 269 Jewish History Since 1700 WCC HP
HIST 274 US Foreign Relations Since 1917 WCC HP
HIST 275 Afro-American History to 1877 US HP
HIST 276 African American History Since 1877 US HP
HIST 277 section available Encounters in Native America US HP
HIST 278 Native American History US HP
HIST 279 section available Mexican-American History US HP
HIST 280 Caribbean Latina/o Migration US HP
HIST 281 section available Constructing Race in America US HP
HIST 283 Asian American History US HP
HIST 285 US Gender History to 1877 US HP
HIST 288 section available American Indians of Illinois US HP
HIST 289 History of Religion in America HP
HIST 293 section available The President and the People WCC HP
HIST 325 section available History of Korea NW HP
HK 208 section available Introduction to Medical Ethics HP
JOUR 205 section available History of American Journalism HP
JS 108 section available Religion & Society in West I WCC HP
JS 120 section available A History of Judaism ACP HP
JS 201 History of Antisemitism WCC HP
JS 231 section available Development of Ancient Cities WCC HP
JS 252 section available The Holocaust WCC HP
JS 262 section available Zionism: A Global History WCC HP
JS 269 Jewish History Since 1700 WCC HP
LA 221 History of the Prison WCC HP
LA 222 Islamic Gardens & Architecture NW HP
LA 314 History of World Landscapes ACP WCC HP
LAW 301 section available Introduction to Law HP
LAW 302 Transitional Justice US HP
LAW 303 Living the Law HP
LLS 200 section available U.S. Race and Empire US HP
LLS 215 section available US Citizenship Comparatively US HP
LLS 279 section available Mexican-American History US HP
LLS 280 Caribbean Latina/o Migration US HP
LLS 281 section available Constructing Race in America US HP
MACS 264 section available Media Industries WCC HP
MDVL 247 section available Medieval Europe WCC HP
MDVL 251 section available Viking Mythology WCC HP
MDVL 255 British Isles to 1688 WCC HP
MILS 120 section available Intro to US Armed Forces HP
NRES 202 section available American Environmental History WCC HP
NS 120 section available Intro to US Armed Forces HP
PHIL 100 section available Intro to Philosophy-ACP ACP HP
PHIL 101 section available Introduction to Philosophy HP
PHIL 102 section available Logic and Reasoning HP
PHIL 103 section available Logic and Reasoning QR II HP QR2
PHIL 104 section available Intro to Ethics-ACP ACP HP
PHIL 105 section available Introduction to Ethics HP
PHIL 108 section available Religion & Society in West I WCC HP
PHIL 109 Religion & Society in West II WCC HP
PHIL 110 section available World Religions NW HP
PHIL 203 section available Ancient Philosophy HP
PHIL 206 section available Early Modern Philosophy HP
PHIL 210 Ethics HP
PHIL 214 Biomedical Ethics HP
PHIL 222 section available Philosophical Foundations of Computer Science HP
PHIL 223 Minds & Machines HP
PHIL 230 Philosophy of Religion Intro HP
PHIL 231 Religion and Philosophy HP
PHIL 250 Conceptions of Human Nature HP
PHIL 270 Philosophy of Science HP
PHIL 316 section available Ethics and Engineering ACP HP
PS 170 section available Power, Politics, and Protest HP
PS 270 section available Intro to Political Theory HP
PSYC 236 Madness and Modern Society WCC HP
REES 228 From Genghis Khan to the Taliban: War and Peace in Central Asia NW HP
REL 104 section available Asian Mythology NW HP
REL 108 section available Religion & Society in West I WCC HP
REL 109 Religion & Society in West II WCC HP
REL 110 section available World Religions NW HP
REL 120 section available A History of Judaism ACP HP
REL 122 History East Asian Religions NW HP
REL 132 Zen NW HP
REL 160 section available Ancient Greek & Roman Religion WCC HP
REL 201 Hebrew Bible in English HP
REL 212 History of Antisemitism WCC HP
REL 214 Introduction to Islam NW HP
REL 215 African Muslim Societies NW HP
REL 224 Chinese Thought and Culture NW HP
REL 225 section available Japanese Religions: Thought and Practice NW HP
REL 230 Philosophy of Religion Intro HP
REL 231 Happiness and the Good Life HP
REL 235 History of Religion in America HP
REL 251 section available Viking Mythology WCC HP
REL 269 Jewish History Since 1700 WCC HP
REL 286 Introduction to Hinduism NW HP
REL 287 Introduction to Buddhism NW HP
SAME 214 Introduction to Islam NW HP
SCAN 251 section available Viking Mythology WCC HP
SLCL 200 Topics in Global Culture WCC HP
SPED 117 section available The Culture of Disability HP