Thoreau-focused course integrates English and science

When Mike Habegger '08 enrolled in "Thoreauvian Science," he never dreamed he'd be nibbling on the leaf of a conifer tree outside Elderdice Hall.

"It tastes like a Christmas tree," Habegger said.

The students in "Thoreauvian Science," one of a growing number of interdisciplinary courses at McDaniel, are challenged to learn the ecology behind the foliage they encounter, while noticing the emotional solace nature provides. In addition to scientific texts, the students are also reading and applying the works of Henry David Thoreau, philosopher and author famous for living in the woods near Walden Pond.

The course, described as interdisciplinary for its combination of two or more different bodies of knowledge, is team-taught by Biology Professor Esther Iglich and English Lecturer Jennie Wollenweber.

"We combine what we're doing here with poetry," Wollenweber said. "Because half of what you know about nature is perception."

The class is one of two interdisciplinary courses offered this semester. The other, a Psychology course called "Madness," will incorporate guest speakers to examine madness from the perspectives of music, literature, philosophy, history, and dramatic arts.

Provost Tom Falkner said professors are encouraged to expand students' perspectives by examining different views on a subject.

"The ability to synthesize knowledge from multiple sources has always been one of the goals of a liberal arts education," Falkner said. "McDaniel provides many excellent examples of such 'integrative learning,' and interdisciplinary and team-taught courses -- like the course on Thoreauvian Science -- are excellent vehicles for this."

"Thoreauvian Science" joins Biology with Literature. The eight honors students spend most of their class time outside -- hiking and exploring nature. The class visited local trails and the island of Assateague on Maryland 's Eastern Shore. Later in the semester they plan to camp at Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania.

"You put any person in a forest and all of a sudden it's different. It's beyond you. All of a sudden it's like you're part of a system that takes care of you and you of it," Iglich said.

English major Maria Lathroum '08 says she's thrilled to find a course that involves her love of literature while satisfying a science requirement.

"I figured it was as English as a science course can get, and I needed a general science course," Lathroum said.

Iglich and Wollenweber assigned the students a semester-long project to choose a tree on campus and develop the same type of relationship Thoreau would have had. In addition to studying the tree from a scientific perspective, the students will also write poetry about their tree.

Maria Lathroum '08 and Stacy Fitzwater '07 chose a Magnolia tree across from the President's house. They dove under the heavy brush and struggled near the rocky ground to take a core sample from the tree in order to calculate its age. The coring process doesn't harm the tree.

In the meantime, juniors Tory Butler and Lindsay Keller can't seem to find a suitable tree. One has too thick of a trunk. Another is not indigenous. A third is too hard to identify. As the two wander around campus searching for the perfect tree, Butler refers to Thoreau's concept of sauntering.

Thoreau wrote, “I think that I cannot preserve my health and spirits, unless I spend four hours a day at least -- and it is commonly more than that -- sauntering through the woods and over the hills and fields, absolutely free from all worldly engagements.”

As the two wander purposefully but aimlessly, Butler reflects on the situation.

"I like this sauntering. This is the kind of sauntering I like to do."

Professor Esther Iglich describes the class assignment.

"It tastes like a Christmas tree," said Mike Habegger '08.

Greg Adams '08 and Mike Habegger '08 struggle to core a tree.

Maria Lathroum '08 and Stacy Fitzwater '08 pick a magnolia outside the President's house.

… And under the branches.

Tory Butler '07 and Lindsay Keller '07 identify their tree.

Core samples are collected for aging the trees.

Contact Michele Cohen Leiberman, associate director of media relations, at 410-857-2294 or mleiberman@mcdaniel.edu.