2009
Sunday,
June 28 through Friday, July 31
One History. Three Countries. Shared Future.
During the Program, the faculty assigned several short papers and one major interdisciplinary research project to be handed in at the conclusion of the Program. This final project was the culmination of the Scholar's experience. The following gives an idea of the seminars and the final research projects:
ART
& ARCHITECTURE
NUBRAS
SAMAYEEN
M.Arch and
Art/Architecture covered
topics from Ancient Indus Valley Civilization to present-day modern
architecture and cities. The course curriculum was a bit different than that of
other courses and integrated several projects, including few hand-in projects,
establishing an understanding of architecture and abstract art related to
history and religion. The assignments and projects were formulated to create an
eye to study art forms, architecture and cities of
Allison
C. Bacon National
Assembly Complex: Identity of a Nation.
Andrea A. Chu Origin
of Buddha’s Image.
Zagham H. Chaudry
Ronak S. Ghandi The
Development of the Post-Colonial Indian Economy
and
its Effect on Urbanization.
Michelle S. Lam A
Daybreak in Death: The Epitome of Mughal Architecture
in
the Taj Mahal.
Austin L. Mahler How did the Role
of Water as an Architectural and
Landscape Element
Develop in the Islamic Period of the
Subcontinent?
Tasmiah A. Rashid Indian
Classical Dance: A Stomp Heard Around the world.
Rohini
Rui Yu Poorly
Planned Urbanization and Effect of Slums on Social
Fabric.
HISTORY
& POLITICS
BLAIN
H. AUER
The
History/Politics section of the New Jersey Scholars Program introduced students
to the broad strokes of Indian history from the ancient Indus Valley
Civilization, to the Mauryan Empire, from Muslim
courts under the Sultans of Delhi and later Mughal
kings, to the early modern encounter with Europe and the establishment of the
British Raj, and finally to the Indian independence movement and the building
of the modern nations of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. In politics, the
However,
the course on history/politics was structured to be much more than an informed
version of the entwined histories of the various communities scattered across
the vast geographical landscape of
Mary
E. Borowiec The Curse of
Caste: Reform Work of Gandhi and
Ambedkar.
Kelsey
S. Burns Sex
Work in
Janan M. Dave Hindu-Muslim Intermarriage.
Amira Mohamed Esseghir The Theories of
Conversion to Islam in
Ankur M. Goyal The
Use of Images and Concepts of Hinduism in the Hindu
Nationalist
Movement.
Ameil KenKare Cricket’s
Influences on Inter-Communal Relations in South
Jibran Khawar The
Heroes of the Shahnameh.
Jason
A. Kilbourne Sex Education in
Matthew S. Metlitz Peace, Love, and
Western Music and Spirituality During
the 1960’s, and What was the Reaction of the Indian People?
Benjamin L.
Neumann Blood versus Faith: The Dynamic of
Religion and Race in
the Jewish
Community of
States.
LITERATURE
DAVID M. BUYZE
The New Jersey Scholars of 2009 had a
challenging and an exciting time trying to negotiate a whole new world of
The literature section of
our program analyzed, dissected and at times debated the major contributions of
sub-continental writers. From Sanskrit
to Persian to Hindi to Urdu and to English we traversed the history of
literature. The books we read dealt with major concerns of cross cultural
identity, politics, love, relationships, Diaspora, economy, race, gender, and
religion. The writers although
contemporary shed light on pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial issues of
sub-continental identity. Each student
will leave with an aftertaste of sub-continental writers who have been world
renowned and celebrated in their native countries. Furthermore, the novelists deal directly
with the emergence of a hybrid identity that lies between the East and West and
more importantly the creation of a post-colonial identity. We explored writing styles, tones,
illustrations of cultural difference, and finally the artistic & visual
expression of these cultures.
Amanda Faye Ekstein Using Literature
to Highlight the Dynamic of Rural
Pakistani Families.
Louisa M. Lee Islamic Women in
Literature
Connor P. Mui Let
My Country Awake: Rabindranoth Tagore’s Visionary
Conception
of
Abhimanyu Ramachandran An Analysis of the Development of the
Ideal of a Nation-
State in
Colonialism and Historical Indian Political
Philosophies.
Veronica Rae Saron Drugs:
Sin and Spirituality.
Sunny Sanjay
Shah Exposing the Fundamental
Political Hypocrisies of
Through the
Analysis of Women’s Rights.
Ariel D. Shpigel The Homeland and
the World: The Female’s Search for Identity
in South Asian
Literature
Neha Srivastava Changes of
Identity: An Inevitable Result of Assimilation.
Alexandra Maria Svokos The 1947
Partition’s Influence on South Asian Literature.
RELIGION
The
New Jersey Scholars program began the third week of June, 2009. Thirty nine young
people gathered on the campus of The Lawrenceville School and within 24 hours,
they were engaged in thoughtful, and at time heated, discussion. The
architecture, religion, politics, literature, art, and history of
Lillian G. Baum Prostitution in
Matthew A daSilva Nirvana
Across Buddhism: Comparing Theravada and
Mahayana
Understandings of the Ultimate Truth.
Rashawn A. Davis Mahavira and
Buddha: Exploring the Contrast between
Buddhism and Jainism.
Eric S. Kauderer-Abrams Tolstoy
and The Gita: Pillars of Gandhi’s Cohesive Life
Philosophy.
Jeesoo
Influences
and Character of Mohandas K. Gandhi.
Rodrigo
Sanchez Pre-Colonial,
Colonial, and Post-Colonial: Homosexuality
As Viewed
by Indian Hindus.
Sanjna Sanghvi The Ancient Indian Form of
Medicine in light of Ashtanga
Yoga.
Kishan Shah The
Workings of a Mahatma: An Exploration of the
Influences and Character of Mohandas K. Gandhi.
.
Rachael
Elizabeth Siegel Right Conduct
and Meditation: Applications in
Contemporary
Indian Buddhism.