Constellation: How Do Humans Understand Life, Death and the In-Between?

Explore how life, death and the spaces in between are shaped by context — who is asking the questions, and when, where, and how? This Constellation examines burial practices, cultural and linguistic influences on illness, and the implications of medical advances, challenging students to reflect on mortality and the evolving human experience. 

Students enroll in one fall course and one spring course for their matched Constellation. Students are assigned to the fall semester to enroll in one integrated W120 course.

Fall 2025

ETHICS 143CN "Singing the Same Song”: A Global Perspective on the Experience of Illness (Cross-list: GLHLTH 143CNS)
SPANISH 306CN Health, Culture & the Latino Community (Cross-lists:LSGS 306CN, GLHLTH 326CN, CULANTH 306CN, HLTHPOL 306CN) (Course taught in Spanish)
BIOLOGY 111CN The Quest for a Fountain of Youth: The What, Why and How of Human Aging
CULANTH 115CNS Deathcare in the World Today (Cross-lists: CULANTH 143CNS, ARTHIST 143CNS, RELIGION 143CNS)

WRITING 120 We are What We Eat
WRITING 120 Preventing pandemics: interdisciplinary approaches to preparedness                    

Spring  2026     

ITALIAN 171CN Being Human: Exploring Our Boundaries in Literature & Film (course taught in English)
GERMAN 182CN Monstrous Births: Coming to Life in Science and Literature of the 19th-century 
CLST 143CNS Archaeology of Death
CHEM 131CN  Therapeutic Molecules

Note: Use the advanced search tool in Duke Hub to see Fall 2025 course information. Select Fall 2025 for the term, Constellation course for the attribute, and Life Death and In-between for the attribute value.