Compeers,

I’m quite possibly the biggest Big Lebowski fan in Berkeley, which would place me high up in the runnin’ for biggest Lebowski fan worldwide. Now what in God’s holy name are you blathering about, you may ask? I will be teaching The Dude Abides in the Fall or if you’re not into the whole brevity thing “English 198: The Dude Abides, The Study and Practice of the Good Life as Proposed by The Big Lebowski.” Bienvenido to the University de California the one and only El Duderino Ram “Nobody F---s With the Ramiro” Rojas as my co-facilitator (they got us working in shifts!).

We will be on a strict reading regimen to keep the mind limber, including some Eastern thing (Taosim), selected chapters from The Big Lebowski: The Making of a Coen Brothers Film, The Abide Guide, James Ellroy, Raymond Chandler, Bertrand Russell, and more.

We want to provide an environment where you can befriend fellow dudes, and see what happens when you find a stranger in the class.

We also want to have an inclusive environment, so we’ll be learning about great dudes of color (because racially we’re pretty cool) and special ladies (in the parlance of our times) because we don’t treat objects like women, man.

All of your learning should provide you with a TOE (theory of everything), hell, I can get you a TOE by the end of the semester.

At the end of the semester you will turn in the MANifesto, a creative expression of any sort to show how you've become a Little Lebowski Berkeley Achiever, which will really tie the class together. Make sure to make it personal! What do you need that for dude? So we know that this is your homework, and so we can evaluate you, and so we know that this is your homework. Or we'll mark it zero.

Aside from the final project there are a few other requirements. This is not 'Nam. This is a decal. There are rules. Sign in everyday on the attendance sheet (I still take roll manually) and make sure you don't have more than 3 unexcused absences. Complete all the readings and be prepared to discuss in class. If you contravene a number of DeCal bylaws you'll fail, which would be a bummer, man. As a facilitator I must have the necessary means- the necessary means for evaluation.

We will spend most of our time occupying 219 Dwinelle on Tuesday 5-6, because I sure as
s--t roll on Tuesdays.

The teachings of the Dude stay with you for life. When you leave the class do you turn in your library card? Thousands of years of beautiful tradition of peace loving dudes who wear robes and sandals and have beards, from Jesus to Jeff Bridges.

Say what you want about the tenets of Democratic Education for California, Dude, but at least we have a syllabus. And if you think this is a giant waste of taxpayers’ money to fund a class about a stoner movie, yeah, well, you know, that’s just, like, your opinion, man.

Abide,

Dano Nissen

The classroom limit is 56. Students who attend the first class will automatically be enrolled in the class, provided that the attendance does not exceed the limit. If attendance exceeds the limit than students will be asked to fill out an anonymous questionnaire with their student ID number. I will admit students based on the questionnaire.