|
Philosophy 403 |
Office Hours in
RH-436 (445-4489) |
|
Heroism and the Human
Spirit |
MWF 12:30 p.m. - 1:20
p.m. |
|
Philosophy Seminar, Fall,
2004 |
and by appointment.
|
|
Prof. Michael Kagan |
Email: kagan@lemoyne.edu |
Goal: The
main purpose of this course is to provide students with
an opportunity to develop their own answers to the question, "What
makes a
person great?" It is hoped that giving students a chance to address
this
problem while seeing its inter-connections with fundamental
philosophical
issues will help them integrate their heroic visions into their own
philosophies of human existence and/or philosophic religious faith.
Requirements and grading
ABOUT THE SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENTS: You are to select and
complete
five of the eight short writing assignments. A reading question
is given
along with each assignment. Unless otherwise indicated, please answer
the
reading question in less than one TYPED page (all assignments,
except
in-class writings, are to be typed).Make sure you are working
with the
current version of this syllabus.
STUDENT PRESENTATIONS: For every presentation, you will be
required to
turn in an outline or abstract of your presentation, complete with
a list
of all works used. Also, if you use any web pages, not only should
these be
listed on the outline with the rest of your bibliography, but you are
also
required to turn in a printout of all web pages used in preparing the
presentation. If your group divides the work into separate parts, each
member
of the group will need to provide his or her own outline/abstract and
printouts. Outlines/abstracts, and printouts are to be given to me BEFORE
the presentation. Failure to do so BEFORE the
presentation
will result in a 30% deduction from the relevant presenter's
presentation
grade. If the outline and printouts are not turned in by the next
class, there
will be an additional 30% deduction. You may use up to but not
more than
5 minutes of videotaped material for your presentation. If the
class is
meeting in a room with a built-in VCR, make sure you know how to use
it. If you
need to bring in a VCR for the presentation, you may order one from AV
by
calling 445-4380 or on the web at http://www.lemoyne.edu/information_systems/audio_visual/class.html
In the event of a technical glitch or delivery problem make sure you
can
present without the videotaped material.
STUDENT PRESENTATIONS ON READINGS: All students are expected to do
all
readings and to share their understanding with one another in class
discussions
by leading their own and participating in other students' presentations
on the
various readings. Student presentations on readings begin the second
week of
class, and will be scheduled during the first week. The subtopics will
be
divided up into student groups whose size will be determined by the
class size.
Remember: You have less than an
hour to
present. Focus on the aspects your group finds most interesting and
important.
Do not try to cover everything. Your presentation will be improved if
you make
it easier for others to participate. (Please try to help others'
presentations
by participating!) Please feel free to meet with me to discuss your
presentations. If you don't find me on campus, you are welcome to call
me at
home before 8:00 PM. YOU CAN ALWAYS LEAVE A VOICE MAIL MESSAGE AT
445-4489.
THE PROJECT might involve further investigating the issue of human
greatness and heroism, a philosophical essay concerning some related
issue of
philosophical interest in a work of literature, a creative literary
work of the
student's own [e.g., a short story, 1st chapter of a novel, & c.],
or a
philosophical analysis of some related issue present in one of the
works we
studied, detailing the position[s] set forth in the work, and
developing and
defending one's own philosophical response.
GRADING
Grades are based on a 10 point
scale as follows:
90-100 - 'A' range (97-100 = A+; 94-96=A; 90-93=A-); 80-89 - 'B'
range (87-89
= B+; 84-86=B; 80-83=B-);
70-79 - 'C' range (77-79 = C+; 74-76=C; 70-73=C-); 60-69 -
'D'
range (67-69 = D+; 64-66=D; 60-63=D-).
Below 60 - 'F'.
Failure to complete any of (1)-(4) can result in a failing grade.
Plagiarism
will result in a failing grade.
Required Reading List: (in approximate reading order)
Card, Orson Scott. Maps in a Mirror.
Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York:
King, Stephen. Different Seasons (also published as Shawshank
Redemption).
Rand, Ayn. Anthem.
Butler, Octavia E. Bloodchild and Other Stories.
Brown, Claude. Manchild in the Promised Land.
Plato, Symposium.
SPECIAL NEEDS
In coordination with the Academic
Support Center (ASC),
reasonable accommodations are provided for qualified students with
disabilities. Please register with the ASC Office for disability
verification
and determination of reasonable accommodations. After receiving your
accommodation form from the ASC, you will need to make an appointment
with me
to review the form and discuss your needs. Please make every attempt to
meet
with me within the first week of class so your accommodations can be
provided
in a timely manner. You can either stop by the ASC, Library, 1st floor,
or call
(445-4118-voice or 445-4104-TDD) to make an appointment.
IMPORTANT DATES:
No classes on the following dates: Mon., Sept. 6, Labor
Day; Wed. Sep. 8, Mass of the Holy Spirit (classes canceled 10:30 AM -
12:30 PM), Oct. 11-12 (Mon.-Tue.), Fall Break; Nov.
24-27,
Thanksgiving Break. Last day of class:
Dec. 10 (Fri.).
PROJECT PROPOSALS DUE FRI., OCT. 15. WRITTEN PROJECTS DUE: FRI, NOV.
19.
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE AND SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS ['*' MARKS WEEKS
IN WHICH
STUDENTS PRESENT ON READINGS.]
#1 (Mon., Aug. 30) Introduce course, choose groups and schedule
presentations
on readings.
#2 (Wed., Sep. 1) -- In-class writing on childhood heroes.
#3 (Fri., Sep. 3) Discussion of heroic scripting.
No class Sep. 6 (Labor Day) .
No class Sep. 8 (Mass of the Holy Spirit).
#4 (Fri., Sep.10) Instructor presents on "The Porcelain
Salamander" (from
Maps in a Mirror). Group work on "The
Porcelain Salamander."
*#5 (Mon., Sep. 13) Students present on Toni Morrison's The
Bluest Eye.
SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Who in the The
Bluest
Eye (10) illustrates heroic scripting, or (2) reminds you of
someone you have encountered (in life or literature)? How so?
#6 & #7 Wed. Sep. 15 and Fri., Sep. 17)
Self-deception and bad faith. Instructor presents on Le Guin's
"Those who walk away from Omelas, " and Card's "The Best
Day" (from Maps in a Mirror) . The temptation to deny
the best and the worst.
*#8 (Fri ., Sep. 17) Students present on Night. SHORT
WRITING
ASSIGNMENT DUE: If you were a middle school English teacher,
would you assign this book to your students? Why or why not?
*#9 (Mon., Sep.20). SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT DUE: What are
these
children told to expect from their lives? How do they respond? Students
present
on Stephen King's "The Body" (in Different Seasons).
#10 (Wed., Sep. 22) Instructor presents on Rand's philosophy.
* #11 (Fri., Sep. 24) Students present on Anthem. SHORT
WRITING
ASSIGNMENT DUE: In the world Rand describes, one's career is
chosen by
others at an early age - How does the book's hero resist this choice?
Does our
society also put some in a position that will keep them from hurting
the status
quo? If so, how so? If not, why not?
#12 (Mon., Sep. 27) Lecture on problem of personal identity.
* #13 (Wed., Sep. 29) Short writing assignment due: Students
present on Octavia Butler's "The Evening and the Morning, and the
Night" (in the Bloodchild anthology) . SHORT WRITING
ASSIGNMENT:
Who in this story reminds you of someone
you have encountered (in life or literature)? How so? Have
they
chosen to do what they do best? Why or why not?
Please
explain, using examples from the story.
#14 (Fri., Oct. 1) Lecture on "Becker, Childhood, and Scary
Stories"
#15 (Mon., Oct. 4) Instructor presents one way of reading King (and
others).
* #16 ( Wed., Oct. 6) Students present on Stephen King's "The Breathing
Method" (in Different Seasons).
SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT DUE: What is "cheap magic"? How does
it work? What can we learn from this?
#17 (Fri., Oct. 8) Instructor presents on Heroic Myths (Campbell and
Raffa) and
the twice born.
No class Monday, October 11 (Fall Break).
* #18 (Wed., Oct. 13) SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT DUE: In the
world Claude
Brown describes, what are the
children told to expect from their lives? How do they respond? How do the book's
heroes resist this choice? What can we
learn
from this? Students present on Manchild in the Promised Land.
#19 ( Fri., Oct. 15) Group work on Manchild in the Promised Land.
Lecture on racism and deception. PROJECT PROPOSALS DUE.
*#20 (Mon.,
Oct. 18) TWO PART SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT DUE: Write a brief
description of
a
friend or a brief story in which the sex of at least one major
character is
neither stated nor implied. THEN explain which of the people
described in
the Symposium has a theory or story about love you think is
important, interesting, or true. Explain why. Note: You are
welcome to do
this within one page if you can, but, for this assignment, the page
limit is 3
TYPED pages. Students present on Symposium.
#22 (Wed, Oct. 20) Lecture on "Sex and Gender."
#23 -(Fri, Oct. 22) In-class writing exercise on future
autobiography.
#24 (Mon., Oct. 25) -Lecture on "Possibilities and Practice: The Heroic
Task and Self Education."
#25 (Wed. Oct. 27) - SCHEDULE PROJECT PRESENTATIONS. Buber's
hasidut and Rebbe Nachman's "The Turkey Prince." (includes
group work on Rebbe Nachman's story).
# 26 (Fri., Oct. 29) Instructor presentation on "Middle Woman"
or "Gert Fram." (Both stories are in Maps in a Mirror.)
#27 (Mon. Nov. 1) Bring Bloodchild to class.
Presentation on "Positive Obsession."
#28 (Wed. Nov. 3) Bring Bloodchild to class.
Presentation on "Furor Scribendi."
NOTE: WRITTEN PROJECTS DUE: FRI., NOV. 19.
**#28 (Fri., November 5, through Wednesday, December
8)
Student
presentations on projects (these are to be between 20 and 50
minutes in
length, depending on the size of the class, and the number of students
presenting). These will continue until the end of semester. Students
who are
unable to do their individual presentations at the scheduled time will
need to
schedule a make-up presentation.No classes Nov. 24-27 (Thanksgiving
Break).
Fri., December 3. Final Evaluations.
Fri., December 10, Make-up presentations. LAST DAY OF CLASS.
Ajami,
Fouad. The
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and
the Last
Great Lesson.
Amdur, Ellis. Dueling with O-Sensei: Grappling with the Myth of the
Warrior
Sage, Old School: Essays on Japanese Martial Traditions.
Available from www.ellisamdur.com.
Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.
(The
movie "Smoke Signals" is based on this.)
Becker, Ernest. The Birth and Death of Meaning, The Denial
of Death,
and other works.
Belenky, et al. Women's Ways of Knowing.
Berne, Eric. What Do You Say After You Say Hello? - The Psychology
of Human
Destiny, and other works.
Brown, Claude. Manchild in the Promised Land.
Brown, Christy. My Left Foot.
Bujold, Lois McMaster. Cordelia's Honor, and other works.
Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Second ed.
Card, Orson Maps in a Mirror: The Short Fiction of Orson Scott Card,
Ender's
Game, and other works.
Chandler, Raymond. The Simple Art of Murder,
and other works.
Chesbro, George. Shadow of a Broken Man.
Cross, Amanda. Death in a Tenured Position, and other works.
Davies, Robertson. The Deptford Trilogy : Fifth Business/the
Manticore/World
of Wonders, and other works.
DeWitt, Helen. The Last Samurai.
Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot, Notes
from
the Underground, "The Crocodile, " and other works.
Ellison, Ralph. Invisible
Eugenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex.
Friedman, C.S. This Alien Shore, and other works..
Gardner, John. The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers.
Gilligan, Carol. In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and
Women's
Development.
Gilman, Dorothy The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax, Tightrope Walker,
Incident
at Badamya, and other works.
Goldman, William. The Princess Bride.
Goldstein, Lisa. Dream Years, The Red Magician, Travellers
in Magic and other works..
Haley, Alex, and Malcolm X. The Autobiography of Malcolm X.
Hammett, Dashiel. The Maltese Falcon (the book and the
movie).
You should look at his other novels as well.
Hargrove, Anne C. Getting Better: Conversations with myself and
other
friends while healing from breast cancer.
Heinlein, R. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Citizen of the
Galaxy,
Double Star and other works.
Hesse, Hermann. Siddhartha, The Journey to the East, The
Glass
Bead Game, Steppenwolf, and other works.
Hoeg, Peter. Smilla's Sense of Snow, Borderliners.
Howie, Noelle. Dress
Codes: Of Three Girlhoods--My Mother's, My Father's, and
Mine.
Howatch, Susan. Glamorous Powers, and other works.
Irving, John. A Prayer for Owen Meany, The World According
to Garp.
Jarmusch, Jim. Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.
Kafka, Franz. "Penal Colony, " "Hunger Artist, " The
Trial, The Castle, and other works.
Kagan, Michael . Educating Heroes (Durango, Colorado:
Hollowbrook,
1994).
Kamenetz, Rodger. The Jew in the Lotus : A Poet's Rediscovery of
Jewish
Identity in Buddhist
Kaye, Ronnie. Spinning Straw into Gold.
King, Stephen. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Hearts in
Atlantis,
Bag of Bones, and other works.
Kress, Nancy. Beggars in
Leonard, George. Mastery (New York: Penguin/Plume, 1992).
Lowry, Dave. Autumn Lightning, Persimmon Wind.
Le Guin, Ursula K. The Telling, Left Hand of Darkness, The
Lathe of Heaven, The Dispossessed, and other works.
Levine, Gail Carson. Ella Enchanted.
Morrison, Toni. Song of Solomon, and other works.
Morrow, James. Towing Jehovah, Blameless in Abaddon,
and other
works.
Noddings, Nel. Caring.
McBride, James. The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His
White
Mother.
Oates, J. C. On Boxing.
Parker, Robert B. Mortal Stakes, and other works.
Plato. The Republic, and other works.
Polster, Miriam F. Eve's Daughters : The Forbidden Heroism of Women.
Pullman, Philip. The Golden Compass (New York: Alfred A.
Knopf,
1996).
Raffa, Jean Benedict. The Bridge to Wholeness: A Feminine
Alternative to the
Hero Myth.
Rand, Ayn. The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, The
Virtue of
Selfishness.
Rollin, B. First, You Cry.
Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
Russell, Mary Doria. The Sparrow, and Children of God.
Salmonson, Jessica Amanda. A Silver Thread of Madness, and
other works.
Sapphire. Push: A Novel.
Silverberg, Robert. Lord Valentine's Castle.
Steiner, Claude M. Scripts People Live: Transactional Analysis of
Life
Scripts.
Suzuki, D.T. Zen and Japanese Culture.
Sturgeon, Theodore. More than Human, and other works.
Scriptures, religious tales and teachings of interest to the student,
from a
variety of traditions (including, but not limited to, African,
Buddhist,
Christian, Islamic, Jewish, Native American, Taoist, Vedic.)
Stout, Martha. The Myth of Sanity: Divided Consciousness and the
Promise of
Awareness.
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club, The Hundred Secret Senses.
Tolstoy, Leo. The Death of Ivan Ilyich, and other works.
Vonnegut, Jr., Kurt. Mother Night, Slaughterhouse Five, and
other works.
Walker,
Wachowski, Andy and Larry. The Matrix and its sequels
(including The
Animatrix). .
Wiesel, Elie. Dawn, The Accident, and other works.
Willis, Connie. Passages, Doomsday Book, Bellwether,
and other
works..
Yoshikawa. Musashi.
Zettel, Sarah. Fool's War.
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