HUMANITIES
109 / PHILOSOPHY 109
PHILOSOPHY
AND LITERATURE
IN SOCIAL
CONTEXT
SPRING
2003
Tu Th 12:50-2:10/ Harriman
116
Hugh
J. Silverman (Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature)
Office:
Harriman Hall 203; Office Phone 632-7592
Office
Hours: Tuesdays 2:30-4:00 p.m. and by appointment
This
course is both an introduction to Philosophy and to the Humanities. Our task will be to understand how notions such
as justice, law, society, community, rights, equality, citizenship, sovereignty,
foreigners have come to establish themselves as commonplaces in contemporary
social discourse? We will address the
ways in which such issues have entered into the literature, philosophy, and
cultures of western traditions. We
shall explore how to think and read major theoretical and literary writings
at key moments in western thought and culture. Emphasis will be placed on Ancient Greece (Aeschylus,
Plato, and Sophocles), the late Medieval-Renaissance Period (Dante, Machiavelli,
and Shakespeare), the Modern Age (Nietzsche, Freud, Kafka), and the advent
of the Postmodern (Sartre and Derrida). By looking at how these social theoretical notions
have been articulated at previous times, we shall achieve insight into how
to think about and understand them today.
Each
student will be expected to attend class regularly. Throughout the semester, there will be a total
of four 10-15 minute quizzes at the beginning of class (only three will count
but students must take all four in order to have the lowest of the four dropped).
Each student is to write one paper (about 5-7 pages in length). The
paper should compare social theories and their expressions from two different
periods. It should show how the two philosophies respond to the intellectual,
cultural, and socio-political contexts out of which they arise.
There
will be a take-home mid-term and a final examination. The mid-term, the paper, and the final exam
will each count 25%. The 3 quizzes will be 15%.
The additional 10% will result from the quality (not quantity) of class
participation and attendance. Each
student will be expected to read the material assigned for the indicated date
and come prepared to discuss the texts in class.
Readings:
| Aeschylus |
THE
ORESTEIA |
Penguin |
| Plato |
REPUBLIC |
Hackett
|
| Sophocles |
THE
THREE THEBAN PLAYS |
Penguin |
| Dante |
THE
INFERNO |
Penguin |
| Machiavelli |
THE
PRINCE |
Penguin |
| Shakespeare |
KING
LEAR |
Pelican |
| Nietzsche |
THUS
SPOKE ZARATHUSTRA |
Penguin |
| Freud |
CIVILIZATION
AND ITS DISCONTENTS |
Norton |
| Kafka |
THE
TRIAL |
Schocken |
| Sartre |
NO
EXIT and three other plays |
Vintage |
| Derrida |
ACTS
OF RELIGION |
Routledge |
| Recommended:
Kristeva |
STRANGERS
TO OURSELVES |
Columbia |
HUM 109/PHI 109:
Prof.
Hugh J. Silverman
| DATE | TOPIC | READING | |
January 23 |
Introduction | ||
(1) CLASSICAL THOUGHT AND CULTURE |
|||
January
28 & 30 |
Aeschylus:
The Consequences of Crime and Punishment |
The Oresteia
|
|
Feb.
4 & 6
|
Plato:
Justice and the Ideals of a Society |
Republic | |
| Feb. 11 & 13 | Plato:
Justice and the Ideals of a Society |
Republic | |
| Feb 18 & 20 | Sophocles:
Law, Responsibility, and Individual Choice |
Oedipus the King & Antigone |
|
(2) MEDIEVAL - RENAISSANCE LIFE AND THOUGHT |
|||
| Feb 25 & 27 | Dante:
Justice and Punishment in this life and the next |
Divine Comedy (The Inferno) |
|
Mar 4 & 6 |
Dante:
Justice and Punishment in this life and the next |
Divine Comedy (The Inferno) |
|
Mar 11 {mid-term exam due} & 13 |
The Prince |
||
| Mar 18 & 20 |
SPRING RECESS |
||
| Mar 25 & 27 | Shakespeare:
How (not) to Rule a State (and still think that love counts more than
anything!) |
King
Lear |
|
(3)
THE MEANING OF MODERN SOCIETY |
|||
| April 1 & 3 | Nietzsche:
Self-Overcoming vs Herd Moralities |
Thus Spoke Zarathustra |
|
| April 8 & 10 { paper due} | Freud:
The Individual=s
Internalization of Social Expectations |
Civilization and its Discontents |
|
| April 15 & 22 | Kafka:
Oppressions of Modern Society and Human Consciousness |
The Trial | |
| (4)
RESPONDING TO MODERN TIMES AND THE ADVENT OF THE POSTMODERN |
|||
| April 24 & 29 | The
Flies |
||
| May 1 & 6 | Derrida:
Friendship and the Forces of Law |
Force of Law |
|
| May 8 | Conclusions and Review | ||
| Thursday,
May 15th 2:00 - 4:30 p.m. |
Final
Examination |
||