PHILOSOPHY AND THE INTEGRATION OF KNOWLEDGE RELP 1577 Fall 2006 MWF 2:00-2:50 ADM 303
Dr. Seth Holtzman office: 308 Administration Bldg, Catawba College hours: MWF 4-5; T 2-5; TH 11-12 (most weeks) and 2-5; & by appt. phones: 637-4229 office 636-9666 home email: [email protected]
SYLLABUS
Course summary:
This course explores intellectual interconnections among the various disciplines and thus among different bodies of knowledge. The culture often seems a hodge-podge of unconnected or barely connected beliefs, areas of thought, values, theories, and compartmentalized disciplines. The thesis of our course is that a culture has unity and an integrity, produced and governed by very general intellectual commitments. Why is it that modern mathematics and modern music have moved in such similar directions? Why do we find some of the same theories proving influential in art and science? Why have modern dance and modern architecture incorporated similar ideas? What philosophical concepts and principles are woven throughout the culture? There are fascinating questions, tantalizing connections, that are rarely the subject of our ordinary disciplinary study. Can we learn to engage in integrative thought? It is extremely important to be able to think across disciplinary boundaries. We will be examining our Western cultural landscape, but focusing mostly on the 20th century, in order to discover these integrating ideas. Some of these ideas govern only a limited range of knowledge and of disciplines; others govern a wider range. Yet others govern the entire culture, and we will find that these ideas are philosophical ones. We will learn something about the role of philosophy in the culture. And we will try our hand at searching for integrating ideas. This course tells one long intellectual story. Do not be misled by the seemingly disparate topics we will cover. You must keep in mind the story of the course as the semester goes on. Class structure will be mostly lecture, with some guided question-and-answer and some open discussion. There will also be some slides, music, film, and other multimedia presentations. This course meets the Humanities General Education requirement.
Expected learning outcome Means of Assessment A successful student should be able to:
Demonstrate an understanding of what a Short writing assignments, midterm, final culture is exam, and analytical paper Demonstrate an awareness that the culture Short writing assignments, midterm and final has a unity and integrity exam
Demonstrate an awareness of ideas in the Short writing assignments, midterm, final culture that connect even widely disparate exam, and analytical paper areas of thought Demonstrate an awareness that Midterm and final exam philosophical ideas constitute the deepest level of integration in a culture Demonstrate an understanding of the Midterm, final exam, and analytical paper importance of synthetic or integrative thought
Demonstrate a broad understanding of the Midterm and Final exam 20th century in the West
Requirements and grading:
1) Attendance is required. During class I may call on you for relevant material and/or for your response. So you must keep up with the readings, that day's class, and the ongoing course. Be mentally active and prepared. Your participation in class--asking and answering questions, raising relevant issues--can raise your final grade by up to 1/3 of a grade. 2) An out of class (roughly 90 minute) film that we watch as a group in late November. You will write an essay about the ideas in the film and the connection of the film to our course. Then we will discuss the film. You will also be graded on your oral contribution, both quality of insight as well as manner of presentation (clarity, use of reasons, audibility, critical but cooperative interaction with others, etc). 10% of your grade 3) A take-home essay midterm, given out Wednesday, Oct. 18th and due Wednesday, Oct. 25th. 25% of your grade 4) Short writing assignments, usually about a half page or a page. They will help you grapple with the ideas and will help me gauge how much you are understanding. I will drop your lowest grade out of these. Late assignments will not be accepted. TOTAL of writing assignments: 15% of your grade 5) An 6-8 page paper on a topic you and I agree on. You might want to build this paper out of one of the short writing assignments. Due the last day of class. 20% of your grade 6) The final exam, mostly essay, will test your overall grasp of the course, not your memory of specific facts. I might pass out a list of study questions a week or two in advance. Blue book required; write in pen. Friday, Dec 15, 8:00-11:00am. Blue book required. 30% of your grade.
Requirements for written work include these:
Responsiveness to the Assignment Writing should fulfill the purpose of the assignment directly and completely. Content Writing should reflect an understanding of the subject. Your writing should make good use of the relevant concepts, distinctions, positions, and reasons included in course readings or brought out in lecture or in discussion. Writing should be organized so ideas are arranged logically and clearly. Main points should be supported by substantial and relevant details. Your work should be backed by good reasons. Your claims and reasons should be consistent with each other. You should anticipate and respond to any reasonable objections. Execution Writing should use precise words and well-constructed sentences that clearly represent the writer’s reasoning. Writing should adhere to conventions of grammar, capitalization, spelling, and usage. The writing style should be appropriate to the academy. Your work should be clearly written, its claims precise, its structure clear, with an explicit overall direction. It should be intelligible to an interested student. Citations and Documentation Writers must clearly differentiate their own material from the source material. When writers use material that is not their own, or that is not common knowledge, they must document the source of the information using a standardized (i.e., either MLA or APA) method or abbreviated method allowed by their instructor.
Other requirements: on time, typed, paginated, tidy (stapled or bound), standard margins and fonts, and dark print. Failure to meet these requirements will hurt your assignment grades. Your paper should have a cover page with your name, course name and number, date, my name, and a title (your short essays don’t need a cover page).
Here is what the grades mean: "A" Superior mastery "B" Good mastery "C" Satisfactory achievement "D" Less than satisfactory achievement "F" Unsatisfactory achievement; Failure to achieve minimum competency
I use +/- grades, though A+ is not a possible final course grade. A+ 97-100 B+ 87-89 C+ 77-79 D+ 67-69 A 93-96 B 83-86 C 73-76 D 63-66 A- 90-92 B- 80-82 C- 70-72 D- 60-62
Grades can and should measure achievement only, not effort.
Texts:
1) The Humanistic Tradition: Vol II: The Early Modern World to the Present, 5th Edition, by Gloria Fiero (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006). 2) Handouts 3) Recommended readings
Readings tend to precede the class for which they are assigned. Essays, though, can be about that day's class or the next class.
Reading, taking notes, and homework:
I expect you to do the assigned readings carefully. Some are easy and accessible on your first attempt. Others are taxing and may require multiple readings. Try this strategy for a difficult reading: read it quickly to get the gist; then carefully for details; then normally, fitting details into overall picture. Take some notes on what you read; I will lecture on only what is essential to cover in class. You are responsible for all major ideas in the readings, even if not discussed. Lectures can cover material not in the readings--another reason to attend. Most students take sketchy notes. Perhaps they think that they cannot both take notes and listen, or perhaps they do not appreciate the value of taking notes. Learn to write while you listen. Not only can it be done, it enhances your grasp of what is being said. Take as many notes as you can, without losing too much of what is said. Your notes are an invaluable resource both for understanding the course and for the final exam.
Absences and violations:
I will check attendance at the start of class. If late, speak with me; if late enough, you do count as absent. If often late, I will choose to count you as absent. Sleeping and other mental disconnect in class count as an absence. When absent, you are responsible for missed assignments and classroom material. Get notes from a classmate. If you still have questions, you may contact me. No absences are excused. After 3 penalty-free absences, which you needn’t explain to me, further absences lower your final grade: for 4-5 total absences, minus 1/3 grade; for 6-8, minus 2/3 grade; for 9-10, minus 1 grade. Missing the class immediately before or after a vacation counts double. Over 10 absences for other than an emergency is automatic grounds for an "F" (or an "I" in some cases), regardless of your grades. Respect the people and ideas in our class. I don't care if you bring a drink or sport a hat or wear rags. I care that you pay attention to me and to others (so, no cell phones or activated pagers/beepers/watches), that you are on time and ready to work, that you bring a positive attitude to class even if you are struggling, and that you contribute positively to class. Cheating, working with others to complete individual assignments (unless this is allowed), and falsifying an emergency to skip class or an assignment, all violate the Honor Code. So does plagiarism, employing a writer's ideas (and words) without giving the writer due credit. See me for help about borrowing someone's ideas or words for your use. Schedule of Readings
Fri Aug 25 SYLLABUS; WHY INTEGRATION? WHY THE 20th CENTURY? 1) quote by Werner Heisenberg 2) Preface, Chaos Bound, by N. Katherine Haynes, pp.xi--xiii 3) "The Revolution in Western Thought", pp.3 -15, in Beyond the Post-Modern Mind, by Huston Smith 4) Preface, pp. xiv-xiii, and p. 811, in Fiero ------
Mon Aug 28 LEVELS OF INTEGRATION 5) "The Vision of the Modern Age", pp.3-25, in The End of the Modern Age, by Allen Wheelis, 6) Preface, Introduction, & Chapter 1: “The Crisis of Contemporary Culture", pp.vii, 1-25, in The Sciences and the Humanities, by W.T. Jones 7) "Is the Modern Western Mind Deranged?", pp.48-55, in Philosophy and the Modern Mind, by E.M. Adams 8) Summary Theses of pre-modern and modern world views, pp.1—2, by E. M. Adams
Essay 1: Both Adams and Wheelis note ideas that define the modern West. Briefly present some. ------Wed Aug 30 ORGANIZING AND GOVERNING IDEAS: PRE-MODERN VERSUS MODERN PHILOSOPHY 9) "Modern Science: The First Four Hundred Years", pp.57—64, in The Wholeness Principle, by Anna Lemkow 10) pp. 577-85 , in Fiero ------Fri Sept 1 COMMONSENSE AND MODERN MECHANISTIC SCIENCE 11) "Modern Science: The First 400 Years", pp.65 – 6; “The Theory of Relativity”, pp. 67-70, in The Wholeness Principle, by Anna Lemkow 12) p. 813 , in Fiero ------
Mon Sept 4 LABOR DAY ------Wed Sept 6 BREAKDOWN OF MECHANISTIC SCIENCE (1800-1905) 13) "Space-Time", pp.161—71, in The Tao of Physics, by Fritjof Capra 14) "The Lay Reaction: 'A Mystic Universe' ", pp.129-30, in Relativity Theory, ed. L. Pearce Williams
Essay 2: What are some ways in which modern science has challenged our commonsense view of the world.? ------Fri Sept 8 SCIENCE (continued) 15) pp.472-81, 509-24, 528-40, 569-73, 586-92, 634-6, 641-62, 680-5, 689-91, 720-9, 763-8, 783-806 in Fiero 16) "Goya's 3rd of May, 1808", by Mark Stevens ------Mon Sept 11 VISUAL ART (to mid-1800s) 17) pp.693-5, 763-77, 783-807 in Fiero 18) Twentieth Century Painting, pp.1—6, by H. L. C. Jaffe 19) Ideas", pp.401-2, in Arts and Ideas, by William Fleming 20) "The Mechanical Paradise", p.18, in The Shock of the New, by Robert Hughes 21) Twentieth Century Painting, pp.9—11, by H. L. C. Jaffe
------Wed Sept 13 VISUAL ART (1850 –1900) 22) pp.467, 481-3, 486-9, 604-13, 616-20 in Fiero 23) "Introduction: The Modern Landscape", pp.1-11, in The Reenchantment of the World, by Morris Berman 24) "Flakes of Fire, Handfuls of Light", pp.92-5, in Beyond the Post-Modern Mind, by Huston Smith ------Fri Sept 15 SOCIAL THOUGHT 25) pp.673, 686-7, 691-3, 695-8, 699-702, 707-9, 717-9 in Fiero 26) "Form", pp.181-210, in The Culture of Time and Space, by Stephen Kern 27) "The Idea of a Modern Architecture in the Nineteenth Century", pp.20-31, in Modern Architecture since 1900, by William J. R. Curtis ------Mon Sept 18 SOCIAL THOUGHT (continued) 28) pp.743, 748-52 in Fiero 29) "Is the Modern Western Mind Deranged?", pp.20-48, in Philosophy and the Modern Mind, by E.M. Adams ------Wed Sept 20 SOCIAL THOUGHT (continued) 30) pp.779-81, 859-60, 864-70, 879-82, 903-14, 919-21, 930-2, 946-7 in Fiero
Essay #3: What is the feel of modern life from within? What are some of its problems? Why are cultural critics so disturbed by it? ------Fri Sept 22 SOCIAL THOUGHT (continued) 31) ”Of Personal Identity”, pp. 251-60, in A Treatise of Human Nature, by David Hume 32) "From the Romantic to the Modern Vision of Self", pp.18--47, in The Saturated Self: Dilemmas of Identity in Contemporary Life, by Kenneth J. Gergen
------Mon Sept 25 PSYCHOLOGY: FRAGMENTED, IRRATIONAL, INACCESSIBLE 33) pp.836-40, 857 in Fiero 34) ”The Self Under Siege", pp. 1-17, in The Saturated Self: Dilemmas of Identity in Contemporary Life, by Kenneth J. Gergen ------Wed Sept 27 PSYCHOLOGY (continued) 35) "Introduction", 1--3, in Ideology and Insanity: Essays on the Psychiatric Dehumanization of Man, by Thomas S. Szasz, M.D. 36) "The Changing Psychological Landscape", pp.1-6, in The Protean Self, by Robert Jay Lifton 37) ”The Loss of the Identifiable” and “The Social Construction of Reality”, pp. 112-22, in The Saturated Self: Dilemmas of Identity in Contemporary Life, by Kenneth J. Gergen
Essay #4: What’s happened to the self in modernity and why?
------Fri Sept 29 PSYCHOLOGY (continued) 38) "The Nature of Time", pp.10-35, in The Culture of Time and Space, by Stephen Kern ------Mon Oct 2 “AN ANDALUSIAN DOG” 39) "Un Chien Andalou", pp. 480-6, in French Cinema: The First Wave, 1915-1929, by Richard Abel ------Wed Oct 4 MAKING CONNECTIONS 40) pp.485-6, 489-98, 507-9, 541-7, 564-9, 613-5 in Fiero 41) "An Anatomy of the World, John Donne, pp.1091--7 42) "The Sick Rose", by William Blake ------Fri Oct 6 LITERATURE (up to 1900)
43) pp.620-32, 673-8, 687-9, 702-6, 753-64, 781-2 in Fiero 44) "Dover Beach" and "To Marguerite", by Matthew Arnold Essay #5: How does modernity first influence literature? Consider form (of the whole work and inside the work), tone, & content. ------
Mon Oct 9 LITERATURE (continued)
45) pp.472, 524-5, 540-1, 573-6, 592-4, 662-6 in Fiero 46) "The Art of Listening" ------
Wed Oct 11 MUSIC (up to 1800) 47) pp.6-17, 22-5, 32-5, 40-2, 47-50, 53-5, 59-62, then pp.653-5, in Introduction to Contemporary Music, by Joseph Machlis ------
Fri Oct 13 MUSIC (continued) 48) pp.709, 729-34,737-9, 778, 782-3 in Fiero 49) "Some Remarks on Value and Greatness in Music", pp.22--41, in Music, the Arts, and Ideas: Patterns and Predictions in 20th Century Culture, by Leonard B. Meyer 50) "Twentieth-Century Music and the Past", pp.1-6, Twentieth--Century Music: An Introduction, by Eric Salzman 51) "Introduction: The 19th-Century Musical Background", pp.1-8, Twentieth-Century Music, by Robert P. Morgan ------Mon Oct 16 MUSIC (up to 1900)
52) pp.483-5, 527-8, 599-604, 639-40, 743-8 in Fiero 53) pp.148—53, in The Idea of Man, by Floyd W. Matson 54) "The Philosophical Grounds of the Present Crisis of Authority", pp.3-24, by E. M. Adams
Essay #6: Discuss the influence of modernity on political thought. Which assumptions and forms did modernity overturn or transform? ------Wed Oct 18 POLITICAL THOUGHT 55) pp.467-72, 505-9, 562-4, 583-4, 882, 903-4 in Fiero 56) "The Threat to Orthodoxy" and excerpt, pp.44-63, 111-4, in A Layman's Guide to Protestant Theology, by William Hordern 57) "Man Against Darkness", pp.65-75, by W. T. Stace 58) "A Setting for Radical Theology", pp.11-25, in The Death of God Controversy, by Thomas W. Ogletree ------Fri Oct 20 RELIGION 59) pp.540-1, 734-6 in Fiero 60) pp.72-81, 108-26, 128-35, 150-74, 182-9, in Dancing: The Power of Dance Around the World, by Gerald Jonas ------
Mon Oct 23 FALL BREAK
------Wed Oct 25 DANCE 61) pp.834, 898-9, 918-9, 977-8 in Fiero 62) pp.175--82, 190—242, in Dancing: The Power of Dance Around the World, by Gerald Jonas 63) "Modern Dance:The Voice of the Individual", pp.124-37, in Dancing, by Ellen Jacob
Essay #7: How has dance come to reflect some of the governing ideas of modernity? ------
Fri Oct 27 DANCE (continued) 64) pp.10-24, in Godel, Escher, Bach, by Douglas Hofstadter ------Mon Oct 30 MATH: THE UNDERMINING OF THE FOUNDATIONS 65) pp.83-110, in Chaos: Making of a New Science, by James Gleick ------Wed Nov 1 MATH (continued) 66) "Introduction: Modernity-Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow", pp.15-23, in All That is Solid Melts into Air, by Marshall Berman 67) "Simplicity & Complexity", pp.17-21, in The Architecture of the Jumping Universe, by Charles Jencks 68) "Cubism, De Stijl & new Conceptions of Space"; "Skyscraper & Suburb", pp.148--59, 216--23, in Modern Architecture since 1900, by William J. R. Curtis ------Fri Nov 3 SOCIAL THOUGHT 67) pp.815-32, 845-56, 863-4, 875 in Fiero 68) Twentieth Century Painting, pp.12 -19, by H. L. C. Jaffe 69) "Expressionism and Abstractionism", pp.409- 10, in Arts and Ideas, by William Fleming 70) "Unpopularity of the New Art", in The Dehumanization of Art, by Jose Ortega Y Gasset 71) "Art: Energy and Attention", pp.246--53, in The New Art, by W. S. Wilson III 72) Art and Anarchy, pp.8-11, by Edgar Wind 73) quotes about art and modern art
Essay #8: How does 20th century art reflect modern ideas? ------Mon Nov 6 VISUAL ART (1900 – 2000) 74) pp.888-97, 914-16, 924-6, 948 in Fiero 75) “Culture as Nature", pp.334, 342, 344, in The Shock of the New, by Robert Hughes ------Wed Nov 8 VISUAL ART (continued) 76) pp.950-74 in Fiero 77) opinion piece by George Will 78) "Contemporary Art & the Plight of Its Public", pp.205—26, in The New Art, by Leo Steinberg ------Fri Nov 10 VISUAL ART (continued) 79) pp.832-4, 857, 876-7 in Fiero 80) pp.17--21, 25--31, 35--9, 42--7, 50--3, 55--9, 62—7 in Introduction to Contemporary Music, by Joseph Machlis 81) "The American Scene: Charles Ives", pp.460-1; "Eric Satie", pp.213-5; "The European Scene: Anton Webern", pp.384-7; "Experimentalists: Edgar Varese", pp.624-9 in Introduction to Contemporary Music, by Joseph Machlis ------Mon Nov 13 MUSIC (1925 – 2000) 82) pp.898-9 in Fiero 83) "The European Scene: Electronic Music", pp.426-29, in Introduction to Contemporary Music, by Joseph Machlis 84) John Cage description and quotes 85) Letters: Charles Berry and John Cage 86) "John Cage and the Art of Noise" 87) "White Sound, White Language", pp.244-47, in Disappearing Through the Skylight, by O.B. Hardison, Jr 88) "John Cage and the Aesthetic of Non--Intention", pp.1-9, by James Hepokoski 89) "Philosophy in 4'33" ", pp.1-9 by Daniel Herwitz 90) "Opening the Cage: 14 variations on 14 words" by Edwin Morgan
Essay #9: How has music reflected the governing ideas of modernity” ------Wed Nov 15 MUSIC (continued) 91) pp.916-18, 974-7 in Fiero 92) "The End of the Renaissance", pp.68-84, in Music, the Arts, & Ideas, by Leonard Meyer 93) "Anti-Rationality and Aleatory", pp.159-64, in Twentieth-Century Music, by Eric Salzman ------Fri Nov 17 MUSIC (continued)
------Mon Nov 20 available as needed 94) "On the Teaching of Modern Literature", pp.3-27, in Beyond Culture, by Lionel Trilling 95) "Introduction", pp.iii--xx, in Space, Time, and Structure in the Modern Novel, by Sharon Spencer 96) "introduction", pp.ix--xxiii, in Anti-Story, ed. Philip Stevick ------Wed Nov 22 THANKSGIVING BREAK Fri Nov 24 THANKSGIVING BREAK ------Mon Nov 27 LITERATURE (1900 – 2000) 97) pp.15—6 in Borges: The Labyrinth Maker, by Ana Maria Barrenechea 98) "Borges and I" 99) "Continuity of Parks" by Julio Cortazar 100) "Introduction: The absurdity of the Absurd in The Theatre of the Absurd, by Martin Esslin 101) pp.14-23, 37-42, in "The Bald Soprano" by Eugene Ionesco 102) #4, 35, 38, 54, 73, 74 by e.e. cummings Essay #10: Cage composed 4’33” after seeing Rauschenberg’s “whites”. Absurdist theater was alive. You know science’s story. Today’s short stories challenge deeply. Find some ideas that integrate these disparate developments. ------Wed Nov 29 LITERATURE (continued) 103) "In the Corridors of the Underground: The Escalator", pp.263-6, by Alain Robbes-Grillet 104) "The Glass Mountain" 105) "High Windows" by Philip Larkin 106) "How Everything Happens" by May Swenson 107) "do you remember" by Emmett Williams 108) "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" & "The Man with the Blue Guitar", by Wallace Stevens 109) “Dada” & “Concrete Poetry”, p. 166-93, in Disappearing Through the Skylight, by O. B. Hardison, Jr. ------Fri Dec 1 LITERATURE (continued)
110) “Modern Physics”, pp.71-7, in The Wholeness Principle, by Anna Lemkow 111) "Forward", "Bell's Theorem", "The Holoverse", pp.viii--xi, 98--114, in Space, Time & Medicine by Larry Dossey, M.D. 112) "Emptiness and Form", pp.209—23, in The Tao of Physics, by Fritjof Capra
Essay #11: Write an essay on a (relevant) topic of your choice.
------Mon Dec 4 MODERN SCIENCE (1905 – 2000)
113) pp.3--31, 50, 139--41, 71, 74—5 in Chaos: Making of a New Science, by James Gleick 114) Preface, Introduction, and Chapter 1, pp.vii--ix, 3--22, in The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales, by Oliver Sacks 115) pp.52-3, in Disappearing Through the Skylight, by O.B. Hardison, Jr. 116) "Corsons Inlet" by A. R. Ammons
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Wed Dec 6 MODERN SCIENCE (continued)
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Fri Dec 8 MODERN SCIENCE (continued)
exam: Final(ly) Friday is the cruelest day,
..... Dec es les
15, 15, 15, XV, fiff-teen..
8:00 – 11:00 a.. m.. ; ante meridian; another mountain;
anti moribund, auf meidersein, auntie mama, dada dada dada
a d DEDSABCZE
blue book BLUE BUS BLUE PER PER REQ
required.