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.