Political
Science 286: Political Philosophy of Nature and the Environment
Rhodes College, Spring 2013
Professor:
Dr. Laura Field Class Meetings Email: fieldl@rhodes.edu MWF 9:00-9:50 Office: Rhodes Tower
317, Phone: 3481 Buckman 330 Office
Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00-11:00, or by appointment
Course Overview
How
have human beings understood nature throughout history? How have major shifts
in understanding been accomplished? Ought our role on earth to be one of
observation, stewardship, holistic integration, dominion, technological
conquest, or something else altogether? In this course we will consider
humankind’s shifting understanding of nature as it is reflected in primary
philosophical texts and contemporary writings on the environment.
We
will start off the course with readings that articulate and deepen some of the
major theoretical questions that arise when considering our place in nature.
After this introductory prelude, we will undertake a survey of contrasting
ancient and modern perspectives on nature, with a focus on Aristotle and Bacon.
How did ancient thinkers – those who stood on the threshold of a scientific
understanding of the universe – envision humanity’s role on earth? What are the
major characteristics of the modern turn away from the ancient approach, and
how did the modern project of conquering nature for the “relief of man’s estate”
take shape? Next we will explore several responses to the modern project, including
19th Century Romanticism, the 20th Century search for
wilderness, and their legacies within the contemporary environmental movement
(Deep Ecology, Ecofeminism, and Animal Rights). Is nature a legitimate object
of human devotion? In the final part of the course we will consider the
question of technology and freedom, and will conclude by considering various
practical approaches to environmental problems (including Direct Action, Green
Conservatism, and Eco-Pragmatism).
Course
Goals
1. To deepen our understanding of past and present ways
of thinking about nature and the environment – in order, ultimately, to inform
responsible future action.
2. To gain experience reading challenging primary
philosophic texts. This will improve our ability to ask appropriate questions
about a given text, to identify and understand complex arguments, and to
evaluate and compare competing authorial claims.
3. To practice philosophical writing and conversation.
This course will challenge you to communicate complex ideas with maturity and
clarity.
Required Texts
Francis
Bacon, The New Organon, Cambridge
Texts in the History of Political Thought
Rousseau
– First and Second Discourse, Master’s
translation
**The
rest of readings will be distributed through the Rhodes Academic Server**
Assignments
and Evaluation
I.
Seminar Preparation and Participation (35%
of course grade)
Attendance
and in-class contributions 10%
Course
Blog 20%
Précis
Presentations 5%
Participation: This is a seminar course, where
the most important task will be slow, careful, and thoughtful reading of
primary texts, in preparation for active participation in class discussions and
our course blog. Note that attendance and participation are basic requirements for
this class – they are not achievements! You are expected to be in class and
prepared every day. Only students who contribute regularly, productively, and
respectfully will receive full participation credit.
Blogging: To promote thoughtful engagement in and outside of
class, a blog has been set up for this course. The URL is: http://fieldnaturepoliticsspring2013.blogspot.com/.
Each of you will be responsible to blog in
advance of specific classes according to the course calendar (for a total
of four author entries). In addition, you will be expected to respond to
others’ posts on a weekly basis. Further details will be distributed the first
week of class.
Précis
Presentations: Over the course of the second half of the semester, each student
will offer a brief (~10 minute) formal précis presentation. A précis is a clear, compact summary of
material intended to capture the essential or important
ideas of the original. Further
details will be distributed later in the semester.
II.
Exams and Papers (65% of course grade) Tentative Deadlines
Paper
1 15% Friday, February 8
Midterm
Exam 15% Monday,
February 25
Paper
2 15% Wednesday,
March 27
Final
Exam 20% Tuesday, April 30
Essay
Assignments: Writing essays gives you the chance to develop your thoughts on a work
or on a theme that we have discussed in class. Each student will be required to write two short papers
of 5-6 pages, involving an analysis of and critical reflection upon (at least)
one of the texts that we cover in class. Although these are not “research”
papers (meaning you are not required to seek outside sources), simple summaries
of the material will not be adequate. Students will be graded on the technical as
well as substantive aspects of their writing.
Exams: The exams in this course will include
short-answer and essay questions. Exam review sheets will be distributed at
least one week prior to exams.
Other Matters
Academic Honesty: I am interested in your ideas
and my intention is that this course will serve to help you think. As such,
plagiarism, cheating, or any other form of academic dishonesty in this class
will be treated with utmost severity. You are responsible for familiarizing yourself
with and abiding by the Rhodes Honor Code and the rules and regulations
regarding academic honesty and integrity. All work turned in for this course
will be considered “pledged” work, whether or not the student remembers to
write the Honor Code Pledge on it. Please familiarize yourself with the
standard protocols for citation, and be sure to double-check all of your work
to make certain that you have not adopted or reproduced the ideas, words or
statements of another person without appropriate acknowledgement.
Contacting Me: Office hours are time set aside
to talk with you about the course – please feel free to come by! I am available
to discuss any problems or questions that you may be having with the material
covered in class, to discuss questions you might have about how to improve your
writing, or about anything else in the course that has left you curious. You
should think of my office hours not only as a forum for discussing the
assignments, but as a continuation of class and an opportunity to discuss the
course material in greater depth than is possible in our regular meetings. If
my office hours do not accord with your schedule, I will make every effort to
accommodate you with an appointment. Please try to talk to me in person, before
or after class, to make arrangements – email should be a last resort. I will
make every effort to respond to emails promptly, but at no point should
students expect emails to be answered in less than 24 hours. Please regard email correspondence as formal
communication.
Technology: Cell phones and all other gadgets
must be turned OFF and put AWAY during class. Any student wishing to use his or
her laptop to take notes during class must receive permission from me
beforehand, since it interferes with the conversational atmosphere of class.
The use of laptops will be permitted for note-taking only. If a student uses his or her laptop for any
other purpose during class time, the privilege will be revoked for the rest of
the semester.
Handing-in Assignments: Unless otherwise noted,
assignments are due at the start of class on the due date. Late assignments
will be docked a half letter grade per day (i.e., an A becomes an A- after two
days). It is your responsibility always to keep and store copies of your work
even after it has been submitted, and I may use my discretion to request that
electronic copies be submitted, either to me directly, or via Turnitin.com.
Disabilities: Students with disabilities may
request appropriate academic accommodations from the Office of Disability
Services and should speak to me at the very start of the semester.
|
Nature! We are
surrounded and embraced by her – powerless to leave her and powerless to
enter her more deeply. Unasked and without warning she sweeps us away in
the round of her dance and dances on until we fall exhausted from her
arms.
Goethe, “Die Natur” (fragment)
|
Course Schedule
This is a tentative
schedule of the readings for the semester. Apart from Bacon’s New Organon, and Rousseau’s First and Second Discourse, all readings
will be distributed through the Rhodes File Server (path = \\fileserver1\Acad_Dept_Pgm\Poli_Sci\Field_Laura\Public\Nature
and Environment Spring 2013).
I. Finding Our Place in/alongside/against
Nature
Wednesday,
Jan. 9 Arendt, Prologue to “The Human Condition”
Friday,
Jan. 11 Bilger,
“Swamp Things”; Marris, “Learning to Love Exotic
Species”
Monday, Jan. 14 McPhee, The Control of Nature
Wednesday,
Jan. 16 McKibben, The End of Nature; Diamond The Ends of the World as
We
Know Them”
Friday,
Jan 18 King, “How
to Construe Nature”; Abram, “Reciprocity”
II.
Ancient and Early Modern Nature (and Human Nature)
Monday,
Jan. 21 MLK Day – no
classes
Wednesday,
Jan. 23 Homer, Iliad, Books 17 and 18 (Fagles
Translation)
Friday,
Jan. 25 Aristotle,
Physics Book II.1-3
Monday,
Jan. 28 Aristotle, Physics Book II.7-9
Wednesday,
Jan. 30 Aristotle, De Anima, Selections
Friday,
Feb. 1 Aristotle,
Selections from the Ethics
Monday,
Feb. 4 Aristotle,
Selections from the Politics
Wednesday,
Feb. 6 Selections from the
Bible and Qu’ran; Aquinas, “Humans as Moral
Ends”
Friday, Feb. 8 Machiavelli,
Selections from The Prince, Gingerich,
“The Galileo Affair”
First Paper Due
Monday,
Feb. 11 Bacon, The New Organon (pp. 1-21)
Wednesday,
Feb. 13 Bacon, The New Organon (pp. 22-53)
Friday,
Feb. 15 Bacon, The New Organon (selections)
Monday,
Feb. 18 Bacon, The New Atlantis (sections 1-53)
Wednesday,
Feb. 20 Bacon, The New Atlantis (sections 54-end)
Friday,
Feb. 22 Locke, “On
Property”
Monday,
Feb. 25 Midterm Examination
III.
Romance and Wilderness: Reconceiving Nature in a Modern Age
Wednesday,
Feb. 27 Rousseau, Second Discourse
Friday,
March. 1 Rousseau,
Second Discourse
Monday, March 4 Rousseau,
Second Discourse
Wednesday,
March 6 Rousseau, Selections
from Emile and Confessions
Friday,
March 8 Rousseau, Reveries (5,7)
Monday,
March 11 - Friday, March 15 – Spring Break
Monday,
March 18 Leopold, The Land Ethic; Callicott, “The
Conceptual Foundations
of
the Land Ethic”
Wednesday,
March 20 Naess, “The Shallow
and the Deep Ecology Movement”;
McLaughlin,
“The Heart of Deep Ecology”
Friday, March 22 Plumwood, “Nature, Self, and
Gender: A Critique of Rationalism”
Monday,
March 25 Singer, “All Animals Are Equal”; Hatley, “The Uncanny Goodness of Being Edible
to Bears”
Wednesday,
March 27 “Grizzly Man” (film to
be shown in class)
Second
Paper Due
Friday,
March 29 – Easter Break
Monday,
April 1 Wendell Berry,
“Preserving Wildness”; Cronon, “The Problem
with
Wilderness”
Wednesday,
April 3 Nietzsche, Selections
Friday,
April 5 Nietzsche,
Selections; Bostrom, “Transhumanist Values”
IV.
Freedom of Thought and Action in the Contemporary World
Monday, April 8 Heidegger, An Essay Concerning Technology
Wednesday, April 10 Heidegger, An Essay Concerning Technology
Friday,
April 12 No Class
Monday,
April 15 Cérézuelle,
“Nature and Freedom”
Wednesday,
April 17 Foreman, “Earth
First!”; Hargrove, Abbey, and Foreman Exchange
Friday,
April 19 Hawken, “A
Declaration of Sustainability”
Monday,
April 22 Scruton, How to Think Seriously About the Planet, Selections
Wednesday,
April 24 Marris, Rambunctious Garden, Selections
Tuesday,
April 30 Final Exam, 5:30pm
No comments:
Post a Comment