Words (CORE 120-08)
Undead Texts
Course Description | Course Schedule
Study Helps & Links
Fall 2021
J. R. Howard Hall 203
1:50-2:50 MWF
Email: fritzman@lclark.edu
Class Email: 21fa-core-120-08@lclark.edu
Office: J. R. Howard Hall 223
Office Hours:
12:30-1:30 MWF, 3:00-4:00 MW, and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Friedrich Nietzsche: “A very popular error: having the courage of one’s convictions; rather it is a matter of having the courage for an attack on one's convictions!”
Rainer Maria Rilke (as quoted by J. M. Coetzee): “We are born, so to speak, provisionally, it doesn’t matter where; it is only gradually that we compose, within ourselves, our true place of origin, so that we may be born there retrospectively.”
There are four required texts:
Susanne K. Langer
Philosophy in a New Key: A Study in the Symbolism of Reason, Rite, and Art, 3rd edition
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0674665031/
Mircea Eliade
The Sacred and The Profane: The Nature of Religion
https://www.amazon.com/dp/015679201X/
Gregory Bateson
Mind and Nature: A Necessary Unity
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1572734345/
Marshall Berman
All That Is Solid Melts Into Air
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1844676447/
Download a free copy of Microsoft's Office 365 Education— which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Teams—at https://products.office.com/en-us/student/office-in-education.
The Learning Objectives are:
Each section of Words and Numbers will prepare students to:
Examine ideas, arguments, biases, and assumptions coming from a variety of perspectives, including their own, with an open yet critical mind.
Analyze texts and/or quantitative information, recognizing, describing, and questioning patterns, trends, anomalies, and relationships.
Present clear, compelling, and effective arguments and/or analysis, supported by evidence.
In this section of Words, we will closely read and discuss undead texts. Through critically engaging with these texts, and relevant secondary literature, we will learn to see, to think, and to speak and write, thereby developing a noble culture (what Germans call Bildung).
In preparation for each class meeting, you should have read the assigned material. You should arrive in class with prepared questions and comments.
A major goal of this section is to cultivate intellectual abilities which have general application. It aims to provide the resources which will enable you to develop intellectual survival skills, question what passes as common knowledge and accepted wisdom, evaluate your own and others' positions, and formulate new ideas. Such skills consist in the ability to summarize the assigned material, and to write pieces in which ideas and arguments are articulated, criticized, defended. Such skills also involve developing the ability to think critically about the views of ourselves and others. Critical thinking consists in understanding several sides of a debate, and seeing both the advantages and limitations of an opinion. Learning to question your opinions is as crucial as arguing for them. If you only learn to give reasons for opinions already held, you merely are giving rationalizations for prejudices. You need to learn to think for yourself, developing, defending, and criticizing your beliefs.
In this connection, I am especially concerned that you develop the ability to discuss issues cogently and to write intelligent, reflective pieces in clear, grammatical English. It is important that you learn to think, in a disciplined way, about the books and issues they raise. Part of that discipline consists in being able to analyze, evaluate, and formulate arguments. This involves knowing how to identify basic assumptions, develop a line of reasoning, recognize the steps that lead to a conclusion, and determine whether an argument is sound. In this way, hopefully, you will develop intellectual curiosity and the competencies to reason logically, evaluate critically, communicate effectively, imagine creatively, and appreciate aesthetic and creative expressions of humanity.
You are encouraged to share your questions and observations with the rest of the class, and to engage critically with the material, myself, and each other. By participating in class discussions, you will encounter directly differing interpretations of the material, become aware of the history of these views, and be encouraged to develop your own critical perspectives. In interacting with the material and each other, you will acquire a knowledge and appreciation of self, society, human cultures, and the natural world. I intend that you discover what has been written and said concerning, in the words of Socrates, "the most important things"—questions about human character and the conduct of life. Such skills will enable you to succeed in subsequent courses and in endeavors outside of the classroom. Those abilities also will contribute to your development as educated citizens in a democratic society.
Each student will write a Précis for almost every reading assignment, complete various Research Exercises that teach research skills, and write and present in class one Assessment on a specific reading assignment. There also will be one Argumentative Research Paper (which includes a Prospectus, two Drafts, and a mandatory Final Rewrite). And an in-class oral Presentation of the Argumentative Research Paper on the Final Exam Day.
The Précis, Research Exercises, and Class Participation will be weighted together and will count for 20% of your final grade. The Assessment will count for 20% of your final grade. The Prospectus will count for 5%, the First Draft will count for 10%, the Second Draft will count for 15%, and the Final Rewrite will count for 25% of your final grade. The Presentation will count for 5% of your final grade. The grading scale is as follows:
A = 93%-100%
A- = 90%-92%
B+ = 86%-89%
B = 83% 85%
B- = 80%-82%
C+ = 76%-79%
C = 73%-75%
C- = 70%-72%
D+ = 66%-69%
D = 60%-65%
F = 0%-59%.
A Précis will be due almost every class session. Each précis will be one side of one typed page—never longer—double-spaced, with 1 inch margins on the right & left sides and the top & bottom. It must be at least 3/4 of a page in length. Use a 12-point Times or Times Roman font. There will be no spelling or grammatical errors in your précis. Your name will be typed in the upper right-hand corner. In each précis, you will summarize—in your own words, without using any quotes—the assigned reading's main claims, as well as the reasons which are given to support those claims. You will not include any opinion, evaluation, or commentary. At the bottom of each précis, or on the back, you will write one question that you have about the reading. This question must written prior to, not during, class.
An Assessment should be approximately 2000 words, typed, double-spaced. You will sign up for a date on which you will orally present your assessment. On the day you present, you will distribute copies to all of the persons in this class. This will require, of course, that you have enough copies made so that each member of the class has one.
You first will read aloud your assessment. Then, you and I will serve as the main resource persons for fielding questions concerning the material. Since the class discussion will be centered around the assessment, it is crucial that you distribute the assessment the class session when you present it, and that you actually be in class to read your assessment.
An assessment is not a summary of the reading. Rather, its primary purpose assessment is to summarize, consolidate, and explicate the central issues, main points, and key motifs of the assigned reading in order to facilitate class discussion of the material. It is important that the assessment contextualize the reading by describing briefly both how the reading is a continuation and development of material which has come before, and how it contributes to the overall trajectory of the thinker's thought.
It is crucial that you critically engage the reading. You might argue that a claim that the author makes is incorrect, for example, or that a criticism in the secondary literature is incorrect. Alternatively, you might argue that an interpretation advanced in the secondary literature is incorrect. The assessment must reflect an acquaintance with the requisite secondary literature. This means that you must incorporate at least three secondary sources you consulted while writing your assessment.
The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, and Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy will be useful.
Google Scholar and the Philosopher's Index will be vital for the Assessment and Argumentative Research Paper.
The Chicago Manual of Style's Citation Quick Guide is online.
There will be an Argumentative Research Paper, 2000 words, typed, double-spaced. It will be on the same reading assignment as your Assessment.
You're welcome to consult the Writing Center, located on the main floor of Watzek Library.
Also useful is the Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University.
If you would find it useful to create concept maps, to help write your assessment or argumentative research papers, you can download the software to create them from IHMC Cmap Tools.
All work must be submitted when it is due.
This class will be successful only if there is a high degree of participation and attendance, and so I want you in class participating. The final grade for the course will be lowered by a full-letter grade if you miss four unexcused class sessions, the final grade will be lowered by two full-letter grades if you miss five class sessions, etc. Serious illnesses and emergencies will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
Throughout the course you are expected to read carefully the assigned material. It is impossible to do well in this course without reading and studying the books. You should spend a minimum of three hours preparing for each class session. Read the assigned material at least twice and take notes on what you read. You are expected to attend all class sessions, come to class having read thoroughly the assigned material, and to contribute to the discussions.
While there may be few answers that can be know for certain, there are better and worse arguments and ideas, usually in direct proportion to thoughtfulness and care. What is important is that you think for yourself, and that you develop and defend your own ideas. It would be an excellent idea to write drafts or outlines of your drafts, and to have a comrade read them to check on spelling, grammar, development of arguments, and so forth.
You are strongly encouraged to discuss the class material, your ideas, your puzzles and difficulties with each other. A word to the wise: Find a study partner to discuss things with outside of class. (To see why this is effective for creativity and learning, read Malcolm Gladwell's article, Group Think: What Does "Saturday Night Live" Have in Common with German Philosophy?, The New Yorker, 2 December 2002, pages 102-107).
There's a Bollwood tune for every occasion. Click here.
Do your own writing. That is the only way you will get the full benefit of your own efforts. I will be happy to discuss ideas with you, read outlines and rough drafts, and so forth. That is partly why I keep office hours.
A final word to the wise. It is not difficult to do well in this course, but it also is easy to do badly. Let me talk about the bad stuff first. You will receive a major grade reduction—or fail this course—if you do not read the material, seldom participate in class discussions, do not write your assessment, or argumentative research paper, plagiarize, cheat, and so forth.
About plagiarizing and cheating. All students must follow Lewis & Clark College's Academic Integrity Policy. Plagiarizers and cheaters will be given an "F" for the entire course (they will not be allowed to drop or withdraw from the course). I also will turn their cases over to the Honor Board; I will recommend that disciplinary penalties be assessed. It is never in your interest to plagiarize or cheat!
Now for the good stuff. With a concerted effort, you will do well in this class. To do well, you must participate in class discussions, read and study the assigned material, write the assessment, argumentative research paper, be in class (almost) all of the time, etc. I do not grade on a curve, and so there is no good reason why you should not get an "A" for the course!
The Writing Center will be available for remote consultations on Zoom all semester. There are two ways to work with the Center:
Drop in Peer Tutoring. Tutoring begins on Sunday, September 12, and hours will be 3:00-10:00 PM on Sundays-Thursdays. No appointment is needed—just sign in through the website and you can usually see a tutor right away.
Appointments with the Director. You can book consultation appointments with John Holzwarth throughout the semester. Appointments are often available on short notice.
Course policy on disability accommodation. If you have a disability or learning difference that may impact your academic performance, you may request accommodations by submitting documentation to The Office of Student Accessibility. They will notify me of the accommodations for which you are eligible.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Samuel Beckett: “Ever tried? Ever failed? No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
René Char: “Develop your legitimate strangeness.”
Oscar Wilde: “The more mechanical people … always know where they are going, and go there…. A man [sic] whose desire is to be something separate from himself [sic], to be a Member of Parliament, or a successful grocer, or a prominent solicitor, or a judge, or something equally tedious, invariable succeeds in being what he [sic] wants to be. That is his [sic] punishment. Those who want a mask have to wear it. But with the dynamic forces of life … it is different. People whose desire is solely for self-realisation never know where they are going. They can’t know.”
Week 1
Monday, August 30:
Lorraine Daston and Sharon Marcus, "The Books That Wouldn't Die", The Chronicle of Higher Education, 17 March 2019.
Malcolm Gladwell's "Group Think" in the New Yorker.
Ethan Watters, "We Aren't the World", Pacific Standard.
Joseph Henrich, Steven J. Heine, and Ara Norenzayan, "The Weirdest People in the World?", Behavioral and Brain Sciences, Volume 33:2-3, June 2010, pages 61-83.
Wednesday, September 1:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "The New Key", pages 3-25; précis.
Discussion of research.
Friday, September 3:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "Symbolic Transformation", pages 26-52; précis.
Discussion of research.
On Wednesday, sign-up for an Assessment (which is also the topic of your Argumentative Research Paper).
Week 2
Monday, September 6:
Labor Day.
Wednesday, September 8:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "The Logic of Signs and Symbols", pages 53-78; précis.
Sign-up for Assessment (which is also the topic of your Argumentative Research Paper).
Friday, September 10:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "Discursive Forms and Presentational Forms", pages 79-102; précis.
Discussion of (annotated) bibliography, reasons for citations, proper quoting (block or in-line).
Exercise for Monday: Find one book and one article (or two articles) that will be relevant to your Assessment. Provide one block quote from the book and one in-line quote from the article (or one block quote from the one article and one in-line quote from the other). List the book and the article (or articles) in proper format for bibliography.
Week 3
Monday, September 13:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "Language", pages 103-143 précis.
Discussion of search procedures for articles and books.
Wednesday, September 15:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "Life-Symbols: The Roots of Sacrament", pages 144-170; précis.
Discussion of search procedures for articles and books.
Friday, September 17:
Précis on Topic of your Assessment and Paper.
Place your précis in my mailbox, across the hall from Office 222 in J. R. Howard Hall.
Exercise for Wednesday: In proper bibliographical format, list one additional article and one additional book (or two additional articles) that you found through Google Scholar or the Philosopher's Index that are relevant to your Assessment.
Week 4
Monday, September 20:
Class canceled.
Wednesday, September 22:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, ""Life-Symbols: The Roots of Myth" and "On Significance in Music", pages 171-245; précis.
Discussion on using Google Scholar and the Philosopher's Index.
Friday, September 24:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "The Genesis of Artistic Import", pages 246-265; précis.
Discussion on using Google Scholar and the Philosopher's Index.
Exercise for Monday:
Submit a 3-5 page prospectus of your argumentative research paper in which you:
(1) state your topic and, if possible, your thesis.
(2) describe the problem or issue to be treated.
(3) outline your anticipated procedure and probable conclusion.
(4) include an annotated bibliography of works to be consulted (a minimum of six books or articles, with a brief paragraph discussing the relevance of each work to your project).
Week 5
Monday, September 27:
Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New Key, "The Fabric of Meaning", pages 266-294; précis.
Prospectus due.
Wednesday, September 29:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "Introduction", 8-18; précis.
Discussion of annotated bibliography and reliability of sources.
Friday, October 1:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "Sacred Space and Making the World Sacred", pages 20-65; précis.
Discussion of annotated bibliography and reliability of source.
Week 6
Monday, October 4:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "Sacred Time and Myths", pages 68-113; précis.
Discussion of note taking and perusing for content.
Wednesday, October 6:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "The Sacredness of Nature and Cosmic Religion", pages
116-159; précis.
Discussion of note taking and perusing for content.
Friday, October 8:
Fall Break.
Week 7
Monday, October 11:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "Human Existence and Sanctified Life", pages 162-213; précis.
Discussion of formulating a thesis: outlines, drafts, revisions.
Wednesday, October 13:
Mircea Eliade, The Sacred and The Profane, "The 'History of Religions' as a Branch of Knowledge", pages 216-232; précis.
Assessment: Hannah Lasky.
Discussion of formulating a thesis: outlines, drafts, revisions.
Friday, October 15:
Concluding discussion of Langer and Eliade.
Discussion of articulating a thesis: arguments, objections, replies.
Week 8
Monday, October 18:
An Ecology Of Mind: A Daughter's Portrait of Gregory Bateson, directed by Nora Bateson;
Discussion of articulating a thesis: arguments, objections, replies.
Wednesday, October 20:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Introduction", pages 1-20; précis.
Assessment: Madison Johnson.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Discussion of articulating a thesis: arguments, objections, replies.
Friday, October 22:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Every Schoolboy Knows…", pages 21-60; précis.
Assessment: Jonas McCall-Sorkin.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Collin Price, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Week 9
Monday, October 25:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Multiple Versions of the World", pages 61-82; précis.
Assessment: Blaise Harrison.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Wednesday, October 27:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Criteria of Mental Process", pages 83-119; précis.
Assessment: Phoenix Campbell.
Discussion: Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Friday, October 29:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Multiple Versions of Relationship", pages 121-135; précis.
Assessment: Jade Valdez.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Cad Williams.
Due on Monday: First Draft of Argumentative Research Paper.
Week 10
Monday, November 1:
Due: First Draft of Argumentative Research Paper.
Submit your First Draft as a .docx file, attached to an email.
Title your .docx file this way:
CORE120_YourLastNameYourFirstName_Draft1.docx
for example:
CORE120_ArendtHannah_Draft1.docx
Wednesday, November 3:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "The Great Stochastic Processes", pages 137-174; précis.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Friday, November 5:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "From Classification to Process", pages 175-189; précis.
Assessment: Cad Williams.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Collin Price, Jade Valdez.
Week 11
Monday, November 8:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "So What?", 191-200; précis.
Assessment: Collin Price.
Discussion: Phoenix Campbell, Blaise Harrison, Madison Johnson, Jonas McCall-Sorkin, Jade Valdez, Cad Williams.
Wednesday, November 10:
Gregory Bateson, Mind and Nature, "Appendix: Time is Out of Joint", pages 201-210.
Friday, November 12:
Class canceled: Northwest Philosophy Conference.
Week 12
Monday, November 15:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "Modernity—Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow", pages 15-36; précis.
Assessment: Sky Frost.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Wednesday, November 17:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "Goethe's Faust: The Tragedy of Development", pages 37-86; précis.
Assessment: Harper Corey.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Friday, November 19:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "All that is Solid Melts into Air: Marx, Modernism and Modernization", pages 87-129; précis.
Assessment: Alex Stukert.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty.
Due Wednesday: Second Draft of Argumentative Research Paper.
Week 13
Monday, November 22:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "Baudelaire: Modernism in the Streets", pages 131-171; précis.
Assessment: Juliet Howard.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Wednesday, November 24:
Due: Second Draft of Argumentative Research Paper.
Submit your Second Draft as a .docx file, attached to an email.
Title your .docx file this way:
CORE120_YourLastNameYourFirstName_Draft2.docx
Friday, November 26:
Thankgiving Holiday.
Week 14
Monday, November 29:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "Petersburg: The Modernism of Underdevelopment: The Real and Unreal City", pages 173-212; précis.
Assessment: Margaux Chamberlin.
Discussion: Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Wednesday, December 1:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "Petersburg: The Modernism of Underdevelopment: The 1860s: The New Man in the Streets", pages 212-248; précis.
Assessment: Helen Mayfield.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Friday, December 3:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "The Twentieth Century: The City Rises, the City Fades", pages 249-286; précis.
Assessment: Jack McCarty.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Kenan Imamović, Helen Mayfield, Alex Stukert.
Week 15
Monday, December 6:
Marshall Berman, All That Is Solid Melts Into Air, "In the Forest of Symbols: Some Notes on Modernism in New York" and "Afterword", pages 287-356; précis.
Assessment: Kenan Imamović.
Discussion: Margaux Chamberlin, Harper Corey, Sky Frost, Juliet Howard, Helen Mayfield, Jack McCarty, Alex Stukert.
Wednesday, December 8:
Concluding discussion of Bateson and Berman.
Friday, December 10:
Reading Day.
Saturday, December 11, 1:00-4:00 PM:
Due: Final Drafts of Argumentative Research Papers.
Submit your Final Draft as a .docx file, attached to an email.
Title your .docx file this way:
CORE120_YourLastNameYourFirstName_Final.docx
Oral presentation of papers.
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