Philosophy of Death
FYS 100-22 | CRN# 11727 | TR 2-3:50 | Craig-Lee 202 | Fall 2013
Course Syllabus
Instructor: Dr. Aaron Smuts | asmuts@ric.edu
Description
Epicurus argues that we should not fear death, since it cannot harm us: where death is, we are not; where we are, death is not. Although this argument may seem patently absurd, it has been difficult to refute conclusively. In this course we will try to answer the question: Is death an evil? In order to answer this question we will first need to know what death is. We will explore several major puzzles surrounding the value and nature of death. We will also examine the inverse of the harm question: would immortality be desirable? Although it seems obvious that we would like to live forever, philosophers have presented a few serious problems that cast doubt on the value of an immortal life. We will also ask if suicide is permissible and whether it might sometimes be obligatory. Independent of its harmfulness, we will consider reasons to think that death might add value to our lives. In addition we will ask whether it is possible to survive the death of our bodies. And we will ask what attitudes are appropriate to take toward death.
http://tinyurl.com/asmuts-death-f13
Texts
There are five required books for this course:
Fred Feldman, Confrontations With the Reaper: A Philosophical Study of the Nature and Value of Death (Oxford, 1992). {ISBN-13: 978-0195089288 } [CWR]
John Martin Fischer, The Metaphysics of Death (Stanford, 1993). {ISBN-13: 978-0804721042} [MD]
John Perry, A Dialogue on Personal Identity and Immortality (Hackett, 1978). {ISBN-13: 978-0915144532} [DPII]
Michael Cholbi, Suicide (Broadview Press, 2011) {ISBN-13: 978-1551119052} [S]
Tolstoy, The Death of Ivan Illyich & Other Stories, Trans. Pevear & Volokhonsky (Vintage, 2009). {ISBN-13: 978-0307268815} [DII] (*buy this translation)
There are two optional books:
Andrew Lawrence Roberts. The Thinking Student's Guide to College: 75 Tips for Getting a Better Education. University Of Chicago Press, 2010. ISBN-10: 0226721159.
David Benatar, ed., Life, Death and Meaning: Key Philosophical Readings on the Big Questions (Rowman and Littlefield, 2004). {ISBN-13: 978-0742533684} [LDM]
Most of the readings will come from articles posted on Blackboard [BB].
Coursework
There will be two different forms of coursework: (best 20 out of 26) daily quizzes and three take-home examinations. I will give a short quiz at the beginning of each class that will require one or two sentence answers. The quizzes are closed-book, but open-note. The bulk of your grade comes from the take-home exams. All assignments must be completed to pass the course.
Quizzes (10%) + first exam (30%) + second exam (30%) + final exam (30%).
I encourage students who are doing well to write a term paper in place of the final exam. If you chose this option, please let me know two weeks before Thanksgiving. I'll help you refine your topic and develop an outline. You must give me an abstract and a rough outline one month before the final exam period. I will not accept a term paper otherwise.
Attendance Policy
Although I record every class meeting, attendance is required. If you miss 6 or more classes, you will receive a 0 for your quiz grade. If you miss 12 or more classes, you will receive an F for the course. (There are no excused or unexcused absences. But please talk to me if something major comes up that dramatically effect your attendance.)
Tardiness Policy
If you are more than 5 minutes late, I will not accept your daily quiz and you will be marked absent. Come to class on time. If you are more than 10 minutes late, you will not be admitted to class.
Leaving Early Policy
No matter the reason, if you leave early, I will not accept your daily quiz and you will be marked absent. It doesn't matter if you have a court date, a doctor's appointment, or if you have to get to work. If you leave early, you will be marked absent.
Classroom Etiquette Policy
Pay attention; don't have distracting side conversations with other students; don't read newspapers or do crossword puzzles in class; don't sleep; don't text; don't sigh loudly with displeasure. This kind of behavior is disruptive. Be civil. Be courteous. This isn't high school. If your behavior is disruptive, I will ask you to leave. If I have to ask you to leave twice, you will receive an F in the class.
Laptop Policy
Laptop use is prohibited. The same goes for tablet computers and smartphones. Consider this rehab for Facebook addiction. You should print the articles posted on Blackboard and bring them to class.
Academic Honesty
Plagiarism—claiming someone else’s ideas or written work as your own—will not be tolerated. The tests are not collaborative. All sources must be cited. Anyone caught cheating will be given a failing grade in the course. I am also required to report you to the Vice President of Academic Affairs. But I would report you even if it was optional. Plagiarism is a serious offense.
Class Schedule
* The readings for each class are nested under the date. You should do the readings before class. There will be a quiz every class.
Week 1
C1 (T: 9/3) Introduction and Overview
Readings
Feldman, Introduction [CWR]
C2 (R: 9/5) Defining "death"
Readings
Feldman, Ch. 1, "The Search for Death Itself" [CWR]
Further Reading
Pojman, "What is Death?" [BB]
Topic 1: The Nature of Life and Death
Week 2
C3 (T: 9/10) Defining "life"
Readings
Feldman, Ch. 2, "Life-Functional Theories of Life" [CWR]
Feldman, Ch. 3, "Vitalist Theories of Life" [CWR]
C4 (R: 9/12) Defining "life"
Readings
Feldman, Ch. 4, "The Enigma of Death" [CWR]
Week 3
C5 (T: 9/17) Dying and Being Dead
Readings
Feldman, Ch. 5, "On Dying as a Process" [CWR]
C6 (R: 9/19)
Readings
McMahan, "The Metaphysics of Brain Death" [BB] (pp.109-118 and 134-140)
Topic 2: The Survival of Death
Week 4
C7 (T: 9/24) Death and Personal Identity
Readings
Perry, A Dialogue on Personal Identity and Immortality, night 1 [DPII]
C8 (R: 9/26) Death and Personal Identity
Readings
Perry, A Dialogue on Personal Identity and Immortality, night 2 [DPII]
Week 5
C9 (T: 10/1) Death and Personal Identity, cont.
Readings
Perry, A Dialogue on Personal Identity and Immortality, night 3 [DPII]
Further Reading
Williams, “The Self and the Future.” [BB]
Grau, "Love, Loss, and Identity in Solaris" [BB]
Parfit, "Personal Identity" [BB]
C10 (R: 10/3) Death and Personal Identity, cont.
Readings
Van Inwagen, "The Possibility of Resurrection"
Further Reading
Davis, "Traditional Christian Belief in the Resurrection of the Body" [BB]
Topic 3: The Harmfulness of Death
Week 6
C11 (T: 10/8) Epicurus' Argument
Readings
Epicurus, "Letter to Menoeceus" [BB]
Feldman, CWR, Ch. 8, "Epicurus and the Evil of Death" [CWR]
C12 (R: 10/10) The Deprivation Account
Readings
Nagel, "Death" [MD]
Further Reading
Smuts, "Less Good but not Bad" [BB]
Rosenbaum, "How to Be Dead and Not Care: A Defense of Epicurus" (MD)
Week 7
C13 (T: 10/15) Is Death a Misfortune?
Readings
Draper, "Disappointment, Sadness, and Death" [BB] (*long, start early)
Further Reading
Feldman, CWR, Ch. 9, "More Puzzles about the Evil of Death"
Bradley, "When Is Death Bad for the One Who Dies" [BB]
Brueckner and Fischer, "Why Death Is Bad" [MD]
Parfit, excerpt from Reasons and Persons [MD]
C14 (R: 10/17) Posthumous Harm
Readings
Luper, “Posthumous Harm” [BB]
Further Reading
Pitcher, “The Misfortunes of the Dead” [MD]
Week 8
C15 (T: 10/22) Lucretius' Symmetry Argument
Readings
Lucretius, On The Nature of Things, ch.III [BB] (pp. 97-105; ln.830-1094)
Frederik Kaufman, "Death and Deprivation; or Why Lucretius' Symmetry Argument Fails" [BB]
Further Reading
Kamm, “Why Is Death Bad and Worse Than Pre-Natal Non-Existence?” [BB]
Feldman, “F. M. Kamm and the Mirror of Time” [BB]
Topic 4: The Ethics of Killing
C16 (R: 10/25) Killing and Justice
Readings
Feldman, CWR Ch.11, "Why Killing is Wrong" [CWR]
Week 9
C17 (T: 10/29) The Failure to Conceive
Readings
Feldman, CWR Ch.12, "Abortion and the Failure to Conceive" [CWR]
C18 (R: 10/31) The Wrongness of Killing
Readings
McMahan, "The Wrongness of Killing and the Badness of Death" [BB]
Topic 5: Immortality
Week 9
C19 (T: 11/5) The Desirability of Immortality
Readings
Williams, “The Makropulos Case” [MD]
Further Reading
Steele, "Could Body-Bound Immortality be Liveable?" [BB]
C20 (R: 11/7) The Desirability of Immortality
Readings
Fisher, “Why Immorality is Not So Bad” [BB]
Further Reading
Fischer, "Contribution on Martha Nussbaum's The Therapy of Desire" [BB]
Week 10
CXX (T: 11/12) **NO CLASS - Monday Classes Meet**
C21 (R: 11/15) The Desirability of Immortality
Readings
Borges, “The Immortal” [BB]
Further Reading
Smuts, "Immortality and Significance" [BB]
Week 11
C22 (T: 11/19) Immortal Options
Readings
Temkin, "Is Living Longer Living Better?" [BB]
Further Reading
Overall, "From Here to Eternity" [BB]
James Tiptree, "Painwise" [BB]
Topic 6: Suicide
C23 (R: 11/21) Suicide
Readings
Cholbi, Ch.1 "The Nature of Suicide" [S]
Week 12
C24 (T: 11/26) The Nature and Morality Suicide
Readings
Cholbi, Ch.2 "The Moral Impermissibility of Suicide" [S]
CXX (R: 11/28) *NO CLASS - THANKSGIVING
Week 13
C25 (T: 12/3) The Morality and Rationality of Suicide
Readings
Cholbi, Ch.3 "The Moral Permissibility of Suicide" [S]
Further Reading
Brandt, "The Morality and Rationality of Suicide" [LDM]
Feldman, CWR, Ch. 13, "The Morality and Rationality of Suicide"
C26 (R: 12/5) The Morality of Suicide
Readings
Cholbi, Ch.4 "Is Suicide Ever a Duty?" [S]
Topic 7: Attitudes Toward Death
Week 14
C27 (T: 12/10) Fear of Death
Readings
Tolstoy, “The Death of Ivan Ilych” [DII] (*start reading early)
Freud, “Our Attitude Toward Death” [BB, first page]
C28 (R: 12/12) Attitudes Toward Death
Readings
Shelly Kagan, "Living in the Face of Death" [BB] (pp.282-303)
Further Reading
Walter Kaufmann, “Death” [BB]
Walter Kaufmann, “Death Without Dread” [BB]
Nagel, "Birth, Death, and the Meaning of Life" [BB] (sec. 'Death' pp.223-231)