This seminar will explore a range of questions concerning life’s meaning. Is meaning possible in a world without God? What's the difference between a happy life and a meaningful one? What's the role of love, achievement, knowledge, beauty, virtue and authenticity in a purposeful life? Do the stories we tell about our lives contribute to their meaning? Is life, finally, absurd—or just kind of awful? Does meaning now depend on death later? We'll discuss answers to these and related questions, using readings from both philosophy and literature.
Prerequisite: Open to sophomores, juniors and seniors who have taken one course in philosophy, or by permission of the instructor.
Distribution: Religion, Ethics and Moral Philosophy
Professor: Helena de Bres
Contact: hdebres@wellesley.edu
Website: https://sites.google.com/wellesley.edu/helenadebres/home
Office: Founders 320
Class time: Tuesday, 12:45-3:25 p.m. EST.
Venue: PNE 251
Office hours: Tuesday 3:45-4:45, Friday 11:15-12:15, or by appointment.
You're welcome to drop by my office as often as you like during these times, either solo or in a small group with other students.
No need to have a specific question--we can chat about class material, philosophy, writing, or whatever else is on your mind.
If these times don't work for you for some reason, email me and we can arrange an appointment at a different hour.
If we have to shift to Zoom, we'll use this link.
Communication:
Outside of class, we'll be communicating via our Google Group, which has the following email address: phil-340-01-fa24@wellesley.edu
I'll make all announcements via the Group, and you can also use it to send messages to the class as a whole.
You'll submit your weekly reading responses (instructions here) via the Group too.
You'll submit your assignments to me, anonymized, over email.
Readings: You will need one book for the course:
Samuel Scheffler, Death and the Afterlife (Oxford, 2013)
All other readings are PDFs linked to our course schedule, on this site.
You can find course policies and additional resources at those links right there.
[image credit: All pictures for this site are by Isabelle Arsenault]