From Anti-humanism to the Posthuman: Writing in the Humanities
CHUM 339
Fall 2008
| Section:
01
02
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| Crosslisting:
ENGL 283 |
This course, which is offered jointly by the Center for the Humanities and the Writing Program, will explore how the complexly intertwined concepts of "the human," "humanism," and "the humanities" are constructed within contemporary academic discourse.
In the first part of the course we will examine a range of historical definitions of "the human," paying special attention to an evolving narrative that imagines humanity as an intermediary stage of development between animals and cyborgs. We will then shift our attention to the history of "humanism" and "the human sciences," tracing their path from the Renaissance and the Enlightenment through various forms of 20th-century anti-humanism to a resurgence in recent years that has drawn (in part) on the issue of human rights. We will conclude the course with a discussion of "the humanities," which will also be an ongoing concern throughout the semester: what role do the humanities have within the university and within society, and what ultimately is the value of our liberal arts education?
Readings will be coordinated with the Center for the Humanities' lecture series. Students will be expected to attend these lectures every Monday (Russell House, 8:00 p.m.), and class discussion on Wednesdays will focus in part on connections between that week's lecture and the broader theoretical concerns of the course.
Students will be responsible for weekly writing assignments that will summarize, contextualize, and respond to the Monday evening lectures. We will also work over the course of the semester toward a final writing project, in which students' individual seminar papers will collectively address a specific set of questions, problems, and themes set out in class. Seminar papers will be completed before the end of the semester, allowing students to read and respond to each other's work. |
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Essential Capabilities:
Writing
Weekly papers; final project.
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA CHUM |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: None |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Readings will likely include works by Aristotle, Pico della Mirandola, René Descartes, Immanuel Kant, Charles Darwin, Matthew Arnold, Friedrich Nietzsche, Sigmund Freud, Irving Babbitt, Theodore Adorno, Erich Auerbach, Hannah Arendt, Lionel Trilling, Michel Foucault, Thomas Nagel, Allan and Harold Bloom, Donna Haraway, Jacques Derrida, Judith Butler, Giorgio Agamben, Edward Said, N. Katherine Hayles, and Pheng Cheah.
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Examinations and Assignments:
Weekly writing assignments and a final project that will be completed before the end of the semester. Attendance at weekly Center for the Humanities lectures (Russell House, Mondays at 8:00 p.m.) is mandatory, and class participation will figure significantly into the grade. |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Enrollment in Section 01 of this course is limited to seniors. This section will be particularly concerned with procedural, disciplinary, and institutional questions regarding the structure of academic discourse and the ends of liberal studies. |
| Instructor(s): Fitzpatrick,Joseph J. Times: .M.W... 11:00AM-12:20PM; .M..... 08:00PM-09:30PM; Location: RUSSNEUM; RUSSNEUM; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 18 | | SR major: 9 | JR major: X | | |
| Seats Available: 10 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 9 | JR non-major: X | SO: X | FR: X |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 2 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 2 |
| SECTION 02 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Same as Section 01 Above |
| Examinations and Assignments: Same as Section 01 Above |
| Additional Requirements and/or Comments: Same as Section 01 Above |
| Instructor(s): Fitzpatrick,Joseph J. Times: .M.W... 01:10PM-02:30PM; .M..... 08:00PM-09:30PM; Location: RUSSNEUM; RUSSNEUM; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 18 | | SR major: 3 | JR major: 3 | | |
| Seats Available: 13 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 3 | JR non-major: 3 | SO: 3 | FR: 3 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 1 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 1 |
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