Bioethics and the Animal/Human Boundary
AMST 260
Spring 2019 not offered
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| Crosslisting:
SISP 260 |
| Certificates: Social, Cultural, and Critical Theory |
| Course Cluster: Animal Studies, Health Studies |
In this course, we will explore the construction of the animal/human boundary through the lens of bioethics. We will define bioethics as the study of the ethical consideration of medical, scientific, and technological advances and their effects on living beings. At the same time, we will pay close attention to the cultural contexts in which these advances emerge, imagining the realms of scientific progress and popular culture as mutually constitutive. We will consider topics such as cloning, organ transplantation, pharmaceutical testing, and gestational surrogacy, with a focus on the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
We will begin by interrogating how ideas of the "animal" and the "human" are constructed through biomedical and cultural discourses. We will ask, How is the human defined? By intelligence or consciousness levels? By physical capabilities or esoteric qualities? Similarly, how has the human been defined against ideas of the animal? Or, what ethical justifications have been cited in the use of animals in biomedicine? What makes certain species "proper" research subjects and others not? What do these formulations tell us about our valuation of animal and human life, and what kinds of relationships exist between the two? To answer these questions, we will consult a wide range of interdisciplinary scholarship, from authors in the fields of animal/ity studies, bioethics and medicine/science history, sociology, anthropology, and philosophy. Students will also be exposed to the basics of biopolitical theory. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS AMST |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (AMST)(ANST-MN)(CSCT)(ENVS-MN)(ENVS)(IDEA-MN)(IDEA)(INFO-MN)(STS) |
Major Readings:
Cary Wolfe, BEFORE THE LAW: HUMANS AND OTHER ANIMALS IN A BIOPOLITICAL FRAME
Sarah Franklin, DOLLY MIXTURES: THE REMAKING OF GENEALOGY
Charles Patterson, ETERNAL TREBLINKA: OUR TREATMENT OF ANIMALS AND THE HOLOCAUST
Nikolas Rose, THE POLITICS OF LIFE ITSELF: BIOMEDICINE, POWER, AND SUBJECTIVITY IN THE 21ST CENTURY
-Excerpts from (samples):
Margo DeMello, ANIMALS AND SOCIETY: AN INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN-ANIMAL STUDIES
Roberto Esposito, BIOS: BIOPOLITICS AND PHILOSOPHY
Nicole Shukin, ANIMAL CAPITAL: RENDERING LIFE IN BIOPOLITICAL TIMES
Ian Bogost, ALIEN PHENOMENOLOGY, OR WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE A THING
Roberto Abadie, The PROFESSIONAL GUINEA PIG: BIG PHARMA AND THE RISKY WORLD OF HUMAN SUBJECTS
Gregg Mittman, REEL NATURE: AMERICA'S ROMANCE WITH WILDLIFE ON FILM
Harriet Ritvo, THE PLATYPUS AND THE MERMAID: AND OTHER FIGMENTS OF THE CLASSIFYING IMAGINATION
Donna Haraway, selected works
Eduardo Kac, SIGNS OF LIFE: BIOART AND BEYOND
Alasdair Cochrane, ANIMAL RIGHTS WITHOUT LIBERATION: APPLIED ETHICS AND HUMAN OBLIGATIONS
Colleen Glenney Boggs, ANIMALIA AMERICANA: ANIMAL REPRESENTATIONS AND BIOPOLITICAL SUBJECTIVITY
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Examinations and Assignments:
- 1 class presentation and accompanying response paper on a topic to be assigned
- Weekly written discussion questions
- 1 short essay, 5-7 pages
- 1 final research paper on a topic of students' individual choice, 10-12 pages |
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