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CS92PROD
Modern Philosophies of Life: Adorno, Foucault, Agamben
CHUM 269
Fall 2008
Section: 01  
Crosslisting: GRST 269

If by the term "ethics" we mean the philosophical concern with the good and just life, does the philosopher Theodor Adorno's radical question "Can one live after Auschwitz?" still fall in the province of ethics? In this seminar, we will investigate extreme forms of ethical thought, born from the experience that modern life requires approaches to thinking that no longer take the categories of "life" and "death" for granted, but seek to call their seemingly universal and metaphysical truth into question. It is the goal of this seminar to evaluate the distinctly unique but related philosophies of life articulated by Adorno, Faucault, and Agamben as modern, and often scandalously ambivalent, reformulations of ethics and as critiques of contemporary political life and its institutions. A recurrent theme in this context will be the role of art and aesthetics.

Essential Capabilities: Ethical Reasoning, Interpretation
Ethical Reasoning: The course will address the problem of the "right" life from different philosophical perspectives.
Interpretation: A significant portion of this seminar will involve detailed and careful interpretation of philosophical (and some literary) texts and will address the particular challenges posed by the task of interpretation.
Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: HA PHIL
Course Format: SeminarGrading Mode: Graded
Level: UGRD Prerequisites: None
Fulfills a Major Requirement for: None
Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available

Last Updated on MAR-28-2024
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