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Syllabus, World of Ideas,
General Studies 390, Fall 2002

Instructor: Joseph Hogan
Office: Heide 431
Phone: 472-5048
E-mail: hoganj@uww.edu
Home Page: http://facstaff.uww.edu/hoganj/hoganhom.htm
Office Hours: WF 9:50-10:50, W 2:05-4:00, and by appointment (I will generally be in my office the hour before class).

PURPOSE:
"The unexamined life is not worth living."
—Socrates

"Until we can understand the assumptions in which we are drenched we cannot know ourselves."
—Adrienne Rich

This course will focus the question of the examined life. The ideas that surround it and the ways we have thought about it will be explored in a number of texts, both theoretical and literary. What is an examined life? What do we need to examine to understand our lives? Do we need to examine our lives to know ourselves? Is it better not to examine our lives?

BOOKS FOR THE COURSE:
Bookstore:
St. Augustine, Confessions. Oxford
Kotre, John, White Gloves: How Our Memories Tell Us Who We Are. Norton.
Basho, Matsuo. Narrow Road to the Interior and Other Writings. Shambhala
Mori, Kyoko. Polite Lies: On Being a Woman Caught Between Cultures. Ballantine
Slater, Lauren. Lying: A Metaphorical Memoir. Penguin

Textbook Library:
Descartes, Discourse on Method. In Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy.
Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents.
The Book of Job and Ecclesiastes. In the Holy Bible.
Plato, The Apology and The Crito. In The Republic and Other Works.

GRADING:
Your grade for the course will depend upon your performance on two essay exams (40%), one paper (20%), a reading journal (20%), and a number of short exercises, quizzes, and class participation (20%). Late work will not be accepted unless arrangements have been made ahead of time. Class attendance will also be a factor in your grade (see the attendance policy below).

CLASS ATTENDANCE:
You are expected to not only attend the full class, keep up with the assignments, and have your book with you, but also to talk in class and participate fully in class activities. Mere physical presence is not enough to be counted as attending class. If you have not prepared, you may be considered as absent under this attendance policy. Since each class is the equivalent of a full week, the second unexcused absence will result in a reduction of your grade by one letter grade, each subsequent unexcused absence will result in a reduction of your final grade by one more letter grade (i.e., if you have a B for the course and miss class three times, you will receive a D for the course). Leaving class after the break will be considered an unexcused absence.

UNIVERSITY POLICIES:
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is dedicated to a safe, supportive and non-discriminatory learning environment. It is the responsibility of all undergraduate and graduate students to familiarize themselves with University policies regarding Special Accommodations, Misconduct, Religious Beliefs Accommodation, Discrimination and Absence for University Sponsored Events. (For details please refer to the Undergraduate and Graduate Timetables; the "Rights and Responsibilities" section of the Undergraduate Bulletin; the Academic Requirements and Policies and the Facilities and Services sections of the Graduate Bulletin; and the "Student Academic Disciplinary Procedures" [UWS Chapter 14]; and the "Student Nonacademic Disciplinary Procedures" [UWS Chapter 17]).

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CALENDAR:

September:
3: Introduction.
10: The examined life. Plato, The Apology and Crito.
17: Examining knowing. Descartes, Discourse on Method.
24: Examining memory. Kotre, White Gloves.

October:
1: Kotre, White Gloves.
8: Psychology and Society. Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents. Midterm handed out.
15: God. The Book of Job and Ecclesiastes.
22: Examining friendship: Strangers in Good Company (film: no journal due). Midterm due.
29: The religious life. St. Augustine, Confessions.

November:
5: St. Augustine, Confessions.
12: Examining nature. Basho, The Knapsack Notebook and Narrow Road to the Interior.
19: Living in a culture. Mori, Polite Lies.
26: Writing a life. Slater, Lying.
December
3: Slater, Lying. Final handed out.
10: Conclusion. Paper due.
17: Exam period—Final due.