CHUM316 - Political Courage and Time

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Academic Year 2005/2006

Political Courage and Time
CHUM 316 SP

Crosslistings:
GOVT 394

What is courage, and how does it relate to hope and fear? Courage involves acting well in the face of danger to the self: how do we react to fear of danger, and is hope necessary to act well? We will read classical writings of Greek and Jewish political thought to see how courage developed from a military quality to a civil or political virtue, and then to a philosophic or religious one. Are present-oriented people the most free to act? What is courage's relation to concepts of time? We will study Christian and modern secular interpretations to see whether a strong sense of the future or the past limits courage or empowers it. Throughout, we'll be focusing on courage in politics and its possibilities today.

MAJOR READINGS

Plato, REPUBLIC, LACHES
Hebrew Bible, DEUTERONOMY (parts), JOSHUA, I, II SAMUEL, ESTHER
Augustine, CONFESSIONS
Maimonides, ETHICAL WRITINGS
K. Marx & F. Engels, COMMUNIST MANIFESTO, and Marx, "Value, Price & Profit"
F. Nietzsche, H. Arendt (selections)
E. Husserl, PHENOMENOLOGY OF INTERNAL TIME-CONSCIOUSNESS
M. Heidegger, "Time and Being"
M. Walzer, REVOLUTION OF THE SAINTS
N. Levin, WHILE MESSIAH TARRIED

EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS

Class presentation and short paper; midterm paper (5-7 pp.); term paper (10-15 pp.)

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS

Some background in social and political theory--from GOVT, PHIL, CSS, COL, HIST, RELI, SOC, ANTH, ENGL-- is helpful.

COURSE FORMAT: Seminar

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UGRD Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: SBS GOVT Grading Mode: Graded

Prerequisites: NONE

SECTION 01

Instructor(s): Schwartz,Nancy L.

Times: ....R.. 01:10PM-04:00PM; Location: PAC104;

Reserved Seats: (Total Limit: 14)

SR. major: 5 Jr. major: 5

SR. non-major: 2 Jr. non-major: 2 SO: 0 FR: X

Special Attributes:

Curricular Renewal: Ethical Reasoning

Links to Web Resources For This Course.

Last Updated on MAR-30-2006