professor office hours - philosophy 380 001 002... · professor office hours kyle burchett ... the...
TRANSCRIPT
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
PHI 380 – Death, Dying & the Quality of Life – Spring 2014
002 MWF 9:00 – 9:50 CB 205
001 MWF 1:00 – 1:50 CB 205
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Professor Office Hours
Kyle Burchett
Department Phone
(859) 257-1861
W 10:00 – 12:00
1406 Patterson Office Tower
Mailbox
1443 Patterson Office Tower
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Overview
Death is a phenomenon that has transfixed and inspired humanity for as long as humans have walked the Earth. Art, religion, and philosophy are some of humanity’s most profound responses to the inevitability of death. We are all too aware that our breaths are numbered, so we strive to live well, to die well, to achieve something significant, profound, or lasting before our final exhalation. Or, identifying with Sisyphus, we may surrender to the unbearable weight of absurdity and despair. On the other hand, we may simply deny death altogether.
This semester we will examine a host of questions about life, death, living, and dying. We will undertake a philosophical and interdisciplinary
investigation of a cluster of prominent issues about the meaning of life and death—for individuals as well as for species. Among the topics covered are death definitions and criteria, abortion, euthanasia, killing and letting die, suicide, the rights of the dying, the rights of future beings, life extension, transhumanism, posthumanity, and extinction.
Throughout the semester, students will critically reflect upon their attitudes and opinions about life and death in an ongoing dialogue with a number of fascinating readings and classic films (perennial as well as modern), and in response to points raised during classroom discussions.
Students will divulge their conclusions in presentations and paper assignments.
2
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
Required Texts
__________________________________________________________________________________________
The Philosophy of Death
Cambridge University Press, 1st Edition, 2009 Steven Luper
ISBN: 0521709121
Extinction: Evolution and the End of Man
Columbia University Press, 2002 Michael Boulter
ISBN: 0231128371
Death
Acumen Publishing, 2009 Todd May
ISBN: 1844651649
3
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
Grading
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Students will maximize the possibility of receiving a satisfactory grade in this course by completing all assignments and attending every class ready to discuss that day’s material. It is each student’s responsibility to request make-up quizzes, presentations, etc.; although there will be no make-ups without an excused absence.
The grading scale is as follows: A = 90 – 100%, B = 80 – 89%, C = 70 – 79%, D = 60 – 69%, E = 0 – 59%.
1. Quizzes: (30%) There will be a number of quizzes administered throughout the semester. Quizzes will test students’ comprehension of assigned readings & viewings. The lowest quiz grade will be dropped. Missed quizzes cannot be made up without an excused absence.
2. Papers: (50%) There will be two 10-15-page paper assignments, a midterm and a final, each worth 25%. Students will be given a choice of topics that correspond to assigned readings. Refer to paper handouts for exact details.
Students who struggle with spelling or grammar are advised to make use of the free services provided by UK’s Writing Center, located in the W. T. Young Library:
http://wrd.as.uky.edu/writing-center.
3. Presentations: (20%) Each student will give two 15-minute PowerPoint presentations on assigned readings. (Presentations will be assigned at the beginning of the semester.) Students are expected to demonstrate adequate understanding and critical evaluation of the readings by providing coherent summaries and by facilitating classroom discussion. PowerPoint files must be e-mailed to the instructor and brought to class on a flash drive.
4. Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. Students will be permitted two unexcused absences, although perfect attendance is highly recommended. Each subsequent unexcused absence will result in a deduction of two percentage points from the final grade. If a student is tardy, leaves class early without permission, is mentally absent, or is otherwise disruptive, a further deduction may result. If you are going to be absent and have a legitimate reason, it is in your best interest to let me know.
5. Extra Credit: Students who maintain perfect attendance and consistently contribute to classroom discussions will be awarded two bonus percentage points at the end of the semester. Students may also have opportunities to receive bonus points by attending and participating in outside events that will be announced by the instructor during the semester.
Letters of Accommodation
If you have a documented disability which requires academic accommodations, please contact me as soon as possible
with a letter of accommodation from the Disability Resource Center:
http://www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/DisabilityResourceCenter/current.html.
Miscellaneous
Be Advised: A Text messaging or listening to headphones is strictly forbidden. Cell phones must be muted or turned off during class. Up to five points (half a letter grade) will be deducted from a student’s GPA for each violation. Repeat offenders risk expulsion from class. Computers and tablets are allowed only if used for taking notes or accessing assigned materials.
Appointments are not necessary. If you would prefer to privately discuss the materials or anything else, please do not hesitate to visit me during my scheduled office hours or contact me by e-mail.
4
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
Assignment Schedule*
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Philosophy of Death = (PD) Hyperlinked or E-mailed PDF = (PDF) Death = (D) Extinction: Evolution and the End of Man = (EX)
1. W 1.15
Greetings—What We Are Doing in This Class
2. F 1.17
Death Thomas Nagel (PDF) pp. 73 - 80
3. M 1.20
Academic Holiday Recommended: The Death of Martin Luther King YouTube
4. W 1.22
MOVIE The Seventh Seal (1957) YouTube (1) YouTube (2) Amazon Netflix iTunes Hulu Plus
Annihilation Steven Luper-Foy (PDF) pp. 233 – 252
5. F 1.24
The Termination Thesis Fred Feldman (PDF) pp. 98 - 115
6. M 1.27
Death: A Propitious Misfortune William Ferraiolo (PDF) pp. 1 - 10 Death's Distinctive Harm Stephan Blatti (PDF) pp. 317 - 330
7. W 1.29
Our Dealings with Death Todd May (D Ch. 1) pp. 1 - 43
8. F 1.31
DOCUMENTARY Epicurus on Happiness (2000) Alain de Botton YouTube Introduction, Life Steven Luper (PD Ch. 1, 2) pp. 1 - 38
9. M 2.03
MOVIE Groundhog Day (1993) Crackle Amazon Netflix iTunes Xbox Video Death, Challenges Steven Luper (PD Ch. 3, 4) pp. 39 - 81
* To be revised at the instructor’s discretion.
5
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
10. W 2.05 Mortal Harm Steven Luper (PD Ch. 5) pp. 82 - 121
11. F 2.07
The Timing Puzzle Steven Luper (PD Ch. 6) pp. 122 - 142
12. M 2.10
Death and Immortality Todd May (D Ch. 2) pp. 45 - 78
13. W 2.12
Living with Death Todd May (D Ch. 3) pp. 79 – 114
14. F 2.14
Killing Steven Luper (PD Ch. 7) pp. 143 - 170
15. M 2.17
MOVIE Colorful (2010) YouTube Hulu Xbox Video Suicide and Euthanasia Steven Luper (PD Ch. 8) pp. 171 – 196
16. W 2.19
Abortion Steven Luper (PD Ch. 9) pp. 197 - 218
17. F 2.21
A Defense of Abortion Judith Jarvis Thomson (PDF) pp. 47 - 66
18. M 2.24
On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion Mary Anne Warren (PDF) pp. 1 – 9 After-birth Abortion: Why Should the Baby Live? Alberto Giubilini & Francesca Minerva (PDF) pp. 261 - 263
19. W 2.26
Why Abortion Is Immoral Don Marquis (PDF) pp. 183 – 202
20. F 2.28
What Is So Wrong with Killing People? Robert Young (PDF) pp. 515 – 528
6
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
21. M 3.03
Was I Ever a Fetus? Eric T. Olson (PDF) pp. 95 - 110
22. W 3.05
Do Potential People Have Moral Rights? Mary Anne Warren (PDF) pp. 275 - 289
23. F 3.07
Abortion and the Argument from Potential: What We Owe to the Ones Who Might Exist Alberto Giubilini (PDF) pp. 49 - 59
Midterm Paper Due (printout and via e-mail)
24. M 3.10 Midterm
TV EPISODE The Man Who Was Never Born (1963) The Outer Limits Hulu Amazon Should We Be Sorry that We Exist? Saul Smilansky (PDF) pp. 1 - 16 Beyond the Earth Charter: Taking Possible People Seriously Robin Attfield (PDF) pp. 359 – 367
25. W 3.12
Active and Passive Euthanasia James Rachels (PDF) (Google) pp. 78 - 80 Killing and Starving to Death James Rachels (PDF) pp. 159 - 171 Recommended: Deaf Belgian twins going blind choose to be euthanized Recommended: Animal Euthanasia and Capital Punishment: Some Uncomfortable Comparisons
26. F 3.14 Midterm grades will be posted on myUK by midnight.
The Survival Lottery John Harris (PDF) pp. 81 - 87 Utility and the Survival Lottery Peter Singer (PDF) pp. 218 - 222
27. M 3.17
Academic Holiday
28. W 3.19
Academic Holiday
29. F 3.21
Academic Holiday
30. M 3.24
Should the Numbers Count? John M. Taurek (PDF) pp. 293 - 316 Why the Numbers Should Sometimes Count John T. Sanders (PDF) pp. 3 - 14
31. W 3.26
The Trolley Problem Judith Jarvis Thomson (PDF) pp. 1395 - 1415
32. F 3.28
Living on a Lifeboat Garrett Hardin (PDF) pp. 36 - 47 A Modest Proposal Jonathan Swift (PDF) pp. 1 - 14 Recommended: Feeding the 9 Billion: The Tragedy of Waste Institution of Mechanical Engineers
7
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
33. M 3.31
MOVIE Soylent Green (1973) Amazon Netflix YouTube ($) iTunes Xbox Video Eating Meat and Eating People Cora Diamond (PDF) pp. 465 – 479
34. W 4.02
MOVIE Blade Runner (1982) Amazon Netflix YouTube ($) iTunes Xbox Video Do Androids Pulverize Tiger Bones to Use as Aphrodisiacs? Simon A. Cole (PDF) pp. 173 – 193
35. F 4.04
Twilight of the Mammoths: Ice Age Extinctions and the Rewilding of America Paul S. Martin Overview of Overkill Paul S. Martin (PDF Ch. 2) pp. 48 - 57 Deadly Syncopation Paul S. Martin (PDF Ch. 6) pp. 118 - 128
36. M 4.07
Introduction, The Past Is Not Over Michael Boulter (EX Intro, Ch. 1) pp. vii - 22
37. W 4.09
Extinction, A System Out of Chaos Michael Boulter (EX Ch. 2, 3) pp. 23 - 87
38. F 4.11 Last day to reduce course load
From Dinosaurs to Us, What’s in a Name? Michael Boulter (EX Ch. 4, 5) pp. 88 - 156
39. M 4.14
A Man-Made Extinction Event, Humans and the Future Michael Boulter (EX Ch. 6, 7) pp. 157 - 193
40. W 4.16
Duties to Endangered Species Holmes Rolston III (PDF) pp. 718 - 726 Saving Nature, Feeding People and Ethics Robin Attfield (PDF) pp. 291 - 304
8
CCCLXXX I II 春 MMXIV
41. F 4.18
The Fable of the Dragon Tyrant Nick Bostrom (PDF) pp. 273 - 277) [Recommended: YouTube Adaptation] The Future of Humanity Nick Bostrom (PDF) pp. 1 - 29
42. M 4.21
MOVIE Prometheus (2012) Netflix iTunes Why I Want to Be a Posthuman when I Grow Up Nick Bostrom (PDF) pp. 1 – 25
43. W 4.23
The Absurd Thomas Nagel (PDF) pp. 716 - 727 The Meaning of Life Richard Taylor (PDF) pp. 19 - 28
44. F 4.25
Immortality without Boredom Lisa Bortolotti and Yujin Nagasawa (PDF) pp. 261 - 277 The Meaning of Life John Kekes (PDF) pp. 17 - 34
45. M 4.28
MOVIE Waking Life (2001) Amazon Netflix YouTube ($) iTunes Xbox Video Is That All There Is? Michael Smith (PDF) pp. 75 – 106
46. W 4.30
Why Anything? Why This? Derek Parfit (PDF) pp. 1 – 27
47. F 5.02
Two-Minute Overviews of Final Paper
48. W 5.07
FINAL PAPER DUE (printout and via e-mail)
Final grades will be posted on myUK by midnight Monday, 5.12.