Summer Courses 2007 with Ananda Satya Spike

Humanities 210: World Mythologies

The great myths of the world create meaning out of the fundamental events of human existence: birth, death, conflict, loss, reconciliation, the cycle of the seasons. They speak to us of life itself in voices still intelligible, yet compellingly strange and distant. This World Mythology offers a wide-ranging guide to these enduring mythological traditions, combining the pure narrative of the myths themselves with the background necessary for more complete understanding. In addition to the study of world mythologies, this course will explore symbols as they manifest themselves in each culture. This course fulfills the IAI humanities requirement.

This class will explore the nature of mythology through study of folklore and legendary narratives. Themes, archetypal figures and situations, symbolism and figurative language will be emphasized. Students will learn to identify mythological motifs important to the historical, social and religious context of the particular culture in which the tradition develops, as well as universal themes which may be seen as common from mythologies of different cultures. Students will gain a sense of what sorts of contributions mythological heritages have made to the self-understandings of cultures in the present, through sayings, stories, moral lessons and folklore. The class will critically evaluate the philosophical and ethical content of these mythological traditions and their contemporary relevance while developing respect for different cultures through the exploration of their mythologies. Three credit hours. No prerequisites.

Humanities 127: Introduction to Philosophy

Topics: What is Philosophy? Thinking Philosophically about Life; ~What is the meaning of Life? Why are we here? Is there an afterlife? The Pre-Socratic thinkers~: Socrates’ Legacy~ Socrates and Plato; What is Real and What is Reality?; Who am I and Concepts of the Self or Soul ~Do we have a Soul? Does the soul live on after the body dies? Are the Soul and Self the same thing? Am I Free and Do we have Free Will? ~ Are we free to do as we choose? Are we responsible for our actions? Are their outside factors that affect our freedom? What is Morality and What is Ethics?~ Pornography, Racism and Sexism, Abortion, Gay Marriage, Euthanasia, Death Penalty; What is Social Issues and Social Justice? Social Welfare, Race and Diversity~ What responsiblity to we have to the poor and homeless? What role should the government have over its individuals?

Philosophers and Others: Pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, St. Augustine, St. Aquinas, Descartes, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Kant, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud, Beauvoir, Sartre, Foucault, to name a few!

Films: All students are required to view and study the Examined Life Video series available at the IMS department as they correspond to our weekly readings. However, we will alsoview and discuss the following films as they related to our topic: American Beauty, Waking Life, Big Fish, Matrix, Contact, AI, What Dreams may Come, The Cell, Memento, Hero, Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, Star Wars, Life is Beautiful, Redemptions, Constant Gardener, Crash to name a few.

Philosophy 106: Ethics

What is Morality? Traditions and Theories
Relativism and Human Rights
Abortion and Euthanasia
Punishment and the Death Penalty
Sexuality and Marriage
Racism and Affirmative Action
Sexism
Violence against Women
Pornography
Hate Speech
Poverty and Distributive Justice

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