You final paper assignment, as I have written on the syllabus, is: A final paper (c. 10 pages) analyzing two or more narrative texts (one of which may be outside the required readings) in concert with at least one secondary reading on the ethics of revenge. For Thursday, April 9th, in place of a regular [...]
Archive for March, 2009
Final paper assignment & proposal
Posted in Uncategorized on March 31, 2009 | 2 Comments »
Questions on Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morals: Writing Assignment for Thursday, April 2nd
Posted in writing assignments on March 31, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
For your response paper this week answer the two questions below. Each should require no more than a paragraph, and thus the whole assignment must still be on 1 page. As I said in class, these questions are not completely free for any interpretation: there are right and wrong answers here. According to Nietzsche, why [...]
Readings for Tuesday, March 31st
Posted in Uncategorized on March 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
On Tuesday we will discuss Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s The Visit. (I will try to post some questions to guide your reading soon.)We will also wrap-up our discussion of retributive theories of punishment, with particular attention to Hegel (and to some extent McTaggart). Be prepared to discuss these theories, especially as they compare to one another and [...]
Sign up for office hours
Posted in Uncategorized on March 20, 2009 | 9 Comments »
I am available to meet at the following times at the usual spot in the Van der Heyden Pavilion. If you want to meet with me, please sign up in the comments section below. If these times won’t work or they fill up, then please email me and we’ll set something else up. Friday, 27th [...]
Reading assignment for Tuesday, March 24th
Posted in Uncategorized on March 20, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Primary Reading Kleist’s Michael Kohlhaas (1811). We will leave off Poe for some later date. Here’s some questions to help guide your reading and preparation. The first page of the novella, like an epic proem, presents the reader with the main themes and questions of the story. It makes us ask: How can a man [...]
Identity. Race. Society.
Posted in Uncategorized on March 18, 2009 | 1 Comment »
The animal imageries combine multiple species together, creating not only a chaotic, barbaric illustration but functioning as a device to undermine racial equality that the Venetians uphold. Animals typically have lower cognitive inhibition; therefore, impulses dominate the behavior. The difference between humans and animals is captured by Descartes’ saying of “I think, therefore, I am”. [...]
Religion and Revenge: Writing Assignment for Thursday, March 19th
Posted in writing assignments on March 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
For Thursday, I have you reading some selected readings on Christianity and revenge that were influential in medieval and Renaissance England. Earlier this term we read other texts that dealt with Christian/Judaic perspectives on revenge: selections from the Bible and the piece on forgiveness by Marietta Jaeger. Greek, pagan religion was central to several of [...]
Opposition in “Othello”
Posted in Uncategorized on March 17, 2009 | 1 Comment »
While reading Othello, one of the themes which intrigued me the most was that of juxtaposition, particularly the contrasts between shadow and light (and by the same token, sight), between the two faces of each character, and finally that of truth and lies. Iago sums up one central essence of the play, stating, “I am [...]
Reading Assignment for Thursday, March 19th
Posted in Uncategorized on March 17, 2009 | 2 Comments »
We will continue our discussion of Othello, focusing on 3 aspects. Please be prepared to cite specific places in the text to support your impressions regarding these topics. We will watch and compare the interpretations of three performances of a section of Act III, scene 3. I have inserted them below to allow you to [...]
What’s in a Name?
Posted in student commentary on March 19, 2009 | 4 Comments »
Names often offer hints on characters’ traits or eventual fates in a play, and names in Othello are no exceptions. “Iago” means “he who supplants,” suggesting his treacherous nature. “Desdemona,” on the other hand, signifies “ill-fated one, misery,” which describes her tragic fate. “Othello,” though, seems to mean “prosperous,” which does not say much about [...]
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