Week 1 Reading Questions: (Due Sunday (8/25) via email to jsalbato@cnm.edu)
As for format, please write in an informal, conversational style, although be careful to be
clear. Single space your answers, but please separate each question and include a subheading so I know which question you are answering at a glance (a great shortcut would
be to simply write your answers right into this document; just don’t forget to save your
work to your computer for emailing to me).
For this week, everyone should answer parts A and B.
A. First let me ask you a couple questions about the class:
1. What issue or reading would you be willing to prepare for the class? Please rank your
5 favorites. See our website for the core readings and topics we will be covering. I
would suggest looking these books/authors up on Amazon or the like to see if they look
interesting. For most weeks, we will have two people split the readings we will cover, so
if there are several for one week, you will have more than one to prepare. I have also left
room in the schedule during weeks 10-12 for new topics you want to add. See the
syllabus for more details on this assignment. Remember, per the syllabus, your job is
preparing the reading (if a new one), preparing the discussion, and commenting on the
stduents' responses to your reading(s). What role you play in the class discussion is up to
you; I will hardly be the “teacher” in our class discussions, so I surely don’t expect you
to.
B. According to you (and please add your reasons/support for your views):
1. Are humans naturally/innately/wired/designed good or bad?
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society?
3. What enables people to carry out acts of evil?
4. Why do the vast majority of people remain bystanders?
5. What could motivate someone to devote themselves to rescue work?
For the following, please read all of our reading selections for this week but then pick 2-3
of them to respond to in writing, using the respective prompts below. It is usually best to
pick the one(s) you agreed with the most and the one(s) you disagreed with the most:
Never feel obligated to answer every question; focus your energy, instead, on the issues
that compel you. To clarify, these questions are not exams where I am looking for the
"right" answer...you will want to begin your answers with an accurate summary of the
author, but, from there, these should be jumping off points for you to respond to the
author's views. And please do not stress if you finding a reading difficult...just do your
best, and we will make sure everything is clear during class.
C. According to Plato’s Glaucon:
1. Are humans naturally good or bad? Does the ring reveal our true nature?
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society? How do we tend to act in
society, and what causes this?
3. What enables people to carry out acts of evil?
4. What compels the vast majority of people to remain bystanders?
5. What do you think of Glaucon? Do you agree? How would you respond?
D. According to Hobbes (a major influence on the US founders):
1. Are humans naturally good or bad?
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society? Is this the reason why most
people lock their doors, fear of humans?
3. What enables people to carry out acts of evil?
4. What compels the vast majority of people to remain bystanders?
5. What do you think of Hobbes? Do you agree? How would you respond?
E. According to Rousseau (a major influence on the French founders):
1. Are humans naturally (in their savage state) good or bad? Explain the psychology of
sympathy. How does the savage react to suffering?
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society? What are the chief causes
of this? How does the civilized person react to suffering?
3. What might enable people to carry out acts of evil?
4. What compels the vast majority of people to remain bystanders?
5. What might motivate someone to devote themselves to rescue work?
6. What do you think of Rousseau? Do you agree? How would you respond?
F. According to Smith (a major influence on modern U.S. political economics):
1. Are humans naturally good or bad? Explain the psychology of sympathy.
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society? What happens to their
natural sympathy? What are the civilized person’s main motivations?
3. What might enable people to carry out acts of evil? How does distance affect this?
4. What compels the vast majority of people to remain bystanders? How does distance
affect this?
5. What might motivate someone to devote themselves to rescue work?
6. What do you think of Smith? Do you agree? How would you respond?
G. According to Freud:
1. Are humans naturally good or bad? What drives us and how do we naturally feel about
others?
2. Are humans good or bad as we find them today in society? What does society do to
our drives? What are the pros and cons of society?
3. What enables people to carry out acts of evil?
4. What compels the vast majority of people to remain bystanders?
5. What could motivate someone to devote themselves to rescue work? What might
Freud say to such people?
6. What do you think of Freud? Do you agree? How would you respond?
H. Summary:
1. What else should we discuss on our first day? The plan is to introduce the mechanics
of the class (Part A above), talk about the terminology we will be using, discuss our
assumptions (B), and then discuss these readings (C-G).