HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 1
Monday, March 11, 2013
Announcements:
 Exam 1.1 Returned ASAP. See me for advice to help you do better next
time.
 Oral Reports for Unit 1: This week! See me about your Oral Report to plan
your day to present it, then to plan and fine-tune your presentation.
o You will need to give everyone and me a handout with some kind of
overview or outline of your presentation. Provide a bibliography of
your sources for your report on your handout as well.
o You’ll need to present your report on PowerPoint or in some other
way that is easy to see and follow. The reports are considered part
of the Unit’s materials and can be used on exams, so you need to be
very clear.
o One key feature of the Report is to build into it some way to involve
everyone—an activity, a video clip, a survey (which you may give to
everyone in advance of your report so as to have time to analyze
results), or anything else that your creative mind thinks of to make
an engaging report for everyone.
 See me as well about your Outside Report (movie or museum visit or
religious service visit, depending on the unit) well in advance for source
ideas, suggestions, and feedback on your draft, which you may revise as
much as you wish before the report deadline.
 The deadline for Unit 1 Oral and Outside Reports is next Monday, March
18, 2013.
 Exam 1.2 will be Wednesday, March 20, 2013.
Readings for Today: Unit 1, Part 2: Society
 Wagner, "Is Equality Indigenous?" (Reader 26-33)
 Morris, "Manwatching" (Reader 36-43)
 Frost, "Mending Wall” at
http://www.writing.upenn.edu/~afilreis/88/frost-mending.html
 Confucius, "Perfect Virtue" from the Analects (Lun Yu) at
http://www.confucius.org/lunyu/lange12.htm
Items for Discussion. Please take careful notes.
1. Wagner, “Is Equality Indigenous?” (Reader 26-33)
a. Define: indigenous, suffrage. Questions about other
terms?
b. In general, what allowed Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Matilda Joslyn Gage, and other suffrage leaders even to think that
equality was possible?
c. How did Iroquois customs and society influence women’s clothing,
according to the author?
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 2
d. Describe how interactions with the Iroquois led to the “world’s first
women’s rights convention” at Seneca Falls, NY in 1848.
e. In the US at the time, what legal right did husbands reserve that the
feminist activists and newspapers criticized and attempted to
reform?
f. Describe the Iroquois system of choosing leaders, divorce, lineage,
and the position of women in general.
g. Describe the position of “Euro-American women” at the same time.
h. What effect did becoming a US citizen have on Indian women?
i. What does the anecdote about the “Euro-American” and Indian
sons suggest?
j. What is Wagner’s final point about rights vs. way of life?
2. Morris, Manwatching excerpt (Reader 36-43)
a. Name and briefly characterize the 3 types of human territory that
Morris describes. Give an example of each. How do humans
primarily “mark” their territory?
b. Explain the predictable behaviors involving Personal Space that
Morris describes on pages 40-41.
c. How do humans handle crowded conditions—especially “body-tobody contact,” even though “no one can ever become completely
immune to invasions of Personal Space” (41)?
d. Comment on the comfort zone “space reaction” that Morris
describes on page 42. Why do people feel threatened or rejected,
depending on the distance to the person they are talking to? What
does the fact that Personal Space zones vary by culture suggest?
e. What function does “cocooning” have? Describe the “favoured
object” method of “cocooning” when physical barriers are not
available. How else can people mark and defend their personal
space?
f. Do you agree that our space-sharing system is “remarkably
efficient,” as Morris says? Explain.
g. How much of what we do is unconscious when it comes to
territorial behavior? How about other behavior?
3. Robert Frost, “Mending Wall” at
http://www.writing.upenn.edu/~afilreis/88/frost-mending.html Develop
answers and support from the poem for each question. Take notes of
these.
a. How do the speaker and the neighbor function as social humans?
How does the neighbor seem to feel about this? How does the
speaker seem to feel about this? Give examples that show or suggest
how each person feels. (Of course, we have much more from the
speaker, so account for as much as possible from him/her.)
b. Is the scenario described in the poem between the speaker and the
neighbor more the exception or the rule? Is this typical of human
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 3
attitudes? Explain your thoughts about this as well as what the
poem states and implies.
4. Confucius (K'ung-fu-tzu), lit. "Master Kung), "Perfect Virtue" from
the Analects (Lun Yu) at http://www.confucius.org/lunyu/lange12.htm
Note on Confucius’ name: Confucius is an English adaptation
(corruption) of Kung-fu tzu. Information about this from
Answers.com: In short, 功夫 (gōngfu) means "achievement through
great effort" or simply virtue. It combines 功 (gōng) meaning
achievement or merit, and 夫 (fū) which translates into man. In
Mandarin, when two "first tone" words such as gōng and fū are
combined, the second word often takes a neutral tone, in this case
forming gōngfu.
Count off from 1-24 until everyone in class has an assigned number, and thus an
assigned verse from Chapter 12 of the Lun Yu. Interpret that verse and be ready
to explain the particular meaning you are deriving from it. What in the verse can
you cite as support for your interpretation? Take notes of your own assigned
verse, as well as those of others that you hear in our discussion.
a. Verse 1
b. Verse 2
c. Verse 3
d. Verse 4
e. Verse 5
f. Verse 6
g. Verse 7
h. Verse 8
i. Verse 9
j. Verse 10
k. Verse 11
l. Verse 12
m. Verse 13
n. Verse 14
o. Verse 15
p. Verse 16
q. Verse 17
r. Verse 18
s. Verse 19
t. Verse 20
u. Verse 21
v. Verse 22
w. Verse 23
x. Verse 24
y. Overview: What are some examples of advice to individuals about
being a good person?
z. What is the top priority for being a good person, as far as you can
tell? Explain.
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 4
aa. What are some examples of advice about government or organizing
and leading people? Which seems most important? Explain.
The Big Picture: As you read and think about possible connections to draw,
consider what these readings are all about—how people can, should, or do (or
not) get along as a society. What is at the root of society and politics?
Fundamental beliefs, assumptions, and perceptions about people and the world.
Note that the mind is influenced by different factors, and so are beliefs. Note also
the argument made by Socrates in The Allegory of the Cave that seeing the Truth
changes us profoundly. Socrates also urges those who are enlightened to use their
insights for politics and service. So look for fundamental assumptions in the
political readings for Unit 1.2, and think about how a state can be run most
effectively, noting what it would take to bring about the best conditions.
For Next Time (copied from the syllabus):
 Bok, "Lying" (Reader 59-69)
 Locke, Chapter 2 from Of Civil Government at
http://www.constitution.org/jl/2ndtr02.htm **Annotations due. Be sure to cover
main points from the entire reading.
 Lao-tzu, the Tao-te Ching: Chapters 3, 17, 19, 26, 29-31, 37-38, 46, 53, 57-61,
65-67, 75, 80 at http://classics.mit.edu/Lao/taote.html
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Please note: I am grading Exam 1.1 and will be done ASAP.
Money and tickets for The Grapes of Wrath this week! I will get the tickets. We
go to see the play on Sunday, March 24, 2:00 PM, at A Noise Within Theatre in
Pasadena.
Left Over from Last Time:
5. Confucius (K'ung-fu-tzu), lit. "Master Kung), "Perfect Virtue" from
the Analects (Lun Yu) at http://www.confucius.org/lunyu/lange12.htm
Note on Confucius’ name: Confucius is an English adaptation
(corruption) of Kung-fu tzu. Information about this from
Answers.com: In short, 功夫 (gōngfu) means "achievement through
great effort" or simply virtue. It combines 功 (gōng) meaning
achievement or merit, and 夫 (fū) which translates into man. In
Mandarin, when two "first tone" words such as gōng and fū are
combined, the second word often takes a neutral tone, in this case
forming gōngfu.
Count off from 1-24 until everyone in class has an assigned number, and thus an
assigned verse from Chapter 12 of the Lun Yu. Interpret that verse and be ready
to explain the particular meaning you are deriving from it. What in the verse can
you cite as support for your interpretation? Take notes of your own assigned
verse, as well as those of others that you hear in our discussion.
bb. Verse 1
cc. Verse 2
dd. Verse 3
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 5
ee. Verse 4
ff. Verse 5
gg. Verse 6
hh. Verse 7
ii. Verse 8
jj. Verse 9
kk. Verse 10
ll. Verse 11
mm.
Verse 12
nn. Verse 13
oo. Verse 14
pp. Verse 15
qq. Verse 16
rr. Verse 17
ss. Verse 18
tt. Verse 19
uu. Verse 20
vv. Verse 21
ww.
Verse 22
xx. Verse 23
yy. Verse 24
zz. Overview: What are some examples of advice to individuals about
being a good person?
aaa.
What is the top priority for being a good person, as far as you
can tell? Explain.
bbb.
What are some examples of advice about government or
organizing and leading people? Which seems most important?
Explain.
Readings for today:
 Bok, "Lying" (Reader 59-69)
 Locke, Chapter 2 from Of Civil Government at
http://www.constitution.org/jl/2ndtr02.htm
 Lao-tzu, the Tao-te Ching: Chapters 3, 17, 19, 26, 29-31, 37-38, 46, 53, 5761, 65-67, 75, 80 at http://classics.mit.edu/Lao/taote.html
I. Discussion of “Lying” by Sissela Bok (59-69 in Course Reader):
a. On the subject of “white lies,” what limitations does Bok find in:
i. The utilitarian approach
ii. The “Kantian” approach
b. Discuss Bok’s reservations about the use of placebos, using the case
of the 17-year old girl (63-64).
c. What problems are associated with letters of recommendation as
they tend to be written? How does Bok suggest that recommenders
should do their ratings?
d. What is Bok’s overall thesis about the use of “white lies” vs. always
telling the truth?
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 6
II. John Locke, Chapter 2 from Of Civil Government at
http://www.constitution.org/jl/2ndtr02.htm In Groups, 3 items
per group. Given the main points of each section (4-15), explain in depth
what they mean and imply.
1) Sec.4—freedom, equality as aspects of “state all men are naturally in”
2) Sec.5—natural equalitymutual love (basic intrinsic motivation to be kind
and just)
3) Sec. 6—Liberty, not “licence”; reason guides all people
4) Sec. 7—anyone can punish violators of the law of nature
5) Sec. 8—punishment must fit the crime; once again, everyone has this right
to punish offenders
6) Sec. 9—Refutation of counterargument—other leaders kill, punish; if they
have authority to punish, so does anyone else
7) Sec. 10—just as people can justly punish violators, they have the right to
help people victimized by crimes
8) Sec. 11—rights of punishing and preventing crimeseveryone “has right to
kill a murderer,” like killing a wild “beast,” Biblical precedent
9) Sec.12—anyone can punish offenders for less severe offenses too; must be
fair; goal = offender repents
10)
Sec.13—Summary: everyone has right to judge, granted by God to
help “restrain” people’s evil impulses; all rulers are only people too; but
making judgments/punishing others has grave responsibility
11) Sec. 14—Counterargument: are people really reasonable, rational? Answer:
people mutually agree to form communities; they are intrinsically
motivated to do so & do so naturally as humans
12) Sec. 15—more on counterargument: others, e.g. Hooker, agree that natural
laws are binding; natural laws are necessary, and people form societies
that are just out of basic needs and motives
a) Discussion: How is a society run if Locke’s ideas about “The State
of Nature” or the way people naturally are, were put into use?
Since he influenced the Founding Fathers in the writing of the
Constitution of the US and other principles and documents, how
many of his ideas are actually in practice?
b) What does Locke’s view of government have in common with
Confucius and Lao-tzu? How about the idea of equality, for
instance?
c) Other insights about Locke?
d) Lao-tzu, the Tao-te Ching: http://classics.mit.edu/Lao/taote.html
Activity: You’ll be given one chapter to interpret. The interpretation has two
aspects:
a) statement of interpretation (note: you may see more than one)
b) supporting quote—what indicates your interpretation(s)?
1) Part 1—Chapter 3
HUMAN 105H, Dr. Harnett
Week 4 Class Notes, page 7
2) Chapter 17
3) Chapter 19
4) Chapter 26
5) Chapters 29-31
6) Chapter 37
7) Part 2—Chapter 38
8) Chapter 46
9) Chapters 53
10) Chapters 57-61
11) Chapters 65-67
12) Chapter 75
13) Chapter 80
i) As a whole class, discuss various interpretations. What kinds of advice
does Lao give that pertain to individuals and society? What
assumptions does Lao appear to make about the natural state of
humans?
For Next Time:
Rousseau, The Social Contract, Book I at
http://www.constitution.org/jjr/socon_01.htm ***Prepare about 10 Annotations
(or more—cover the reading)
Outside Report for Unit 1 due next time (if you signed up for Unit 1).
Deadline for all Unit 1 Oral Reports.
Exam 1.2 will be next week—Wednesday.