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Philosophy 2350
Philosophy and Popular Culture
Summer semester II, 2013 (July first to August eight).
I General Information
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Department: History, Philosophy, and Political Science
Catalogue number for course: PHL 2350 - 190
Course title: Philosophy and Popular Culture
Credits in terms of semester hours: 3 hours
Prerequisites for taking class: None.
Instructor: Henrik Madsen, Ph.D.
On-line office hours: I will be on-line and ready to answer calls Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:00 to 4:00
PM.
Phone: (717) 944 8090
E-Mail: hmadsen@mansfield.edu, I check my e-mail every day, but not in the middle of the night.
Pbwiki: www.cybermadsen.pbworks.com
Required reading:
We will be using the book, SCI-PHI, Philosophy from Socrates to Schwarzenegger. Mark
Rowlands. St. Martin’s Press, 2005
You will also be assigned additional texts that will be made available through Desire2learn or the pbwiki: :
www.cybermadsen.pbworks.com . The pbwiki cite is basically meant as a back-up in case we encounter
technical difficulties in Desire2learn. The D2L shell for the course will be the primary way we communicate
on-line.
Required viewing:
In addition, you will be required to watch a number of popular movies. It is your responsibility to gain access
to the movies. The movies are available through Netflix, Redbox, Youtube, as well as other outlets. The
Mansfield library also has some of them in their stacks. For some of the chapters there will be a choice
between two movies. This is to make it easier for you to get hold of at least one of the assigned movies. You
are only required to watch one. Even if you have already watched some of these movies before, you are
expected to watch them again! We are watching these movies to illustrate philosophical problems and
positions. This means that you have to be intellectually engaged with these ideas as you are watching.
Additional material:
I will provide links to articles and videos that I think are helpful for understanding the issues we are
discussing. You are not required to use this material, it is simply meant as a help and an extra resource.
However, if you do make use of some of these extra resources, and you find them interesting or helpful,
please tell your classmates about them on the discussion board.
II. Course Description:
In this course we will use popular culture, works broadly classified as belonging to the genre of
science fiction, as a starting point for philosophical reflection. The purpose is twofold. Firstly, by
critically examining the content of popular fiction the students will go beyond being passive
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consumers of entertainment. Secondly, we will identify the philosophical implications and
assumptions implicit in the movies and texts we will analyze. In this sense, science fiction will be
used to motivate philosophical discussion. This genre is particularly well suited as an entrance point
to philosophical inquiry because many works of science fiction deal with fundamental questions
about what is real, what human nature is, the nature of consciousness/artificial intelligence, the
paradoxes of personal identity, the moral implications of technological transformations, and our
moral obligations to “others”. For this purpose we will use Rowlands’ book. In each chapter
Rowlands uses a science fiction movie to explain and exemplify a philosophical topic.
III. Exposition
A. Course Objectives:
Explain the basic philosophical arguments, ethical values, and metaphysical ideas behind works of science
fiction in your own words. The topics include: absurdity, the human condition, theory of knowledge, the
mind-body problem, free will and determinism, personal identity, good vs. evil, and moral values.
Learn how to identify and analyze philosophical arguments.
Learn how to criticize and evaluate different types of philosophical arguments.
Become familiar with basic philosophical positions.
Learn how to apply philosophical concepts to the interpretation of popular works in science-fiction.
Learn how to apply critical thinking skills and skills of analysis and synthesis in discussions,
homework assignments; and in the context of short essays on philosophical topics in popular
culture.
Learning outcomes
General Education Portfolio: The course is approved under the Humanities block of general education, and
it
meets the following general education outcomes:
1. Critical Thinking is the practice of questioning what we read and believe in order to understand both what
the ideas mean and whether they are valid. The goal is not always to change our ideas, but to understand the most
logical and supportable reasons for holding either our own, or any other, idea. In this particular course the emphasis is on
finding and examining some of the fundamental assumptions behind select themes that figure prominently in popular
movies.
2. Analytical Thinking is the practice of breaking down larger questions, ideas or statements into their
smaller, more basic components. By breaking things down into smaller units (or “analyzing them”) we can make more
careful, accurate and insightful judgments on the larger items, which are often in too unmanageable a form to be handled
effectively. Homework assignments and in-class assignments are designed to improve these skills.
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In order to elicit critical and analytical thinking skills from you, your exam or paper assignments will not be satisfied
by simple, rote recall of facts; by undeveloped, short answers; by statements, which although memorized from class
notes, do not reflect a logically coherent grasp of the subject matter; or by undigested copying of statements from our
text or any other source. Further details about what should go into a proper essay exam or graded paper will be
explained as we approach each of these assignments in the course. We will devote some time to rehearse how to read
philosophical texts and how to write papers that demonstrate critical and analytical abilities.
3. Communication: is the practice of presenting your ideas in a way that is clear enough for an audience to
understand what you are saying. Writing essays is one of the main ways we communicate ideas, analyze them , argue
for them , and synthesize them. The essay part of your exams and papers should demonstrate competence in this
practice.
In addition there are specific learning outcomes at which this specific course aims:
Humanities: is the study of the values and concepts that have shaped human cultures. In this course we
study the philosophical and ethical arguments that support the fundamental assumptions and values that are basic to our
belief system as they are presented in mass media and popular culture. The goal in testing is not to have you produce a
one-sided and dogmatic position, or an expression of your own personal feelings, but to have you demonstrate
competence in understanding the logic and implications of various arguments and ideas. This will give you a deeper
understanding of popular culture by applying the conceptual apparatus developed by philosophers. Hopefully,
participation in classroom and group discussions of basic philosophical issues will help to develop a non-dogmatic and
open minded stance to complex issues and questions.
Course requirements
Homework assignments: The students will be required to hand in homework on a timely basis
each week of the course. The homework assignments are related to the chapters in Rowlands, the
movies you will be watching, and whatever additional readings you are assigned. Guidelines for my
expectations about homework and the grading criteria will be posted in D2L. Also see part V below.
Paper: The students will be required to write a short paper (3-4 pages). You will be given the
opportunity to rewrite the paper if you submit it on time. A paper rubric will be posted on D2L.
You cannot pass the course without submitting all the homework and the paper. I will accept late
work, but tardiness will be penalized.
Final: There will be a final exam. The final will consist of essay questions and short answers. I will
post more detailed directions at the end of the course.
Discussion board: You will be required to participate on the discussion board. Minimally, you are
required to post on the topic (topics) assigned every week, and to comment on at least two of your
peers’ posts. Guidelines and grading criteria for the discussion board will be provided in D2L.
IV. Standards
The final grade will be based on four components.
Discussion participation 10%
Homework: 30%
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Paper : 30 % of total grade.
Final: 30%
V. Outline of course policies and practical advice (lifted from Professor McEvoy’s
syllabus for this course)
Homework assignments and discussion board responses to my questions are due Fridays by 9 pm. Below is a suggested schedule
to help you to complete your work on time. You will have to watch one or two movies, read 1 – 2 chapters in the book, and a handful
of additional philosophical texts in order to answer the homework questions well. Figure on three days per chapter: one to watch the
movie (do watch it, please – even if you’ve seen it before, please watch it again), the second to work through the assigned readings
and the third to complete the assignment. The movies are each about 2 hours long. It’ll take you between 1 and 2 hours to work
through the assigned readings for each movie and ½ -1 hour to complete the written assignments. My experience has shown – time
and again – that students who space their work out over several days do better. Significantly better. Students who watch the movie
then read the selections and then write their homework answers all in the same day typically submit much lower quality work, which
is not well-thought out and is sloppy. Your grades are indicative of the quality of work you submit.
Frankly, I don’t care when you do the readings or watch the movies – although I think Rowlands is correct: the chapters will make
more sense after you have watched the movies. What matters to me is that you answer the assignments clearly, correctly, and with a
fair amount of your own brain doing the work – rather than copying down what Rowlands has written.
Reading assignments: In addition to the text assignments, you will be expected to read short, although not necessarily easy,
philosophical pieces each week that relate to the issues being discussed that week. The links for these readings will be available in
the relevant modules in D2L
Homework assignments: Homework is due before 9 pm on Friday each week. This is to give you the time to watch the movies,
read the relevant chapters, and answer the assigned questions. Please do not wait until the last minute to do your work as it is our
luck that the power will cut off or the computer will freeze or the family dog will eat it. I will accept late work, but I reserve the right to
penalize it for tardiness. Work that is sloppy, not proofread, off-topic, or incomplete will be penalized. If you take this course
seriously and do the work to the best of your ability, you will learn a lot (which is what I want) and both enjoy yourself and earn a
good grade (which is what you want).
Homework should be submitted to the relevant drop-box in D2L, not emailed. I would like it to be single spaced with your name and
the chapter number as the file name (Brown2 would be the filename for Ms. Brown’s chapter 2 assignment). It’s important that you
do this because, with all the assignments and students, it will be easy for me to lose work that doesn’t have a name attached to it
after I’ve downloaded it from the drop box.
This is really important:
Answer the homework questions in your own words as much as you can. If you have to quote from the book or the movies, that is
fine but MAKE SURE YOU CITE when you do. The majority of the answers need to be in your own words. I have read the assigned
texts; I know what they say. I know you can read the selections. I know you can parrot back what the selections say. What I need to
know is whether you understand what you are reading. The only way I can do this is if you explain things in your own terms in ways
that others can understand, rather than just copying text from the readings into your answers. As I wrote above, if you want to copy
parts from the texts to put in your answers, that’s fine – as long as you cite it AND as long as you explain what the texts mean. In
order for you to better understand the concepts, issues and theories, I strongly suggest looking online for further information. Failure
to correctly cite or to answer the questions appropriately (meaning: not explaining your answers in your own terms) will result in a
grade of C- or below.
You need to answer all questions for each movie.
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Grading policy
Grades are based on the following criteria:
Letter average:
A
93 and above
B+
87 to 89
B80 to 82
C
70 to 75
E
59 and below
A–
B
C+
D
90 to 92
83 to 86
76 to 79
60 to 69
The final grade in the course will be computed based on the percentages assigned to the 4 different
components of the course outlined in the syllabus.
Plagiarizing!
Unfortunately plagiarizing has become a fairly common problem on college campuses. Broadly speaking
plagiarizing consists in presenting somebody else’s work as your own. Be forewarned! I have had several
regrettable incidents with students plagiarizing in the past. Plagiarizing is cheating, it defeats the purpose of
higher education and there will be a zero tolerance policy on plagiarizing in this class. Furthermore, the
consequences of plagiarizing or having other people do the work for you can be dire: you risk failing the
class and you will be reported to the Provost’s Office. You are expected to be familiar with the policy
regarding plagiarizing and ignorance of the law will not count as an excuse!
Special concerns
Mansfield University adheres to the requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
If you have a disability and therefore need an accommodation under this Act, you are expected
contact Bill Chaballa at Academic & Human Development in South Hall, Room 141 (phone: 6624798) and to notify your instructors before the third week of class. If personal problems are keeping
you from completing coursework, you may find it beneficial to visit the Counseling Center, which is located
in 141 South Hall (phone: 662 – 4695).
VI Schedule
1. First week. Philosophy and the Meaning of Life
Readings: Introduction and Chapt. 1 (Rowlands), The Myth of Sisyphus (Excerpt), Albert Camus
Movie, Frankenstein.
2. Second week. Can We be Certain of Anything?
Readings: Chapt. 2, Plato’s Cave Allegory. Descartes’ Meditations (Excerpt).
Movie, The Matrix
3. Third week. The Mind-body Problem
Readings: Chapt. 3, Descartes’ Meditations (Excerpt).
Movie: Terminator or AI.
4. Fourth Week. The Problem of Personal Identity and The Problem of Free Will.
Readings: Chapt. 4 and 5. Where Am I (Dennett). The ship of Theseus.
Movies: Total Recall, (old (Arnold) or new version (Colin Firth)) and Minority Report.
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5. Fifth week. Why be Moral? and The Scope of Morality. Paper due Wednesday by 9 pm.
Readings: Chapt. 6 and 7. Plato, The Ring of Gyges
Movies: Hollow Man and District 9
6. Sixth week. Good and Evil and Death and the Meaning of Life (no homework due
Readings: Chapt. 8 and 9.
Movies: Star Wars and Blade Runner
7. Final due Friday by 9 pm. For the final you will be required to watch the movie, Moon.
Please understand that the schedule is tentative and that it could be revised during the course.