Is God Dead?: Modern Intellectual Challenges to Religious Belief
Lydia Equitz, ext. 4658, Honors 189
Fall ‘14
hptutor@uwm.edu
Office Hours
Monday-Thursday: 1:00-6:00pm
Sign up, change, and cancel appointments on the clipboard on my office door. You are also
welcome to drop in if I don’t have an appointment scheduled at that time.
Reading
Essays: Sigmund Freud, “Moses and Monotheism” (ISBN 0-394-70014-7)
Charles Darwin, “Autobiography”
William James, “The Will to Believe”
Karl Marx, “Introduction of the Critique of the Hegelian Philosophy of the Right”
Bertrand Russell, “Is There a God?”
Carl Sagan, “The Demon-Haunted World”
Jean-Paul Sartre, “A More Precise Characterization of Existentialism”
Carl Van Doren, “Why I Am an Unbeliever”
(Atheism: A Reader (ISBN 1-57392-855-0)
Novels: Iris Murdoch, The Bell (ISBN 0-14-118669-0)
Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood (ISBN 0-8021-3165-4)
Poetry: George Herbert, “The British Church”
Langston Hughes, “Goodbye Christ”
June Jordan, “Kissing God Goodbye”
Wallace Stevens, “Sunday Morning,” “The Snow Man”
We will also use a Course Reader of supplementary materials (available at Clark Graphics).
Course Description
Using a few central essays on the subject, this course will introduce students to some of the
major currents of the modernist critique of theism and theistic religions: Pragmatism,
Freudianism, Marxism, and Existentialism. We’ll read essays by scientists like Darwin and
Sagan, and humanists like Van Doren, as well as social and political theorists including Marx
and Sartre. We will then turn to literature to make the attractions and difficulties of belief in a
modern world come alive.
The novels and poetry chosen for the course dramatize the questions of character,
ethics, and meaning raised by the modern rejection or embrace of deities, particularly in the
Judeo-Christian tradition. Students will learn to read accurately and contextually, identifying
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assumptions, arguments and subtexts in both fiction and essays. We will refer frequently to
today’s science and examples of religious and spiritual belief in the present, striving to apply
the insights of earlier thinkers today and ultimately judging whether these are compatible
with the postmodern world and with our individual beliefs. In the process we will learn
scholarly ethics and academic conventions for interacting with others’ ideas in writing and
speech.
Policies
Attendance: This seminar relies on its students to discuss issues, readings, and daily journal
assignments. Thus, your absence directly and negatively affects everyone’s learning. I keep
attendance records as part of the participation grade, and unless the absence was for military
service, religious observance you’ve notified me about in the first 3 weeks of class, or allowed
for by an official UWM VISA, the following grade penalties apply: 0-3 absences= participation
and journal grades affected variably based on what you’ve missed; 4 or more absences=as
above, PLUS final grade decreased by one (e.g., A- to B+) for each absence over three.
Note: Because of the nature of in-class work and because attendance is only 10% of the final
grade (if you have no more than 3 absences), no special allowances are made for illness or
other life events. Thus, you must save your maximum of three absences in case you get sick
or have an emergency.
Lateness and Unpreparedness: No matter how late or unprepared you are going to be, it is
better to come to class than not to come. I’ll always admit you and try to get you integrated
into what we are doing as smoothly as possible. While I expect you to attempt the reading
and journal work, I also realize that there can be many reasons that a student doesn’t fully
review/understand material before class, and that your journal work might not be very
polished at this point, so I don’t expect perfection. I do ask that you not try to fake
preparation, because this wastes time and can put us off the track of understanding the
material accurately. That said, chronic lateness or unpreparedness is not acceptable.
Classroom disruptions: It is fine to do normal, non-annoying things like drinking water or
stepping out to use the bathroom. However, to protect the learning environment of all
students, I ask that you refrain from eating in class, and any student engaging in rude and/or
distracting activities such as texting or slurping with a straw will be asked to leave the
classroom. Repeated violations will result in a low participation grade. (Be warned: I have no
problem giving an “F” to someone who has their cell phone on their lap instead of turned off
and in their bag.) Very disruptive students will be warned and referred to the Dean and/or
campus police.
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Grading: 30% on reading journal, 20% each on two revisable 4-page papers and on your final
“Statement” (60% total) and 10% on participation. Your journal will include exercises, in-class
work, and optional post-class revisions. The two formal papers can be revised for a new
grade, in which case your final grade for those papers will be the average of the original and
the new grade. Statements (and formal papers) can be submitted to the 24-hour folder as
drafts for comments, but the Final Statement is not revisable. Journals can be revised after
class, but may not be submitted to the 24-hour folder and are not revisable once graded.
Anonymity: All written work will be graded anonymously: you turn the journal and papers in
with a code in place of your name. I will maintain a grade book based on codes separate from
the name-based attendance/participation book.
Late work Late papers and journals will be docked one grade (e.g., from A- to B+) per day MR 6:00pm, and two grades for work turned in between 6 on Thursday and when I arrive
Monday morning (usually about 10:30 am), since I cannot know when work is turned in over
the weekend. If you have a foreseeable absence, including sports participation, plan ahead
and turn the work in early. Any work not submitted in class may still be handed in on time if
you get it to me in my office prior to my leaving on the day it is due (generally 6:00 pm). I do
not accept e-submissions of journals and papers; you or your agent must physically turn in
hardcopy to be graded.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is a violation of the academic honor code and carries severe sanctions.
I personally find it repugnant, and make every effort to identify and punish plagiarizers. You
should know what plagiarism is by now, but if you have any doubts, refer to the free copy of
Diana Hacker’s Rules for Writers (available in the Honors library) on the subject BEFORE you
“use” another’s work in any suspicious way. If you are still in doubt, see me after class or
during my office hours. I do not accept real or professed ignorance and/or intellectual
insecurity as an excuse for the theft, lying, and laziness that plagiarism entails.
Links to Other Important University Policies:
http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/SyllabusLinks.pdf
Communication
I will post assignments and course documents on D2L within a week of handing them out in
class and will use your university e-mail accounts to share links, clarifications, and
announcements about the class.
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Daily Syllabus: “Is God Dead?”
W 9/3
Enlightenment, Modernism, and Postmodernism; Plato’s “Allegory of the
Cave”
Dist
M 9/8
Prep
syllabus
“Lord-I-thank-Thee-that-I-am-a- Protestant-Christian complacency.”
Freud 66-82; Herbert “the British Church” Reader 147; Westphal, Reader
83
Journal
Freud is not presenting the psychoanalytic theories he is famous for in
this essay. What is he doing instead?
Describe Westphal’s attitude toward religious belief. Is he himself a
believer?
W 9/10
Prep
Journal
Skepticism and Suspicion; Sophists and Philosophers
Van Doren Atheism 60-65; Westphal Reader 84-85
Explain Westphal’s distinction between “skeptical” and “suspicious”
atheism
M 9/15
Prep
Journal
More Freud; “The Snow Man”; assign stanzas of “Sunday Morning”
Freud 1-65, Stevens “The Snow Man” Reader 148
Stevens’ poem is one sentence. What does it say? (Hint: identify base N/V
sentence structure.)
W 9/17
Prep
Journal
Freud and Stevens: Modern vs. Postmodern doubt
Freud 82-101; “Sunday Morning,” Reader 149-150
Stevens is arguing against dedicating one’s life to the pursuit of an
(immortal) afterlife. What part does your stanza play in this argument?
M 9/22
Finish Freud; Intro to Murdoch; Writing topics: titular conventions,
pagination
Prep
Journal
Freud 101-117; Murdoch Chapt. 1
Find, articulate, and identify three claims Freud makes in pp 1-117 of
“Moses”: one which you are persuaded is likely, one which you judge to
be unknowable at this time, and one which, in your best judgment, is
unlikely. Then choose the claim you think is most important and write a
paragraph explaining why this is so.
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W 9/24
Prep
Journal
Due
M 9/29
Existentialism defined; The Bell as novel and philosophy
Sarte Reader 86-93; skim Reader 89-93; Murdoch Chapts 2-3
Explain one of the quotes from Reader 89-93 in terms of Sarte’s article.
Journal (there will be an in-class journal activity today)
Atrocity and sophistry: demons and rationalization
Characters in Murdoch
Prep
Sagan “The Demon-Haunted World” Atheism 216-26; Murdoch Chapts
4-5
W 10/1
Prep
Introduction to Pragmatism
Reader 95; James “Will to Believe” Reader 101-104 “creeds”
Murdoch Chapt 6
Journal
Explain why pragmatism (the word) is not Pragmatism (the philosophy)
M 10/6
Pragmatism continued
Prep
Read/study “The Will to Believe” Reader 104-111; (For snide remarks,
read “What’s Pragmatism, Anyway?” Reader 112)
Journal
Sarte says, “belief is a being which questions its own being...” (Reader
91). Explain. Does this differ from James’ characterization of belief?
Explain.
In-class
Dist
W 10/8
Review selections from “What Pragmatism Means” Reader 96-100
The Bell paper assignment
Discuss The Bell and Jacob’s essay ; Writing topic: active and passive
voice/verbs
Prep
Journal
Murdoch Chapt 7; Jacobs “Go(o)d in Iris Murdoch” Reader 133-138
Michael never quite tells us what happened, but he reveals volumes about
his own mental processes. Find and present an example of
rationalization, evasion, or other “crooked” thinking.
M 10/13
Prep
Journal
Discuss reading; Writing topic: editing for active voice/verbs
Murdoch Chapts 8-10; Darwin, “Autobiography,” Atheism 193-198
Identify and present something that resonates with you in Darwin’s piece,
and something you find jarring, and explain your reaction.
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W 10/15
Discuss The Bell; Writing topic: colons and semicolons, hyphens and
dashes
Prep
Journal
Murdoch Chapts 11-14
Explain how Dora’s experience in the museum might be Platonic. (You
will identify one or more attributes of Platonism and then show
how/whether the scene illustrates those attributes.)
M 10/20
Discuss The Bell; speech comparison charts; the lorry scene; porn in
Chapt 17
Writing topic: incorporating quotations
Prep
Journal
Murdoch Chapts 15-18
Identify the ways in which Michael’s speech contradicts James’ (a chart
format works well here)
W 10/22
Prep
Journal
Discuss The Bell; Michael’s fall; Farce vs. Absurdity; Nick’s sermon
Bell 19-21
Chapter 21may be the climax of the novel. Think about how it works to
develop characters, advance or complicate the plotline, and/or consider
the theological message Nick delivers. Then write three paragraphs
discussing why the chapter is so powerful/important.
M 10/27
Discuss The Bell; plot as argument; paper help
Prep
finish Murdoch’s novel
Due
Journals
W 10/29
Introduction to Wise Blood; Writing topic: proofreading
Prep
O’Connor Chapts 1-2; Reader 140
Due
Bell paper
M 11/3
Prep
Journal
Discuss reading; Psychoanalytic theory; Ethos, Logos, and Pathos
O’Connor Chapts 3-4
Study the story of Haze’s visit to the carnival and its aftermath carefully,
then explain as precisely as possible the following phrase: “he forgot the guilt of the
tent for the nameless unplaced guilt that was in him.”
W 11/5
Prep
Discuss reading; Writing topic: drawing a conclusion from data
O’Connor Chapts 5-6
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Journal
In three paragraphs, explain three features of the society/culture Haze
and Enoch find themselves in. Use general/specific (claim/evidence)
formula.
Dist
M 11/10
Prep
Journal
Wise Blood paper assignment
The comedy or tragedy of Wise Blood; Writing topic: applying frameworks
O’Connor Chapts 7-9
Research the LITERARY GENRES of “comedy” and “tragedy” and define
them.
In-class
W 11/12
Prep
Journal
Hypothesize the tragedy or comedy of Haze and of Enoch.
Enoch and Haze; Writing topic: allegorical readings
O’Connor Chapt 10-13
Consider the story of Enoch allegorically. What images and tableaus have
surrounded him? How about Haze? A list is fine, but it must have page
references.
In-class
M 11/17
What allegorical role might Enoch play in the novel? Haze?
What does it all mean? (And what do I say in my paper?); Lecture: What is
“Science”?
Prep
Journal
finish book Wise Blood ; Reader 39
Write some question you must have answered in order to write your
paper.
In-class
W 11/19
Note potential answers to your questions in your journal.
Just the Facts; Lecture: What is time?
Due
Wise Blood paper
Dist
Final Statement assignment
M 11/24
Prep
Journal
Bertrand Russell; Pathos, Ethos, and Logos
“Is There a God?” in Atheism 87-94
Relate 3 specific statements/passages from Russell’s essay to three other
readings in the course. A general relation is acceptable, but only if you
accurately describe what James or Sarte or Westphal or O’Connor etc.
have written. It is always safer to have specific passages in mind when
cross-referencing texts you aren’t totally familiar with.
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W 11/26& R 11/27
M 12/1
Thanksgiving Break
Logical Fallacies: linear causality (“ray” fallacy); false binaries; double
negatives; ad hominem; complexity; infinite regression; moving target;
pattern imposition; scale
Prep
Journal
Reader 39-48; “Gut Feeling” handout
Outline one *logical* argument for the existence of God/gods which you
find particularly compelling (believers) or troubling (nonbelievers).
W 12/3
Prep
Marxist critique of religion; Langston Hughes
“A Contribution…” Reader 113-127; 152-153; using three different
colors, highlight in Marx: 1. all passages pertaining to religion 2. A
passage you don’t understand 3. A passage you do understand
Due
M 12/8
Journal
Deism; Dickinson; decoding
Prep
Reader 72-78; 151; “Lincoln” handout
Note
Last day to turn in Final Statement drafts to 24-hour folder
W 12/10
Jordan; religious trends in the United States; course evaluations
Prep
Reader 154-157; 21-28
Note
Attendance required
M 12/15
Final Statements due at noon in my office.
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