Course: Phil 308, Twentieth Century
Continental Philosophy, Spring 04
TR 11:00-12:15, PH 0413
Instructor: Margaret A. Simons, Ph.D.,
Office: PH 2211, Ext. 2185
msimons@siue.edu Office Hours: TR
1:30-3:30, or by appointment.
Rental Texts:
The Continental Philosophy
Reader (CPR), ed. R. Kearney and M.Rainwater;
The
Philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre, ed. R. Cumming
Introduction
to Metaphysics (1912), by Henri Bergson
Purchase Text: Witnessing; Beyond Recognition, by Kelly Oliver
(Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2001).
Description: This course will provide
students will the opportunity to study major texts in twentieth-century
Continental Philosophy, with a focus on developments within French philosophy
and on a contemporary American philosopher working within the Continental
tradition. Students will have an opportunity to develop their own philosophical
positions through class discussion and presentations as well as papers.
Problematic Themes: Students will write three 3-5 page (typed) problematic
themes, arguing for their own position, against one of the assigned authors.
Advanced students may, after consulting with the instructor, replace the second
problematic theme (and two response papers) with a longer (7-10 page) theme,
drawing on secondary sources, etc.
Presentations: (approx. 10 minutes)
Presenters will identify for the class 1 or 2 discussion issues from the
assigned readings, briefly summarizing the author’s position on the issue,
criticizing the author’s position, and stating an alternative position on the
issue. The presenter should not try and summarize the entire assigned reading.
Response Papers: Students will write 9
one-page (typed) papers responding to reading assignments. Each paper will
include a maximum of ½ page of quotations from the assigned text (use quotation
marks; cite the author’s name and page number in parentheses; do not quote the
editor’s introductions), and the student’s response explaining how the passage
is interesting, wrong, profound, etc. To receive credit, the paper must have
fewer than 4 errors in spelling or grammar.
There is a maximum of one Response Paper
per class period. Response papers may
only be turned in by the student in class on the day of the assigned reading.
Grades: There are 450 points
possible in this course:
9 Response Papers plus Study
Questions #1: 100 pts
3 Problematic Themes: 300 pts
1 Presentation: 50 pts
Class
attendance (participation in peer review sessions and presentation evaluations)
will be counted in borderline final grades. Grades for late papers will be
reduced. No incomplete grades will be given. Cheating in any form (including
plagiarism) will result in an E for the course and notification of the proper
University official.
Schedule of Assignments:
I. 1/13: Introduction
1/15: Claude Bernard, meet in PH
1410
Study Questions #1 (to print assignment, bring
a Venda-Card)
see assignment at www.siue.edu/~msimons/
II. 1/20: Henri Bergson, Introduction to Metaphysics
Presenter #1
(pp.1-22):______________________________
Presenter #2:
(pp.22-48):_____________________________
1/22: Bergson, cont.
Presenter #4:
(pp.70-92):_____________________________
III.
1/27: Husserl, in CPR (3-22)
Presenter #5: (pp.7-14)
__________________________________
Presenter #6:
(pp.15-22)___________________________________
1/29: Heidegger, in CPR (23-52)
Presenter #7: (pp.27-32)___________________________________
Presenter #8:
(pp.32-39)___________________________________
IV.
2/3: Heidegger, cont.
Presenter #9:
(pp.39-47)___________________________________
Presenter #10:
(pp.48-52__________________________________
2/5: Levinas, in CPR (122-34)
Presenter #11:
(pp.124-28)__________________________________
Presenter #12:
(pp.128-34__________________________________
V.
2/10: Beauvoir, handout or on my website
Presenter #13:
__________________________________
2/12: Sartre,
in The Philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre
Presenter #14:
(pp.101-109)__________________________________
VI.
2/17: Problematic Theme #1 Due
Video:____________________________________________
2/19: Sartre, cont.
Presenter #15:
(pp.110-23)__________________________________
Presenter #16:
(pp.123-36)__________________________________
VII.
2/24: Sartre, cont.
Presenter #17:
(pp.137-55)__________________________________
Presenter #18:
(pp.156-66)__________________________________
2/26: Sartre, cont.
Presenter #19:
(pp.167-81)__________________________________
Presenter #20:
(pp.185-96)__________________________________
VIII.
3/2: Sartre, cont.
Presenter #21:
(pp.196-209)__________________________________
Presenter #22:
(pp.209-222)__________________________________
3/4: Presenter
#23: (pp.223-30)__________________________________
Presenter #24:
(pp.233-41)__________________________________
IX.
3/16: Lacan, in CPR (328-335)
Presenter #25:
(pp.330-35)__________________________________
3/18: Beauvoir, in CPR (93-108)
Presenter #26:
(pp.95-108)__________________________________
X.
3/23: Second Problematic Theme Due
Video:____________________________________________
3/25: Fanon, handout and/or on web
Presenter #27:
(pp.__________________________________
Presenter #28:
(pp.__________________________________
XI.
3/30: Foucault, in CPR (336-60)
Presenter #29:
(pp.339-49)__________________________________
Presenter #30:
(pp.350-68)__________________________________
4/1: Derrida, in CPR (438-64)
Presenter #31:
(pp.441-50)__________________________________
Presenter #32:
(pp.451-64)__________________________________
XII.
4/6: Kelly Oliver, Witnessing
Presenter #33:
(pp.1-22)_______________________________
4/8: Presenter
#34: (pp.23-49)______________________________
XIII.
4/13: Presenter
#35: (pp.50-60)_______________________________
Presenter #36:
(pp.61-81)_______________________________
4/15: Presenter
#37: (pp.85-106)______________________________
XIV.
4/22: Presenter #38: (pp.107-32)______________________________
Presenter #39:
(pp.133-43)______________________________
4/24: Presenter
#40: (pp.147-68)______________________________
XV.
4/27: Presenter #41:
(pp.169-90)______________________________
4/29: Final Problematic Theme Due
Presenter
# 42: (pp.191-224)_____________________________