Pl 370O 1st Outside Class Writing Assignment

The instructor for the course has defined philosophy, not as the search for the ultimate principles of knowledge and being, but as “telling stories about the stories we tell.”  The stories that we tell are derived in this instance from works of science fiction.  In particular, we have studied five stories: “Tideline,” “The Mists of Time,” “Craters,” “Against the Current,” and “Roxie.”  These stories challenge the familiar stories that we tell to ourselves in order to make sense of our experience.  Your task is to tell a story about themes found in any two stories from the five referred to above.  That philosophical story should be in accord with the tradition of stories stemming from Plato and extending through Wittgenstein and beyond.  The themes we have discussed this semester have to do with 1) the relation of words to world, 2) the question of skepticism and knowledge, 3) the purposefulness of life (Aristotle vs. Nietzsche), and 4) the question of whether machines and animals have the ability to think.

Identify at least one passage in each of the two stories that you choose, talk about what is challenging to our familiar way of thinking that emerges from the passages, and try to resolve the issue by using the philosophical tools that you have acquired in the course of the class discussions.  Try to argue for any assumptions you make in the course of your essay, give examples of the concepts you employ, and let your reader (an informed peer who is unfamiliar with the stories and the discussions we have had) know that you are aware of alternative views on the matter you have chosen and why you prefer your present position over alternative proposals.

The paper should be one and a half to two pages, typed single-space, proof read and retained on a disk.  The paper is due, hard copy, Fri., Feb. 20 at 5:00 in CH229 or CH 201, Duggan’s mailbox. I will be happy to review rough drafts.

Pl 370O  Second Outside Class Writing Assignment

The working definition of philosophy that we are using in this course is “telling stories (drawn from  2500 years of stories bearing a family resemblance to one another that have been called “philosophical”) about the stories (in this case stories drawn from science fiction) that we tell.”  One of the ways of telling stories about these stories is to determine how accurate a representation of reality or being these stories are.  This way of telling stories assumes a correspondence theory of the relation of thought to being.  It is the major assumption of the classical tradition in philosophy.  Another way of telling stories, the one favored by the instructor for the course, is to see the stories that we tell as comprising our self-definition, our self-representation, our self-narration.  These story-like commitments authorize a definition of ourselves that represents the current final vocabulary that we incarnate.  This is working out the existentialist tradition of Sartre and the neo-linguistic pragmatic tradition of Wittgenstein.

In the spirit of telling stories that are self-definitive, this paper is an invitation to you, the student, to get clearer about the stories you are currently incarnating.  You are asked to pick a story from among the four that we have taken during this part of the course: “The sky is large,”  “An ocean is a snowflake,” “Stray,” and “The Alchemist’s Gate.”  For the first third of your paper, summarize the story using only those details that lead to the point that you want to concentrate on in the rest of the paper.  This point should be concerned with the possibilities and threats to your own self-definition and world-description that the story presents you with.  For the rest of the paper try to resolve the issues brought up by the story by telling a story about the story, a story that is genuinely your own story and is definitive of who you are.  Make sure that your conclusions and assumptions are adequately argued for by answering hypothetical objections to your position.

In the final paragraph of your paper, indicate how successful this exercise has been in helping you clarity your own self-definition.

The paper should be about two pages, single spaced, proof-read and saved on a disk.  It is due on or before Fri., Apr. 3, at 5:00 PM, Tom Duggan’s office, CH 229 or mailbox, CH 201. Have fun with the assignment.

Pl 370O Final Writing Assignment

The assignment is simply to write an original piece of science fiction that reflects your world view and challenges the reader to see possibilities for talking about him/herself and reality that may not have occurred to the reader.  The second part of the assignment is to tell the reader what you intended her/him to get out of the fiction, what connections you wanted the reader to make, and what you wanted him/her to see as a result of your writing.  In this way it is hoped that you will be fulfilling the task of this course, which is to read and write the texts of your life more critically.

The actual writing of the story and reflection should take no more than two hours, though preparation time for the piece will take considerably longer than that.

Due anytime before Friday, 5:00 PM, of finals week.  Single space and keep on a disk.  Carroll Hall 229 or Tom’s mailbox, CH 201.  Thanks for a good semester.