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Mr. Van Norden |
Office: Rockefeller Hall 207 |
This course is an introduction to ancient Chinese philosophy (in translation), covering the period between roughly 500 and 221 B.C. In addition to introducing you to Confucianism, Daoism and other ism's, we will pay special attention to developing your skills in three areas: reading, writing and reasoning. Owing to class size, the course format is mostly lecture with some discussion. This course has no prerequisites, and assumes no background in philosophy, or in Chinese language or culture.
Last revised August 26, 2006.
Briefly, your grade will be based on
Absences can only be excused by the Dean of Studies Office (x5255). There is no final exam in this course.
This course places a significant emphasis on writing well. There will be three
papers in this course. Each paper must be at least 1200 words in length,
and each is worth 25% of your grade. A substantial portion of your grade for
these papers will depend on the quality of your writing and manuscript preparation.
The topics are given below, by the class meeting on which the papers are due.
Papers may not be hand-written, and must be double-spaced. And, whatever else
you do, proofread your papers before handing them in ! (Remember: a spell-check program is no substitute
for proofreading!) You should also buy a stapler if you do not
already own one. Unstapled papers will be returned to you to be stapled
before I will grade them.
Unexcused late papers will drop 1/3 letter grade per weekday after
the due date. (That is, an A paper that should have been handed in on a Tuesday
will receive an A- if it is handed in Wednesday, and a B+ if it is handed in
Thursday.) If you cannot hand in a paper during class, you may turn it in to
the Philosophy Department Office (Rocky 209). If you think you cannot get a
paper finished in time, you may get an extension in advance without a grade
penalty if you ask and have a legitimate reason ! Excuses after the due
date can only be approved through the Dean of Studies Office (x5255).
The readings should be completed before the class meeting
under which they are listed, and then re-read after the class in which they are
discussed.
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Lect. 1 (Thursday) |
Topics: Course introduction, overview, and mechanics. |
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Background |
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Lect. 2 (Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2006) |
Topic: Hermeneutics. Read B.W. Van Norden, "How to Read a Text" (follow the link at left). |
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Lect. 3 (Thursday) |
Topic: Early Chinese history and the origin of key
Chinese philosophical concepts.
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Lect. 4 (Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2006) |
First paper due today! Write
at least 1,200
words (that's usually at least three pages, double-spaced), on the following topic: Read "The Announcement to the Duke of Shao,"
and interpret it in TWO different ways, one using a "hermeneutic of
faith," and one using a "hermeneutic of suspicion." (These terms are explained in
"How
to Read a Text.") Topic: Ritual. |
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Kongzi (Confucius) and His Opponents: Virtue vs. Violence |
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Lect. 5 (Thursday, Sept. 14, 2006) |
Topic: Three Ways to Understand Kongzi. |
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Lect. 6 (Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2006) |
Topic: Kongzi and moral cultivation. |
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Lect. 7 (Thursday) |
Topic: Militarism.
Reading: Sun Tzu (Sunzi),
The Art of War, pp. 41-172. (Focus on the classic text by
"Master Sun," which is in boldface. Use the commentaries to help illuminate the classic.) |
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Lect. 8 (Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2006) |
Midterm on A Supplement to Strunk and White! |
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Mozi: Consequentialism and the Development of Argumentation |
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Lect. 9 |
Topic: Mohist universalism and psychology. |
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Lect. 10 Oct. 3, 2006) |
Topic: Details of the Mohist program. |
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Yang Zhu and Egoism |
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Lect. 11 Oct. 5) |
Second paper due today! Read the version of "Condemnation of Offensive War" on reserve in the library. (This is a different version from the one in Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy! You will not be able to do the assignment unless you use the version on reserve in the library!) Then write at least 1,200 words (that's usually at least three pages, double-spaced), answering the following questions: According to the Mohists, what distinguishes "punishment" from "attack"? Is the distinction required by, contradicted by or just consistent with their consequentialism? Should we find rationally persuasive their argument that "punishment" is justified while "attack" is not? Why or why not? (Do not just rely on the assumptions that "everything is relative" or "no one knows anything anyway.") Lecture Topic: Yangism. N.B. The last day to drop a course
is this Friday (Oct. 14). |
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October Break (Oct. 15-23)
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Mengzi (Mencius) |
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Lect. 12 Oct. 10, 2006) |
Topic: Mengzi on human nature. |
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Lect. 13 |
Topic: The Mengzian response to the Mohists and Yangists. |
October Break (Oct. 16-20)
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Lect. 14 Oct. 24) |
Topic: Mengzi on the virtues. |
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Taoism and the Dialecticians |
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Lect. 15 |
Topic: The Dialecticians. |
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Lect. 16 (Tuesday) |
Lecture Topic: The Chinese language.
Read B.W. Van Norden, "The
Chinese Language and Writing System." Also look at this Chinese
oracle bone and this sample of an
early Chinese text written on silk. |
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Lect. 17 |
Topic: The Daodejing's alternative
to Confucianism. |
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Lect. 18 |
Topic: Cosmology and mysticism in the Daodejing. |
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Lect. 19 |
Topic: Zhuangzi's "negative project." |
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Lect. 20 |
Topic: Zhuangzi's "positive project." |
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Lect. 21 |
Topic: Zhuangzi Recommended: Zhuangzi, remaining selections in Readings in
Classical Chinese Philosophy, Chapter 5,
pp. 243-50. |
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Women in Early Chinese Thought |
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Lect. 22 Nov. 21, 2006) |
Readings: The Book of Songs,
handout (only p. 71 and pp. 96-97), and Analects 5:1, 5:2, 6:28, 9:12, 17:25, and Mengzi
3B2, 4B33. |
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Thanksgiving (Nov. 24-27) |
Xunzi |
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Lect. 23 |
Topic: Xunzi on human nature and ethical cultivation. |
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Lect. 24 |
Topic: Xunzi on cosmology, philosophical psychology,
and the philosophy of language. |
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Lect. 25 |
Topic: Xunzi. |
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Lect. 26 Dec. 5, 2006) |
Third paper due today! Write at least 1200 words (that's usually at least three pages, double-spaced) on the following topic: We have examined the views of many thinkers on human flourishing, the virtues, ethical cultivation and human nature. Present your own view on this topic drawing on the material covered in this course. (For example, is your view of human nature like that of Yang Zhu, Mengzi, Mozi, Xunzi, or Zhuangzi? If it is different from all of them, explain how.) Class Topic: "Legalism." |
It is impossible to understand philosophy (Eastern or Western) after one reading. Even professional philosophers must read a philosophical text at least twice in order to understand it. So make sure to read every assignment in this course at least twice!
I do not recommend reading additional
outside sources on the topics covered in this course. (Many secondary books and
translations are very unreliable.) Just read, re-read, and re-re-read the
assignments. You are encouraged to discuss the readings, lectures and paper
topics with other students and with the instructor. However, you must write up
your papers by yourself. In addition, if you use any quotations,
phrases or even ideas in your papers that you did not come up with on your own,
you must acknowledge this fact in a citation. Failure to do so is plagiarism (a
serious offense) . It does not make any
difference whether the source is a book, encyclopedia article, oral
conversation, web site or anything else. Cite it!
My office hours are your time! Make
use of them! In lecture, you are one of several dozen students. In my office
hours, you usually get one on one attention. Take advantage of this
opportunity!
Academic accommodations are available for students with documented
disabilities. Please schedule an appointment with the instructor early in the
semester to discuss any accommodation that may be needed for the course. All
accommodations must be approved through the Office of Disability and Support
Services (ext. 7584) as indicated in their accommodation letter.