BIC 2330  Social World I

The City & the Soul
Fall 2002
TR 12:30 - 1:50
Course Faculty: 
Prof. Dwight D. Allman (Coordinator) Phone: 710-6062 Office: Burleson 306 Office Hours: TR, 2-3; MWF, 1-2. E-mail: Dwight_Allman@baylor.edu
http://www3.baylor.edu/~Dwight_Allman/	Prof. J. Wesley Null Phone: 710-6120 Office: Burleson 206 Office Hours: M, 1-5; T, 2-5; by appt. E-mail: Wesley_Null@baylor.edu
http://www3.baylor.edu/~Wesley_Null/	
Prof. David Corey Phone: 710-3161 Office: Burleson 302B Office Hours: TR, 2-3; MWF, 1-2 E-mail: David_D_Corey@baylor.edu http://www3.baylor.edu/~David_D_Corey/	Prof. Thomas A. Odegaard Phone: 710-4893 Office: Hankamer 335 Office Hours: MW, 2-5; TR, 3-5; F, 2-4; by appt. E-mail: Thomas_Odegaard@baylor.edu
http://business.baylor.edu/Thomas_Odegaard/	
Prof. Barry Harvey 
Phone: 710-4535
Office: Tidwell 302
Office Hours: MTWR, 3:30-4:30; F, 2-:3:30 
E-mail: Barry_Harvey@baylor.edu	Prof. Michael Platt Phone: 710-7287
Office: Tidwell 309
Office Hours: E-mail: Michael_Platt@baylor.edu	
Prof. Doug Henry
Phone: 710-4805
Office: Morrison 232 
Office Hours: 
E-mail: Douglas_Henry@baylor.edu
http://www3.baylor.edu/~Douglas_Henry/	Prof. Lynn Geller Uzzell
Phone: 710-3981 Office: Morrison 231 Office Hours: T, 2-3:30; W, 2:30-4; by appt. E-mail: Lynn_Uzzell@baylor.edu	
Prof. Scott Moore Phone: 710-4612 Office: Tidwell 308 Office Hours: W, 10-12, by appt. E-mail: Scott_Moore@baylor.edu
http://www3.baylor.edu/~Scott_Moore/		
Required Texts: 
1) Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Hackett Publishing Co., Translated by Terence Irwin (ISBN 0872204642).
2) Aristotle, The Politics, University of Chicago Press, Translated by Carnes Lord (ISBN 0226026698).
3) Augustine, City of God Against the Pagans, Cambridge University Press, Edited by R. W. Dyson (ISBN 0521468434).
4) Martin Luther & Jean Calvin, Luther and Calvin on Secular Authority, Cambridge University Press, Edited by Harro Hoepfl (ISBN 0521349869).
5) Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince, University of Chicago Press, Translated by Harvey C. Mansfield (ISBN 0226500446).
6) Oxford Reader, Political Thought, Edited by Michael Rosen & Jonathan Wolff, Oxford University Press, (ISBN 0192892789).
7) Plato, The Republic, Basic Books, Translated by Allan Bloom (ISBN 0465069347).

Course Overview:
This course provides students the opportunity to read a selection of classic texts from the western tradition and to relate those texts to contemporary social and political thought. Instructors will encourage students to keep several key questions in mind throughout the course. These questions, given formative expression in our classic texts, are nevertheless entirely relevant to present-day discussions and debates about contemporary social and political life. Most importantly, the question "How ought one to live one's life?" will serve as a guiding and unifying query, connecting the themes and ideas that we will pursue during the semester.   At the same time, we will take it upon ourselves to think broadly and to analyze carefully what each of our authors has to say to certain key issues--in particular, the question of God and the highest things in life; the purpose or aim of social/political life; the problem of nature, especially, of human nature; the relation of nature to social/political life; the foundations of moral order (i.e. good and evil); and the basis upon which authority and collective power are conceived, grounded, and organized. Instructors will refer regularly to these matters as we consider how the traditions set forth by these classic authors inform (or are challenged by) modern and post-modern thinkers in the contemporary social world.

Course Structure:
The faculty will use large-group lectures to exploit the multi-disciplinary background of our different instructors in order to expose students to problems, questions, and features of the contemporary social world. These lectures are meant, on the one hand, to help students better appreciate the relevance of classic texts (and the discussions which they prompt) to contemporary society and social science, and, on the other, to enrich our common study of the social world with information and reflection drawn from our present-day experience and realities.  At the same time, however, this course is about books, indeed, about some of the greatest books ever written on the deepest questions that perennially confront participants in every society. A central task of this semester is therefore to master these classic books. To that end, each student will be required to complete study questions for each small-group session, as well as a mid-term and final exam. Lectures, group discussions, and writing assignments will aim, above all, to assist students in acquiring and/or refining the art and practice of serious reading, that is, of an analytically rigorous and theoretically contemplative kind of reading. Also, students should come to each large-group session ready for an in-class quiz, which is meant to reinforce the expectation that students prepare themselves appropriately to benefit from the lectures and common discussion that will define those sessions.
Participation: The class participation grade begins with attendance. At large-group sessions, students will be expected not simply to attend, but also to pay careful attention during lectures and to contribute substantively to any common discussion. Small-group sessions, moreover, will be structured around student participation. Discussions in small-groups will be largely devoted to common deliberation on and investigation of the seminal texts that are the focus of this course. Coming to every class prepared (through careful reading and timely completion of the assigned study questions) and investing yourself in the discussions of these works is strongly encouraged and will be suitably rewarded. In calculating the final grade, each student's participation will be taken into account. Participation will count for 10% of the final grade for the course.
Quizzes: Large-group sessions will normally begin with a quiz. Quizzes will cover the reading material that has been assigned for that day. Typically, these quizzes will take the form of five or six multiple-choice questions. Taken together, the quizzes will count for 10% of the final grade for the course.
Study Questions: Study questions will be assigned for each small-group session and will be made available on-line. These assignments must be completed before each assigned class period in the on-line format we have set up. The study questions will provide a basis for discussion during the small-group sessions. Your instructor may choose only a select number of study questions to be graded, or may choose to grade each one. Graded study questions will count for 20% of the final grade.
Exams: Your course instructors will administer two exams for this course. A mid-term exam, distributed on October 10th, will cover the material from the first half of the semester. This material will include Plato’’s Republic, Aristotle’’s Nicomachean Ethics, and all other readings assigned during the first half of the course. The mid-term will be due at the beginning of class on Thursday, October 17th. Your score on the mid-term will represent 30% of your final grade for this course. A final exam, which will focus primarily on the second half of the course, will be administered from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 16th. Material covered in this exam will include, but will not be limited to, Augustine’’s City of God Against the Pagans, Machiavelli’’s The Prince, and all other readings assigned during the second half of the course. The final exam also will include a take home portion. The question, or questions, for this take home portion of the exam will be posted on the BIC web page during the afternoon of December 5th. This take home portion will be due on December 16th, the day of the final exam. Both the mid-term and the final exam will consist of a combination of short answer, identification, and essay questions. The final exam will represent 30% of your final grade for the course.

Attendance:
Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class session. To receive a passing grade, students can miss no more than 7 (seven) class sessions. In accordance with Baylor University policy, any student who misses more than 7 scheduled class meetings will fail the course, regardless of performance. 

Grade Scale:
Your grade, based on scores for participation, quizzes, study questions, a mid-term, and a final exam, will be calculated according to the following scale:
100 - 90% = A 79 - 77% = C+ 59 - 0% = F
89 - 87% = B+ 76 - 70% = C
86 - 80% = B 69 - 60% = D
Participation: 10%
Quizzes: 10%
Study Questions: 20%
Exams
Midterm 30%
Final 30%

Core Issues & Questions:
Central to our undertaking this semester is the task of placing in conversation the different texts and thinkers with which we are concerned in this course. The following list of core issues/questions are meant to guide and to help us with this task. You should fully familiarize yourself with them, since you will want to have them well in mind as you read each assignment.
1) What is the author’’s view of God and/or the highest thing(s) in life?
2) What is the purpose or aim of political/social life and of the political order?
3) What is the author’’s view of nature and of human nature in particular? 
4) What is the relation of nature to political/social life?
5) How does the author understand the moral order——i.e., good and evil? 
6) How does the author conceive of and ground authority? 
7) How does the author explain, justify, and/or organize power in society?

Click here to learn your small-group assignment
Click here to learn your small-group ROOM assignment
**Instructions for accessing On-Line Reserves:
The Lange piece on "Equal Education in Plato's Republic" now is available through the on-line reserves at the library. Here's how to find it: 
Follow this link to the Library page: 
http://bearcat.baylor.edu/ 
Click on "Reserves". Click "Instructor's Name". Type in Allman. Follow the instructions. A "security warning" message should come up. Be sure to click "Yes" at the bottom of this box. Also, be sure to print "All" of the pages.

Fall 2002Social World I 
Course Calendar
 August 27 Introduction to Course & Plato's Republic (Wes Null: Great Books & Education; Doug Henry: Reading Plato) [LG]
29 Republic: Book I [SG] [Book I Study Questions]
 September 3 Republic: Books II-III [SG] [Book II Study Questions] [Book III Study Questions]
5 Large-Group Lecture: The Contemporary Debate About Liberal Democracy-Liberty, Justice and Community (Allman) [Readings from Oxford Reader (hereafter referred to as OR): Constant, "Liberty of Ancients & Moderns," pp. 122-23; Berlin, "Two Concepts of Liberty," pp. 124-28; Rawls, "Two Principles of Justice," pp. 241-45; Sandel, "Conceptions of Community," pp. 342-44 ]
10 Republic: Books IV-V; Handout: Lange, "Equal Education in Plato's Republic" (See note above to access) [SG] [Book IV Study Questions] [Book V Study Questions] 12 Republic: Books VI [SG] [Book VI Study Questions] 17 Republic: Books VII-VIII [SG] [Book VII Study Questions] [Book VIII Study Questions] 19 Republic: Books IX-X [SG] [Book IX Study Questions] [Book X Study Questions]
24 Large-Group Lecture: The Question of Political Science-Ancient, Modern, Postmodern (Allman & Corey) [Reading: Politics I: 1-5, III: 1-13; From OR: Locke, "The State of Nature & the State of War," pp. 14-18; Foucault, "Power/Knowledge," pp. 360-62]
26 Large-Group Lecture: The Question of the Ethical Life-Ancient, Modern, Postmodern (Uzzell) [Reading: Politics, VII: 1-3; From OR: Darwin, "Natural Selection" and "Advantage of Morality," pp. 28-30; Gilligan, "Different Voice," pp. 44-48; Mill, "One Simple Principle," pp. 133-34; Rorty, "The Priority of Democracy to Philosophy," pp. 362-365"]
 October 1 Ethics: Books I-II--[Study Questions]--From OR: Wolff, "Autonomy and Authority," pp. 76-77 [SG] 3 Ethics: Book V, chapters 1-6, 9-10 [SG] [Study Questions for Books V, VIII, IX, and X]  8 Ethics: Books VI and VIII [SG] [Book VI Study Questions] 

[Midterm Exam Word File]--[Midterm Exam Web Document]--[Midterm Exam PDF File] 
***Midterm Exam Due October 17th at the BEGINNING of class!*** (Posted 10-9-02 at 9:00 p.m.)

 10 Ethics: Books IX and X [SG] **Take-home exam handed out** 15 City of God: Books I-II [SG] [Books I and II Study Questions]
17 Large-Group Lecture: From Athens to the New Jerusalem-The Christian Challenge to Paganism (Harvey) [NO READINGS ASSIGNED-WORK ON YOUR EXAM!] **Take-home exam due at the beginning of class!**   18 Fall Break
22 City of God: Books X (chapters 1-6, 13-16, 19-25, 29, 31), XIV (entire book), XV (chapters 1-8) [SG]
24 City of God: Books XVIII (chapters 1, 14, 37, 41, 46-54), XIX (entire book) [SG] 29 City of God: Books V (Preface, chapters 1, 8-11, 13-26), XXII (chapters 1-7, 11-12, 18, 20-24, 29-30) [SG]
31 Large-Group Lecture: Christian Social Thought-Medieval and Modern (Harvey & Moore) [Reading: Taylor, "Ethics of Authenticity;" From OR: MacIntyre, "Tradition," pp. 338-42.]
November  5 Aquinas: "On Kingship" [SG] 7 Large-Group Lecture: The Protestant Reformation and Modern Society (Lockhart) [LG]
7-9 Pruit Memorial Symposium: Christianity and Economics [See http://www.baylor.edu/~IFL]  12 Luther: "On Secular Authority," pp. 3-43 [SG] 14 Calvin: "On Civil Government," pp. 47-86 [SG]
19 Large-Group Lecture: Machiavelli's Realism and Modern Social Science [Reading from OR: Machiavelli, "Servility of the Moderns," pp. 158-59; Popper, "Utopian Method," pp. 385-86]
21 Prince: chps. 1-8 [SG] 26 Prince: chps. 9-17 [SG]
28 Thanksgiving
 December  3 Prince: chps. 18-24 [SG]
5 Last day of class: Prince: chps. 25-26 (Allman) & Review [LG]  **Take-Home Portion of Final Exam Posted**
16 In-Class Final Exam ( 8-10:00 am)