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The Philosophy of Star Wars - Phil 192-002 (First-Year Seminar)
Spring 2018 - Holton Hall G80 - MW 10:00am - 11:15am
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Instructor: Dr. Ágúst Ingvar Magnússon
Office: Curtin Hall 622
Office hours: Thursdays 11am to 1pm and by appointment.
Email:
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COURSE DESCRIPTON: A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away (Hollywood, California in 1977, to be exact) a young filmmaker named George Lucas created one of the most popular and culturally influential film series ever made. In this course, we will examine a variety of important philosophical questions and themes through the lens of Star Wars. The primary aim of the course is to introduce philosophy as both an academic field and as a way of life and to examine how films such as Star Wars can help us to ask important questions about ourselves and about the meaning of life. We will examine the philosophical notion of “The Force,” ask questions about the nature of good and evil, and try to answer the most pressing question of all: What is up with Jar Jar Binks?
REQUIRED TEXTS: -Plato, Great Dialogues of Plato, Signet Classics, ISBN: 9780451471703
-Kevin S. Decker, Jason T. Eberl, William Irwin, Star Wars and Philosophy, Open Court, ISBN: 9780812695830
-Matthew Bortolin, The Dharma of Star Wars, Wisdom Publications, ISBN-10: 1614292868
-Daniel Wallace, Star Wars: The Jedi Path, Chronicle Books, ISBN: 9781452102276
Other required reading assignments will be posted on D2L under the “content” tab.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
GENERAL GUIDELINES: Please, no food in the classroom, no private conversation, and no reading of material unrelated to the class during the lectures. No cell phones are allowed during class. Students must be in class punctually with the assigned reading material with them.
ATTENDANCE: Class sessions will include both lecture and discussion. Attendance in each class session is therefore of pivotal importance. Students are allowed four absences during the semester. Each subsequent absence will lower the final grade point by 5 points (effectively half a letter grade).
EXAMS (30 points each = 60 points): There will be two exams during the semester. Students will be provided with an extensive study guide before each exam.
GROUP PRESENTATIONS (40 points): Students will be assigned to small groups of 4 students each. These groups will develop a 30 minute in-class presentation on a particular topic, assigned by the instructor, which centers on the primary debates between science and religion. Groups will be graded on their ability to critically analyze and explain the primary elements of the debate. Groups will also be graded based on their ability to answer questions from the instructor and fellow students on the topic. Students will review each other’s performance within the group to ensure a fair grade. A student’s individual grade will be based on the group grade as well as the performance review for that particular student. There will be one in-class “work day” so that students can work on their presentations with guidance from the instructor.
FINAL PAPER (40 points): 5-6 pages, Times New Roman 12pt, double spaced, 1 inch margins. Students will develop their own topic for the final paper based on readings and lectures.
EXTRA CREDIT: Students who set up an individual meeting with the peer-mentor during the semester can receive 10 extra credit points.
LATE POLICY: Late policies for the paper assignments (final paper and reflection essays) will be posted along with the assignment rubrics on D2L.
COURSE GRADE SUMMARY
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Exams: 60 points
Group presentation: 40 points
Final paper: 40 points
TOTAL: 140 points
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Percentage Grading Scale
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93-100%: A
90-92%: A-
87-89%: B+
83-86%: B
80-82%: B-
77-79%: C+
73-76%: C
70-72%: C-
67-69%: D+
63-66%: D
60-62%: D-
59% and below: F
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EXPECTED WORKLOAD (HOURS): This three-credit course meets twice weekly for 75 minutes, for a total of 35 hours of required lecture time. Reading the textbook and other required readings should take at least 60 hours over the course of the semester. Study time and preparations for the exams should take approximately 15 hours. Studying for and writing the final paper should take 20 hours. Research and work on the group presentation should take around 20 hours. All times are estimates and all grades are based on the outcome of the student’s work and not on time invested in the work.
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Lecture: 35
Required reading: 60
Study for exams: 15
Paper: 20
Group presentation:20
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APPROXIMATE TOTAL: 150
COMMUNICATION: Please check your UWM email account daily and check D2L for required readings. Please note my office hours at the top of the syllabus. I am also available to meet by appointment. Please do not hesitate to contact me at any point if you need any help or assistance with the course material or if you need help preparing for exams (or if you just want to chat about philosophy). Also be sure to contact the peer mentor for any advice or help you may need during the semester.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY: Academic misconduct will not be tolerated. The University’s academic misconduct policies and procedures will be fully enforced in any case of cheating or plagiarism. It is your responsibility to know and understand all policies and procedures. Any violation of the academic honor code may result in failing the course, suspension, or dismissal from the University. For more information, please see: http://uwm.edu/academicaffairs/facultystaff/policies/academic-misconduct/
INCOMPLETES: Please see: http://www4.uwm.edu/secu/docs/other/S_31_INCOMPLETE_GRADES.pdf
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: Students with physical or learning disabilities wishing to have special accommodations should contact the instructor as soon as possible.
UNIVERSITY POLICIES: Available at: http://www.4uwm.edu/secu/SyllabusLinks.pdf
GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS AND UWM SHARED LEARNING GOALS
GER Statement: Learning Outcomes for this Course: This course meets the UWM General Education Requirements in the division of the Humanities. All Humanities courses have the following learning outcome: 1) “Students will be able to identify the formation, traditions, and ideas essential to major bodies of historical, cultural, literary, or philosophical knowledge.” This course satisfies this outcome by presenting a historical and philosophical inquiry into major philosophical ideas from both eastern and western cultures.
In addition, this course addresses the following two learning outcome: 2) ”Students will be able to respond coherently and persuasively to the materials of humanities study through logical analysis and argumentation”; 3) “Students will be able to apply diverse humanistic theories or perspectives to other branches of knowledge or to issues of universal human concern.”
The course satisfies outcome no. 2 by requiring students to analyze philosophical concepts and theories.. The course satisfies outcome no. 3 through philosophical analysis of several philosophical theories and arguments as they arise in the Star Wars films and as they relate to diverse cultural and practical issues.
GER Assessment: Assignment(s) Used to Measure Learning Outcomes: Outcome no. 1 will be assessed via the exams and the group presentation. Outcome no. 2 will be assessed through final paper. Outcome no. 3 will be assessed through the final paper and group presentation.
UW Shared Learning Goal: The aforementioned assignments also assess the student’s ability to accomplish the second of the UW System’s Shared Learning Goal for all student’s: “Critical and creative thinking skills including inquiry, problem solving, and higher order qualitative reasoning.”
Tentative Schedule
Note: The peer mentor will provide 3 PRIDE presentations during the semester. We will post a schedule of these presentations (which will be held in-class) on D2L.
Note 2: As you can see, we will only be watching the original Star Wars trilogy (episodes IV, V, and VI) in its entirety. We will also watch clips from the prequel trilogy (episodes I, II, and III) as well as clips from the Star Wars animated universe (Clone Wars), if time allows.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
January 22 - Introduction/Syllabus
January 24 - Vietnam, Nixon, and Martian Death Rays: Background information on Star Wars – George Lucas Short Films, Flash Gordon (videos); Easy Riders, Raging Bulls (PDF on D2L).
January 29 - Joseph Campbell: The Hero With a Thousand Faces (PDF on D2L)
January 31 - Introduction to ancient Greek philosophy (PDF on D2L)
February 5 - Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
February 7 - Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
February 12 - Plato: The Apology
February 14 - Plato: Phaedo (pp. TBD)
February 19 - Plato: Republic II and III (pp. TBD)
February 21 - Plato: Republic VI and VII (pp. TBD)
February 26 - FIRST EXAM
February 28 - The Jedi Path - Parts I and II
March 5 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
March 7 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
March 12 - The Jedi Path - Parts III and IV
March 14 - Dharma of Star Wars - Chapters I - III
SPRING RECESS
March 26 - Dharma of Star Wars - Chapters IV - VI
March 28 - Dharma of Star Wars - Chapters VII - X
April 2 - SECOND EXAM
April 4 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
April 9 - Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
April 11 - Star Wars and Philosophy - Chapter 1
April 16 - Star Wars and Philosophy - Chapter 2
April 18 - Princess Leia and feminist philosophy (PDF on D2L)
April 23 - Work day for student presentations
April 25 - Student presentations
April 30 - Student presentations
May 2 - Star Wars and Philosophy - Chapter 7
May 7 - Star Wars and Philosophy - Chapter 9
May 9 - Final discussion - Clone Wars animated series
Final paper due May 12