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updated: 1/22/13
web version: http://www.earthlings.com/
TODAY'S GOALS:
CONCERNING EARTHLINGS
[2B] DIGITAL LITERACY: “students will be better able to deal with the technological revolution” by being able to
[2B1] recognize the value of multimedia for access to right brain, the whole person
[2B2] recognize the power of multimedia to change society, prime example Earthlings
[2A2] CONCERNING ETHICS
[2A2] The second goal of the required leadership/ethics flag courses -- learn to make real-life ethical choices -- is closely related to the core purpose of the University of Texas, to transform lives for the benefit of society. It is also one of the basic education requirements of U.T.: “have experience in thinking about moral and ethical problems.” Our ethics goals are
[2A2a] To experience by analogy a little of ethical dilemma presented by Anti-Semitism, especially the Holocaust.
[2A2b] To experience by analogy a little of ethical dilemma presented by racism, especially slavery.
[2A2c] To experience more directly the ethical dilemmas presented by speciesism, especially cruelty to animals.
[2A2d] To become aware of real-life ethical choices made daily by all of us involving animals.
[2A2e] To return to the traditional college goals of developing character and conscience.
[2A2f] To practice replacing fear and greed with compassion and empathy.
CONCERNING FEELINGS
Compassion is a feeling, and widening the circle of compassion is our ultimate goal as an ethics class.
RELEVANT READINGS: PP. 524-571,
ESPECIALLY 542-552 +
EMOTIONAL EXPRESSIVENESS, or EMOTIONAL LITERACY is the first step.
The alternative is the Man Without Feelings . Lack of empathy is a feature of sociopaths, child molesters, etc.
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE is the goal. The four domains of leadership emotional intelligence are self-awareness, self-management, social-awareness, and relationship management.
EARTHLINGS: A CHANCE TO DEVELOP OUR EMOTIONAL SELF-AWARENESS (Take notes? perhaps preparing for your blog?)
Like Gloucester, we want to expand our circle of compassion. On the heath, King Lear asked Gloucester: “How do you see the world?”And Gloucester, who is blind, answered: " I see it feelingly."
EARTHLINGS: A CHANCE ALSO TO DEVELOP OUR SOCIAL AWARENESS: “Empathy, which includes listening and taking other people’s perspectives, allows leaders to tune in to the emotional channels between people that create resonance.”
One of the goals of this course is to extend empathy to other cultures and even other species.
NEW CURRICULUM GOAL OF THIS COURSE: TRYING OUT DIFFERENT GLOBAL CULTURES
EXPERIENTIAL METHOD: ACTING AS IF MEMBER OF THAT CULTURE FOR A DAY OR MORE,.... Recall role of acting in course description:"We are trying to learn ethics experientially. In this case, your assignment is to become an actor, acting as if . . . This "willing suspension of disbelief," as Coleridge put it, is essential to the effectiveness of all novels, plays, movies, etc. In this case, We temporarily relinguish our scepticism and disbelief in order to experience a little of" what, say, a Jain might have thought and felt about suffering
In this case, we are acting out a different Weltanchauung (worldview) of suffering, that of Jainism, which we will return to next semester. It's eight basic principles are
- Do not kill. Do not let others kill. Find whatever means possible to protect life;
- Always speak truthfully and constructively. Resist injustice even if it may threaten your own safety.
- Make every effort to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, big or small, peacefully and by consensus.
- Do not make accumulation of wealth the aim of your life. Life simply and share time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need.
- There is no absolute truth. No doctrine, theory, or ideology is perfect.
- Practice nonattachment to views. Remain open to receive others’ viewpoints. Do not force others to adopt your views.
- Do not lose awareness of the existence of suffering in the world. Find ways to be with those who are suffering.
- Do not maintain anger and hatred. As soon as they arise, concentrate on your breathing to see their nature.
ULTIMATE GOAL IS FREEDOM, LIBERATION: BUT FIRST YOU MUST FACE THE TRUTH
TODAY'S TOPICS: the relationship between animals and us
TODAY'S ACTIVITIES: developing emotional self-awareness and social self-awareness by watching the documentary
.
REQUIRED READING:
Blog Instructions
COURSE ANTHOLOGY PAGES :
524-571,
ESPECIALLY 542-552 +
535-536 “The Man Without Feelings”
+ 330-404:
- Monson, Earthlings introduction
- Monson, Earthlings screenplay
- David Sztybel, “Can the Treatment of Animals Be Compared to The Holocaust?”
- Quotations
- Definition of Human
- Definition of Animal
- Definition of Speciesism
- Definition of Anthropocentrism
- Definition of Anthropomorphhize
- Definition of Ethnocentrism
- Definition of Egoism
- Definition of Hubris
REQUIRED: AT LEAST ONE OF THE TWO BLOGS ON EARTHLINGS OR -10.
YOU CAN EARN UP TO 22 POINTS FOR THE FIRST BLOG AND ANOTHER 12 POINTS FOR THE SECOND (possible 36 points) VS. -10 IF POST NO BLOG BEFORE 1/25
After viewing the first half of Earthlings go to courses.utexas.edu Select our course. Go to "Blackboard Tools" and select "Blogs." Then go to "Earthlings 1," read the instructions, and then select "Create Blog Entry."
"Put your reactions to the first half of Earthlings here. Your grade will be higher if you include emotional reactions as well as thoughts. You will also earn more points by citing from the screenplay text in your anthology and by adding multimedia. You will earn double points by citing from the definitions or quotations and triple points by citing from Sztybel. All citations must include anthology page nos."
10 pt. bonus if posted NO LATER THAN MIDNIGHT WEDNESDAY, 1/23
REVIEW, CONNECT, HAMMER INTO UNITY: your self and the animal kingdom, your experiences of the relationship between animals and us, your relationship to the term "Earthling"
LOOKING AHEAD: EARTHLINGS BONUS (10 PTS.) IF POSTED BY MIDNIGHT 1/23 ;Thursday: the Second Half of Earthlings;;, EARTHLINGS 2 BLOG DUE by MIDNIGHT, 1/25 Blog Instructions
YOU MUST DO AT LEAST ONE OF THESE BLOGS, meeting the minimum requirements of two unique images and two unique quotes
LOOKING FURTHER AHEAD: EARTHLINGS 2
“Stress Recess” Stressed by papers? Tests? Relationship issues? For these and other stressors, take a few minutes to check out a new interactive website called “Stress Recess” at http://www.cmhc.utexas.edu/stressrecess, a component of the UT Counseling and Mental Health Center. This site is loaded with videos, animation, video games, body scans, quizzes, clickable charts and graphics and practical information tailored to YOU. Learn what causes stress, signs of stress and—most importantly---what you can do to manage stress in healthy ways!
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