Course Syllabus

The Good Life

Description of Course

Learning Objectives

Together, we will be aiming to: (1) enter into dialogue with European philosophical, literary, and artistic traditions that have grappled with existential questions; (2) acquire academic skills in navigating and interpreting philosophical works, poems, and artworks; (3) develop abilities in nuancing and articulating our own views and positions in dialogue with those of others; and (4) relate our particular lived experience of the search for the good life to universal philosophical concepts that elucidate the human condition.

Faculty

Jakob Due Lorentzen, Ph.D. in Philosophy and Aesthetics, Aarhus University, 2021. Cand. Mag. in Philosophy, University of Copenhagen, 2004. M.A. in Philosophy, Stony Brook University, 2002. Program Director, European Humanities, DIS, 2007-2017. Søren Kierkegaard Research Center, University of Copenhagen, 2022-present. With DIS since 2006.

Readings 

• Ahmed, Sara. The Promise of Happiness. Durham: Duke University Press, 2010.
• Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics. Trans. Terence Irwin. Indianapolis: Hackett, 2010.
• Brinkmann, Svend. "Living Well and Living Right". In Hill et al. Critical Happiness Studies. Oxon & New York: Routledge, 2020, pp. 131-143.
• Carson, Anne. If Not, Winther. Fragments of Sappho. New York: Afred A. Knopf, 2002.
• Crudden, Michael. The Homeric Hymns. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
• Diogenes Laertius. Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
• Gosetti-Ferencei, Jennifer Anna. On Being and Becoming: An Existentialist Approach to Life. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021.
• Hadot, Pierre. "Only the Present is Our Happiness." In Philosophy as a Way of Life. Oxford: Blackwell, 1995.
• Heidegger, Martin. Poetry, Language, Thought. London: Harper Perennial, 2013.
• Heidegger, Martin. Sojourns. Albany: SUNY Press, 2005.
• Kierkegaard, Søren. Either/Or, I and II. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987 (selections, e-book in Modules).
• Kierkegaard, Søren. The Concept of Anxiety. London: W.W. Norton, 2015.
• Kierkegaard, Søren. The Lily of the Field and the Bird of the Air. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2016 (selections, e-book in Modules)
• Lorentzen, Jakob Due. The Art of Dwelling. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press, 2021.
• Nietzsche, Friedrich. The Birth of Tragedy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
• Nietzsche, Friedrich. The Joyous Science. London: Penguin Books, 2018.
• Plato. Six Great Dialogues. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. Hawthorne: BN Publishing, 2010.
• Rosa, Hartmut. The Uncontrollability of the World. Cambridge: Polity Press, 2020.

Study Tour to Athens and Delphi

On this week-long study tour, we follow the question of the good life to the mythical landscape of Greece as our classroom now moves to the legendary settings of Athens and Delphi. Not only does Western philosophy originate here, but like no others, the ancient Greeks were concerned with the multifaceted question of what a good life is for a human being.

From the ancient art of stoic joy to reflections on love, beauty and the art of dwelling, we take full advantage of the embodied experience of Greece and its sacred places, temples, and theaters. 

We visit the very sites where Plato, Aristotle, Socrates and the Stoics once lived and taught, to fully appreciate how their ideas still inform and inspire our modern minds and the aspiration to live a meaningful life, a life lived well.

We complete our search for the good life, as our pilgrimage takes us to the slopes of Mount Parnassus to the legendary oracle in Delphi. Known to the Greeks as the center of the world, the sacred grounds of Delphi will serve as the backdrop for reflections on the good life and a concluding symposium as the sun sets on the Corinthian Bay.

Approach to Learning

I facilitate an inclusive learning environment through interactive, discussion-based learning which includes a close study of texts in combination with shared reflection, discussion and analysis. We will employ an array of short lectures, presentations, dialogue between partners, small group activities, full-class discussions, and assignments out and about in the city and on the study tour. The course mixes classroom sessions with site-specific readings and experiential learning during field studies and on tour. 

Expectations of Participants

Active participation in all activities is essential for the success of the course. In each meeting, whether in the classroom or on tour, you are asked to raise questions in relation to the assigned texts or other material, to respond to your peers’ contributions, and to collaborate in group work. Full preparation before meetings includes close textual readings, note-taking, writing of discussion posts (see below), and reflection on possible directions for our dialogue once we are together.

Classroom Etiquette

Computers in the classroom for notetaking and access to readings only. No phones in class.

Evaluation

The purpose of the course assignments is to deepen and nuance your understanding of particular topics that deeply interest you, while acquiring tools for philosophical thinking useful across life.

Discussion Board Posts

In preparation for each class, you are asked to contribute to a discussion thread on Canvas. After having engaged with the assigned material, but before we meet in class, you will post your reflections and questions on the reading in paragraph form (ranging from 1–3 substantial paragraphs each time). This is a great opportunity to read the contributions of your peers as well. The discussion posts serve as preparatory work for your final paper and hone your thinking on the course topics in general.

Final Paper

The paper (5-7 pages + a reference page) will draw from and comprise content from your own discussion board posts. It will be a chance for you to bring together your reflections on the various themes we have touched upon throughout the course – into one paper. While the content of your final paper can overlap with your previous submissions (what you wrote in your discussion board posts), you must write a unique introduction and conclusion, edit the paper for clarity, and update your reflections wherever relevant. Include a unifying idea, addressed in the introduction and conclusion, and emphasized throughout wherever relevant. Don't worry if some of your content does not tie back directly to this theme; that is to be expected in this sort of assignment. 

Grading Breakdown

Academic Regulations  

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on: 

• Course Enrollment and Grading  
• Academic Expectations and Honor Code 

DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org