The main course meetings will be Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 1pm, in Metcalf 107.
We will generally discuss a single paper each meeting. Each student is required to post a 'response' to the reading to Canvas by no later than 12:01am the day we will be discussing it. A typical post would be a short paragraph commenting upon, or asking questions about, some aspect of the reading. It's fine to write more if one has more to say, but a short paragraph is all that's required. Note, in particular, that you do not need to answer any of the questions asked in the reading notes, let alone all of them.
After the first few classes, when enrollment has settled down, the class will be divided into two groups. For each meeting, only one group will be required to post to Canvas; students in the other group may do so if they wish (e.g., if they have specific questions), but are not required to do so. All students should plan to read through what's been discussed on Canvas and generally to use Canvas as a platform for discussing the readings and asking questions.
Part of the point of these 'reading responses' is to let me know which parts of the reading people understood, which parts need more clarification, and what aspects of the reading were most interesting. I'll use the responses to shape the class meeting. If necessary, I'll begin by clarifying some things, and then we'll turn to discussion. Everyone should come to class prepared to discuss the material for that day. Learning is an active, not a passive, process.
Students may use laptops and the like to take notes in class or to access material we are discussing in class, but all other use of computers, tablets, and mobile devices is strictly prohibited during class. This includes but is not limited to checking email, texting, and searching the web, even if the search is related to the course (unless special permission has been given). I establish this rule not for my benefit, not even for yours, but rather for that of your peers.
In a study entitled "Laptop multitasking hinders classroom learning for both users and nearby peers" (PDF here), Faria Sana, Tina Weston, and Nichola Cepeda showed exactly that. It is not just that students who "multi-task" during class—check e-mail, text, or whatever—received significantly lower grades in the study than students who did not. This is not surprising, since the human brain simply cannot focus on very many things at one time. (If you're skeptical about this, then watch this video or perhaps some of these ones.) Rather, the surprising conclusion was that students who were sitting near other students who were multi-tasking also received significantly lower grades than students were who not. In fact, they were almost as distracted as the students who were actually doing the multi-tasking!
There is thus evidence that multi-tasking does not only hurt the person doing it. It also harms the people around them. And that is the basis of my request that students not engage in such activities during class. If someone near you is doing so, you should feel free to ask them to stop. If need be, please feel free to talk to me.
Most people find it dificult to grasp that whatever they like to do sexually will be thoroughly repulsive to someone else, and that whatever repels them sexually will be the most treasured delight of someone, somewhere. One need not like or perform a particular sex act in order to recognize that someone else will, and that this difference does not indicate a lack of good taste, mental health, or intelligence in either party. (Gayle Rubin, "Thinking Sex")
Much of the material we will be discussing is 'academic' and relatively 'dry'.1 But some of it may be emotionally challenging, and any discussion about sexuality has the potential to feel threatening. It will therefore be essential that there be an atmosphere of trust and safety in the classroom. I will attempt to foster an environment in which each member of the course is able to speak freely, and to be heard respectfully, and I will demand that all members of the course show proper respect for one another's views, attitudes, opinions, and feelings.
Some of the material we discuss may evoke strong reactions. Please be patient and kind with one another, and do not jump to conclusions. Do not make sweeping generalizations (anyone who finds that erotic must be sick) but use "I" language (that makes me feel uncomfortable). Expect the best, not the worst, of others. Still, as good as our intentions may be, there may be occasions when someone says or does something that causes discomfort or offense, and such episodes can adversely affect other people's educational experience. I will make it my responsibility to address such issues forthrightly.
Any student who fails to meet these standards will be given one opportunity to correct their behavior. Failure to do so will result in exclusion from the course. Please remember, too, that Brown's Title IX policy applies to all of us.
Should any issues of this sort arise, students will have four options open to them:
Grades for the course will be determined as follows.
If they wish to do so, graduate students are welcome to write a single 'seminar paper' instead of writing the shorter ones. This should be discussed with the instructor.
Warning: Late papers will have one grade 'level' deducted for each day they are late. (So, e.g., a B+ would become a B after one day late, a B- after two days.) That said, I am quite prepared to grant extensions, so long as they are requested at least one day prior to the due-date. Extensions will not be granted after that time except in very unusual and unfortunate circumstancess. Extensions of extensions will generally not be granted except in the most dire circumstances.
Grades will be recorded on the course's Canvas site. Pay no attention to Canvas's report of your cumulative grade. It is useless.
Jim Pryor, a friend and former colleague who is now at the University of North Carolina, has written two pieces that address the questions how to read philosophy papers and how to write philosophy papers. You may find them here:
If you are new (or newish) to philosophy, then they are very highly recommended. And, even if you are an old hand, you are sure to find something of value in what Jim has to say.Here is another set of pages, written by Joe Cruz, who is at Williams College, about how to write a philosophy paper. It presents an example of a short philosophy paper and shows how it develops, from initial sketches through a series of drafts.
Brown's Academic Code details standards we are all meant to follow, and have agreed to follow, to ensure that the work we present as our own really is our own. Specifically:
A student’s name on any exercise (e.g., a theme, report, notebook, performance, computer program, course paper, quiz, or examination) is regarded as assurance that the exercise is the result of the student’s own thoughts and study, stated in his or her own words, and produced without assistance, except as quotation marks, references, and footnotes acknowledge the use of printed sources or other outside help. (Emphasis added)
Ideas, someone once said, are the currency of intellectual work, and stealing ideas is theft. Plagarism is stealing ideas: claiming as your own what was the fruit of someone else's work. It is not the worst thing one can do, but it is pretty bad.
Nowadays, however, there are other temptations, in the form of tools like ChatGPT that can write papers all by themselves. My own view is that the Academic Code clearly prohibits the use of such tools to write papers. But whether that is true or not, let me be clear about my own standards: It is absolutely prohibited to use ChatGPT and similar tools in any way to write papers for this course. I am aware that ChatGPT can be used like a search engine, but there is a slippery slope here, and I suggest we not get onto it.
You should thus expect your total time commitment for this class to be about 180 hours.
Brown University is committed to full inclusion of all students. Please inform the instructor early in the term if you have a disability or other condition that might require accommodations or modification of any of the course procedures. For more information, please contact the Office of Student and Employee Accessibility Services. Students in need of short-term academic advice or support should contact one of the deans in the Dean of the College's office.