TOPICAL PUNCH 

(EACH WEEK, COMPLETE ONE JOURNAL DISCUSSION TOPIC & CREATE ONE DISCUSSION QUESTION FROM WEEKLY READING)

NOTE: If you use outside sources, you must cite them or else suffer the penalty for plagiarism (see syllabus for details).

 

1) EITHER Prehistory:  Imagine that writing had never been invented.

  • How would the world be different? 
  • How would your own personal life be different?
  • Keep in mind that there are still places in the world that continue to base their tradition and administration of daily life on an oral rather than a written code..
  • How do you think their past, present, and future lives are shaped by the lack of writing?
  • Consider the size of the community, government structure, education, and technology.

 

OR    Humanimals:  Watch this clip from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (click here).

  • Define anthropocentrism and briefly explain its relevance to the study of the humanities.
  • List and discuss the basic similarities and differences between humans and animals.
  • What distinguishes humans from animals?
  • What are humans capable of that no other animal is?
  • When people talk about “HUMAN NATURE" what exactly do you think they mean?
  • What do you personally consider to be the key traits of human nature?

 

2)       Babylonia--  Hammurabi's Code: After reading the overview of Babylonian culture (click here) at the time these laws were created and after reading some of the actual laws (click here) answer the following:

  • Define the differences you can glean between Hammurabi's idea of justice and the concept of justice that underpins our own legal system.
  • Then identify by number at least five (5) laws that you think are unfair and explain why.
  • Identify at least three (3) laws that you think are fair and explain why.
  • Identify by number at least five (5) laws that provide insight gender roles and elaborate on what is expected of men, women, and children in this culture.
  • Identify by number at least one (1) law that demonstrates that fair and equal are not synonymous.
  • What is the harshest law you came across and what does it say about this culture's beliefs, values, and behaviors?
  • What is the fairest law you came across and what does it say about this culture's beliefs, values, and behaviors?
     

3)       Egypt-Online Scavenger Hunt:   Visit Egyptology Online (click here) and then do the following:

  • Collect one important or interesting fact from each of five (5) different areas of the website, i.e. “Everyday Life,” “Famous Pharaohs,” “Hieroglyphs,” “Pyramids,” etc.
  • Explain what insight into the values, beliefs, or behaviors each item on the list above provides. In other words, what do these things say about the Ancient Egyptian culture?
  • Surf websites about Egypt and collect five (5) URL addresses of interesting or beautifully crafted websites on Ancient Egypt.
  • Iindicate which website you like the best and explain why you think it is worth the time and effort to visit.

 

4)       EITHER Greece Option 1 :  Mythology and storytelling are part of human experience and creative expression. 

  • Myths tell a truth that may not be factual;   however, even if myths are not true of some particular individual, they are the repositories of much deeper truths that speak to the human experience that is common to all humanity. 
  • For many peoples, m yths are sacred truths that seek to describe widely shared beliefs, or at least attempt to explain some deeper truth.
  • Myth either explains the incomprehensible or addresses human nature and humanity’s relationship to divinity. 
  • Consider the role of mythology in our culture’s beliefs and values.
  • Do a bit of research on what Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung had to say about mythic structures of the human psyche and provide a brief synopsis. 
  • Why are stories so integral to creating social and cultural bonds?
  • In contemporary society, what myths do we share / live by?

  OR Greece Option 2:  Do some creative writing in one of the following areas:

  • Contemporize a classic Greek myth to reflect our own culture and time period (EXAMPLE SCENARIOS:  Transform Sisyphus into a downtrodden would-be executive who made an unsuccessful grab for a higher level position and ended up shuffling papers as an office boy and working his way back up the career ladder. Transform Zeus into a married rock star who has casual sex with his groupies.)
  • Write a myth for the new millennium.
  • Write a myth to explain something that’s hard to understand.
  • Create a superhero for our times, one that hasn't already been popularized. (EXAMPLE SCENARIO: Tell the story of the Geek hero, the smart kid who saved the world.)
  • CLICK HERE FOR AN EXAMPLE

 

5)       Rome:  Think about the similarities and differences between the United States and the Roman Empire.

  • Name the contributions made by Rome to Western Culture.
  • In your opinion, what was the most important factor leadng to Rome’s decline and fall?
  • How did Christianity gain such popularity in the Roman Empire?
  • Name as many connections as you can between ancient Rome and contemporary America.

 

6)       Religion:  Connections and Distinctions

  • Compare and contrast the beliefs and practices of each of the three religious cultures who claim Jerusalem as one of their holiest cities:  Jews, Christians, and Muslims.
  • What beliefs do they share that you think should be focused upon as a first step in resolving the centuries old conflict between and among them?
  • Why do you think Jerusalem is at the center of the conflict?

 

7)  Architecture:  Select one of the pairs below and list as many connections & distinctions between them as you can.

·         Parthenon and Pantheon

·         Gothic cathedrals and mosques.

·         Tombs in the Valley of the Kings and Gothic cathedrals

 

8)       Medieval Europe:  Consider the social, political, and religious structure of Medieval Europe.

  • Compare and contrast the social, political, and religious of Medieval Europe with the beliefs and practices of the ancient Egyptians.
  • Consider political power, art and architecture, social hierarchy, technology, etc.  

 

9)       Renaissance:  The printing press changed European society practically overnight. Imagine what it must have been like to transition from an illiterate to a literate society.

  • Discuss the impact of the printing press, and then compare it with the changes brought to our own culture as a result of the advent of the computer.
  • Which of the recent technological advances do you think will be thought to be the key innovation that revolutionized our own culture? 

 

10)    Baroque and Enlightenment: "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." Voltaire

  • What technologies and conditions led to the reshaping of the world during this time period between the Renaissance and Romanticism?
  • In other words, what inventions and discoveries at this scientifically oriented time led to the modern world as we know it today?
  • Research contemporary scientific and technological advances and discuss three (3) advances that you think are the most promising new technologies for our future well being. (Remember to cite sources.)

BIG IDEAS BONUS ENTRIES:

 

1)   JUSTICE:  In the prologue to Hammurabi’s Code, Hammurabi states the intentions of the law to punishe the wicked and the evil so that the strong do not oppress the weak. Hammurabi has not invented these laws but rather received them from the god Shamash.

  • Make a list of pros and cons of Hammurabi's Code of Law
  • Create 10 rules to govern a just society.  (Don’t just give me the ten commandments either!)
  • Think carefully about how you’ll phrase them: Will they be prased with a negative spin (thou shalt not) or a positive spin (thou shalt)?
  • From your point of view, w hat is the goal and structure of the ideal justice system?
  • Be sure to follow Hammurabi's and Dante's examples and spell out the consequences of breaking the laws on your list.
  • f you were afforded the opportunity to single-handedly bring about one reform to our government or justice system, what would you enact; propose the reform that you think would go the furthest in correcting the problems you see in our system. and explain how.

 

2)   BEAUTY: 

  • What factors feed into our notions of beauty?
  • Is beauty a cultural construct with artificial qualities, or do we, as Plato and Aristotle argue, have an innate sense of beauty?
  • What notions of beauty are displayed in each of the cultures we’ve studied?

 

3)   TRUTH:  When my daughter was thirteen, I asked her how she would define truth, and she answered, without skipping a beat, “If you think about it, truth is basically just an exercise in creativity.”  “Well, there’s a scary thought,” I observed, “So, if that’s what truth is, then what’s a lie?” I countered--trying to point out a logical fallacy--to which she promptly replied (with that smug, whimsical grin I love so much) “Same thing.”  Not willing to let her abstractions stand unchallenged, I probed, “So, if ‘truth’ and ‘lie’ are opposites, how is it that you can define them identically?.”  Unwilling to be outfoxed, she had effectively lured me into her punch line, and with a shrug, she said matter-of-factly, “It’s a paradox.”  How could I argue with that?!

 

So, now I ask you the same very difficult question: 

  • What is truth?
  • Discuss your views on truth.
  • Is truth merely a function of perception, or is there some absolute truth that exists independent of opinion?
  • Are there any absolute truths?
  • Where would you go to find something that is absolutely, indisputably true?
  • What are the scope and limits of truth in the following domains of knowledge: math, science, history, religion, art? In other words, what criteria are used in each of these areas to ascertain whether or not something holds true in a mathematical, scientific, historical, religious, and artistic manner?

4)   LIBERTY:  Which is more important:  justice or mercy?  Freedom or security?  Granted, both are important, but the truth of the matter is that many times, we are forced to sacrifice one to gain the other.  Indeed, many times it is a matter of degree, but still, there’s a trade-off.

 

5) GOODNESS:  Define good and evil.  How does one know “the good” or “the righteous” thing to do?  How do we instill goodness in this culture?

 

6) PHILOSOPHY:  Collect ten (10) quotable one-liners from different philosophers or from various authors that reflect your own beliefs, values, and behaviors. Discuss how each quotation shapes your life in some way. What do you consider to be the best/most powerful story ever told and how do you think it influences cultural values?

7)  SURREALISM AND DREAMS:  Surrealism explores the elucive and permeable membrane between waking and dreaming consciousness.  The progenitors of the movement broke conventional boundaries and tapped into strange modes of thought and expression—such as automatic writing and exquisite cadavers--as a means of bridging the consciousness gap.  The haunting dreamscapes of Salvador Dali are both enticing and disturbing with their mirror smooth surfaces and chilling, yet beautiful, dreamscapes.  For many Africans, dreams are a second reality to be used as a guide.   For them, the ancestor spirit becomes an adviser and guardian through the dream world.

  • Do a bit of research on dreams, oneirology, and dream symbols.
  • Over the course of the semester, try to remember your dreams, jotting down notes upon awakening to jog your memory later and think about what they might mean.
  • Do you usually remember your dreams?
  • If so, what role do they play in your life?
  • If not, what role do you think  not remembering your dreams plays in your life?