Philosophy 151

The Human Person
Philosophy 151
Section A

Summer II - 2008

6 - 8 pages

due date:

Wednesday, 30 July 2002

description of assignment:

Unlike the first two essays, this assignment does not primarily involve giving any summary of others’ viewpoints. Instead, the focus is upon developing and arguing for your own point of view on particular topic, in conversation with two or three other philosophers who also address that topic.

Thus, you will begin your paper by stating and arguing for a narrowly focused thesis regarding some aspect of the nature of the human person that we have talked about during the course of the semester. It is important not only to state what you believe, but to give reasons for that belief in the form of a philosophical argument.

After stating and arguing for your point of view, you will then go on to interact with two or three philosophers who also address your thesis, agreeing and/or disagreeing with their points of view. You will have to answer any challenges they provide against your view. You may also use these philosophers for the purpose of further explication and argument in favor of your view.

In either case, you need to make sure that you give due consideration to viewpoints at odd with and objections against your point of view. As before, the arguments you give against your own view will be given more weight in determining your final than what you say in favor of your own view. Acting as an effecitve advocate for what you disagree with is an important philosophical skill.

Again, I would strongly suggest going back and reviewing the guidelines I gave for the first essay. Some further suggestions are implied by the evaluative criteria below.

criteria for evaluation:

The following kinds of criteria will be used in evaluating and grading your essay.

• Do you clearly and carefully state your thesis?


• Do you provide adequate reasons, argumentation, and/or examples to back up your stated thesis?


• Does it make proper use of citations, quoting material accurately, in a proper form, and only when helpful and relevant?


• Do you go on to interact with two or three other philosophical perspectives in relationship to the thesis you are arguing for?


• When interacting with other philosophers, do you capture what they argue and give it a fair interpretation?


• Do you make proper use of citations, quoting material accurately, in a proper form, and only when helpful and relevant?


• Is there evidence that effort was put into writing the essay in terms of adequately meeting requirements, clarity, and technical care (e.g., avoiding spelling and grammatical errors)?


• Does the essay show that you understand the issue being addressed and its various assumptions and implications?


• Are any disagreements clearly presented and insightfully backed up with argumentation, examples, and evidence?


• Are agreements cogently justified by careful understanding and evaluation of the position?


• Are both sides given due consideration, providing a balanced and fair argument?


• Are your summary, arguments, and position organized clearly and in a logical way?

In order to get an "A" on this essay, you will have to do well in all of these areas.

possible topics:

The following is a list of the kinds of topics you might want to address. You may draw upon any philosophers we have read during the semester who you believe to be relevant to you. You are not limited to the topics listed here, but you will be required to sign-up for a topic and it would be a good idea to talk to me if you would like to write about a topic not on this list.

[1] What is it about human beings that makes us unique among the various living creatures that exist? It is one thing or several related things? What implications does this have for how we live and behave as human beings?

[2] What does it mean to be a "person"? What are the essential features of personhood? Could there be non-human persons? Could a machine be a person?

[3] Is there a human soul? If so, what is it? How is it related to the body? What reasons do we have for thinking that this is the nature of the soul? What are some of the other possibilities?

[4] Can a human person survive death? If so, what survives? What is the ultimate fate of human beings after death? Is it annihilation, a disembodied existence, bodily resurrection, or reincarnation?

[5] Is there an ultimate goal to human life, a highest good for human persons? If so, what is it? What is the nature of this good? How is it achieved?

[6] To what degree are conceptions of human nature wrapped up into social, religious, political, and cultural circumstances? How do communities, traditions, and narratives shape our experience of ourselves as human? Give some examples of the ways in which particular concepts of humanity are affected by wider forces?

[7] Are human beings basically good, basically bad, neutral, or a combination? What evidence is there for this conclusion? What does this imply about ethics, society, politics, and so on?

[8] To what degree is the human person susceptible to explanations that are either deterministic, reductionistic or both? What theories have been suggested that attempt to reduce human nature to some more basic set of deterministic forces? Are these theories plausible? Why or why not?

[9] What is the nature of human freedom? Are we absolutely and radically free? Or is our freedom limited within certain bounds? Is there anything we can do to destroy our own freedom?

[10] What is the cause of incontinence? Why do we sometimes do something different from what we actually want to do? How is this possible? It is a result of ignorance, upbringing, freedom, or what?

[11] Among scientific views of human nature (Freud, Skinner, Lorenz), who do you find to be the most plausible? Why? Are there are problems with the views of this theorist? Can those difficulties be adequately answered?

[12] What does a good life look like? What are the characteristics of human happiness and fulfillment?

[13] What are possibilities and limits of human knowledge? What is the role and nature of language in human knowledge and communication? What does it mean for us to "know"?

[14] Is there a God? What is God? How do we know God exists? Are there arguments in favor of the existence of God? What are the implications of God's existence for what it means to be human?