Course Syllabus

Drawing on the disciplines that make up the Humanities and the considerable resources at UF in support of the Humanities, this course investigates the very nature of the human condition. Applying multi-disciplinary and cross-cultural approaches to explore what is a good life, students consider the cost of the good life, examine how people have chosen to live as members of local and global communities, and analyze conceptions and expressions of beauty, power, love, and health.

For Part 1 (Individual) and Part 2 (Society) of the course, students explore questions related to the good life first from the perspective of the individual and then from the perspective of the community and society. The class will consider to what extant the pursuit of the good life is individually driven and determined and how society impacts and shapes the efforts of the individual to achieve the good life. For For Part 3 (Special Topic), students use Sophocles' Antigone as a lens to study in depth questions about the individual and society that have been the focus of the course in Parts 1 and 2. For Part 4 (This I Believe), students reflect on what they value in a short audio essay.

IDS 1161 fulfills the UF Quest requirement and 3 credits of the Humanities (H) General Education Requirement.

Humanities courses provide instruction in the history, key themes, principles, terminology, and theory or methodologies used within a humanities discipline or the humanities in general. Students will learn to identify and to analyze the key elements, biases and influences that shape thought. These courses emphasize clear and effective analysis and approach issues and problems from multiple perspectives.

These general education objectives will be accomplished through:

• Examination of the ways different people from different societies across time conceptualize the good life, the meaning and value individuals ascribe to the lives that they live or want to live, and the choices, costs, and benefits of the good life.
• Evaluation of conflicts and tensions that arise between the individual and the community, the normative and the exceptional, culture and nature, needs and wants, pleasure and happiness, short-term benefits and long-term consequences of the pursuit of the good life.
• Communication of concepts, expressions, and representations of the good life clearly and effectively in written and oral form as stated in the rubrics of the course.

At the end of the course, students will be expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes in content, critical thinking, communication, and connection:

• Content: Students identify, describe, and explain the history, underlying theory, and methodologies used. Students will acquire a knowledge of the different conceptions and representations of the good life, how such conceptions and representations vary in time and place, and the impact that they have on the way people live their lives. Achievement of this learning outcome will be assessed through the Discussion Board Posts, Essay 1, and Essay 2.
• Critical Thinking: Students identify and analyze key elements, biases and influences that shape thought within the subject area. They approach issues and problems within the discipline from multiple perspectives. Students will analyze the costs and benefits of the good life and the tensions that arise as individuals and groups of individuals pursue the good life. Achievement of this learning outcome will be assessed through the Discussion Board posts, Essay 1, and Essay 2.
• Communication: Students communicate knowledge, thoughts and reasoning clearly and effectively. Achievement of this learning outcome will be assessed through Essay 1 and Essay 2.
• Connection: Students connect course content with critical reflection on their intellectual, personal, and professional development at UF and beyond. Achievement of this learning outcome will be assessed through the online discussions, the Sacred Space Postcard, and the TIB Audio Essay.

Readings and works are available in the weekly modules, except for the following, which you can purchase through local bookstores and online retailers either as eBooks or paperbacks.

• Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha, trans. by Joachim Neugroschel (New York: Penguin Books, 2002). ISBN: 978-0142437186.

You can find the assigned readings by going to the weekly modules. For your convenience, a complete list of course readings and works is also provided below.

Week 1: Thinking about the Good Life

• Joel K. Kupperman, “Myth One: Pursuing Comfort and Pleasure Will Lead to the Best Possible Life,” in Six Myths about the Good Life: Thinking about What Has Value (Indianapolis: Hackett, 2006), 1–21.

Weeks 1-2: Seeking the Good Life

• Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha, trans. by Joachim Neugroschel (New York: Penguin Books, 2002).

Week 2: Embodying the Good Life

• Julian Savulescu, "The Moral Argument for Human Cloning, Genetic Enhancement." To the Best of Our Knowledge.18 October 2015, web.
• Susan Bordo, “Reading the Slender Body,” in Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body (Berkeley: University of California, 1993), 185-212.

Week 3: Fighting for the Good Life

• Martin Luther King, “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (16 April 1963), The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, n. d., web.
• Nelson Mandela, “Chapter 115,” in Long Walk to Freedom, Vol. 2: 1962-1994 (London: Abacus, 1994), 431-38.

Week 4: Sustaining the Good Life

• Aldo Leopold, “The Land Ethic,” from A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There (New York: Oxford University Press, 1949), 201–226.
• Sylvia Earle, “How to protect the Oceans.” TED, 19 February 2009, web.

Week 4: Constructing the Good Life

• Randy Hester, “Subconscious Landscapes of the Heart,” Places 2 (1985): 10–22.
• Charles Jenks, “The Architecture of Hope” from The Architecture of Hope (London: Frances Lincoln Limited, 2010), 11-43

Week 5: Special Topic

• Daniel Pink, A Whole New Mind: Why right-brainers will rule the world, (New York: Riverhead Books, 2006), 28-47.
• Maria Cohut, “What are the Health Benefits of Being Creative?,” Medical News Today, 16, February 2018, web.
• Isaacson, Walter. “Learning from Leonardo.” TIME Special Addition. November 2018: 18-27.

Week 5: This I Believe

• Henry Thoreau, Walden (in The Thoreau Reader, 2009, web.), Chapter 2: “Where I lived, and What I Lived For” and Chapter 18: “Conclusion.”
• 13 Virtues from the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Thirteenvirtues.com. N.p., n.d., web.  

UF students are bound by The Honor Pledge which states, "We, the members of the University of Florida community, pledge to hold ourselves and our peers to the highest standards of honor and integrity by abiding by the Honor Code. On all work submitted for credit by students at the University of Florida, the following pledge is either required or implied: 'On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid in doing this assignment'.” The Honor Code specifies a number of behaviors that are in violation of this code and the possible sanctions. Furthermore, you are obligated to report any condition that facilitates academic misconduct to appropriate personnel. If you have any questions or concerns, please consult with the instructor of this class.

Requirements for class attendance and make-up exams, assignments, and other work in this course are consistent with university policies: https://catalog.ufl.edu/UGRD/academic-regulations/attendance-policies/

• In the case of an absence due to participation in an official university activity, observance of a religious holiday, performance of a military duty, or any other university-approved absence (e.g., jury duty) which the student knows about in advance, the student is expected to notify the instructor of the conflict before the assignment is due, and if possible at the start of the semester.
• In the case of the essays, there is a deduction for missing the deadline and a deduction for every day that passes before the assignment is submitted unless an extension has been granted (see rubrics in Canvas).
• For all other assignments, students will not be granted an extension (beyond the grace period specified in the rubric) without an acceptable reason, such as an illness or serious family emergencies, in accordance with university policies on absences.

Students are expected to provide professional and respectful feedback on the quality of instruction in this course by completing course evaluations online via GatorEvals. Guidance on how to give feedback in a professional and respectful manner is available at https://gatorevals.aa.ufl.edu/students/. Students will be notified when the evaluation period opens, and can complete evaluations through the email they receive from GatorEvals, in their Canvas course menu under GatorEvals, or via https://ufl.bluera.com/ufl/. Summaries of course evaluation results are available to students at https://gatorevals.aa.ufl.edu/public-results/.

If your section meets online via Zoom, class sessions may be audio visually recorded for students in the class to refer back and for enrolled students who are unable to attend live. Students who participate with their camera engaged or utilize a profile image are agreeing to have their video or image recorded.  If you are unwilling to consent to have your profile or video image recorded, be sure to keep your camera off and do not use a profile image. Likewise, students who un-mute during class and participate orally are agreeing to have their voices recorded.  If you are not willing to consent to have your voice recorded during class, you will need to keep your mute button activated and communicate exclusively using the "chat" feature, which allows students to type questions and comments live. The chat will not be recorded or shared. As in all courses, unauthorized recording and unauthorized sharing of recorded materials is prohibited.

*This policy applies only to 100% online sections. Class sessions that meet in person will not be recorded.