Four page, double spaced, 12 pt Times New Roman font
On the top of the front page write your first and last names, and write out, in full, the essay question you are answering. Use proper citations. Failing to follow these instructions will result in a lower grade. Plagiarism will result in a failed grade in the course.
- In Fear and Trembling, Kierkegaard compares the knight of faith to the tragic hero. Using your own example of a tragic hero,* explain what a tragic hero is and how the tragic hero differs from the knight of faith.
* That is, do not use the examples that Kierkegaard mentions in the text. Think of your own example by pulling from popular culture, literature, etc.
- In the Genealogy of Morality, Nietzsche writes, “The greatest haters in world history, and the most intelligent [die geistreichsten Hasser], have always been priests: – nobody else’s intelligence [Geist] stands a chance against the intelligence [Geist] of priestly revenge” (17). Nietzsche’s claim is provocative because typically, a priest is thought to be a good person, not a hater. Explain what Nietzsche means in this quote.
- In “The Environmental Experience,” Heidegger writes, “[i]n pure experience, there is no founding state of affairs—as it is called—as if I first of all see intersecting brown surfaces, which then reveal themselves to me as a box, then as a desk, then as an academic lecturing desk, a lectern, so that I attach lectern-hood to the box like a label” (34). In this section, Heidegger is using his phenomenological method to (1) argue against a competing account of experience and (2) to support his own view. Explain this quote, making sure to articulate both the competing view and Heidegger’s view.
- In “Marx on the History of His Opinions” and the readings from The German Ideology, Marx describes his account of historical change, historical materialism. On page 154 of The German Ideology Marx writes, “In direct contrast to German philosophy which descends from heaven to earth, here we ascend from earth to heaven.” Explain what Marx means by this metaphor of descending and ascending to heaven. In explaining the descent, you can use examples we discussed in class (utopian thinking, great man theory).
- In Wage Labor and Capital, Marx outlines his critique of capitalism. In summarizing his position on pg. 217 he writes, “if capital grows rapidly, competition among the workers grows incomparably more rapidly, that is, the means of employment, the means of subsistence, of the working class, decrease proportionately so much the more . . .” Elaborate on how—according to Marx—growth in capital affects workers wages (Section V of Wage Labor and Capital will be most relevant here). Use an example or examples from the real world.
- Henri Lefebvre — TBD
