By: Abebe Birhane
Published: Aeon, https://aeon.co/ideas/descartes-was-wrong-a-person-is-a-person-through-other-persons
Level of difficulty: ***
BEFORE YOU READ
Descartes’ philosophy
is contrasted with the Ubuntu philosophy of Africa in the text you are about to
read so it would be sensible to discover what these philosophies entail.
Descartes:
Ubuntu
·
I Am Because We Are: The Spirit of UBUNTU |
Max Quinn | TEDxBSU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxvxpCrDrIQ
NOW LISTEN TO THE
TEXT AND READ ALONG
As you listen and
read along, underline main ideas, topic sentences and concluding statements.
Also notice the natural divisions in the text and mark them out. Doing so will help you with the questions.
·
https://aeon.co/ideas/descartes-was-wrong-a-person-is-a-person-through-other-persons Click: Listen here
QUESTIONS
1. Which
paragraphs constitute the first section of the text? Now answer the questions:
·
Ubuntu completely overturns long held beliefs
concerning selfhood because in this philosophy it is claimed that….
·
Which sentence constitutes the main idea of the
second paragraph?
·
What is it about ubuntu that can be disturbing?
2. Which
paragraphs constitute the second section of the text? Now answer the questions:
·
What ultimate conclusion did Descartes reach concerning
the “puzzle he set himself”?
·
Read the experiment concerning memory testing to
the end. What is the take home point of this experiment?
·
The emergence and identification of the
bystander effect goes some way towards proving that…………….
·
For what reason is the approach used by Darley
and Latené criticized? There are two reasons; find both
3.
Which paragraphs constitute the third section of
the text? Now answer the questions:
·
Read the following poem written by the war poet
Wilfred Owen : https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47393/anthem-for-doomed-youth
Think about the ideas expressed in this still very topical poem. I what way
does all this chime with Bakhtin’s views?
·
In what sense can Bakhtin’s views be said to be
a compromise between Cartesian and Ubuntu philosophy?
·
Go to the following website and read the account
of the doll house study: https://developlearningpsych.wordpress.com/relevant-studies/
The study seems to prove that viewing
child development as………………………..may be wrong.
·
What erroneous premise was the concept of
solitary confinement based?
·
Solitary confinement meets / fails to meet
expectations and we know this because…
4.
Read the last paragraph, the conclusion.
·
We understand from this paragraph that despite
all the proof to the contrary, ………..still persit(s)
WRITING TASK
Use all the information you have gathered to compare and
contrast the approaches to selfhood you have learnt about in order to prove
which appeals to you more.
DESCARTES WAS WRONG:
“A PERSON IS A PERSON THROUGH OTHER PERSONS” KEY AND TEACHERS’NOTES
This is a seriously
sophisticated topic but nevertheless well within the grasp of the students if
covered carefully. Make sure to leave enough time for discussion. The essay
task must be covered once the reading is complete to consolidate learning.
1. The
first three paragraphs.
·
People are born without “ena” or selfhood, and
instead must acquire it through interactions and experiences overtime.
·
Relationships inform self-understanding
·
The notion of a fluctuating and ambiguous self
2. Par
4 through 7
·
The only thing you can be certain of is your own
cogito
·
The Cartesian cogito is still everywhere you
look
·
Selves co-evolve with others over time
·
It makes structural factors much harder to see /
it wipes away vital contextual information
3.
Par 8 through 11
·
It is only through an encounter with another
person that you could come to appreciate your own unique perspective and see
yourself as a whole entity.
·
Bakhtin believed that being is an act that must
happen in the space between the self and the world.
·
The reorganization of mental processes
·
The prisoner’s thoughts would turn inward, and
he would be prompted to reflect on his crimes
·
Fails to meet / prisoners tend to suffer
profound physical and psychological difficulties
4.
Cartesian assumptions
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