By: Abeba Birhane
Published: Aeon
Level of difficulty: ** This is a philosophy text and as such it is in a different category from
other texts. Don’t make it the first level two you do.
BEFORE YOU READ
The text you are going to read is a philosophy
text. This being the case, it is vital that you prepare properly. In short, don’t
skip the videos.
·
PHILOSOPHY - History: Descartes' Cogito Argument [HD]
·
I Am Because We Are: The Spirit
of UBUNTU | Max Quinn | TEDxBSU
·
Hubert Hermans' summary of the Dialogical Self
NOW LISTEN AND READ ALONG
Use the icon to the left of the screen to
listen to the text. Be sure to read along, highlight important points and use
the margins to take notes. Here I am assuming you are working with a printout,
the most efficient way to work.
QUESTIONS
1. In what fundamental way does Ubuntu
philosophy differ from Western thought?
2. What conclusion can be drawn from
the examples provided in paragraph two?
3. The reason the Ubuntu philosophy
doesn’t sit well with the way we perceive ourselves is………….
4. The views of Descartes, which are
summarized in paragraph four, are collectively called….
5. What was Descartes’ purpose in
formulating his philosophy?
6. Read the account and analysis of the
case of Kitty Genovese. The purpose of the writer in citing this example is to
draw attention to a contradiction. State clearly what it is. Begin as follows:
Although…
7. Latené and Darley might have come up
with a different explanation for the events that took place on the night Kitty
Genovese died if they had taken …..into account.
8. Bakhtin’s purpose in formulating his
philosophy was to see if he could ….
9. Bakhtin reached the ultimate
conclusion that…
10. The effects of solitary confine seem
to prove that Descartes / Bakhtin / Piaget /Freund was / were wrong.
11. The purpose of solitary confinement
was ….but it failed miserably because lacking human relationships and the give
and take that goes with it….
WRITING TASK
The text
ends with the following words: There is a Zulu phrase, ‘Umuntu ngumuntu
ngabantu’ which means ‘A person is a person through other persons’. This is a
richer and better account, than ‘I think, therefore I am’. Write an essay in
which you discuss to what extent you agree.
DESCARTES WAS WRONG: A PERSON IS A PERSON
THROUGH OTHER PERSONS
This straightforward yet profound text tackles
a problem that has long occupied the thoughts of thinkers worldwide: what makes
us who we are? In doing so it challenges the Cartesian cogito and introduces us
to a very different answer to the question. The whole text is a brilliantly
written persuasive essay on the issue. The writing task I have provided is
designed to bring everything together and should not be timed.
1. People are born without ‘ena’ or
selfhood and instead must acquire it through interactions and experiences over
time.
2. A person is partly forged in the
crucible of community.
3. The philosophy of René Descartes
4. The Cartesian cogito
5. To find a stable point of view from
which to look on the world without relying on God created wisdoms (This is the
minimum you need. Your clue is the semi colon.)
6. Social psychology purports to
examine the relationship between cognition and society, a collective of
Cartesian subjects are the real focus of the enquiry.
7. Vital contextual information
8. Reconcile the relational world
embracing version of the self and the autonomous inward one
9. Truth is born between the people
collectively searching for the truth in their process of their dialectic
interaction
10. Descartes and Piaget
11. To turn the prisoner’s thoughts
inward , to prompt her to reflect on her crimes, and eventually help her return
to society as a morally cleansed citizen / a person risks disappearing into
non-existence
ReplyDeleteGreat article with excellent idea! Thank you for such a valuable article.
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