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Eckerd College
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St. Petersburg, FL 33711

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Quest for Meaning

Quest for Meaning

Fall 2012 Quest For Meaning

Tuesday/Thursday 11:40 a.m. – 1:10 p.m.

Plenary sessions are held in Miller auditorium unless otherwise indicated. All other sessions are in the individual section classrooms. On plenary session days, roll will be taken by individual professor in or near the lobby. Consult your own professor for further details.


Week One

Sept. 04
Section Meeting: Orientation

Reading:
Sanfilippo, "Welcome to Quest for Meaning - Our Shared Journey Begins"
(syllabus, pp. 4 - 6)

Discuss:
Syllabus Review and Course Requirements
         1. Service Learning as a Path to Meaning
         2. Ethics and the Quest for Meaning
         3. The Liberal Arts and our Quest for Meaning
         4. This I Believe Project

Community Service and Internship Fair - Fox Hall - 12:30 p.m.
All Students attend the Fair to investigate community service options.


Sept. 06
Section Meeting: Ethics

Reading:
Foltz, "Commentary on Ethics and Ethical Theory," (syllabus, pp. 22 - 33)
Singer, Practical Ethics, "About Ethics," (pp. 1 - 15)

Discuss:
Ethics and Meaning, Service Learning

Week Two

Sept. 11
Section Meeting: Ethics

Reading:
Singer, Practical Ethics, "Equality and Its Implications," (pp. 16 - 47)
Singer, Practical Ethics, "Civil Disobedience, Violence & Terrorism,"
(pp. 256 - 275)

Discuss:
Ethics and Meaning, Service Learning


Sep. 13
Section Meeting: Ethics

Reading:
Singer, Practical Ethics, "Why Act Morally," (pp. 276 - 295)

Discuss:
Ethics and Meaning, Service Learning

*Elect Festival of Hope Coordinator*

Week Three

Sept. 18
Plenary: Social Science and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Tracy Kidder

Reading:
Kidder, Mountains Beyond Mountains, Parts I and II, (pp. 3 - 121)


Sept. 20
Section Meeting: Social Science

Reading:
Kidder, Mountains Beyond Mountains, Part III, (pp. 125 - 177)

Discuss:
Social Sciences

Week Four

Sept. 25
Section Meeting: Social Science

Reading:
Kidder, Mountains Beyond Mountains, Parts IV, V, and Afterword (pp. 181 - 301)

Discuss:
Social Sciences


Sept. 27
Plenary: Faith and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor Davina Lopez

Reading:
Bryant, "Faith as Trust,", (syllabus pp 34 - 42)

Week Five

Oct. 02
Section Meeting: Faith

Reading:
Foltz, "Dostoevsky Reading and Study Guide," (syllabus, pp. 43 - 52)
Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, Introduction, (pp. ix - xliii)
Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, "Book V: The Grand Inquisitor," (pp. 19 - 37)

Discuss:
Faith and Meaning

*Service Learning Project Proposal Forms Due*


Oct. 04
Section Meeting: Faith

Reading:
Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, "Book VI: The Russian Monk," (pp. 39 - 80)

Discuss:
Faith and Meaning

Week Six

Oct. 09
Plenary: The Global Perspective and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor William Felice and Bob Devin Jones

Reading:
Felice, The Global New Deal, Introduction to Second Edition, (pp. 1 - 12)
Felice, The Global New Deal, Chapters 1 and 2, (pp. 13 - 72)


Oct. 11
Section Meeting: Global

Reading:
Felice, The Global New Deal, Chapter 3, (pp. 73 - 123)
Felice, The Global New Deal, Chapter 6, (pp. 179 - 204)

Discuss:
Global Ethics

*Service Learning Placement Confirmation Agreement Forms Due*

Week Seven

Oct. 16
Section Meeting: Global

Reading:
Felice, The Global New Deal, Chapter 9, (pp. 257 - 287)

Discuss:
Global Challenges


Oct. 18
Plenary: Natural Environment and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor Alison Ormsby

Reading:
Singer, Practical Ethics, "The Environment," (pp. 238 - 255)
McKibben, Eaarth, Chapter 3, (pp. 102 - 150)

Week Eight

Oct. 23
Section Meeting: Environmental

Reading:
McKibben, Eaarth, Preface, (pp. xi - xv)
McKibben, Eaarth, Chapter 1, (pp. 1 - 46)
McKibben, Eaarth, Chapter 2, (pp. 47 - 101)

Discuss:
Environmental Perspective


Oct. 25
Section Meeting: Environmental

Reading:
McKibben, Eaarth, Chapter 4, (pp. 151 - 212)

Discuss:
Ethics and the Environment

*Service Learning Time Sheets Due*

Week Nine

Oct. 30 - Fall Break ~ No Class


Nov. 01
Plenary: The Humanities and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor Suzan Harrison

Reading:
Thornton, Imagining Argentina, Chapters 1 - 14, (pp. 13 - 116)

Week Ten

Nov. 06
Section Meeting: Humanities

Reading:
Thornton, Imagining Argentina, Chapters 15 - 34, (pp. 117 - 214)

Discuss:
Humanities


Nov. 08
Plenary: Natural Science and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor Anne Cox

Reading:
Frayn, Copenhagen, Act One, (pp. 3 - 54)

Week Eleven

Nov. 13
Section Meeting: Natural Sciences

Reading:
Frayn, Copenhagen, Act Two, (pp. 55 - 94)
Frayn, Copenhagen, Postscript, (pp. 95 - 132)

Discuss:
Natural Sciences


Nov. 15
Plenary: The Arts and Our Quest for Meaning ~ Professor Arthur Skinner

Reading:
Skinner, "The Arts and Our Quest for Meaning," (to be distributed)

Week Twelve

Nov. 20
Section Meeting: The Arts

Reading:
Skinner, "The Arts and Our Quest for Meaning"

Discuss:
Arts


Nov. 22 - Thanksgiving Break ~ No Class

Week Thirteen

Nov. 27
Section Meeting: "This I Believe" Presentations

*"This I Believe" Essay Due*


Nov 29
Section Meeting: "This I Believe" Presentations

Week Fourteen

Dec. 04
Section Meeting: "This I Believe" Presentations


Dec. 05

Festival of Hope - 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.


Dec. 06
Section Meeting: "This I Believe" Presentations

Discuss:
Evaluation and Sum-Up

*Service Learning Time Sheets & Reflective Paper Due*

Fall Plenary Sessions

09/18/12 Author Tracy Kidder - Social Science and Our Quest for Meaning

09/27/12 Professor Davina Lopez - Faith and Our Quest for Meaning

10/09/12 Professor William Felice and Bob Devin Jones -Global Perspective and Our Quest for Meaning

10/18/12 Professor Alison Ormsby - Natural Environment and Our Quest for Meaning

11/01/12 Professor Suzan Harrison - Humanities and Our Quest for Meaning

11/08/12 Professor Anne Cox - Natural Science and Our Quest for Meaning

11/15/12 Professor Arthur Skinner - Arts and Our Quest for Meaning