Philosophy 400/544
Consumerism and Sustainability
Spring
2005
John Hardwig and John Nolt
Texts for the course:
Davidson, Aidan, Technology and the Contested Meanings of Sustainability, State University of New York Press, 2001
Dobson,
Andrew,
ed., Fairness and Futurity: Essays on Environmental
Sustainability and Social Justice, Oxford University Press, 1999.
Newton, Lisa H., Ethics and Sustainability: Sustainable Development and the Moral Life, Prentice-Hall, 2003.
About the course: This is a combined graduate/undergraduate course. There will be different assignments, depending on whether you are in Philosophy 400, the undergraduate version, or Philosophy 544, the graduate version. (Graduate students in Philosophy must register for 544.) The course will be divided into two parts, the first on consumerism to be taught mostly by Hardwig, and the second on sustainability to be taught mostly by Nolt.
Grades: Grades will be based on two types of assignments, papers and précis. There will be two papers—one on consumerism and one on sustainability. For people in Philosophy 400, each paper should be 5-7 pages in length; for those in Philosophy 544, each should be 7-10 pages and involve some research into materials beyond those assigned in class. Précis are short summaries of the day’s reading assignment. These will be assigned frequently throughout the semester. Each paper will count one third of the grade and the précis will collectively account for the remaining third. In the case of borderline grades, classroom participation may be the determining factor.
Course Calendar
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Date |
Topic |
Reading Assignment |
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1/13 |
Introduction |
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Part I: Consumerism |
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1/18 |
See Blackboard for this section |
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1/20 |
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1/25 |
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1/27 |
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2/1 |
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2/3 |
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2/8 |
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2/10 |
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2/15 |
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2/17 |
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Part II: Sustainability |
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2/22 |
Sustainability, environmental ethics and virtue |
Newton, Introduction and ch. 1 |
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2/24 |
Sustainability and technology |
Newton, ch. 2 |
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3/1 |
Stewardship and responsibility |
Newton, ch. 3 |
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3/3 |
Sustainable development as a contested concept |
Jacobs in Dobson, pp. 21-45 |
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3/8 |
Human welfare vs. the preservation of nature |
Holland in Dobson, pp. 46-68 |
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3/10 |
Sustainability and intergenerational justice |
Barry in Dobson, pp. 93-117 |
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3/15 |
Extended humanitarianism |
Beckerman in Dobson, pp. 71-92 |
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3/17 |
Sustainability of what? |
Norton in Dobson, pp. 118-150 |
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3/22-24 |
No class—Spring Break |
— |
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3/29 |
Social justice and environmental goods |
Miller in Dobson, pp. 151-172 |
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3/31 |
Sustainability and the Rawlsian savings principle |
Wissenburg in Dobson, pp. 173-198 |
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4/5 |
A socialist critique of liberal notions of sustainable development |
Miller in Dobson, pp. 199-229 |
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4/7 |
Sustainability and ecoefficiency |
Davison, Introduction and ch. 1. |
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4/12 |
The politics of ecoefficiency |
Davison, ch. 2 |
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4/14 |
The metaphysics of ecoefficiency |
Davison, ch. 3 |
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4/19 |
Technology and metaphysics |
Davison, chs. 4-5 |
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4/21 |
Technology, morality and epistemology |
Davison, chs. 6-7 |
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4/26 |
Sustenance |
Davison, chs. 8-9 |
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4/28 |
No class—study day |
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5/3 |
Final discussion, 10:15-12:15 |
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Contact information for John Hardwig:
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Office: |
801 McClung Tower |
Office Phone: |
974-3255 |
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E-mail: |
Home Phone: |
584-2747 |
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Office Hours: |
11-12, T,R |
Web Site: |
web.utk.edu/~hardwig |
Contact information for John Nolt:
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Office: |
818 McClung Tower |
Office Phone: |
974-7218 |
|
E-mail: |
Home Phone: |
573-4135 |
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Office hours: |
9-10 MWF |
Web Site: |
web.utk.edu/~nolt |