Winter 2009 Course Descriptions
PLEASE NOTE: This document is subject to amendment. It is intended for descriptive and informational use only. DO NOT USE IT TO REGISTER FOR CLASSES. To register, please consult the University Time Schedules.
The Following "Special Courses" are for M. Div. students only:
629-60000-01/02 Special Course — Chicago Theological Seminary
629-63000-01/02 Special Course — Meadville Lombard Theol School
629-65000-01/02 Special Course — Catholic Theological Union
629-66000-01/02 Special Course — Lutheran Theological School
629-68000-01/02 Special Course — McCormick Theol. Seminary* An asterisk indicates that the course so designated may count toward the required “designated introductory courses” for M.A. students.
DVSC 42000
Divinity School: German Reading Exam
Staff; ARR
PQ: Open only to Divinity School students.
DVSC 45100
Reading Course: Special Topic
Staff; ARR
PQ: Petition with bibliography signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list.
DVSC 49900
Exam Preparation
Staff; ARR
PQ: Open only to Ph.D. students in quarter of qualifying exams. Department Consent. Registration will be handled by the Dean of Students office. Petition signed by Advisor.
DVSC 50200
Research: Divinity
Staff; ARR
PQ: Petition signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list.
DVSC 59900
Thesis Work: Divinity
Staff; ARR
PQ: Petition signed by instructor; enter section from faculty list.
BIBL 32500
Introduction to the New Testament *
Mitchell, Margaret
T/Th 10:30-11:50 S106
An immersion in the texts of the New Testament with the following goals: 1. through careful reading to come to know well some representative pieces of this literature; 2. to gain useful knowledge of the historical, geographic, social, religious, cultural, and political contexts of these texts and the events they relate; 3. to learn the major literary genres represented in the canon (“gospels,” “acts,” “letters,” and “apocalypses”) and strategies for reading them; 4. to comprehend the various theological visions to which these texts give expression; 5. to situate oneself and one’s prevailing questions about this material in the history of interpretation; 6. to raise questions for further study.
Discussion groups will meet on Fridays, 12:00-1:00 in S106, S208, S201.
IDENT. NTEC 32500/RLST 12000/FNDL 28202
BIBL 34100
Intermediate Biblical Hebrew
Silver
M/W/F 8:00-8:50 S403
BIBL 34601
Prophecy in Ancient Israel
Stackert, Jeffrey
T/Th 1:30-2:50 S208
This course examines the idea, practice and literature of prophecy in the Hebrew Bible and contextualizes these issues by comparing biblical prophecy with its ancient Near Eastern analogues. Students will read and analyze biblical and extra-biblical prophetic texts as well as other texts related to prophecy in order to understand the purposes of ancient Near Eastern prophecy as well as the practices of the prophets themselves (such as analogical ritual performance, divination, and magic). The issues of the preservation of prophetic literature as well as the cessation of prophecy in ancient Israel will also be explored.
BIBL 35400
Intermediate Koine Greek III
Thompson
M/W/F 8:00-8:50 S200
PQ: BIBL 35300
BIBL 44201
Law in Deuteronomy
Stackert, Jeffrey
T/Th 9:00-10:20 S400
This course is an exegetical study of selected legal texts from the book of Deuteronomy (in Hebrew). We will focus on Deuteronomy’s distinctive legal perspectives vis-à-vis its sources as well as its method of revision in relation to the Covenant Collection in Exodus 20-23.
PQ: Good knowledge of Biblical Hebrew
BIBL 46001
Physician, Painter, Artist and Historian: Luke and His Gospel
Klauck, Hans-Josef
M/W 1:30-3:30 S201
“. . . inter omnes evangelistas graeci sermonis eruditissimus” (. . . among all the evangelists the one best versed in the Greek language”), this is the impression Jerome had from Luke’s writings (Gospel and Acts). And indeed, Luke certainly is the best story teller and the most literate writer among the four evangelists. This can already been seen from the prologue in Luke 1:1-4, and we will begin our class with this text. Then other important chapters of Luke’s Gospel will be discussed and explained. Special emphasis will be given to narrative form, intertextuality with the Greek Bible and social background.
PQ: BIBL 32500 “Introduction to the New Testament,” or equivalent course; no Greek necessary. (Special Greek class will be offered from 2:50-3:30 in S201).
IDENT. NTEC 36001
BIBL 47500
The Apostolic Fathers
Martinez, David
T/Th 10:30-11:50 S208
An intensive reading of the Greek text of the Didache, I Clement, and all the Ignatian Epistles. The course will focus on the Greek style of each author, their historical, and social context, and the sources and nature of their thought. We will also seek to understand the position of these early Christian thinkers within the important continuum between the canonical New Testament writings (of which some of their works were a part in certain manuscript traditions) and the doctrinal controversies of the fourth century.
PQ: At least 2 years of Greek.
IDENT. NTEC 47500/GREK 25700/35700
THEO 30101
History of Christian Thought I
Otten, Willemein
M 1:30-4:20 S106
This first course in the HCT sequence deals with the post New Testament period until Augustine, stretching roughly from 150 through 450 CE. The aim of the course is to follow the development of Christian thought by relating its structural features to the historical context in which they arose without adhering to schematic models such as East vs. West, orthodoxy vs. heresy, Alexandrian vs. Antiochene exegesis. The following authors and themes will be analyzed and discussed: 1. Martyrdom and the Authority of Christian Witness: Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr; 2. Platonism and Exegesis: Origen, Basil of Caesarea; 3. Incarnation and Asceticism: Athanasius, Gregory of Nyssa and Ambrose; 4. Ecclesial Unity and Episcopal Authority: Cyprian and Chrysostom; 5. Projecting Historical Authority: Eusebius and Jerome; 6. Normative Belief and Gnostic Dissent: All About the Creeds; 7. Ancient Thought Baptized: Augustine of Hippo.
IDENT. HCHR 30101
THEO 30400
History of Christian Thought IV
Tanner, Kathryn
Th 1:00-3:50 S201
A survey of major figures and movements in European Christian thought from the late 17th through 18th centuries.
IDENT. HCHR 30400
THEO 40800
Third World Theologies
Hopkins, Dwight
Tu 1:30-4:20 S201
The origin of the concept for an international dialogue among theologians in Africa, Asia and Latin America (and subsequently in the Caribbean, the Pacific Islands and the U.S.A.) came from Abbe Oscar K. Bimwenyi, a Roman Catholic student from Zaire (Africa) studying theology in Louvain, Belgium in 1974. As a result of his vision and a preparatory committee composed of representatives from Africa, Asia, and Latin American, an organizing conference gave rise to the Ecumenical Dialogue of Third World Theologians (later Dialogue changed to Association) which took place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (Africa) in August 1976. Since that time, the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT) has debated vigorously the political, economic, cultural, theological, and theoretical significance of race, class, culture, ecology, globalization, and women.
IDENT. CRCP 40800
THEO 46300
Hartshorne and Ogden: Philosophical Theology
Gamwell, Franklin
T/Th 1:30-2:50 S200
A critical examination and comparison of Charles Hartshorne and Schubert M. Ogden, especially with respect to their conceptions of faith, religion, and God.
IDENT. DVPR 46300
THEO 46600
Self, World, Other: The Thought of Paul Tillich *
Schweiker, William
M/W 10:00-11:20 S200
This is a course on the theology, ethics and philosophy of religion of Paul Tillich, one of the most important theologians of the 20th century. The course will concentrate on central texts in Tillich’s corpus, especially the magisterial Systematic Theology. The course begins with a text that articulates the religious question of the contemporary world (The Courage to Be). The majority of the course will then be spent on a careful reading of the Systematic Theology. The course concludes with a short text of Tillich’s on ethics (Morality and Beyond).
PQ: Previous graduate course in theology or ethics.
IDENT. RETH 46600
THEO 48701
Late Medieval Women: Authorship and Authority
Otten, Willemien
W 1:30-4:20 S403
In recent decades there has been a great deal of interest in vernacular theology; as complementing the more traditional division of medieval theological texts into monastic and scholastic. This course will focus on a number of medieval women writers, dealing mainly, albeit not exclusively, with vernacular texts. After an historical overview of the position of women in the early Middle Ages, the course will focus on Heloise and Hildegard of Bingen as transitional figures, and continue with four women writers writing in the vernacular, i.e.. Mechtild of Magdeburg, Hadwijch, Marguerite Porete and Margery Kempe. The course will link the spectrum of vernacular languages which they represent to the diversity of their individual positions and analyze that diversity in terms of ecclesiastical developments, gender division, authorial identity, and theological criticism. The final aim is to come to an assessment of the constructive contribution of these vernacular treatises to the tradition of late medieval theology and spirituality.
IDENT. HCHR 48700
THEO 49300
Gregory of Nyssa: Theologian and Rhetorician
Tanner, Kathryn/Mitchell, Margaret
Tu 3:00-5:50 S400
Reading and analysis of four works by the youngest of the Cappadocian fathers (ca 340-395), representing the chronological span of his writing (On Virginity to his Commentary on the Song of Songs) and diverse genres of theological discourse (Against Eunomius, and Dialogue on the Soul and Resurrection). Focused attention on the rhetorical strategies of theological texts, the character of religious language, and the interface between biblical interpretation and doctrinal development.
PQ: None. Greek skills are not required for this course, but ample opportunity for their use will be provided.
IDENT. HCHR 49300
THEO 53100
Salvation and Community: Royce to Ruether
Culp, Kris
T/TH 1:00-2:20 S400
This seminar will examine how selected twentieth-century U.S. thinkers construed the relation among salvation, Christian community, and society. We will begin with Josiah Royce’s The Problem of Christianity and move to feminist theologians at the end of the century. Other figures to be considered include Walter Rauschenbusch, John Dewey, and H. Richard Niebuhr.
DVPR 30201
Indian Philosophy I *
Kapstein, Matthew
T/TH 10:30-11:50 S201
The early development of philosophical thought in India will be traced through readings in the Upanishads, early Buddhist works, and the primary texts of the Samkhya and Yoga traditions, together with readings from contemporary philosophical interpreters of these sources. The emergence of systems of logic and the philosophy of language will be among topics surveyed. Although there is no formal prerequisite for the course, some background in Western philosophy is desirable.
IDENT. HREL 30200/SALC 20901/30901/RLST 24201
DVPR 32700
Introduction to Hermeneutics
Coyne, Ryan
T/TH 9:00-10:20 S208
Starting with a brief look at some classical sources on the “art of interpretation” (e.g. Aristotle and Augustine), this course will consider the history of philosophical and theological hermeneutics from Romanticism to the present. More specifically, it will examine various 19th and 20th century attempts to articulate a “general” and/or “universal” hermeneutics, as well as critical responses to such attempts. Modern figures to be discussed include Schlegel, Schleiermacher, Bockh and Droysen, Dilthey, Heidegger, Gadamer and Ricoeur.
DVPR 35200
Modern Philosophy of Religion: The Enlightenment *
Arnold, Daniel
M/W 10:00-11:20 S208
DVPR 45100
Nietzsche and His Interpreters
Coyne, Ryan
W 3:00-5:50 S208
This course will examine Nietzsche’s writings and their significance for various twentieth century thinkers. The first part of this course will be devoted to reading Nietzsche closely, paying particular attention to his so-called “perspectivism,” the doctrines of eternal recurrence and of the will to power, as well as the procedure of genealogy. The second part of the course will consider crucial re-interpretations of these themes by figures such as Heidegger, Bataille, Foucault, Deleuze, Klossowski, Blanchot, and Derrida.
DVPR 46300
Hartshorne and Ogden: Philosophical Theology
Gamwell, Franklin
T/Th 1:30-2:50 S200
A critical examination and comparison of Charles Hartshorne and Schubert M. Ogden, especially with respect to their conceptions of faith, religion and God.
IDENT. THEO 46300
DVPR 48900
Readings in Buddhist Philosophical Texts
Kapstein, Matthew;
IDENT. SALC 48500/HREL 48900
DVPR 51700
Yogacara
Arnold, Daniel
F 1:30-3:50 S403
This seminar, which presupposes a basic knowledge of Indian and/or Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, will consider some of the foundational texts of the Yogacara tradition of thought, with particular reference to the works of Vasubandhu. In addition to close readings of assortd primary sources, we will consider contemporary scholarly debates regarding the interpretation of Yogacara (e.e., concerning the question whether this is aptly characterized as an “idealist” school of thought).
PQ: Some knowledge of Sanskrit or Tibetan is preferred.
IDENT. SALC 49006
DVPR 53100
Seminar: Buddhist Thought in Tibet
Kapstein, Matthew
M 2:00-4:50 S200
We will examine some of the central debates in the history of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy as discussed in recent scholarship. Thinkers to be considered include Sakya Pandita (1182-1251), Dolpopa (1292-1361), Tsongkhapa (1357-1419) and Mipham (1846-1912). Enrollment in the seminar will be limited to ten, by application to the instructor (m-kapstein@uchicago.edu)
IDENT. HREL 53100/SALC 49007
CHRM 30200
The Public Church in America
Gilpin, Clark
M/W 10:00-11:20 S400
In order to explore the cultural context for ministry, this course will be organized as a workshop that analyzes a single question: “What is public theology?”
CHRM 30500
Colloquium: Introduction to Ministry Studies
Lindner, Cynthia
W 1:30-3:20 S400
CHRM 35700
Arts of Ministry: Pastoral Care
Lindner, Cynthia
F 9:00-11:50 S400
CHRM 40700
The Practice of Ministry II
Boyd, Kevin
F 1:00-3:00 S400
PQ: 2nd year M.DIV. students.
DO NOT REGISTER FOR THIS COURSE. CREDIT IS FOR AUTUMN AND SPRING QUARTERS.
CHRM 42500
Senior Ministry Project
Gamwell, Franklin
W 3:00-6:00 S400
PQ: 3rd year M.DIVs only.
AASR 41202
Asceticism in Theory and Practice
Riesebrodt, Martin
Tu 1:30-4:20 MEM Seminar
Ascetic practices play a major role in various religious traditions, like Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism. This class will attempt to understand an compare them across traditions. To what extent do all ascetics follow a similar model of self-transformation? Why do they all gain power and authority through their practices? And how is their authority related to the institutional power of priest and other religious functionaries?
IDENT. SOCI 40161
AASR 42700
State and Religion: Theories and Case Studies
Zeghal, Malika
F 10:30-1:30 S200
ISLM 50300
Arabic Sufi Poetry
Sells, Michael
Th 1:30-4:20 MEM Library
HIJD 41801
Religion, Culture, and Politics in Israel
Zelnicker
W 8:30-11:20 S106
This course is designed as an introduction to Israeli society and culture with major attention devoted to the complex role played by religion and its interaction with the State. It will address the emergence of Jewish nationalism in East European Jewish religious thinking, new political formations and the eventual creation of Israel as a sovereign state. It will explore the growing tensions between religious groups and ideologies, and the State and secular thinking. Emphasis will be placed on factors related to institutions and political behavior. Finally, the course will focus on the fissures which religion and religious politics have produced in Israeli politics and society after 1967, and on the advent of Jewish fundamentalism and alienation.
IDENT. HIST. 45501/JWSG 41801
HIJD 41900
The Jewish Study of the Bible in the Middle Ages
Robinson, James
Th 1:30-4:20 S403
IDENT JWSG 41900
HIJD 42600
Spinoza and Mendelssohn
Mendes-Flohr, Paul
Th 4:30-7:20 S403
A systematic analysis and comparison of B. Spinoza Theological-Political Treatise and M. Mendelssohn, Jerusalem. Particular attention will be given to their conception of political theology and its relationship to Judaism as a distinctive form of religious worship.
HIJD 44100
Kant and Judaism
Mendes-Flohr, Paul
W 3:00-5:50 S200
The course will commence with a close reading of Kant’s Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason, particularly with respect to his critique of Judaism. We will then consider some of the more seminal Jewish responses to Kant as voiced by inter alia, Saul Asher, S.R. Hirsch, Hermann Cohen, Leo Baeck, Franz Rosenzweig, Isaac Breuer, Y. Leibowitz and Emil Fackenheim.
HIJD 45500
Medieval Commentaries on Ecclesiastes
Robinson, James
T 1:30-4:20 MEM Library
IDENT. JWSG 45500
HCHR 30100
History of Christian Thought I
Otten, Willemien
M 1:30-4:20 S106
This first course in the HCT sequence deals with the post New Testament period until Augustine, stretching roughly from 150 through 450 CE. The aim of the course is to follow the development of Christian thought be relating its structural features to the historical context in which they arose without adhering to schematic models such as East vs. West, orthodoxy vs. heresy, Alexandrian vs. Antiochene exegesis. The following authors and themes will be analyzed and discussed: 1. Martyrdom and the Authority of Christian Witness: Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr; (2) Platonism and Exegesis: Origen, Basil of Caesarea. 3. Incarnation and Asceticism: Athanasiu, Gregory of Nyssa and Ambrose; 4. Ecclesial Unity and Episcopal Authority: Cyprian and Chrysostom; 5. Projecting Historical Authority: Eusebius and Jerome; 6. Normative Belief and Gnostic Dissent: All About the Creeds; 7. Ancient Thought Baptized: Augistine of Hippo.
IDENT. THEO 30100
HCHR 30400
History of Christian Thought IV
Tanner, Kathryn
Th 1:00-3:50 S201
A survey of major figures and movements in European Christian thought from the late 17th through the 18th centuries.
IDENT THEO 30400
HCHR 40500
Religion in Early America, 1600-1787 *
Brekus, Catherine
Tu 1:30-4:20 S403
This course is a survey of American religious history from the founding of the colonies to the American Revolution. Topics include Puritanism, magic and withchcraft, revivalism, slavery, gender, Native American religion, the American Revolution, and the separation of church and state. We will read a wide variety of primary texts—including witchcraft accounts, Anne Hutchinson’s heresy trial, and a proslavery sermon—as well as major interpretive works. Requirements: two short papers (3-5 pages each) on the weekly readings and a final paper. All students are also required to lead class discussion once during the quarter.
IDENT. HIST 64100
HCHR 47500
Death and the Afterlife in Modernity
Gilpin, Clark/Schreiner, Susan
M 1:00-3:50 S400
This seminar will pursue an historical analysis of ideas about death, the afterlife, heaven, and hell in the early modern and modern periods, employing examples from both European and American history.
HCHR 48700
Late Medieval Women: Authorship and Authority
Otten, Willemien
W 1:30-4:20 S403
In recent decades there has been a great deal of interest in vernacular theology, as complementing the more traditional division of medieval theological texts into monastic and scholastic. This course will focus on a number of medieval women writers, dealing mainly, albeit not exclusively, with vernacular texts. After an historical overview of the position of women in the early Middle Ages, the course will focus on Heloise and Hildegard of Beingen as transitional figures, and continue with four women writers writing in the vernacular, i.e., Mechtild of Magdeburg, Hadewijch, Marguerite Porete and Margery Kempe. This course will link the spectrum of vernacular languages which they represent to the diversity of their individual positions and analyze that diversity in terms of ecclesiastical developments, gender division, authorial identity, and theological criticism. The final aim is to come to an assessment of the constructive contribution of these vernacular treatises to the tradition of late medieval theology and spirituality.
IDENT. THEO 48701
HCHR 49300
Gregory of Nyssa: Theologian and Rhetorician
Mitchell, Margaret/Tanner, Kathryn
Tu 3:00-5:50 S400
Reading and analysis of four works by the youngest of the Cappadocian fathers (ca. 340- 395), representing the chronological span of his writing (On Virginity to his Commentary on the Song of Songs) and diverse genres of theological discourse (Against Eunomius, and Dialogue on the Soul and Resurrection). Focused attention on the rhetorical strategies of theological texts, the character of religious language, and the interface between biblical interpretation and doctrinal development.
PQ: None; Greek skills are not required for this course, but ample opportunity for their use will be provided.
IDENT. THEO 49300
HCHR 53100
Colloquium: U.S. Social History: Catholics and Americans
Conzen, Kathleen
W 3:00-5:50 ARR
This graduate colloquium will focus on recent historiography exploring the implications of Catholics as Americans for central narratives of American history. Readings will range in focus from the colonial period to the mid-twentieth century; among the topics addressed will be immigration and ethnic formation, settlement systems, church-state relations, nativism, slavery and the Civil War, citizenship and models of political participation, ideology and public culture, welfare, race relations, transnational ties.
Ident. HIST 63101. Undergraduates (HIST 27303) consent of instructor.
HREL 30200
Indian Philosophy 1 *
Kapstein, Matthew
T/TH 10:30-11:50 S201
The early development of philosophical thought in India will be traced through readings in the Upanishads, early Buddhist works, and the primary texts of the Samkhya and Yoga traditions, together with readings from contemporary philosophical interpreters of these sources. The emergence of systems of logic and the philosophy of language will be among topics surveyed. Although there is no formal prerequisite for the course, some background in Western philosophy is desirable.
IDENT. DVPR 30201/SALC 20901/30901/RLST 24201
HREL 32200
Religion, Sex, Politics, and Release in Ancient India
Doniger, Wendy
W/F 1:30-2:50 S208
Readings in the Upanishads, the Laws of Manu, the Arthashastra, and the Kamasutra, in English translation. A study of the four goals of human life [purusharthas] in classical Hinduism, each in its own right and as they conflict and transform one another: religion [dharma], sex [kama], politics [artha], and renunciation [moksha]. We will read, for dharma, the Laws of Manu (Doniger/Smith translation), for kama, the Kamasutra (Doniger/Kakar translation), for artha, the Arthashastra (Kangle translation), and for moksha, the Upanishads (Olivelle translation), all in English translation.
IDENT. GNDR 32200/SALC 25701/35701/RLST 27300/FNDL 23601
HREL 35100
Indian Buddhism *
Wedemeyer, Christian
M/W 3:30-4:50 S201
This course is designed to serve as an introduction to the study of Indian Buddhism. The course will survey the history, doctrines, institutions, and practices of Buddhism in India from its origins through the end of the 20th century. Readings will be drawn both from primary sources (in translation) and secondary and tertiary scholarly research. This course may be taken to satisfy the “extended flexible core” requirement.
IDENT. SALC 48306
HREL 36001
2nd Year Sanskrit: Readings in the Mahabharata
Doniger, Wendy
T/TH 1:30-2:50 S207
PQ: One Year of Sanskrit
IDENT. SANS 20200
HREL 39200
Why Media Matter
Fox, Richard
T/Th 10:30-11:50 S400
This course offers a critical introduction to cultural and media studies for students of religion. Material covered will include work by Horkheimer, Adorno, Barthes, Althusser, McLuhan, Williams, Hall, Hartley, Fiske, Morley, Ang, Poster and Baudrillard, among others.
HREL 44501
The Idea of Religion in Bali *
Fox, Richard
Th 3:00-5:50 S400
In the course of the past 400 years, the religion of Bali has been variously described as ‘heathen’, ‘Hindoo’, “Hindu-Buddhist’, “Tantric’, ‘Saivait’, ‘animistic’, ‘syncretistic’ and now, perhaps most recently, as ‘spiritual’ and ‘ecologically correct’. However, to conclude that Balinese religiosity can be described unproblematically as any one of these things—let alone as some combination thereof—is to ignore the history of the ideas and practices in question. This course examines that history from the vantage point of the contemporary scene, where state ideology inflects readings of classical texts, tourists are an essential component of cremation processions, and cellular phones play an important role in the successful completion of temple ceremonies. Although focusing on ethnographic and historical materials pertaining to Bali, the course is structured around a broader set of theoretical arguments addressing issues of religion, history and tradition in the contemporary world.
HREL 46100
Towards a Comparative Approach on Alien Piety
Borgeaud
T/TH 9:00-11:50 F305
The course will center on Greco-Roman material, with extensions into the Near East, and explore a considerable variety of topics from Socrates to late antiquity, with special attention to the sources and limits of ancient tolerance. Readings in the original and in translation.
IDENT. SOTH 43270/CLAS 46100.
HREL 48601
Religion and Culture in Pre Christian Europe
Lincoln, Bruce
T/Th 9:00-10:20 S200
IDENT
HREL 44400
Tibetan Auto/biography
Wedemeyer, Christian
T 3:00-5:50 S200
In this course, we will explore the genres of biography and autobiography in Tibetan religious and literary culture, with special emphasis on the latter. Though often considered a genre characteristic of—and exclusive to—Western modernity, autobiography has had a long and rich history in Tibet, spanning at least a thousand years. We will begin the course by reading some theoretical studies of biography, autobiography, and narrative. We will then consider some issues specific to Tibetan auto/biography and its historical development, and characteristics of the related genre of Tibetan hagiographic literature. The remainder of the quarter will be spent in reading and analyzing representative examples of these genres in translation, drawn from a variety of authors and periods.
PQ: Preferably some basic familiarity with Buddhism or Tibet
IDENT. SALC 49002/RLIT 44400.
HREL 53100
Seminar: Buddhist Thought in Tibet
Kapstein, Matthew
M 2:00-4:50 S200
We will examine some of the central debates in the history of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy as discussed in recent scholarship. Thinkers to be considered include Sakya Pandita (1182-1251), Dolpopa (1292-1361), Tsongkhapa (1357-1419) and Mipham (1846-1912). Enrollment in the seminar will be limited to ten, by application to the instructor (m-kapstein@uchicago.edu)
IDENT. DVPR 53100/SALC
RLIT 31600
Medieval Epic
Murrin, Michael
T/Th 10:30-11:50 ARR
IDENT. ENGL 36300/CMLT 35900
RLIT 36300
Renaissance Epic
Murrin, Michael
T/Th 1:30-2:50 ARR
IDENT. ENGL 36300/CMLT 39100
RLIT 44400
Tibetan Auto/biography
Wedemeyer, Christian
T 3:00-5:50 S200
In this course, we will explore the genres of biography and autobiography in Tibetan religious and literary culture, with special emphasis on the latter. Though often considered a genre characteristic of—and exclusive to—Western modernity, autobiography has had a long and rich history in Tibet, spanning at least a thousand years. We will begin the course by reading some theoretical studies of biography, autobiography, and narrative. We will then consider some issues specific to Tibetan auto/biography and its historical development, and characteristics of the related genre of Tibetan hagiographic literature. The remainder of the quarter will be spent in reading and analyzing representative examples of these genres in translation, drawn from a variety of authors and periods.
PQ: Preferably some basic familiarity with Buddhism or Tibet
IDENT. SALC 49002/HREL 44400.
RLIT 51600
Religion and Literature ProSeminar
Rosengarten, Richard
F 9:00-11:50 S101
PQ: Ph.D. students in Religion and Literature.
RETH 40300
The Ethics of Albert Camus
Elshtain, Jean
Tu 1:30-4:20 S106
IDENT. PLSC
RETH 46600
Self, World, Other: The Thought of Paul Tillich *
Schweiker, William
M/W 10:00-11:20 S200
This is a course on the theology, ethics and philosophy of religion of Paul Tillich, one of the most important theologians of the 20th century. The course will concentrate on central texts in Tillich’s corpus, especially the magisterial Systematic Theology. The course begins a text that articulates the religious question of the contemporary world (The Courage to Be). The majority of the course will then be spent on a careful reading of the Systematic Theology. The course concludes with a short text of Tillich’s on ethics (Morality and Beyond).
PQ: Previous graduate course in theology or ethics.
IDENT. THEO46600
RETH 50201
Religion and the Political Order I *
Elshtain, Jean
M 1:30-4:20 S208
IDENT. PLSC 50201
RETH 53000
Bernard Williams on Ethics
Nussbaum, Martha
T 300-5:40 S208
This course will study the contributions of the late Bernard Williams to rethinking the core issues of modern moral philosophy. We will first examine early writings (Morality, essays in Problems of the Self) that began to call into question some of the key aspirations of abstract ethical theory and to develop views about ethical conflict that eventually form a key part of his substantive ethical views. We then turn to a group of writings in which Williams develops his critique of Utilitarianism, including “A Critique of Utilitarianism,” the introduction to Utilitarianism and Beyond (edited with Amartya Sen), and later writing on Sidgwick. Next we examine Moral Luck, where Williams begins to develop his critique of Kantian ethics, and we follow that critique through a detailed study of the argument of his major book, Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy. (At this point we examine some criticisms of Williams made by contributors to a festschrift in his honor, and his reply to those criticisms.) We then consider a group of late writings in which Williams turned to (a version of) ancient Greek ethics for illumination: Shame and Necessity, and a group of posthumously collected essays. Finally, we study Truth and Truthfulness, his last completed book, for the light that it sheds on his constructive thinking about ethical critique.
PQ: This course is open by permission of instructor, and those who wish to attend should email me by December 1, giving me an account of your prior preparation in philosophy. In general, an undergraduate philosophy major or the equivalent preparation is a necessary (though not sufficient) condition, and in some cases I will ask to see a philosophy paper to assess your preparation.
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RETH 51302
Seminar: Law-Philosophy: Religious Liberty and Toleration
Nussbaum, Martha
M 3:00-6:00 ARR
This is the second part of the seminar-workshop which began in the Autumn quarter.
PQ: Students who were admitted to the Autumn seminar may register.
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