In this course, students will participate in a detailed reading of Joseph Conrad’s 1902 novella Heart of Darkness. Major themes of the novella, including imperialism, insanity, and the nature of good and evil, will be located and discussed with respect to the broader philosophical and cultural contexts of the time. Supplemental readings will address Romanticism, Modernism, frame narratives, moral ambiguity, and human nature. At the end of the course, we will read and discuss more recent post-colonial criticism of Conrad, most notably by Chinua Achebe, author of Things Fall Apart.

In this course, we will use the Coen Brothers’ film The Big Lebowski to explore the role philosophy plays in shaping our lives, our culture, and our civilization. The central question of investigation will be: “What is Philosophy and what is it for?” Students will debate the relevance and value of a range of topics from Ancient Greek concepts of “Form” and “Essence,” to Enlightenment notions of Objectivity, Subjectivity, and the limits of reason and understanding, to Existentialist questions about purpose, freedom, and authenticity. Students will be encouraged to explore the means by which films like The Big Lebowski represent both the expression of philosophical ideas in the popular media and the effect of philosophy on contemporary life in general.