Humanities 122: Utopia/Dystopia

Humanities 122Spring 2010

Humanities 122: Utopia/Dystopia

Wyatt 107, MWF 11:00 to 11:50

Spring 2010

William BreitenbachOffice: Wyatt 141

Office phone: 879-3167Office hours:

E-mail: u Th 9-10 and 12-1

Web: by appointment

The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the process of scholarly inquiry by letting you engage in it. The hope is that you will thereby become more proficient in doing what inquiring scholars do: framing questions, making and supporting claims, and responding critically to questions and claims advanced by other inquiring scholars. To accomplish all this, we’ll set three subsidiary goals.

The first goal is to help you make yourself a better writer of academic expository prose—the kind of writing that you will be called upon to do repeatedly during your years at the University of Puget Sound. The word expository means serving to expound or explain. Expository writing is thus distinguishable from personal reactions or musings. It is concerned instead with describing, analyzing, and interpreting the words, ideas, and assumptions in a text. It is about explaining some implication that you have found in a text, not about explaining how you feel about what you have found there. By calling it academic prose, I do not mean to suggest that you will be learning a kind of writing suitable only for students and scholars. Making an argument—organizing information, developing a disputable claim, and using clear writing to persuade readers—these are skills applicable in any future endeavor that requires you to put words on paper or on a computer screen.

The second goal is to help you make yourself a more sensitive and sophisticated critical reader. This goal follows naturally from the first one. Good writers have good ideas. One way to get them is to train yourself to read closely, probing the assumptions and implications that lie beneath the surface of difficult texts. We have plenty of difficult texts in this course, and our encounters with them will give you frequent opportunities to practice alert, attentive, and analytical reading and thinking. Meanwhile our encounters with each other in class discussions will provide frequent opportunities to expound and support your insights in conversations with other alert, attentive, and analytical readers.

The third goal is to help you learn about utopianism and anti-utopianism in western thought and society from the ancient world to the twenty-first century. Although it might not seem so when you’re plowing through the readings, our coverage will be very selective, making gigantic leaps in time and space. Because I am by trade a historian of the United States, we’ll pay particular attention to utopian thought and communitarian experiments in America. Not unique to America, however, are the themes treated in our readings: the translation of utopian theory into community practice; the tension between communal coercion and individual freedom; the conflict between leaders’ authority and community members’ rights; the role of gender, family, and private love in utopias; and the relationship of utopian communities to the outside world.

We’ll find, in the writings about utopias, attempts to answer some of the most important questions that can be asked: What is the perfect society? Is it possible to achieve such a society? What is human nature? Is it malleable or fixed? What is human happiness? Can human beings live together in harmony?

BOOKS AND WEBSITES

These booksare for sale at the Bookstore; ones marked with an asterisk are also on library reserve:

Readings Packet for Hum 122(a photocopied course reader; listed in the syllabus as “[RP]”)

Plato, Republic, trans. G. M. A. Grube, revised C. D. C. Reeve (Hackett)

Thomas More, Utopia (Dover)

Voltaire, Candide and Related Texts, ed. David Wootton (Hackett)

Spencer Klaw, Without Sin: The Life and Death of the Oneida Community(Penguin)*

Edward Bellamy, Looking Backward(Dover)

Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Herland (Dover)

Yevgeny Zamyatin, We, trans. Mirra Ginsburg (HarperCollins)*

The following optional recommended books arealso available at the Bookstore:

Michael Harvey, The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing (Hackett) [good on writing style]

Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, They Say / I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing(Norton) [explainshow arguments are structured in academic essays]

The following book contains interesting essays about communal living and brief descriptions of intentional communities now existing throughout the world. It is shelved in the Reference section of the library. The book is also available online at

Communities Directory: A Comprehensive Guide to Intentional Communities and Cooperative Living (2005 ed.) Call number: HQ970. C64. 2005 Ref.

Thesesiteshave materialon utopianism and intentional communities. Links are on Blackboard.

Intentional Communities site, with a list of communities and many links.

The Federation of Egalitarian Communities.

The Society for Utopian Studies, with links to other sites.

New York Public Library exhibit on utopia; many links.

Syllabus with links.

Blackboard Website

Readings identified in the syllabus with “[Bb]” may be found online at the Blackboard website for Humanities 122 (course ID: Hum122aSp10) at I’ll also place on Blackboard the syllabus, paper assignments, recommended readings, general advice, and useful web links. The password allowing access to the site will be provided in class: ______.

PROCEDURES, REQUIREMENTS, EXPECTATIONS

Class attendance and participation

This will be a discussion class. That means everyone needs to show up at every class on time with the reading assignment completed, books and notes in hand, and ideas to talk about. To help you get ready, I have provided “prep” questions in the syllabus for each session. I recommend that you take notes, reducing the main points of each reading assignment and each class discussion to what you can write on one index card. Always bring the day’s assigned readings to class, so you can refer to particular passages during discussion.

In class be willing to put your ideas out there for classmates to endorse, challenge, and transform. Ask a question; confess confusion; take a stand; disagree with friends; say something rash or foolish; change your mind when presented with better evidence and reasoning. Listen attentively and respond respectfully to what your classmates have to say. Speaking directly to them (rather than through me) is a way of showing that you take them and their ideas seriously.

Your participation in class discussions will be important in determining both the success of the course and the grade that you receive in it. After every class, I’ll evaluate your contribution to other students’ learning. Students who make outstanding contributions will get a 4; those who contribute significantly will get a 3; and those who attend but say little will get a 2. Students who are not in the classroom will get a 0. After a ninth absence (which is more than 20% of the classes), a student is subject to being dropped from the class with a WF. Send me an email if you are going to miss class.

Papers and other graded work. Assignment sheets will be provided well before due dates. The percentage in parenthesesindicates the weight of the assignment incalculating the course grade.

• Due Friday, January 29, by 4:00 at Wyatt 141: a close reading (1 page) of a brief passage in Plato’s Republic (5%).
• Due Monday, February 8, by 4:00 at Wyatt 141: a comparative analysis (2 pages) of a significant similarity or difference betweenany two of the following three readings: Plato’s Republic, More’s Utopia, Winthrop’s “Modell of Christian Charity”(5%).
• Due Friday, February 19, by 4:00 at Wyatt 141: an interpretive essay (3 pages) answering the question, Is Candide a utopian or anti-utopian book? (10%).
• Due Friday, March 12, at the beginning of class: an interpretive essay (4 pages) on utopian and dystopian themes in proslavery and antislavery documents (15%).
• Due Monday, April 12, by 4:00 at Wyatt 141: an interpretive essay (5 pages) on a theme of your choosing in the assigned readings from Oneida through Zamyatin’s We. Topic cards in preparation for this paper will be due in classes # 22, 27, 29, and 32 (25%)
• Due Wednesday, May 5, at the beginning of class: a commentary paper (4 pages) about utopianism today, drawing upon and discussing the assigned readings in Unit Four (20%).
• Participation: based onthe contribution to classmates’ learning and onattendance, engagement, and daily preparation (20%).

Grading scale

Grades will be calculated on a 100-point scale. Grade ranges are: A (93-100), A- (90-92),
B+ (87-89), B (83-86), B- (80-82), C+ (77-79), C (73-76), C- (70-72), D+ (67-69), D (63-66),
D- (60-62), and F (below 60). I will round up to the next letter grade when the numerical score is within 0.2 points of the cut-off (for example, if you make it up to 89.8, you’ll get an A-).

Writing help

The UPSCenter for Writing and Learning is located in Howarth 109. Its mission is to help all writers, at whatever level of ability, become better writers. You must make use of the Writing Center’s services for at least one of your papers. Include with the paper some written evidence of your having met with a peer writing advisor. To make an appointment, call 879-3404, , or drop by Howarth 109.

Harvard University’s Writing Center has a website with useful advice on writing academic essays: [Bb]. Click on “Writing Resources” and then on “Strategies for Essay Writing” to find eighteen online “handouts.”

Paper extensions, late work and missing work

If you are facingcircumstances beyond your control that might prevent you from finishing a paper on time, talk to me early. I tend to be more sympathetic before the deadline than after it. Normally I do not grant paper extensions or “Incomplete” grades, except for weighty reasons like a family emergency or a serious illness. To request an exception for these or other reasons, notify me before the deadline if possible. As appropriate, provide written documentation supporting your request from a medical professional; the Counseling, Health, and Wellness Services (CHWS); the Academic Advising Office; or the Dean of Students Office.

Late papers should be slipped under my office door at Wyatt 141. If Wyatt is locked, you may send me the paper by email in order to stop the penalty clock, but you must then give me an unaltered hard copy of the paper on the next day that Wyatt is open.

Unless I have granted an extension, late papers will be marked down one-third of a letter grade (3⅓ points on a 100-point scale) for each day they are late (including Saturday and Sunday), with days measured on a 24-hour clock beginning at the original deadline. For example, a late paper scored 82 (B-) would receive 78⅔ (C+) if submitted during the first 24 hours after the deadline. No paper or exam will be accepted after 5:00 p.m. on Friday of final exams week. Students who do not submit all graded papers will receive an F for the course.

Other policies

Students who want to withdraw from the course should read the rules governing withdrawal grades, which can be found in the Academic Handbook (link provided below). Monday, March 1, is the last day to drop with an automatic W; thereafter it becomes much harder to escape a WF.Students who are dropped for excessive absences or whoabandon the course without officially withdrawing will receive a WF.

Students who cheat or plagiarize; help others cheat or plagiarize;mark or steal library materials; or otherwise violate the University’s standards of academic integrity will be given an F for the course and will be reported to the Registrar. Before turning in your first paper, read the discussion of academic integrity in the Academic Handbook(link provided below). Ignorance of the concept or consequences of plagiarism will not be accepted as an excuse.

In matters not covered by this syllabus, I follow the policies set down in the current Academic Handbook, which is available online at

CLASS SCHEDULE

Reading assignments are to be completed beforethe class meeting for which they are listed. Bring to class the syllabus, the assigned readings for the day, and your reading notes.

Unit One. In Theory: Utopia as Idea, Ideal, and Fantasy

1. Wed., Jan. 20: Introduction

Introduction to the course.

In class:Write a brief description of your own vision of utopia. What for you constitutes an ideal society? Do you think your ideal society could work in practice?

2. Fri., Jan. 22: Defining and Designing Utopia

Humanities 122Syllabus (This is your agreement with me. Read it!)

George Kateb, “Utopias and Utopianism,” Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 1967 ed.[Bb]

Krishan Kumar, “The Uses of Utopia” in Utopianism, 95-99 [Bb]

Geoph Kozeny, “In Community, Intentionally,”Communities Directory, 2000 ed.[Bb] at [Bb]

Penelope Green, “A Modern Answer to the Commune,” New York Times, Oct. 1, 2009 [Bb]

Browse the Intentional Communities website at Find something interesting to report to the class.

Prep:Take notes on your reading. Be ready to discuss the following questions: What causes utopian thinking? What are the essentialelements of utopia? How does utopia differ from other forms of wishful thinking? Why has the word utopian come to have derisive and derogatory connotations? What is the use of utopia? To be useful must utopianism involve the creation of actual communities in the world? Aretoday’s intentional communitiesproperly called utopias?

3. Mon., Jan. 25: The Ideal City and Its Guardians

Plato, Republic (c. 380 BCE).

Front matter, pp. xiv-xviii (Introduction)and p. 1 (headnote to Book I);

Book II, pp. 32-33 (headnote) and pp. 43-59 (#368c-383c);

Book III, p. 60 (headnote) and 89-93 (#412c-417b);

Paul Bloom, “First Person Plural,” Atlantic Monthly, Nov. 2008 [Bb]; read the start of the article, up to the paragraph beginning “Like any organ.” Then jump to the paragraph beginning “The population of a single head” and read to the end of the article.

Prep:How and why is the city founded? How are the guardians selected and educated? Do you agree that censorship and lies are justifiable means to promote social good? What metaphors does Socrates use in makinghis arguments? What assumptions about human nature and human society are implicit in them (e.g., pp. 91-93)?

4. Wed., Jan. 27: Communism and the Guardians

Plato, Republic

Book IV, p. 94 (headnote) and pp. 95-101 (#419a-425e), 102-10 (#427e-434c), 121 (#444e-445e);

Book V, p. 122 (headnote) and pp. 122-141 (#449a-466d)

Prep:In an ideal city, must the happiness of individuals be sacrificed to ensure the happiness of the community as a whole? Why must the guardians have not just communism of property but also communism of women and children? Why have a rigged sexual lottery to determine which guardians can reproduce?

5. Fri., Jan. 29: Philosopher-Kings and the Allegory of the Cave

Plato, Republic

Book V, pp. 148-51 (#472e-476d);

Book VI, p. 157 (headnote) and pp. 157-70 (#484a-497a), 173 (#499b-499d);

Book VII, p. 186 (headnote) and pp. 186-93 (#514a-521b), 212 (#540d-541b)

Book VIII, p. 213 (headnote) and pp. 213-15 (#543a-545d);

Book IX, p. 241 (headnote) and pp. 262-63 (#590d-592b)

Prep:Why should rulers be philosophers and philosophers be rulers? What is the meaning of the Allegory of the Cave? Are philosopher-kings the victims or beneficiaries of their position? Why are they forced back into the cave? When Socrates says that individuals are like cities, what does that imply about cities and about individuals? Which concerns Socrates more—governing the ideal city or governing the individual soul? Would you call Plato a utopianist? Does he believe the ideal city can be created in the real world?

Paper due: A close reading (1 page) of a brief,rich passage from Plato’s Republic is due at my office (Wyatt 141) by 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29.

6. Mon., Feb. 1: More’s UtopiaLast day to drop courses without record

More, Utopia (1516),1-4m, 24t-41m (Raphael is speaking at 24top)

Krishan Kumar, “Utopia and Modernity,” in Utopianism, 48-51 [Bb]

Prep:What is Kumar’s argument about utopianism and modernity? In what ways is More’s Utopia (the place and the book) like or unlike Plato’s Republic (the place and the book)? Are the arguments for communism the same in both books?

7. Wed., Feb. 3: Transvaluations: Gold, Pleasures, Slaves, and Marriage

More, Utopia, 41m-52t, 57m-61m

Prep:What is the point of the story about the Anemolian ambassadors? Why are there slaves in Utopia? Why don’t the Utopians have communism of wives as do the guardians in the Republic? Is there any logic to the sequence of topics in this section of the book? Is there a common theme that unites all of the topics?

8. Fri., Feb. 5: Warfare and Religion

More, Utopia, 61m-75m, 79, 81m-85

Prep:Why does warfare get so much attention in a book about utopia? Compare the Zapoletes to the guardians. Is the Utopian religion a thinly disguised Christianity? Why did More end Books I and II by stating doubts about the Utopians’ society? Did he believe that utopia was even possible? If not, why did he write his book?

9. Mon., Feb. 8: The Puritans’ Holy Commonwealth in Massachusetts Bay

John Winthrop, “A Modell of Christian Charity” (1630) [RP, 2-6]

Prep:How did Winthrop’s guidelines for an actual society resemble and/or differ from the theoretical societies imagined by Plato and More? What is the significance of Winthrop’s frequent use of a body metaphor when describing Puritan society?

Paper due: A comparative analysis (2 pages) of a significant difference or similarity between any two of the three: Plato’s Republic, More’s Utopia, and Winthrop’s “Modell.” Due at Wyatt 141 by 4:00 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8.

10. Wed., Feb. 10: Theodicy and Optimism: The Best of All Possible Worlds

John Woolman, Journal (1759) [RP, 7]

Voltaire, Candide (1759), 1-32

Optional: Wootton’s “Introduction” is helpful, esp. pp. viii-xxiii, xxvi-xxvii, and xxix

Prep:How is Voltaire’s book like or unlike Plato’s and More’s? Compare the character Candide to Socrates and Raphael. Compare the writing styles and the narrators’ voices. Consider the social evils that the respective authors attack. Compare Voltaire’s and Woolman’s views on the causes and proper responses to misery.

11. Fri., Feb. 12: On the Road to (and from) El Dorado

Voltaire, Candide, 32-59 (If you want, you can skip pp. 51-56, from footnote 91 to 102.)

Prep:Why does the setting of the story shift from Europe to American and then back to Europe? What is the point of the story about the girls and the apes? If El Dorado is utopia, why does Candide leave it? How does Europe differ from El Dorado?

12. Mon., Feb. 15: Candide’s Garden

Voltaire, Candide, 59-79

Prep:Is Candide a utopian or an anti-utopian work? To answer this question, think about some related ones: What was Voltaire’s purpose in writing the book? Does the book ultimately convey a hopeful or despairing message about humans’ ability to improve their world? Is optimism merely disguised despair—a smiling way of saying that nothing can be made better? At the end, are the characters living in a utopia? Which character’s philosophy does Voltaire seem to admire most?