Syllabus
Philosophy 304
Philosophy of Love and Sex
Fall 1998
B. Shaeffer

The purpose of this course is to address the constellation of moral, conceptual, and political issues that revolve around gender and human sexuality. Some of the questions we shall consider are:

What is romantic love? What value, if any, does romantic love hold? How is romantic love to be distinguished from other kinds of love?

What is the relationship between romantic love and monogamy?

Can sexual relationships between consenting adults ever be morally unjustified?

What is sexual perversion? What is sexual orientation?

As you can see, these questions are difficult and interrelated, and in turn they raise a raft of even more difficult questions. The point of the course is to investigate these issues for ourselves, using the texts as our framework and point of departure. Thus, although we will of course be interested in, for instance, the reasons behind the pervasive claim that romantic love is best avoided, our ultimate goal is to decide for ourselves whether and to what extent this claim is plausible. Our aim is not simply to learn what philosophers have said about love and sexuality, but to engage ourselves in philosophical reflection on these issues. It is therefore crucial to the success of this class that you read and think carefully about the texts at least once before coming to class and that you bring your books to class with you, so that you feel comfortable asking questions or stating and defending your own views.

Grading and Assignments:

You will do well in this course if you demonstrate that you have understood the material and have given it serious consideration. Carefully written essays and thoughtful contributions to the class discussion are important ways for you do demonstrate this. Your final grade depends on your overall class performance.

There will be a written assignment (2-4 double-spaced pages) every other week (due in class on Tuesdays), beginning in the second week. There will be a variety of topics upon which to write. No late essays will be accepted, but each student will be allowed to drop one essay from consideration. Essays will be returned with comments by the following Tuesday.

For each assignment, you should make certain that you write enough to completely address the issue at hand. It is important to be clear, succinct, and thorough. Your own views should always be supported by argument.

The purpose of the essays and class discussion is in part to enhance your analytic, critical, and argumentative skills. Students who show a marked improvement in these areas over the course of the semester will see this improvement reflected in their final grades.

Office Hours Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 11:00-11:50; Tuesdays and Thursdays 10:00-10:50 or by appointment, UANX 102. My office phone number is 826-5755; my e-mail address is hbs1@axe.humboldt.edu.

Class Calendar and Reading List

Texts:
Williams, Clifford. On Love and Friendship
Baker, Robert, Wininger, Kathleen, and Elliston, Frederick. Philosophy and Sex. (3rd edition).
Sundry items on library reserve (marked with * below).

Week 1 Plato, "The Ascent of Love" (Williams, 119);
Week 2 Brentlinger, "The Nature of Love" (Williams, 157)
Newton-Smith, "A Conceptual Investigation of Love"*;
Ehman, "Personal Love"*
Week 3 Singer, "The Nature of Love"*
Stendahl, "Love as Crystallization" (Williams, 46);
Ortega y Gasset, "Falling in Love" (Williams, 58);
Week 4 Morgan, "Romantic Love, Altruism, and Self-Respect" (Williams, 71);
Firestone, "Love: A Feminist Critique" (Baker, 43).
Week 5 Rappaport, "On the Future of Love: Rousseau and the Radical Feminists"*;
Fromm, "Love and its Disintegration in Contemporary Western Society" (Williams, 253).
Week 6 Kant, "Love as Duty" (Williams, 290);
Kierkegaard, "You Shall Love" (Williams, 304)
Week 7 Mercer, "Sympathy and Value" (Williams, 292);
Soloman, "The Virtues of (Erotic) Love" *
Week 8 deSousa, "Love as Theater"*
Mappes, "Sexual Morality and the Concept of Using Another Person"*
Week 9 Punzo, "Morality and Human Sexuality"*
Nussbaum, "Objectification"*
Week 10 Levin, "Why Homosexuality is Abnormal" (Baker,337)
Jordan, "Is it Wrong to Discriminate on the Basis of Homosexuality?"(Baker, 177)
Stein, "Essentialism and Constructionism in Sexual Orientation" (Baker, 383).
Week 11 Halperin, "Is there a History of Sexuality?"(Baker,413);
Davidson, "Conceptual History and Conceptions of Perversion"(Baker, 449).
Week 12 Alcoff, "Dangerous Pleasures: Foucault and the Politics of Pedophilia" (Baker, 500);
Jensen, "Patriarchal Sex" (Baker, 533).
Week 13 Foa, "What's Wrong with Rape?" (Baker, 583);
May and Strikwerda, "Men in Groups: Collective Responsibility for Rape" (Baker, 594).
Week 14 Roiphe, The Rape Crisis, or "Is Dating Dangerous"? (Baker, 611);
Muehlenhard, Danoff-Burg, and Powch, "Is Rape Sex or Violence?" (Baker, 621);
Week 15 The Antioch College Sexual Offense Prevention Policy (Baker, 640); Silliman, "The Antioch Policy, A Community Experiment in Communicative Sexuality" (Baker, 669).