Q&A #7: Socialism, Pacifism, and War

1. Read:  Chapter 19

2. Sculos, "Socialism as Pacifism":
http://newpol.org/content/socialism-pacifism

3. Cady, "Pacifism is not Passivism":
https://philosophynow.org/issues/105/Pacifism_Is_Not_Passivism

(Here's a nice commentary on passivity: http://newpol.org/content/our-passive-society)

4. Essay on Violence:

https://www.currentaffairs.org/2017/09/defining-violence

5. SEP entry on pacifism:

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pacifism/


Q: What are the connections between capitalism, socialism, pacifism, and violence?

or

 If socialists are pacifists, should they not work to end all unnecessary interspecific violence as well?

Once again, your choice, both of specific focus and format.

Due: Our final exam meeting.

Q&A #6: Socialism, Animals, Ecology

Read:

1.Richard Smith, Chapter 18, text.

2. Eisenman, "Socialism and Animal Liberation"

https://animalliberationcurrents.com/socialism-and-animal-liberation/


Q: (No Q&A this week)

Q&A #5: Economic issues

1. Read: The Chapters by McCarthy, Sunkara, and Schwartz, pp. 36-61, in The ABCs of Socialism:

https://s3.jacobinmag.com/issues/jacobin-abcs.pdf

Watch:  The six-part series by Richard Wolff "Introduction to Marxian Economics I":

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPJpiw1WYdTNMCC0ypXHZ-kW7yCz4T0Zg

As we decided in class, you may generate your own question/topic from this unit and write a critical essay or dialogue, or address, employing either form, this question:

Is capitalism inherently hostile to democracy?

Q&A #4: Family Life and Schooling

1. Read: Chapters 9 & 10 (in Anton and Schmitt, eds.); and "The Communist Manifesto" (in Tucker, ed.).

2. a. Write a dialogue between a defender and critic of socialism on either the topic of care work or education (with sufficient references to the text and literature).  If you choose this option, no CRITO outline required.

Here's a sample dialogue for those seminarians who requested it:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LufUz9BTaM8KnrG6fM2OUxx5SGRCAOtYd0AHZtc2tOc/edit?usp=sharing&authkey=CKn36NoJ


or b. Submit to me on email your own proposal for this next writing assignment.

Due: 11/9

Q&A #3: Equality and Socialist Feminism

1. Read: Chapters 3 & 4.

Supplemental background on socialist feminism:

https://jacobinmag.com/2018/07/socialist-feminism-barbara-ehrenreich

Q: Are "status egalitarians" right to suppose that capitalism is not necessarily (but merely actually) sexist and racist?  What are the implications for socialist (status + economic) egalitarians (and for socialist feminists in particular)?

or

(As I said in class today) compose your own Q and send it to me in an email for approval.

Due: 10/26

Q&A #2: Socialist Voices and Socialist Freedom

1. Read:

Chapters 1 and 2, in TANS.
"On Morality" p. 725 ff, in TMER

2. Q: Few words find more frequent use in Americans' various self-descriptions and pronouncements than "freedom" (or liberty):

 "They hate our freedoms."  "Land of the free..."  "Freedom ain't free..."  "The free world..." "free markets..." etc.

But what does it mean for a human to be truly "free"?

Due: October12.

Q&A #1: The "early" Marx

1. Read (from Tucker, ed.):

a. Introduction (p. xix)
b. Marx on the History of his Opinions (p. 3)
c. For a Ruthless Criticism of Everything Existing (p. 12)
d. Contribution to a Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right: Introduction (p. 53)
e. Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844 (p. 66-81).

2.  Defend, modify, or reject Marx's concept of human nature as outlined in these early writings.

3. Write 2 questions of your own.

Due: Friday, September 21.