Human Nature & Social Theory

This is a Social Science senior capstone course. It is open to seniors and advanced juniors majoring in:

• Anthropology
• Economics
• History
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Social Science
• Social Work

Darwin books

Darwin info

Syllabus

The following syllabus reflects the last time this course was offered. The Social Science Division shall not offer this course before 2004. Changes being considered for future semesters are:

• Course Description
• Course Calendar
• Requirements
• Additional Resources

Well, we hope you enjoy the course!

Allen's Office Hours: M 4.30-5.30 & W 10-11, rm. 824A, x3347, rallen@hornet.liunet.edu

Ehrenberg's Office Hours: MW 9-10 & W 1-3, rm. 866, x1193, jehrenbe@hornet.liunet.edu

Teaching Assistant: Nina Patel (2nd year Psychology doctoral student)

Offered: Spring 1998

Is there such a thing as an essential "human nature" which transcends history, culture, race and gender? Do human beings have a shared inner core, or are similarities between us strictly conventional? What role do assumptions about "human nature" play in political theory and social organization? All social scientists have their personal and discipline-based answers, but this course will approach these questions by examining the related work of four different theorists.

Although the specific circumstances of their work were very different, Thomas Hobbes and Sigmund Freud shared some fundamental assumptions about human nature which have had an enormous impact on the development of political and psychological theory. The same can be said of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Jean Piaget. This course will examine both pairs of thinkers in their differences and similarities. The implications of their ideas will be extended into different realms of inquiry and the class will make use of theoretical material and current investigations in both Psychology and Political Science. Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions and Stephen Pepper's World Hypotheses both concern the issue of models of understanding, and will help provide intellectual and historical grounding for the semester's investigation of the nature of the human world and causality.

By the end of the course, the students should be familiar with the four theorists and related material, understand the debate about human nature in both an historical and a cross-disciplinary fashion, have demonstrated social skills by acquiring experience in collaborative work or by public presentation of research findings, and have written a substantial research paper incorporating the perspectives of several disciplines in the Social Sciences. Detailed objectives and their assessment are presented at the end of this proposal.

Required Purchases:

Sigmund Freud, Civilization and its Discontents (standard edition). New York: Norton.

Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan (Macpherson edition). New York: Penguin.

Jean Piaget, The Moral Judgment of the Child (Gabain translation). New York: Free Press.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile (Bloom translation). New York: Basic Books.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract (Cranston translation). New York: Penguin.

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Tentative Calendar:

26 Jan - Introduction to course

video: Great Minds of the Western Intellectual Tradition, pt. VI

Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (copies provided)

Stephen Pepper, World Hypotheses (copies provided)

C.B. MacPherson, "Introduction" to Hobbes's Leviathan

Michael Oakeshott, "Introduction" to Hobbes's Leviathan (copies provided)

Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, Part I (chaps. XIII & XIV only)

-guest M. Hittman

Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, Part II

- selection of quantitative/Common Ground project due

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile: Bloom's Introduction, Book I, Book II (only up to p. 117), Book III (only pp. 176 to end), Book IV (only up to p. 257, inclusive), Book V (only pp. 375-380)

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Second Discourse

Sigmund Freud, Civilization and its Discontents: Gay's introduction, pp. 24-43, 50-96, 104 to end

Sigmund Freud, Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalyis (copies provided)

6 Apr - Piaget's theory

Jean Piaget, Biology and Knowledge (copies provided)

Jean Piaget, Intelligence and Affectivity (copies provided)

Jean Piaget, Psychology of Intelligence (copies provided)

[due date for essay topic statements; provide 3 copies]

Jean Piaget, The Moral Judgment of the Child: chap. 3 & the Conclusions from all chaps.

[due date for essay outlines; provide 3 copies]

[27th is due date for essay first drafts–whatever you have–provide 3 copies]

[Written essays due]

Course Requirements

• You must be absolutely familiar with this syllabus, do the readings before class, show up for class on time, keep abreast of any changes that might result from class discussion, hand in assignments on the due dates, and not engage in any plagiarism on papers
• Reading and discussion on weekly basis, with participation in break-out small discussion groups when appropriate
• Weekly writing of 1 ½ pages summarizing that week's discussion and readings
• Small quantitative project, developed with instructors and executed either alone or in small groups. R. Allen has developed a set of small empirical research projects (primarily replications, see attachments) for students, but students will also be allowed to develop their own projects. Projects will involve systematic observation, interview techniques or questionnaires. Examples are observation of primates (both human and nonhuman), systematic study of intrusion in study spaces, and analysis of responses to moral dilemmas. Instructors and a Psychology TA will help in analysis of data. This project will be due about two-thirds of the way through the semester, as noted on the syllabus. A Common Ground internship appropriate for the course may substitute for a quantitative project; conditions for this will be discussed in the first class and must be finalized by the second week of February.
• Major written essay (20 pages) on a theory or aspect of human nature that is relevant to a present-day topic such as the turmoil in the former Soviet bloc, affirmative action or ‘moral education'. The essay must reference both the readings for the course and current information available from periodicals (scientific and popular), newspapers or the internet. Other students will give feedback on the proposal, outlines and drafts. This essay can be done either collaboratively or alone, and the final version will be due during the examination period as noted on the syllabus. It can be linked to the quantitative project if appropriate.
• Brief in-class, oral presentation of either the project or essay. All students will prepare a presentation, with at least half of them being called on in class.
• 1/3 of the grade is from class participation & weekly writing, 1/3 from the quantitative project, and 1/3 from the essay

By the end of the course, all students should:

1. Be familiar with the writings and theories of the four thinkers, as assessed by evaluation of weekly writing, major essay, quantitative project and weekly participation

2. Be able to think critically about a social science issue relevant to the course, as assessed by evaluation of written essay

3. Recognize that topics can be approached from multiple perspectives and that different disciplines in the social sciences concern themselves with some of the same issues, as demonstrated in the essay

4. Understand that the theoretical debates in the social sciences have relevance to our current political and social situation, as shown in essays and projects

5. Be able to use both quantitative and qualitative data and methods to inform a theoretical issue, as shown by successful completion of a small research project (e.g., territoriality, acquisitiveness, aggression, morality)

6. Be able to use writing to articulate ideas in all prepared work; however, only the major essay will be graded for writing mechanics in addition to conceptualization

In addition, at least one of the following social skills will be developed by each student. Both are not required of each student because completion of a collaborative project is optional, and it is likely that not every student will be called on for an oral presentation. However, each student will meet one or both objectives.

1. Ability to work collaboratively, as indicated by successful completion of a collaborative project or essay accompanied by the collaborating members' reports

2. Clear oral presentation of information, as assessed by combined instructor and classmate evaluation of presentations

Key Questions and Topics

• To what degree can one use the study of other primates to inform discussions of human nature? What can we learn from a quick tour through the evolutionary basis of such a question (Darwin); the early considerations of aggression, emotionality and competition in primates (Ardrey, James, Morris); the more recent work illustrating species diversity in behavior (Jolly); and the argument that homo sapiens evolution might be better characterized as cultural and technological evolution rather than fundamental evolution of genetic and behavioral potential? A main point to be made is that although consideration of early work led theorists to endorse a Hobbes-Freudian perspective on the primacy of insecurity and competition, more recent on primates suggests that there is unlikely to be a conclusive answer from primatology
• To what degree are humans rational? What would be the educational and political implications of assumptions about rationality and the origins of knowledge? Subjects of debate by each of our four main thinkers, these issues have also been addressed by Aristotle, St. Augustine, James, Machiavelli, Kant, Plato (Symposium, Phaedo), Smith, and by the existential psychologists discussed in the Hall chapter. James's chapter on ‘The intellectual contrast between brute and man' makes a good transition from the prior topic to this one, and is in turn a good lead-in to Aristotle and the other thinkers.
• Does morality arise out of self-interested and self-maximizing principles (as Hobbes and Freud argued), or is morality compatible with a kinder view of rationality? That is, can morality be served by the self-interests of individuals? This issue has been addressed by most of the theorists listed immediately above, but also by King, Weber, and Smith.
• What is the role of materialism versus idealism in human nature? What is the role of culture and experience in this arena? This issue ties together the work in primatology (Jolly), humanistic psychology (Hall), and a number of disparate areas (Mark & Engels, Durkheim, King, Weber). While having been accused (not unreasonably) of being an idealist, Piaget himself did not have a great deal to say about this particular dispute; the other three main thinkers had very strong opinions on this debate.
• To what degree are humans essentially social and communitarian, versus selfish and individualized? Can we make any generalizations across gender and culture? While our four main thinkers tend to make generalizations which transcend gender and culture, they differ on the degree to which they see humans as essentially social or as individualized. The work of Confucius, Hume and Etzioni can flesh out this debate.
• Are we born with a universal morality? What are the implications of the answer to this question? With this, we return to the perpetual issue of morality and human nature, a controversy addressed by the four thinkers, and by Erikson, St. Augustine, Pagels, Aristotle (Ethics), Plato (Meno), Ferguson, Hume, Kant, Kohlberg, Gilligan, and Bennett.
• Can the city be constructed on the same organizational principles as the soul? Or, in modern terminology, what is the nature of the relationship between individual organization and the organization of science, culture and politics? Relevant readings are from Plato (Republic), Erikson, Hall (Maslow), Kant, King, Etzioni, Confucius, Marx and Engels, and Aristotle. The work on the evolution of science that Piaget was conducting with Garcia just before the former's death will be also be referenced.
• Finally, are there spheres of human activity which are in their nature immunized against ethical evaluation? This question primarily revolves around the role of ethics in political and civil life, as addressed by Marx and Engels, Machiavelli, King, Kant, Erikson and Aristotle.

The following is a list of additional readings intended to confuse & provoke you: Note that none are assigned, but any might be referred to in class or might be useful for projects

book listings on various philosophy, science & social science topics:

Rhianon Allen, Don't go on my property: A case study in transactions of user rights. Language and Society, September 1995.

Robert Ardrey, The Territorial Imperative

Aristotle, De Anima (book II chaps.1& 3, book III chap. 9); Ethics (books I, II & X chap. 5); Politics (book I)

William Bennett, The Book of Virtues

D.E. Brown, Human Universals

Confucius, Analects (books IV & XII)

Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species; The Descent of Man; this and related material available online at hot link on main page

Emile Durkheim, Suicide

Erik Erikson, Young Man Luther (chap. IV); Gandhi's Truth

Amitai Etzioni, The New Golden Rule

Adam Ferguson, The Theory of Human Sentiments

Steven Gerencser, Mister Oakeshott's Hobbes, or Mister Hobbes's Oakeshott

Carol Gilligan, In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development

Stephen Jay Gould Room of One's Own (in Natural History, 11/97), A Tale of Two Worksites (in Natural History, 10/97)

Calvin Hall et al., Introduction to Theories of Personality (for coverage of Horney, Fromm, Sullivan, the humanist psychologists, the existentialist psychologists and, possibly, Freud)

David Hume, An Essay Concerning Human Nature

William James, Principles of Psychology (Vol. II chaps. 22, 24 & 28)

Alison Jolly, The Evolution of Primate Behavior ("Competition")

Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason; Metaphysical Foundations of Morals; Critique of Pure Practical Reason (selections)

Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail

Lawrence Kohlberg's chapter on moral development in Goslin's Handbook

Weston LaBarre, The Human Animal (Introduction, chaps. 5, 8, 12 & 15)

James Madison, selections from The Federalist Papers

Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince

Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, The Communist Manifesto; The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte; The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State

Desmond Morris, The Naked Ape

Elaine Pagels, Adam, Eve, and the Serpent

Jean Piaget, numerous books, and some information can be found through hot link on main page

Plato The Republic, Symposium, Phaedo, Meno

Michael Sandel, The Procedural Republic and the Unencumbered Self; Democracy's Discontent

Meredith Small, Family Values (in The Sciences, December 1997)

Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations

St. Augustine, The City of God

David van Mill, Hobbes's Moral Theory in Leviathan

Eduardo Velásquez, On the Pleasures of Civility and Citizenship: A reassessment of Thomas Hobbes and his Legacy for Modern Liberalism

Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

Eli Zaretsky, Bisexuality, Capitalism and the Ambivalent Legacy of Psychoanalysis

Suggested Quantitative Projects:

In all cases, projects must be approved by the instructors. You should make clear the relevance of your data to the theme of the course.

• Moral judgement. You may take any one of the methods laid out in Piaget's Moral Judgment (games, etc.) and perform a replication (repetition) of one of his studies. You may, if you wish, analyse group differences (e.g., boys vs. girls).
• Reasoning in moral dilemmas. Lawrence Kohlberg devised a series of moral dilemmas in order to study moral reasoning and its relationship to age and culture. These are little scenarios, much like Piaget's Intention and Action method, which have no obvious solution. You may give people two or more of these dilemmas and analyse their reasoning using either Kohlberg's or Gilligan's approach.
• Observation of primates. You may observe nonhuman primates (e.g., apes in the zoo) and/or human interacting. Keep careful notes, highlighting negative (e.g., aggressive) and positive (e.g., cooperative) behaviors. The basic data will be the relative frequencies of these types of behaviors.
• World hypotheses. The OMPI is a questionnaire for assessing the degree to which one endorses an organicist vs. mechanist world hypothesis. You can do a simple descriptive study of one group (e.g., people in the class) or compare one group to another (e.g., men vs. women).
• Property/user rights. You may do either an observational or interview study of people's conceptions of property and user rights.
• Intrusion in study spaces. This is an experiment that should be conducted by students who operate in groups of two. One acts as the observer, the other as experimenter. The pair goes into a library at a time when the library is fairly uncrowded. The experimenter finds a table at which only one or two other students are seated. In the control condition, the experimenter seats him/herself as s/he would have done ordinarily. In another condition, s/he deliberately violates another individual's space. R. Allen can supply detailed instructions from Gleitman's Instructor's Manual, p. 126-127.

Go to Rhiannon Allen's main page