1. Thursday, September 25 Introduction 2. Thursday, October 2 NO CLASS! 3. Thursday, October 9 "Reflection on the Right Use of School Studies with a View to the Love of God" (pp. 57 - 66 in Simone Weil, Waiting for God). 4. Thursday, October 16 "Attention and Will" (pp. 231 - 237 in Simone Weil: An Anthology (also published in Gravity and Grace)). 5. Thursday, October 23 "The Love of Our Neighbor" (pp. 84 - 98 in Simone Weil, Waiting for God). 6. Thursday, October 30 "Human Personality" (pp. 69 - 98 in Simone Weil: An Anthology). 7. Thursday, November 6 "The Self" (pp. 99 - 104 in Simone Weil: An Anthology). "Decreation" (pp. 32 - 40 in Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace). 8. Thursday, November 13 "Void and Compensation" (pp. 216 - 220 in Simone Weil: An Anthology). "To Accept the Void" (pp. 10 - 11 in Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace). "Detachment" (pp. 12 - 15 in Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace). "Affliction" (pp. 80 - 84 in Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace). 9. Thursday, November 20 "Necessity and Obedience" (pp. 43 - 50 in Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace). 10. Thursday, November 27 "The Power of Words" (pp. 238 - 258 in Simone Weil: An Anthology). 11. Thursday, December 4 "Analysis of Oppression" (pp.147 - 178 in Simone Weil: An Anthology). 12. Thursday, December 11 "The Need for Roots" (Part 1, "The Needs of the Soul," pp. 1 - 38 in Simone Weil, The Need for Roots). 13. Thursday, December 18 Concluding discussion Literature The course literature consists of a selection of shorter texts from 4 different books. Simone Weil: An Anthology, Edited and Introduced by Siân Miles (London: Penguin Books, 2005). Simone Weil: Waiting for God (New York: Perennial Classics, 2001). Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace (London: Routledge, 2002). Simone Weil, The Need for Roots (London: Routledge, 2002).
|
This course is an introduction to the philosophy of Simone Weil (1909 - 1943). The course consists of close readings of some of her most central philosophical texts. Weil's works have been enormously influential in contemporary philosophy of religion, philosophy of love, philosophy of attention, and political philosophy. Several of her thoughts are notoriously difficult, and she is often referred to as a "mystic". The aim of this course is to unpack some of her most central works and discuss them in detail. All meetings will take the form of a discussion seminar (apart from the first meeting, which will be an introductory lecture), so all students need to have read the designated texts in advance.
|