Imagining Animals

Introduction

Introduction

Our sense of our own humanity is to a significant extent tied to the notion that we are different from animals, and so to the tacit assumption that we are superior to them. The films in the series of Planet of the Apes films--Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), and War of the Planet of the Apes(2017)--like many other works of fiction before and since play with this idea. Rise of Planet of the Apes, the first film in the series, traces the transformation of a chimpanzee into a human-like creature and thereby reveals a number of fundamental assumptions about the line that separates humans and animals.

But what exactly is the difference between humans and other animals, and is it possible to draw an exact line between us and them? If so, what is it that would distinguish humans from animals: clothing, cooking, shame, speech, rationality, or something else altogether? What might be the implications of an inability to draw a clear line between animals and humans? If humans are a species of animal, what might that suggest about our duties to other animals? As in the Planet of the Apes films, animals or rather images of animals, are everywhere around us, yet we tend not to reflect on the ways in which we imagine animals and our relation to them. What accounts for this preponderance of images of animals, of ways of imagining animals? What does this imply about humans' relation to, and in particular difference from, animals? And what might thereby be the role of the imagination in making us human? And: what can this lesson of what it is that makes us human teach us about how to survive and thrive in a world that in the future will increasingly be dominated by AI / intelligent machines?

In this course we will address questions such as these, and we will do so by reading the works of influential philosophers who have considered the problem of imagining animals, including our ability or otherwise to do so in the first place, and what says about our own humanity. We will think about what they can tell us concerning the ways contemporary culture imagines animals, so in addition to reading and discussing philosophical arguments we will  also be watching films and reading fiction that raise interesting problems concerning the relation between humans and animals. The course will culminate with an examination of a provocative text by the novelist J. M. Coetzee that stages a confrontation between philosophy and literature on the question of imagining animals, after which we will conclude the module by watching the documentary Project Nim (2011), about a chimp brought up as a human.

II Organization of the Module

The first unit of the module--"Philosophy"--will begin by considering how Rise of the Planet of the Apes raises key questions concerning how we imagine animals. We will explore the ways in which some of the questions might be answered with reference to especially influential views of animals by such prominent philosophers as Nietzsche, Descartes, Kant, and Bentham, as well as arguments by contemporary philosphers ranging from Thomas Nagel and Mary Midgley to Peter Singer and Jacques Derrida. This unit will illustrate the tension that inheres, at least in the occidental philosophical tradition, between those who would regard animals as subject to humans (and assume an absolute division between them on the basis of such notions as language or the faculty of reason), and those who question such assumptions. A close reading of one of the texts discussed in class is due at the end of Unit 1.

In the second unit--"Literature's Questioning of Philosophy"--we will consider how animals have been imagined in literature by such canonical figures as Swift, Kafka, and Coetzee, and how some of these texts raise questions that challenge philosophy when it comes to animals. They subvert generic expectations in seeming to refuse engaging philosophically with the question as to our relation to, and our responsibility towards, animals.

III Course goals

In order to investigate the ways humans imagine animals, the reasons they do so, and their implications, the course will consider questions such as the following:

  • What is it to be animal? And: what is it to be human?
  • How do the "human" and the "animal" relate to each other?
  • What can we learn from the work of philosophers in understanding these questions?
  • What are some of the problems attached to philosophical positions on the relation between the human and the animal?
  • To what extent is it possible to imagine the being of an animal and, more generally, of another being: to imagine what it is like to be that being?
  • What are the implications of particular philosophical positions with regard to these issues?
  • What perspectives might poetry/literature provide on these issues?

Investigating these questions will help us attain the following specific goals:

  • engaging in research in order to learn more about the course topic, and connecting that topic with questions and concerns of one's own;
  • developing familiarity with selected philosophical positions on the relation between the animal and human, including the notion that animals are machines; that humans are at the pinnacle of nature; the assumptions involved in these ideas, including the concepts of anthropocentrism, anthropomorphism and speciesism;
  • gaining a better understanding of what it might mean to imagine (being) an animal and, at the same time, what it might mean to be human;
  • the ability to read works of philosophy, literature, and film closely by noticing textual details and asking questions;
  • critically applying works of philosophy to literary texts and/or films by linking claims with evidence (analysis)
  • combining historical and theoretical material with textual analysis when discussing texts;
  • writing well-constructed and thoughtful essays using these texts as the foundation for arguments;
  • participating fluently in discussions of the issues dealt with in the module, both during class meetings and on the course blog.

Schedule

Schedule of Readings and Activities

UNIT 1: Philosophy

What does philosophy have to tell us about animals? How do philosophers see animals? What place do animals have in their arguments? This unit will examine some particularly influential ways in which philosophers have imagined animals, and thought about imagining them. We start the class by watching a recent film that raises interesting questions, among others about the distinction between humans and animals, as well as about the ways we imagine animals. We will watch the science fiction adventure movie Rise of the Planet of the Apes during Class Meeting 3; while watching the film you will start discussing it online (details TBA).

WEEK 1:

Class Meeting 1: Introductions

Class Meeting 2: Planetary Perspectives

  • Nietzsche, "On Truth and Lying in a Non-Moral Sense" (141-150)
  • Discussion of syllabus and assignments (available from course blog)
  • Sign up for reading responses

WEEK 2:

Class Meeting 1: Planets

  • Watch Rise of the Planet of the Apes in class; start discussing the film online while watching

Class Meeting 2: Apes and Cats

  • Discussion: Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Montaigne, extract from An Apology for Raymond Sebond (66-68, 73). Optional reading on Montaigne and how he relates to Descartes (Bakewell)

WEEK 3:

Class Meeting 1: Dualisms

  • Descartes, "Animals Are Machines" (extracts from Discourse on Method and Philosophical Letters)
  • Discussion in groups of ideas for 'Memoranda to self'

Class Meeting 2: Reason and Suffering

  • Kant, "On the Ultimate End of Nature as a Teleological System" (extract from The Critique of Judgment)
  • Bentham, "A Utilitarian View" (extract from The Principles of Morals and Legislation)
  • 'Memoranda to self' due

WEEK 4:

Class Meeting 1: Chinese New Year

Class Meeting 2: Personhood

  • Midgley, "Is a Dolphin a Person?"; recommended additional readings: Midgley, "The End of Antropocentrism?" and "What is Anthropomorphism?"; Sztybel, "Animals as Persons"

WEEK 5:

Class Meeting 1: Speciesism

  • Singer, "All Animals Are Equal"
  • Work on journal articles/chapters for evaluative summaries

Class Meeting 2: Mind/Body

  • Nagel, "What Is It Like to Be a Bat?”
  • Evaluative summaries due

WEEK 6:

Class Meeting 1: Mind/Body

  • Nagel, "What Is It Like to Be a Bat?"

Class Meeting 2: Beyond Philosophy?

  • Steiner, "Descartes, Christianity, and Contemporary Speciesism”

Recess Week:

  • Prospectus due Friday 1 March

WEEK 7:

  • Individual conferences on Prospectus: no class meetings this week.

UNIT 2: Literature's Questioning of Philosophy

How does literature, as an imaginative endeavour par excellence, imagine animals? What is the difference between philosophy and literature? How does the latter conceive of its relation to the former, and how how might the distinction between philosophy and literature relate to that between humans and other animals? To what extent might one say that it lies in the former's recourse to rational argument as opposed to the absence of this kind of argument in the latter? How does one argue against reason? These are some of the questions that we will consider in the second unit of the module. The term paper will ask you to write a research paper on a topic of your choice that is related to the course theme.

WEEK 8:

Class Meeting 1: Oppression

  • Swift, "A Modest Proposal"

Class Meeting 2: Ironic Assumptions

  • Swift, "A Modest Proposal”

WEEK 9:

Class Meeting 1: Performing

  • Kafka, "A Report to an Academy"

Class Meeting 2: Experimenting

  • Kafka, "A Report to an Academy”

WEEK 10:

Class Meeting 1: Looking

  • Derrida, "The Animal That Therefore I Am (More to Follow" (extract); optional reading: Berger, "Why Look at Animals?"

Class Meeting 2: Animot

  • Derrida, "The Animal That Therefore I Am (More to Follow" (extract); optional readings: Derrida, "Eating Well" and Wood, "Thinking with Cats”

WEEK 11:

  • Peer work. No class meetings.

WEEK 12:

Class Meeting 1: Going Ape

  • Coetzee, The Lives of Animals
  • Two-hundred word abstract due

Class Meeting 2: Poetic Practice

  • Coetzee, The Lives of Animals
  • Response paper due no later than Friday 12 April

WEEK 13:

Class Meeting 1: Conclusions -- Project Nim

  • In this final class meeting we end by reflecting on the past semester. We do so via an in-class screening and online discussion of Project Nim, a documentary that deals with a situation which is in some ways quite similar to that in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the film with which we started: a chimpanzee brought up as a child. How do these two films relate? How might Project Nim make us see Rise of the Planet of the Apes differently? What does the film suggest about the relation, including the difference, between humans and animals; about anthropomorphism; and about our duties to others?
  • Recommended reading: Wood, "At the Movies."

Class Meeting 2: Good Friday

READING WEEK:

  • Research paper due Friday 26 April (last day of reading week)

Good luck with your exams!

Readings

Readings

The list below is long, but I will not expect you to read all these texts. Please see the course Schedule for compulsory readings. It is imperative that students read those texts before the sessions concerned; the other readings are recommended / optional resources.

  • No texts need to be purchased.
  • Compulsory as well as some optional readings will be available online or in PDF via the class blog.
  • Compulsory readings are indicated by an asterisk * -- e.g., *Descartes.

Full List of Readings, Including Recommended / Optional Resources

Anderson, E. N. and Lisa Raphals. "Daoism and Animals." A Communion of Subjects: Animals in Religion, Science, and Ethics. Waldau and Patton 275-292.

Apostolos-Cappadona, Diane. "On the Dynamis of Animals, or How Animalium Became Anthropos." Waldau and Patton 439-457.

Bakewell, Sarah. How to Live: A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer. London: Vintage, 2010. Ch. 7, 123-153. Prin.t.

Balcombe, Jonathan. Second Nature: The Inner Lives of Animals. New York: Palgrave Macmilla, 2010.

*Bentham, Jeremy. "A Utilitarian View." The Principles of Morals and Legislation, 1789, Chapter XVII, Section 1.

Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: Penguin, 1973. Extracts: Chapters 1, 5.

-----"Why Look at Animals?" Selected Essays. Ed. Geoff Dyer. New York: Vintage, 2003. 322-338.

Cavalieri, Paula. "The Death of the Animal: A Dialogue on Perfectionism." The Death of the Animal. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009. 1-41. Print.

----. Extracts from responses to Cavalieri, "The Death of the Animal: A Dialogue on Perfectionism."

*Coetzee, J. M. The Lives of Animals. The Tanner Lectures on Human Values, 1997. Web. Note: Interested students are encouraged to read Coetzee's novel Elizabeth Costello, which consists of revised versions of these and other "lectures" by Elizabeth Costello.

Danta, Chris. "Like a dog . . . like a lamb": Becoming Sacrificial Animal in Kafka and Coetzee." New Literary History 38.4 (Autumn 2007): 721-737. Print.

*Derrida, Jacques. "The Animal That Therefore I Am (More to Follow)." Trans. David Wills. Animal Philosophy: Essential Readings in Continental Thought. Ed. Matthew Calarco and Peter Atterton. London: Continuum, 2004. 113-128. Print.

----. "'Eating Well,' or the Calculation of the Subject: An Interview with Jacques Derrida." Trans. Peter Connor and Avilal Ronell. Whom Comes After the Subject? Ed. Eduardo Cadava, Peter Connor, and Jean-Luc Nancy. New York: Routledge, 1991. Print.

*Descartes, René. "Animals Are Machines. (Extracts from Discourse on Method and Philosophical Letters.)" Animal Rights and Human Obligations. Ed. Regan, Tom and Peter Singer. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice Hall, 1989. 13-19. Print.

Gray, John. "." New Statesman, 9 February 2004. Web.

*Kafka, Franz. "A Report to an Academy" and "A Report to an Academy: Two Fragments." Trans. Willa and Edwin Muir, and Tania and James Stern. The Complete Stories. Ed. Nahum N. Glatzer. New York: Schocken, 1983. 250-262. Print.

*Kant, Immanuel. Critique of the Power of Judgment. Ed. Paul Guyer. Trans. Paul Guyer and Eric Matthews. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Print.

Lamey, Andy. "Sympathy and Scapegoating in J. M. Coetzee." J. M. Coetzee and Ethics. Ed. Leist, Anton and Peter Singer. Columbia: Columbia University Press, 2009. 171-193. Print.

Levi-Strauss, Claude. "The Totemic Illusion." The Animals Reader. Ed. Kalof, Linda and Amy Fitzgerald. Oxford: Berg, 262-269. Print.

Marvin, Gary. "Seeing, Looking, Watching, Observing Nonhuman Animals." Society and Animals 9.3 (2001): 1-11. Print.

*Midgley, Mary. "Is a Dolpin a Person?" Utopias, Dolphins and Computers: Problems of Philosophical Plumbing. London: Routledge, 1996. 107-117. Print.

*Montaigne, Michel de. An Apology of Raymond Sebond. Trans. M. A. Screech. London: Penguin, 1993. eBook.

Mulhall, Stephen. The Wounded Animal: J. M. Coetzee & the Difficulty of Reality in Literature & Philosophy. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009. Print.

*Nagel, Thomas. "What Is It Like to Be a Bat?" Mortal Questions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, l979. 165-180. Print.

*Nietzsche, Friedrich. "On Truth and Lying in a Non-Moral Sense." The Birth of Tragedy and Other Writings. Ed. Raymond Geuss and Ronald Speirs. Trans. Ronald Speirs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. 141-153. Print.

*Singer, Peter. "All Animals Are Equal." Animal Rights and Human Obligations. Ed. Regan, Tom and Peter Singer. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice Hall, 1989. 13-19. Print.

Steiner, Gary. "Descartes, Christianity, and Contemporary Speciesism." Waldau and Patton 117-131.

*Swift, Jonathan. "A Modest Proposal." Web.

Sztybel, David. "Animals as Persons." Animal Subjects: An Ethical Reader in a Posthuman World. Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 2008. 241-257. Print.

Taylor, Rodney. "Of Animals and Humans: The Confucian Perspective." Waldau and Patton 293-307. Print.

Waldau, Paul and Kimberley Patton. A Communion of Subjects: Animals in Religion, Science, and Ethics. New York: Columbia University Press, 2006. Print.

*Wood, Michael. "At the Movies." Review of Rise of Planet of the Apes and Project Nim. London Review of Books 33.17 (8 September 2011). Web.

Policy

Policy

Preparation

The module deals with texts of various kinds, both visual and written, from apparently simple cartoons to complex philosophical arguments. You must prepare for each class by closely reading the meeting's text or texts in advance. Details and links are available on the Schedule page, and full bibliographical information on the Readings page.

Assignments must be completed and handed in on the due date. There will be no extensions without very good reason, as this is not fair to the students who get their work in on time.

Assessment and Class Attendance

Since we meet only twice a week, and will be investigating some challenging material at a rapid pace, class attendance is important. Please attend all classes except if the circumstances are exceptional.

  • Please always contact me before class if you cannot make it to that particular class.
  • I will require documentation from you to explain any class absence (MC; letter from parent, etc.).
  • In the case of any absence, excused or otherwise, remember that it is your responsibility to make up any missed work and to keep up with the reading.

Your main task for this module consists of a small-scale research paper on a topic of your choice, subject to the requirements below. Throughout the semester, you will work on and complete a number of smaller steps to help you with the research process. Some of these smaller assignments will count towards the final module grade. Those that are not graded are meant to be exploratory and have the goal of stimulating your ideas and providing you with feedback, while graded assignments ask for work that is more fully formed but can still offer you feedback and ideas.

Research paper requirements:

You are free to write on any topic of your choice, but for you to succeed with this assignment you will need to ensure that you address the following requirements:

  • The paper needs to address a research question.
  • The topic needs to connect to the course topic. In other words, your research paper needs to explore your chosen topic with reference to some ideas from course readings.
  • The paper needs to work with at least two sources that you will find independently.

Notes:

  • I strongly encourage you to consider a topic that connects to your field of study because that has the potential of making your semester-long research work on the paper relevant, alive, and interesting. However, this is not a strict requirement: if you feel the need to take some time out from your field, that is perfectly fine! That said, a key course goal is for us to explore connections between different fields, disciplines, and domains, so be intentional about doing so.
  • Your research paper could take the form of an analysis of a course text as long as your research question makes the case that there is a compelling rationale for doing so.

Assignments:

The following are the assignments that you need to complete in order to complete the course. Some of these are graded and will count toward the overall course assessment, while others will be ungraded. In all cases, I will provide you with feedback to help you grow and develop your research paper.

More detailed descriptions of these assignments will be available via the course blog.

  • Reading response consisting of presentation slides with two goals: (a) to introduce a specific course reading, and (b) to provide discussion questions intended to elicit thoughtful dialogue on that reading during class and subsequently; a reading response is due on the class blog 24 hours after the presentation. You will sign up for these presentations during the second class of the semester, with the different presentations taking place across different class meetings: 10% of course grade
  • Memoranda to self that explore ideas for topic and possible research questions: due Friday 1 February (Week 3)
  • Two one-page evaluative summaries of two journal articles related to the research topic: due Friday 15 February (Week 5): 20% of course grade
  • Prospectus: two pages, due Friday 1 March (mid-semester break), with conferences during week 7
  • Peer review: 1-5 April, out of class time (during week 11; no classes this week)
  • Two-hundred word abstract: due Monday 8 April (Week 12): 10% of course grade
  • Response paper, in which you present your response to any course reading: submit anytime, but no later than Friday 12 April (Week 12): 10% of course grade
  • Final research paper: due Friday 26 April (last day of reading week): 50% of course grade

Assessment criteria:

Detailed assessment criteria for the various assignments are TBA (via the course blog).

 

Formatting and Manuscript Style

Please follow these guidelines to format all written work that you submit.

  • Please use the MLA in-text documentation style.
  • All essays and writing activities should be double-spaced in size 12 font.
  • Use a 72 point (2.54 cm) margin on all sides, with no justification on the right.
  • Please select A4 size in your word processing software.
  • For all papers and exercises, insert in a single-spaced block in the upper left-hand corner of your first page:
    • Your name
    • The course code and title (UPI2208: Imagining Animals)
    • The name of your instructor
    • The title you have selected for the assignment
    • The name of the assignment, e.g. whether it is 'Memoranda to self', 'Abstract', 'Prospectus', 'Research Paper' etc.
    • The date
  • Please always cite when you derive information from a source, and include a list of works cited at the end of the paper.
  • All papers should be submitted as a soft copy (PDF please).

Plagiarism

You should note that plagiarism (academic dishonesty: using someone else's ideas or words without acknowledgement) will be viewed in an extremely serious light. Please consult the University Scholars Programme Academic Code and the page Penalties for Plagiarism. All work submitted in this class (for grading or otherwise) is assumed to be the student's own, original work. If a student is found plagiarizing, s/he will receive an "F" for that assignment, and depending on the severity of the offense, possibly fail the course.

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