Dear Stevenson Scholar,
There is a Core course assignment due on the first day of class this winter, 2016.
You'll need this book:
Dunn, Susan, ed. The Social Contract and the First and Second Discourses: Jean-
Jacques Rousseau. New Haven: Yale UP, 2002. Print. (ISBN 9780300091410)
Purchase this exact edition and bring it to class. You'll literally be on the same page as your professor and classmates, and you'll be free to annotate in the margins.
Read:
- Susan Dunn's introduction, pp 1-9
- The Second Discourse on Inequality, including dedication, preface, and notes, pp 69-148
Do not use secondary or tertiary sources such Sparknotes, Cliff, or gradesaver. It’s better to wrestle with the texts directly and come away with questions. Confusion is valuable and struggle is part of the learning process. Try to glean the general outline of what Rousseau is trying to say, picking up specific points wherever you can.
Annotate heavily as you go.
Write:
- A 2-page reading response to Rousseau’s arguments about human nature and the originof inequality.
- Demonstrate careful, analytic engagement with the text.
- Connect Rousseau to fall quarter. How does he challenge some ideas from fall texts?
- Bring a critical eye. What are your reactions, concerns, objections?
- Brainstorm further questions—if you were to write a longer paper, which line(s) of inquiry would you pursue?
- Use quotes, details, and specific language.
- Just because this piece is short and somewhat informal, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put forth your best effort: read, think, write, and revise.
Questions? Feel free to email Caren Camblin.
Cheers! Happy Holidays!
