Julianne Chung
jnchung@yorku.ca
Office Location:  S439A Ross Building
Phone Number:  (416) 736-2100 Ext. 77503
Office Hours:  By appointment only

What is the meaning of life? What (or who) gives life its meaning? Do pain, suffering, and death deprive life of its meaning? Is existing worth it? What is death, and is it bad to die? Would it be better to be immortal than to be mortal? How might I deal with pain, suffering, loss, and death? This course explores philosophical approaches to these, and related, questions, through the lens of work from diverse traditions.

Technical requirements for taking the course:

Classes will be in person as scheduled.

Here are some useful links for student computing information, resources and help:

Student Guide to Moodle

Zoom@YorkU Best Practices 

Zoom@YorkU User Reference Guide

Computing for Students Website

Student Guide to eLearning at York University

To determine Internet connection and speed, there are online tests, such as Speedtest, that can be run.

Times and locations: Classes will be delivered in person R 11:30-14:30

Office hours:

Office hours will be by appointment only. Students should email the instructor at jnchung@yorku.ca to make an appointment. An in person or Zoom meeting will then be scheduled.

Camus, Albert. 2018. The Myth of Sisyphus. Penguin Random House. ISBN: 9780525564454

Frankl, Viktor. 2006. Man’s Search for Meaning. Beacon Press. ISBN: 978-0807014295

Wolf, Susan. 2012. Meaning in Life and Why it Matters. Princeton University Press. ISBN: 978-0691154503

Suits, Bernard. 2014. The Grasshopper: Games, Life and Utopia. Broadview Press. ISBN: 9781554812158

Reflections: 15%

Exams: 50% (25% per exam)

Paper: 25%

Participation: 10%

There will be 4 components to course assessment: i) five reflections; ii) two exams; iii) one term paper, and; iv) participation.

Reflections: These assignments are designed to help students get started with respect to thinking and writing about some of the ideas expressed in our readings, as well as connections between them and other topics and activities that they are interested in. Unlike other course requirements, these assignments will be graded as complete or incomplete and questions will be distributed approximately weekly. Reflections need not be very long but must be at least 250 words or more per option. Each student will be expected to complete five options in total.

Exams: Short questions on material explored will be circulated two weeks in advance of the exams. There will be two sets of five or six short essay questions distributed, and students will need to complete two options from each set in a closed-book, handwritten examination format, in class. The first exam may be rewritten. We will discuss expectations for these further in class.

Paper: You will be expected to write a 1500-2000 word term paper (about 6-8 pages double-spaced) on one of the suggested paper topics (these will be distributed two weeks prior to the term paper’s due date).

Participation: In this course, we will be focusing on reading, writing, and discussing philosophy. Thus, regular attendance and participation in class meetings and tutorials are required. It should be emphasized that attendance is a necessary, but not a sufficient, condition for doing well as regards the participation portion of the course: just as important as attending class are preparing for and participating in class meetings and tutorials. Students must do an excellent job of all three of these things in order to earn an excellent grade for this course component.

This course has four principal goals: i) To introduce students to an array of views about the philosophical questions noted above, and to aid them in developing a broad understanding of them; ii) To assist students in cultivating skill in both verbal and written philosophical discussion and argumentation, as well as in interpreting and evaluating philosophical texts and other forms of communication; iii) To enable students to think critically about the philosophical questions investigated and to draw connections between what they have learned in this class and what they are studying in others, in addition to other questions that they might wonder about, and; iv) To promote an appreciation of diverse philosophical approaches, as well as the values of humanistic inquiry, especially intellectual curiosity and humility.

Course policies

All written work must be submitted by the due dates specified (unless arranged otherwise in advance).

Please note in addition that any recordings: i) should be used for educational purposes only and as a means for enhancing accessibility; ii) cannot be copied or distributed outside the class (these acts can violate not only copyright laws but also FIPPA); and iii) all recordings will be destroyed after the end of classes.