REPRESENTATION

Does the Universe Contain the Mind?
or Does the Mind Contain the Universe?

"REPRESENTATION" builds an awareness that what each of us understands as his or her world and self is a function of how he or she represents this world and self. The course provides a vocabulary with which to describe and discuss the historically and geographically diverse ways in which humanity has constructed representations of what it calls the "real" world and the "real" individuals who are conscious of this world. More specifically, it studies Western culture's dominant theories and practices of constructing representations of reality and contrasts them to some non-Western theories and practices.

"REPRESENTATION" teaches students to recognize the social, political, and ethical questions implied by humanity's different theories and practices of representing world and self.

"REPRESENTATION" also encourages students to recognize their own and their chosen discipline's ways of representing world and self, to identify the limits as well as the strengths of these practices of representation, and to develop a critical but tolerant attitude towards other ways of constructing self and world.

Final Exam Description

For information, get in touch with:
Prof. James H. Reid
Department of Foreign Languages
215 Stevenson
438-7894
jhreid@ilstu.edu
http://lilt.ilstu.edu/jhreid/

Workbin

Spring 2002 Syllabus