- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
Desiring Education and Educating the Desiring: A Hermeneutic Reading of St Augustine 2300-FWK-DEED-OG
Since desire connects the autobiographical and speculative dimensions of St Augustine’s Confessions, our hermeneutic reading will address the fundamental question of the meaning of human life and desire. Augustine does not undertake his soul search for the sake of self-betterment: “In [tuis] oculis mihi quaestio factus sum – in your eyes I have become a question to myself.” His main task is not to promote an “inquietude” (Beunruhigung) about one’s own Dasein, in order to preserve its original drive to philosophize. It is a call to reawaken the foolishness of the prevalent scientific urge toward the certainty of self-knowledge. He is clear about not understanding himself: “I do not understand all that I am,” ( nec ego ipse capio totum quod sum). By pointing toward his own self-understanding, he admits that his reality transcends him and sends him back to something beyond him. In his existential torment (molestia), he recognizes that a human being is not transparent to him/herself; only God sees everything. This awareness is the source of existential anxiety: “I am terrified of my secrets which your eyes see and mine not” (multum timeo occulta mea, quae norunt oculi tui, mei autem non). As contemporary readers of the Confessions, we wish to address critically the Heideggerian proposal regarding Augustine’s attempted “escape” from this reality. Is Augustine really an existential coward when he admits: “You yourself make it blissful to bless you. You have created us as directed toward you. And our heart is not quiet until it rests in you.” (tu excitas ut laudare te delectet, quia fecisti nos ad te et inquietum est cor nostrum donec requiescat in te)? Our hermeneutic reading might help us to understand that the experience of truth happens as an experience of interpretation as the way of our being in the world. There is no experience of truth that would not have an interpretative character.
Type of course
Mode
Learning outcomes
Learning outcomes
Knowledge:
o the student is familiar with new literature on the literature as indicated in the bibliography
o is familiar with the philosophy of education
o knows the state of research in the hermeneutics of education and is able to design an innovative research project
Skills:
o can identify philosophical aspects of education
o can address the importance of feelings (curiosity, patience, courage, uncertainty, self-esteem) and validates them in the process of learning
o has skills in presenting aspects of philosophical hermeneutics in discussing issues in contemporary education in an international setting
o can effectively communicate with other scholars in hermeneutic philosophy and education
o as a creative and insightful student, shows depth in thinking and in the elaborating of original and novel ideas
Social competences:
o appreciates the need to learn to understand one’s life
o can set measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely goals and ways to achieve them in the context of academic, professional, and social activity
o sees the need for dialogue between different academic disciplines and schools of thought
Assessment criteria:
Students must attend classes, actively participate in discussions, and write a ca. 2500 words research paper. The grade will be based on the paper at 50%. Students should clear their topic with the instructor before writing. The final revised paper is due on Friday, December 24, 2021. Attendance / Active in-class participation (50%). Along with the final paper, students are required to submit a detailed report about their attendance and self-evaluation of their activity in the class.
Assessment criteria
Students must attend classes, actively participate in discussions, and write a ca. 2500 words research paper. The grade will be based on the paper at 50%. Students should clear their topic with the instructor before writing. The final revised paper is due on Friday, December 24, 2021. Attendance / Active in-class participation (50%). Along with the final paper, students are required to submit a detailed report about their attendance and self-evaluation of their activity in the class.
Bibliography
Augustine, The Confessions,
file:///C:/Users/pegaw/Downloads/The%20Confessions%20of%20St.%20Augustine%20by%20Augustine%20(z-lib.org).pdf
Catherine Conybeare, The Routledge Guidebook to Augustine’s Confessions (New York: Routledge, 2016).
Robert R. Edwards, The Flight from Desire (New York: Palgrave/Macmillan, 2006).
Martin Heidegger, The Phenomenology of Religious Life, GA60,
Andrzej Wierciński, Hermeneutics between Philosophy and Theology: The Imperative to Think the Incommensurable (Zurich: LIT, 2010).
Andrzej Wierciński, Existentia Hermeneutica: Understanding as the Mode of Being (Zurich: LIT, 2019).
Andrzej Wierciński, Hermeneutics of Education: Exploring and Experiencing the Unpredictability of Education (Zurich: LIT, 2019).
Additional information
Information on level of this course, year of study and semester when the course unit is delivered, types and amount of class hours - can be found in course structure diagrams of apropriate study programmes. This course is related to the following study programmes:
- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: