Philosophy Faculty Publications and Presentations

Teaching Ethics, Happiness, and The Good Life: An Upbuilding Discourse in the Spirits of Soren Kierkegaard and John Dewey

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2018

Abstract

This essay narrates what I have learned from Søren Kierkegaard & John Dewey about teaching philosophy. It consists of three sections: 1) a Deweyan pragmatist’s translation of Kierkegaard’s religious insights on Christianity, as a way of life, into ethical insights on philosophy, as a way of life; 2) a brief description of the introductory course that I teach most frequently: Ethics, Happiness, & The Good Life; and 3) an exploration of three spiritual exercises from the course: a) self-cultivation by means of writing in an Ethics Notebook, b) an “existential experiment” in which we practice one of Aristotle’s virtues for a week, and c) a 15-hour service-learning component.

Publication Title

Philosophers in the Classroom: Essays on Teaching

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