Overview
The purpose of the Journal Entry Activity is to give you an opportunity to explore your thoughts and ideas on philosophical concepts and arguments that you may not completely understand, but which you are working out in your mind, without the pressure of having to present a more polished thought in the discussion forums for possible debate (and a grade!).
A Journal Entry Activity is expected to be completed in weeks 2, 4, and 6. They are intended to cover the previous weeks material as well, so you will be completing two activities, one for each week. In the gradebook , journal entries will be noted as Pass for ones that have been handed in, Fail for ones that haven't. Each Journal Activity contains several prompts (in the form of questions) to think about for your entry. Please ruminate over these prompts and choose at least one from each list (A and B) to complete. Keep your thoughts in the first-person singular “I”. A good written journal entry will be at least 250 words, but they may be longer depending on the prompt and your writing. A good audio or video recording will be at least a minute in length, but, again, they may be longer. You can submit voice recordings and video recordings for your journal entry instead of a written document. (Directions Below). Most of the prompts relate to the required readings and subject of the week.
Example of a Journal Entry from the prompt “What does it mean to judge someone?”
I seem to belong to a highly judgmental species, and it is hard to refrain from judging and evaluating, praising and blaming. All around me, people are rating, reviewing, giving stars, thumbs up and down to films, hotels, household appliances, and life events. They write restaurant reviews that say ‘The fish was underdone and the staff were rude,’ as though the fish and the staff actually had those qualities, and they expect others to make use of the ‘information.’ They gossip about one another’s personal lives and decisions, admiring and disapproving of their friends’ actions. Human beings slap fines on one another and cart others of their species off to jail. They also award them medals, badges, and diplomas for achievements deemed meritorious. I find myself constantly judging my food and drink for its tastiness and value for money. I cannot seem to help judging some kinds of people for what I take to be their moral qualities, as well as for their non-moral qualities of being politically savvy or hilarious, or displaying athletic prowess or artistic ability.
Directions for Journal Entries
Complete journal activities in weeks 2, 4, and 6 and upload the results to the proper assignment folder as either document files (.docx), audio files(.mp3) or video files (.mp4), or any combination. Please submit two (2) files every time the Journal Entries are due. You are welcome to complete and submit Journal Entries before they are due.
Technical Requirements of the Journal Entries
Document files must be Microsoft Word .docx, be at least 250 words, double spaced 12 pt font.
Audio files must be .mp3 and be at least a minute in length
Video files must be .mp4 and be at least a minute in length.**
(**To greatly reduce the video file size make sure to record at the lowest possible resolution on your camera, 480p or 640x480, and NOT at 4k!! A 1 minute video recording at 480p will only be around 2MB.)
Week Two Journal Activities
- Now that you have become familiar with some of the concepts and concerns in world philosophy and epistemology, complete two (2) Journal Activities (topics in weeks 1 & 2) one each from list A and B. Record your thoughts in writing, or audio, or video, and submit the files to the assignment folder. Submit A and B Journal Activities as separate files.
- A. Journal Activities - What is Philosophy? (Choose one)
- Activity A1: Record your thoughts. What does Philosophy mean to me, personally? How can I use Philosophy in everyday life? What is the value of Philosophy?
Activity A2: Record your thoughts. If I could visually represent what Philosophy means to me, what would it look like? How would someone interpret my visual representation?
Activity A3: Have a conversation with a friend or family member on the meaning and value of Philosophy. Reflect on this conversation for your Journal Entry.
Activity A4: Record your thoughts: What does it mean to be part of a culture? How open am I to understand perspectives from different cultures? Am I willing to change my life to accommodate another culture's beliefs?
Activity A5: Record Your Thoughts: Which philosopher/thinker discussed this week (week 1) intrigued me? why?
B. Journal Activities - Epistemology: How Do We Know What We Know? (Choose One)
Activity B1: Record your thoughts. This week, we saw that the sources of where knowledge can come from differ widely (experience, reason, and testimony). Each of them can give knowledge about the world. In your own experience, which of these three sources has given you the greatest confidence of having true knowledge? Does the answer to some questions depend on the source from which it came?
Activity B2: Record your thoughts. What does truth mean to me, personally? Do I believe that others value truth in the same way that I do? How do I distinguish between truth and belief?
Activity B3: Have a conversation with a friend or family member, or a priest, prophetess, or pastor, on the meaning of knowledge. Reflect on this conversation for your Journal Entry.
Activity B4: Record your thoughts: Do other cultures arrive at knowledge in a different way than my culture? Do other cultures value truth and belief differently? How open am I to adopt another culture's way of arriving at knowledge?
Activity B5: Record your thoughts: Which philosopher/thinker discussed this week (week 2) intrigued me? why?