Essay Assignment

I am trying to think of an excellent essay topic for the last paper, and I am having difficulty gathering my thoughts on this. The philosophers that we have been studying in the class are Hegel, Marx, and Kierkegaard, and we are about to get into Nietzsche, so he is fair game as well.  The requirement that I have for this assignment is that it will require the student to utilize and engage with the text, while at the same time giving them enough freedom to choose a concept that they wish to examine. This is in order to encourage creativity and give some control to the student, which often makes the paper more enjoyable and exciting for the student to write.  I was successful with the previous essays– I am having a hard time with this one.  I must strike the right balance that challenges and excites the more advanced students, while being within the grasp of students who are attending and attempting, but who are still struggling. 

After Kant, we have seen philosophers change their focus from the world of things to the world of conscious representations, and how it affects the meaning of our life.  With Hegel, we see the “life and death” struggle between one’s self and the other, manifesting in the master-slave relationship. With Marx, we see how our relationship with our labor and our products changes who we become and what we value. With Kierkegaard, we see someone tackling the notion of Faith and Christianity. And with Nietzsche, we see how all of our morality may merely be a product of our conditions and our “will to power.”

You have two options for this final essay.

Option (A): The meaning of life– Both Kierkegaard, the Christian, and Nietzsche, the nihilist, present philosophies that deal squarely with the highest “meaning of life.” Rather than looking at it objectively, they both examine it subjectively.  In this essay, first consider your own view of “the meaning of life.” Second, use the critique of Kierkegaard and/or Nietzsche on your own belief. How would they criticize what you believe? Finally, make some type of conclusion. Did their critique work? Or does your view stand up to that critique?

Option (B): Knowledge and Truth. A central theme of this class has been the human’s ability, and inability, to utilize reason and other mental faculties in order to acquire some understanding of the truth. Both Hegel, discussing the view of the self, and Marx, discussing his view of labor, demonstrate that the self changes depending on certain conditions. In this essay, examine your own consciousness: who are you, what are you, what influenced your ‘becoming.’  Second, utilize the critique of one or both philosophers to provide a critique of this view. Your objective in this second part is to discover a view of yourself that you did not previously hold. You do not need to agree with this critique.  Finally, you must make some sort of conclusion. Was the simulated philosophers’ critique a worthwhile one, or did it miss the mark? 

In both options, you are required to demonstrate: 

A) An ability to engage in the text, utilizing quotes and analysis to present a supported interpretation of the philosopher/s. 

B) An ability to engage an audience that may not share the same views as your own.

C) An ability to write a well-organized essay.

Well, that’s what I came up with and gave them. They seemed to enjoy the prospect. Critical comments/critique welcome.