19 February 2005 From theConcerned Citizens of Hartford, MI
49057 -- Reprinted with the kind permission of Professor Matthew
Halteman Note: this is a syllabus for a Monday-Friday,
month-long course in between autumn and spring semesters; this syllabus could also be adapted for longer courses
meeting less frequently.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> CALVIN COLLEGE GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN
PHILOSOPHY W13 PEACEABLE KINGDOM: TRANSFORMING OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH ANIMALS Interim 2005 M-F 2:00-5:00 pm, Hiemenga Hall 333 <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Professor: Matthew Halteman Office: 356 Hiemenga Mailbox: 340 Hiemenga E-mail: mch7@calvin.edu Campus: 526-6726 Office Hours: By Appointment
I. Required Materials
Tom Regan, Empty Cages: Facing the Challenge of Animal Rights Peter Singer, Animal Liberation Robert Wennberg, God, Humans, and Animals: An Invitation to Enlarge
Our Moral Universe Various handouts (distributed in class)
II. Course Description
Though stewardship of the animal kingdom is one of the primary responsibilities
accorded to human beings in the Christian creation narrative, the question
of how best to respect and to honor the creatures under our care is one
that Christians too often neglect to ask. This omission is especially tragic,
given the overwhelming evidence of fallenness in the social and commercial
practices that presently govern our relationships to animals. While large-scale
agribusiness has increased consumer convenience, this convenience has come
at a high cost, and not just to animals; factory farming has had negative
effects on the environment, on local commerce and agriculture in both rural
and urban communities, and on public health. In view of these considerations,
the purpose of this course is two-fold: first, to gain insight into the
problem through a survey of the philosophical, ethical, environmental,
and socio-economic issues surrounding the treatment of animals and the
allocation of natural and human resources by contemporary agribusiness;
and second, to take the initial steps toward becoming agents of transformation
by workshopping an array of concrete approaches to addressing these problems
(e.g., supporting community sustainable agriculture, cooking and eating
lower on the food chain, exploring vegetarianism, animal rights advocacy,
etc.).
III. Course Objectives
Objective One: To investigate the question of how human
beings should understand and relate to non-human animals, and to do so
explicitly in view of the problems (especially that of animal suffering
due to factory farming) which confront our current cultural paradigm of
viewing animals as mere instruments for human ends.
Objective Two: To provide resources for and to inspire
interest in the cultivation of more compassionate and ecologically responsible
lifestyles by considering an array of strategies for transforming the social
practices that cause the above referenced problems.
Objective Three: To function as a community of
support for one another as we think through the advantages and drawbacks
of attempting to put these strategies into practice in our own lives.
Objective Four: To raise the visibility of these issues
here at Calvin College by laying the groundwork for a new student organization
that will promote the causes of animal welfare and community sustainable
agriculture.
Objective Five: To discern the possibilities and the
challenges that these issues present for thinking and living in Christian
community.
IV. Requirements and Grade Assessment
Credit for this course is assigned on a pass/fail (i.e., “satisfactory”
or “unsatisfactory”) basis. Final grades will be based on your fulfillment
of the following two requirements.
Course Journal—50% Each of you will keep a folder of TYPED responses to short writing
assignments that I will circulate in class and by e-mail. Please bring
your journal to class every day, as your responses will provide the basis
for class discussion and small group work. I reserve the right to “spot-check”
journals at any time, though I am not likely to do so as long as the quality
of class discussion remains high. At the end of the interim, I will collect
and grade your journals.
Participation—50% To earn a passing grade in this course, each of you must attend
class regularly, participate in class discussions and field trips, and
make a sincere effort to respect, support, and challenge your colleagues.
Since some of us are naturally inclined to verbal participation and others
of us are not, frequency of verbal input isn’t always the most reliable
indicator of who is involved; it is perfectly possible, in other words,
to participate vigorously without speaking up a whole lot in class. My
aim is to foster a classroom environment in which different people with
different learning styles may flourish equally, and that means I never
put people on the spot and I strive to include as many people in the discussion
as can be persuaded to get involved. The more tightly-knit our classroom
community, the more progress we are likely to make together (both academically
and personally), so please be attentive to your colleagues’ different learning
styles and comfort levels.
V. Course Calendar
The following course calendar is tentative, and we will likely nip
and tuck the schedule somewhat frequently as we move along. Please note
that our discussions of the main topic on any given day will routinely
carry over into the next session’s proceedings.
Course Introduction
W. Jan. 5 Reading Day
Th. Jan. 6 A Case for Christian Stewardship of the Animal Kingdom
Reading: Robert Wennberg, God, Humans, and
Animals: “Preface” (xi-xiv), “Animal Advocacy in the Christian Tradition”
(1-28), and “Christianity, The Bible, and Animal Concern” (285-308).
F. Jan. 7 Sentimental Education: The Wonders of Animal Intellect
and Emotion
Reading: Wennberg, “What are Animals Like?”
(84-118); Stephen Webb, “What are Dogs For?” (handout); Raimond Gaita,
“Friends and Companions” (handout).
Media: “A Conversation with Koko”; selections
from Nature’s “Animal Minds”; selections from “The Emotional World of Farm
Animals”.
M. Jan. 10 A Change in Perception: Enlarging Our Moral Universe
Reading: Wennberg, chapters 2-3 (29-83); Tom
Regan, Empty Cages: Facing the Challenge of Animal Rights, chapters
1-2 (9-34).
Media: “The Witness: A Tribe of Heart Documentary”
T. Jan. 11 Factory Farming and the Problem of Animal Suffering
Reading: Wennberg, “A Case Study: Factory Farming”
(224-253); Tom Regan, Empty Cages: Facing the Challenge of Animal Rights:
“Turning Animals into Food” (87-106); Peter Singer, Animal Liberation:
“Down on the Factory Farm” (95-157).
Media: “Meet Your Meat” (People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals); “Modern Industrial Agriculture: The Cruelty Behind
the Cellophane” (An Educational Film by Mylan Engel, NIU); “Peaceable Kingdom:
A Tribe of Heart Documentary”.
W. Jan. 12 Moral Standing for Animals: Philosophical Arguments
Reading: Wennberg, “Animals and the World of
Moral Theory” (119-151) and “More on Animals and the World of Moral Theory”
(152-179).
Th. Jan. 13 Philosophical Arguments, continued.
Reading: Regan, “Human Rights” (37-52) and “Animal
Rights” (53-74); Singer, “All animals are equal…” (1-23), “A Short History
of Speciesism” (185-212), and “Speciesism Today” (213-248);
Wennberg, “Respecting Animal Life” (180-199) and “A Special Moral Status
for Humans” (200-223).
F. Jan. 14 Other Problematic Industries and Factory Farming Fallout
Reading: Regan, chapters 7-10 (“Turning Animals
into Clothes, Performers, Competitors, Tools”, 107-177); Singer, “Tools
for Research” (26-94); selections from Mason and Singer, Animal Factories:
“Hidden Costs of Running the Factory”, “Factory Agribusiness” (handout).
Media: “Animal Exploitation in the Clothing,
Entertainment, and Consumer Product Research Industries” (People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals)
M. Jan. 17 Workshop on Community Sustainable Agriculture Guest Speaker: Anja Mast of Trillium Haven
Farms
Media: “Global Banquet: The Politics of Food”
T. Jan. 18 Visit to Trillium Haven Farms
Reading: Michael Pollan, “An Animal’s Place”
(handout); Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, “Splendor from the Grass” (handout);
Mark Purdey, “The (Vegan Ecological) Wasteland” (handout).
W. Jan. 19 Responsible Eating: Traditional, Conditional, Vegetarian,
or Vegan?
Reading: Wennberg, “Moral Vegetarianism: Some
Brief Comments” (195-198), On “Conditional Vegetarianism” and Non-Vegetarian
Alternatives (241-253); Singer, “Becoming a Vegetarian” (159-183); relevant
passages from readings for January 18th (see above).
Media: “Taking on the Chicken Farms: Washington
D.C.’s Miyun Park”—A Korean Broadcasting System Documentary on the Founder
of “Compassion over Killing” (COK).
Th. Jan. 20 Making a Difference in Michigan: The Many Faces of Local
Activism
Panel Discussion Participants: Tom Cary (Specialist
on Sustainable Food and Ag. Systems and Local Economies, Western Michigan
Environmental Action Council); Brian Chisholm (Dairy Farmer, Infinity Farms
(Steve’n’Sons, LLC), Coopersville, MI); Gail Philbin and Karen Tracey (Co-Founders,
“United for Justice”, Grand Rapids, MI); Jamie Sherman (Owner, Healthy
Path Grocery Store, Grand Rapids, MI); Jeff Smith (Director,
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy, MI).
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Concerned Citizens of Hartford, MI 49057 Page designed 19 February 2005 Russian lacquer box art courtesy of Russian
Sunbirds <><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
