DESCRIPTION:

This course's aim is to investigate the extent to which moral development and the quest for virtue take place within the framework of the human life cycle. Is there a moral dimension to the very notion of a life cycle? Can the virtues be correlated to specific points along that cycle? Aside from readings in virtue theory, we will seek to discern the moral dimension in life narratives and the literary genre of autobiography.

Nurturing Christians in discipleship necessarily means helping persons become better persons within the normative framework of Christian faith and ethics. Moreover, such nurturing entails attention to critical points along the life cycle as Christian moral development unfolds.

Lectures and discussions. Class will meet daily for four-hour sessions for two weeks.

Bateson, Mary Catherine. Full Circles, Overlapping Lives. New York: Ballantine Books, 2000.

Capps, Donald. Deadly Sins and Saving Virtues. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1987.

Erikson, Erik. "Human Strength and the Cycle of Generations." In Insight and Responsibility. New York: Norton and Co., 1964 (out of print but available in libraries).

Gill, David W. Becoming Good: Building Moral Character. Downer's Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 2000.

Kotva, Joseph J., Jr. The Christian Case for Virtue Ethics. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1996.

Roberts, Samuel K. In the Path of Virtue: The African American Moral Tradition. Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, 1999.

Colby, Anne; Jacquelyn James; and Daniel Hart. Competence and Character through Life. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1998.

The readings in Erikson, Capps, and Gill will be discussed during the first week of class and the other books during the second week. Students should complete the readings prior to the week they are due. Each student is required to complete a brief (3-4 page) reflection on Capps (due August 3), Gill (due August 5), Kotva (due August 9) and Bateson (due August 12).

Evaluation of reflection papers will be weighted in the following manner: Synopsis of thesis: 20%; Critical assessment of the argument, noting examples of your disagreement: 40%; How the reading furthered your knowledge of moral development throughout the life cycle: 40%.

A final paper (about 15 pages), due no later than September 3, should evaluate a published autobiography, applying insights gained from the course, with the aim in view of discerning a moral trajectory in that life narrative.

None.

Elective.

None.