Module 4 Discussion

** 1 day extension on all discussion board posts this week **

Everyone

One reply is due by Thursday (100-350 words, 5 points)

Discussion Leaders: 

Answer one of the prompts below. Then post two replies . 

• Your answer is due by Tuesday (150-400 words, 10 points)
• Two replies are due by Thursday (100-350 words, 5 points each). 

To see which discussions you are leading (and to sign up), go to Collaborations and complete the google document there. 

Discussion Board Grading Criteria

Initial posts and replies earning most or full points will do all or most of the following:

1. Timing
1. Be on time or early so others can reply and engage in conversation.
2. Content
1. Add something new to the conversation
2. Be meaningful and substantial (quality matters, not quantity)*
3. Give complete answers to the Discussion Prompt (for initial posts)
4. State facts that are true. Present accurate description of others’ views
3. Logic & Reasoning-  Includes one of the types of comments listed AND says what kind of comment it is:
   • Clarification question
   • Clarification of someone else's argument or terms (such as an example or story)
   • Reasons to support a claim
   • Objection
   • Response OR
   • Application
4. Tone & Style
1. Use respectful and kind language
2. Clearly explain which part of a post you are replying to (for replies)
3. Acknowledge other people’s ideas
4. Cite sources when you can. (Ideas you get from the reading should mention the reading. Include page numbers if you can, but due to time constraints this isn’t necessary. Ideas you get from an online websearch should mention which pages you visited. Ideas you get from fellow students should mention those students.)

*Ideas on how to make your post meaningful:

• Share your own personal or professional experience to add insight to the conversation
• Describe how the lectures have changed your mind in important ways
• Make connections between several different posts and build on the conversation
• Incorporate a moral framework 
• Incorporate the reading
• Object to claims made in other posts, or respond to objections
• Mention the details of the examples under discussion and explain how these details are relevant
• Connect with material from previous Modules, or other classes you have taken

For more details and grading criteria, see Discussion Board Guidelines for Phil 122 

Prompts

Prompt 1

In this module, we will explore the following questions:

1. Is there earth here for human benefit? Or is it valuable independently of us? (Sylvan)
2. Are we caretakers of the earth? Or merely one group of many participants/inhabitants?
3. Are human actions “natural” by definition and therefore always “good”? Or does the morality depend on whether the actions sustain the biotic community? (Leopold)
4. Does human presence increase the stability of the biotic community, or destroy it? (or: "increase the value of the land")
5. Are our actions small, puny, and insignificant? Or, like ants, do our small actions add up to big changes, even changes we cannot control?

Pick one of these questions to discuss. How might John Locke answer that question? Be sure to include either direct quotes from Locke, or paraphrase passages from his writings. Include complete citations. How does Locke’s answer compare with answers from some of the previous authors we have discussed? (Pick one author to briefly compare with, such as Aldo Leopold, Peter Singer, Tom Regan, Holmes Rolston, or Baird Callicott). Finally, what is your answer the question you chose? Do you agree with Locke? The other author? Neither?

 Source: John Locke 1690.  “The Second Treatise of Civil Government Links to an external site.” Chapter V. Of Property. Sec. 25 - 34

Prompt 2

People often talk about wilderness using phrases like “there’s nothing there.” This is just a figure of speech, but let's explore what it might mean. For this prompt, think of a time when you (or someone around you) referred to an area without humans in it using phrases like “empty,” “there’s nothing there,” or “nobody lives there.” Briefly describe the area you were talking about. What do you think was meant by those comments? (Think in terms of the ideas we have been discussing: who is a moral patient? What kind of value do animals and land have, intrinsic, instrumental, or systemic? etc.). Briefly, what did those comments mean with regard to this question: “Does human presence and activity increase the value of a space/land/natural area, or does human presence and activity make that area less valuable?” What is your answer that question about human presence? (Optional: Is it true that no humans live, or have lived, there in the land you were referring to?)

Prompt 3

Ramachandra Guha offers a scathing critique of Deep Ecology and other American (U.S.) environmental philosophies. In particular, Guha argues that creating distinct wilderness areas separate from humans is harmful. According to Guha, why is it harmful and to whom? Guha also praises the German Green movement. According to Guha, what are the German Greens doing right?

Source: Guha, R. (1994). Radical American Environmentalism and Wilderness Preservation: A Third World Critique, Pierce/van Dever. (See Canvas Files)

Prompt 4

Building on Ramachandra Guha’s critique of wilderness, Walter Cronan discuss the “central paradox” of wilderness. What is this paradox and why is it a problem, according to Cronan? (Cronan pg. 17). Cronan writes, “If wilderness can stop being (just) out there and start being (also) in here, if it can start being as humane as it is natural, then perhaps we can get on with the unending task of struggling to live rightly in the world — not just in the garden, not just in the wilderness, but in the home that encompasses them both.” (Cronan pg 25). What does he mean by this? Do you agree? 

Source: Cronon, W. (1996). "The Trouble with Wilderness or getting back to the wrong nature Links to an external site.” . Environmental History, 1(1), 7-28.