UH 300 Section 010: Sem:Heroes of Faith & Justice
Fall, 2010
3 Credit Hours
Primary Instructor: Thomas Herwig
Core Designation: University Honors, Writing
By appointment
This course introduces three distinguished symbolic figures for the commitment to faith, peace and justice and the specific context of the conflicts with which they are associated. While the name of M. K. Gandhi is connected to the decolonization of India, D. Bonhoeffer was a prophetic figure within the resistance against National Socialism in Germany. M. L. King Jr. symbolizes the fight for equal rights of the African American minority in the USA. These men represent three continents (Asia, Europe, America), two religions (Christianity and Hinduism), and one vision (freedom). Finally, they shared the fate of becoming martyrs because of their call to speak out the truth and to encourage others not to reconcile themselves to unjust conditions.
History, biography, political ideas, religion, philosophy, ethics and spirituality, will be objectives of the discussion that might help the participants to understand the structure of specific oppression and to reflect upon different ways to overcome it.
Mohandas K. Gandhi was raised in a prosperous Indian family during the second half of the 19th Century. He began his professional career as a lawyer in South Africa, where he worked to secure rights for Indian laborers in that country. After his return to India, Gandhi became a leader in the struggle against British rule using the technique of nonviolent resistance (satyagraha), which he had developed in South Africa to bring about Indian independence.
As a young theologian and pastor in Germany during the Nazi era, Dietrich Bonhoeffer made various plans to visit Gandhi and to learn about his nonviolent philosophy. Bonhoeffer developed an ecumenical ethics of peace, which was connected to Gandhi’s thought on the joint basis of their appreciation of the New Testament Sermon on the Mount. The special conditions in Germany under Hitler convinced him eventually to take part in the conspiracy circles planning to assassinate the dictator. He died in a concentration camp in 1945 four weeks before WW II ended.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was also greatly influenced by Gandhi. He adopted Gandhi’s
philosophy and methods of nonviolence in the struggle for civil rights in the US.
We will read biographical writings about each of these people, as well as selected texts written by them. Films will provide a supplement to the readings (e. g. Richard Attenborough's Gandhi; Bonhoeffer. Pastor-Pacifist-Nazi Resister, doc. Film by M.Doblmeier; Martin Luther King Jr., King. History Documentary NBC News 2008).
A. Written Assignments
There are three types of writing assignments for this class.
1] Book report or topic introduction
The book reports and topical introductions have to be submitted online to the students and to the instructor a day before the class in question. The internal distribution of work lies with the preparatory groups. The grading is related to the group achievement. Book reports and topical introductions performed by the preparatory groups in class should not exceed two written pages or 15 minutes in the classroom. The work group provides at least three questions to start the discussion. I really recommend really to met at least once a week for discussion of the issues in class (even if the group is not in charge to lead a class meeting!).
2] Prospectus
This one or two-page TYPED assignment should describe: 1) what you plan to do for the final essay; 2) how and why you decided upon this particular topic; 3) why this topic matters to you personally; 4) what resources you intend to use (if any) in addition to the assigned texts; and
5) what aspects of the assigned texts will be most helpful to you as you prepare your essay.
6) The prospectus has to include a structure (1., 2. 3…). But the students are free to choose APA or MLA. The prospectus is due on April …
3] The Final Research Paper
This 7-10 page TYPED paper (pure text!) is your response to issues, ideas, problems, solutions, etc. that the course materials present to you. The essay should develop out of your individual research and focus in different ways on the life and writings of Gandhi, Bonhoeffer, or King. The final essay is due on December …… .
B. General Notes on Written Work
* All writing should be TYPED and double spaced.
* Recommended fonts include Courier, Palatino, Times, Bookman, and Century Schoolbook.
* Type size should be 10, 11, or 12.
* Margins on the paper should be 1 to 1 1/2 inches on the sides and 1 inch at the top and bottom.
* A cover sheet should be stapled with the body of your paper. It should contain the following information:
1) title of paper
2) your name
3) the date
4) the course name and number
5) the instructor
For example, in the middle of the page:
"Shepherds and Kings":
‘The contribution of Gandhi’s Life, Bonhoeffer's Death and King’s Preaching to contemporary Christmas rites on the background of the hymn ‘Silent Night’”
and in the lower right corner of the page:
Mary Josephs
December 24, 2009
UH 300-027
Dr. Herwig
* Papers with more than six spelling or grammar errors will be returned for revision prior to evaluation. Please use the spell check function on the computer and review your work to make certain that properly spelled words are in fact the words you intend to use (for example: be careful about the difference between "there" and "their" or "its" and "it's").
* Papers with major construction problems will be returned for revision prior to evaluation. At the very least, make certain that your sentences are complete sentences and that they express only one complete thought. There should be no run-on sentences.
Louis Fischer, Gandhi, His Life and Message for the World (1954), New York City: Penguin Books (1982), ISBN 9780451627421. (recommended to purchase)
The Penguin Gandhi Reader, ed., Rudrangshu Mukherjee, ISBN 0140236866 .
(recommended to purchase)
Renate Wind (transl., J. Bowden), A Spoke in the Wheel, Grand Rapids, MI, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (1992), ISBN-10: 0802806325, ISBN-13: 978-0802806321
(recommended to purchase).
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, A Testament to Freedom, ed., Geoffrey B. Kelly and F. Burton Nelson, ISBN 0060642149. (recommended to purchase)
Clayborne Carson (Ed.), The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr., Warner Books (1998), ISBN: 9780446676502. (recommended to purchase)
Martin Luther King, Jr., A Testament of Hope, ed. by James M. Washington, Harper San Francisco (1991), ISBN 0060646918. (recommended to purchase)
J. Deotis Roberts, Bonhoeffer & King. Speaking Truth to Power, Westminster John Knox Press (2005), ISBN: 0664226523.
This interdisciplinary seminar for undergraduate students within the program of the University of Alabama Honors College is limited to 15 participants. Each participant is expected to contribute actively to the on-going in-class conversation. Oral participation will count as 25% of the grade. The students will be divided into three workgroups, which will be responsible for the preparation and leadership of certain sessions. Topical introductions and book reports will be graded as a group achievement and will make up 25%. Written work will include a prospectus for the final paper, which will count for 10%. The final essay of no fewer than seven pages will make up 40% of the grade. The paper will be about to demonstrate a familiarity with the general theme of the seminar and its primary texts. It also shows a first scholarly approach to the topic of the student’s choice.
Attendance at all class meetings is mandatory. All absences from class must be excused absences. After two unexcused absences, the student's final grade will be reduced one half grade for each additional absence. Use email to announce your absence – if possible in advance! If you know—or even suspect—that you probably cannot honor the attendance commitment, do not take this class!
Punctuality is a matter of courtesy toward your classroom colleagues (and also your instructor!). Those arriving after the roll is called will be marked late for class. For the purposes of calculating class attendance and participation, two late arrivals will count as one (unexcused!) absence. Of course, it is always better to have been late for class than not to have attended class at all! To say it clearly: presence takes precedence over courtesy.
I suppose there is no difference of opinion: Academic honesty is expected of all students.
Week 1
08/18 Introduction to the Syllabus, Introduction of Class Participants,
Group Formation (Who we are and what we know), class readings
08/20 Social Justice – Non-violence – Civil Disobedience - Spirituality
(Gen. Approach)
Week 2
08/23 Basics of Hinduism
08/25 Gandhi (read Fischer, p. 7-49)
08/27 Gandhi Film I
Week 3
08/30 Gandhi (read Fischer, p. 50-93)
09/01 Gandhi Film II
09/03 Gandhi (read Fischer, p. 93-145)
Week 4
09/06 Class dismissed – Labor Day
09/08 Gandhi Film III
09/10 Gandhi (read Fischer, p. 145-189)
Week 5
09/13 Gandhi Film IV
09/15 Gandhi (read Gandhi, Hindu-Muslim Unity, Partition & Independence,
in: Penguin Reader, p. 257-283, electr. res.)
09/17 Gandhi Review
Week 6
09/20 Biblical Reflection: “The Sermon on the Mount” (The Bible, Matthew 5-7)
09/22 Bonhoeffer (First Approach)
09/24 Bonhoeffer (read Wind, p. 1-55)
Week 7
09/27 Bonhoeffer Documentary I
09/29 Bonhoeffer (read Wind, p. 56-98)
10/01 Bonhoeffer Documentary II
Week 8
10/04 Bonhoeffer (read Wind, p. 99-138)
10/06 Bonhoeffer Documentary III
10/08 Bonhoeffer (read Wind, p. 139-180)
Week 9
10/11 Bonhoeffer (read Bonhoeffer, A Testament of Freedom, p. 491-513, electr. res.)
10/13 Bonhoeffer Review
10/15 Theoretical Reflection (read Henry D. Thoreau, On Civil Disobedience,
electr. res.)
Week 10
10/18 Martin Luther King Jr. (Gen. Approach)
10/20 Martin Luther King Jr. (read Carson, p. 1-99)
10/22 Martin Luther King Jr. Documentary I
Week 11
10/25 Martin Luther King Jr. (read Carson, p. 100-204)
10/27 Martin Luther King Jr. Documentary II
10/29 Class Dismissed – Mid-Semester Break
Week 12
11/01 Class Dismissed – Herwig at AAR
11/03 Martin Luther King Jr. (read Carson, pp. 205-296)
11/05 Martin Luther King Jr. Documentary III
Week 13
11/08 Martin Luther King Jr. (read Carson, pp. 297-366)
11/10 King Review – Prospectus due!
11/12 Relations: Gandhi-Bonhoeffer-King (read Roberts, pp. 61-71)
Week 14
11/15 Review on the Situation in Germany today
11/17 Review on the Situation in the US today
11/19 Reserve
Week 15
11/22 Study time
11/24 Class dismissed - Thanksgiving
11/26 Class dismissed - Thanksgiving
Week 16
11/29 Research Presentations - Final Papers due!
12/01 cont. Research Presentations
12/03 Course Evaluation – Feed Back
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The Academic Misconduct Disciplinary Policy will be followed in the event of academic misconduct.
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