Philosophy of Love

Order Description

Phil 284, Spring 2015???????? Prof. Meyer
Instructions for the Fourth Paper Assignment
The fourth paper assignment of the semester is on the contrast between agape and eros in Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. A hardcopy should be handed in at the beginning of class on Thursday, May 7. Papers must be no longer than 1000 words, double-spaced, stapled, and in 10 or 12pt font. Please include a title and a word count (typed) at the end of the paper. Deviations from these requirements will be penalized. Proper grammar is presupposed, and points will be deducted for any of the nine grammar mistakes listed on the back of this handout. To avoid any problems that might occur, it is advised that you submit your paper well before the deadline. Late papers will receive an “F”.
Address one of the following prompts in your paper:
(1) Provide a detailed account of Kierkegaard’s attempt, in Works of Love, to distinguish between Christian love (agape) and what he calls pagan friendship and erotic love (eros). Conclude the paper by mounting an argument against some aspect(s) of Kierkegaard’s view, e.g., his sharp distinction between eros and agape, his critique of selfishness, etc.
(2) Provide a detailed account Nietzsche’s claim, in works such as Beyond Good and Evil and On the Genealogy of Morals, that Christian love (agape) is a really sick, needy, and vengeful form of a selfish will to power (eros). Conclude the paper by mounting an argument against some aspect(s) of Nietzsche’s views.
For a good paper, I strongly suggest that you begin with an introduction that (1) introduces the topic of the paper and (2) announces, in the form of a thesis, the general view that you’ll support in your paper. Each of the following paragraphs should then be directly related to the main thesis. The paper should attempt to answer the question directly and succinctly, and so any extraneous or tangential ideas should be eliminated.
The use of footnotes and outside secondary sources is neither required nor expected for this exercise. However, I strongly encourage you to cite specific textual evidence to support the points you make. For Kierkegaard, simply cite the page number of the book. For Nietzsche, use an abbreviation of the title of the work (BGE for Beyond Good and Evil; GM for On the Genealogy of Morals) along with a section number, e.g., BGE 269 or GM I 13 (the “I” stands for the first essay; 13 for the section number). Due to the brevity of the paper, quotations should be used sparingly and lengthy quotations should be avoided. Finally, avoid any improper use of “I” in the paper, e.g., “I think” or “I believe.” I will be available during office hours and by appointment to discuss your paper and any questions you may have. Good luck!

Grammar Mistakes That Will Be Penalized (2 Points for Each Mistake)

1. Apostrophes and Possessives:
No: Platos philosophy is idealistic.
Yes: Plato’s philosophy is idealistic.

2. It’s and its (or worse, its’):
No: Its a shame that Socrates was found guilty.
Yes: It’s a shame that Socrates was found guilty.
No: Give everything it’s due.
Yes: Give everything its due.

3. They’re, their, and there:
No: Do you think their going to kill Socrates?
Yes: Do you think they’re going to kill Socrates?

4. Whose and who’s:
No: Whose playing tonight?
Yes: Who’s playing tonight?
No: Who’s book is this?
Yes: Whose book is this?

5. You’re and your:
No: Remember to defend you’re argument.
Yes: Remember to defend your argument.
No: Your right about the changes.
Yes: You’re right about the changes.

6. Then and than:
No: Socrates knew more then Euthyphro.
Yes: Socrates knew more than Euthyphro.
No: Socrates than went to jail.
Yes: Then Socrates when to jail.

7. Two, too, and to:
No: I have to much stuff two do.
Yes: I have too much stuff to do.
8. Comma Splice: This is when you have two main clauses connected by a comma.
No: Socrates came to the party early, Mary left very late.
Yes: Replace with a period: Socrates came to the party early. Mary left very late.
Yes: Add a conjunction: Socrates came to the party early, but Mary left very late.
Yes: Replace with a semicolon: Socrates came to the party early; Mary left very late.

9. Punctuation of Titles: In academic papers, be sure to italicize all book titles and place “quotation marks” around the titles of articles and essays.