FSS:ENSb1299 Basic texts of environment. - Course Information

ENSb1299 Basic texts of environmentalism

Extent and Intensity

0/2/0. 2 credit(s). Recommended Type of Completion: zk (examination). Other types of completion: z (credit).

Teacher(s)

Mgr. et Mgr. Ľuboš Slovák (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Bohuslav Binka, Ph.D. (lecturer)

Guaranteed by

doc. Mgr. Bohuslav Binka, Ph.D.
Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Kateřina Hendrychová
Supplier department: Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies

Timetable of Seminar Groups

ENSb1299/01: Mon 10:00–11:40 P22, Ľ. Slovák
ENSb1299/02: Mon 14:00–15:40 U32, Ľ. Slovák

Prerequisites

! ENS299 Basic texts of environmentalis &&!NOW( ENS299 Basic texts of environmentalis )&&TYP_STUDIA(B)
Basic knowledge of the history of environmentalism at the level of knowledge gained in ENSb1300 History of nature conservation and the environmental movement.
Ability to read academic texts in Czech and English.

Course Enrolment Limitations

The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with

there are 8 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display

Course objectives

The course has two main objectives:
- to acquaint the students with some of the main branches of mostly environmental philosophy and ethics and their "founders" or other important thinkers by reading of texts fundamental to the emergence and shaping of environmental thought;
- to cultivate critical thinking, (self)reflection, ability to discuss and argue one's views through writing reflective accounts of the read texts and through class discussions;

Secondary objectives are to give an overview of the development of environmental thinking (esp. philosophy and ethics) from approx. half of 19th century to present time, introduce some of the main themes (value of individuals, ecosystems and non-human nature in general, causes and solutions to environmental problems, question of what nature means, social construction of nature, anthropocene, etc.) and to deepen the understanding of philosophical context of environmental problems.

Learning outcomes

After finishing this course, the student will:
- be able to critically read and reflect on theoretical environmental texts (comparable to the ones read in the course in complexity);
- be able to formulate and argue for her attitudes and views on the topics discussed in the course;
- have basic knowledge of selected authors and texts, be able to sum-up key ideas of the texts read in the course and put them into the particular context of their authors' work and general context of the environmental thought;
- be able to apply selected approaches to theoretical reflection of environmental themes to today's problems, real-life situations and to other issues encountered during the study.

Syllabus

• Introduction
• Rights of animal and other beings (Peter Singer, Tom Regan)
• Biocentrism and ecocentrism (Albert Schweitzer, Paul Taylor, Aldo Leopold)
• Searching for root causes of environmental problems
• Root causes - religion (Lynn White, jr.)
• Root causes - věda (Carolyn Merchant, David Abram)
• Root causes - individualization and alienation from the world (deep ecology) (Arne Naess, Pat Fleming, Joanna Macy, John Seed)
• Root causes - opression among humans (ekofeminismus, sociální ekologie) (Ynestra King, Murray Bookchin)
• Nature, culture and the Age of humans
• Wilderness and wildness (Henry David Thoreau, Gary Snyder)
• The end of nature (Bill McKibben)
• Great or dar Anthropocene? (ekomodernisté, Chris Smaje)

Literature

recommended literature
• JAMES, Simon P. Environmental philosophy : an introduction. First published. Malden: Polity, 2015, viii, 182. ISBN 9780745645476. info
• KOHÁK, Erazim. Zelená svatozář : kapitoly z ekologické etiky. 2., přeprac. vyd. Praha: Sociologické nakladatelství, 2000, 204 s. ISBN 8085850869. info
• BRENNAN, Andrew and Y. S. LO. Understanding environmental philosophy. First published. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2010, vi, 234. ISBN 9781844652013. info
• A companion to environmental philosophy. Edited by Dale Jamieson. First published. Malden: Blackwell publishers, 2001, xvi, 531. ISBN 1557869103. info
• KOLÁŘSKÝ, Rudolf, Igor MÍCHAL and Erazim KOHÁK. Závod s časem : texty z morální ekologie. Edited by Dagmar Nárožníková. Vyd. 1. Praha: Torst, 1996, 228 s. ISBN 808563970X. info
• THOREAU, Henry David. Chůze. Translated by Jaroslava Novotná Kočová. Praha: Dokořán, 2010, 102 s. ISBN 9788073633172. info
• THOREAU, Henry David. Toulky přírodou. Translated by Jan Hokeš. Vyd. v tomto souboru a přek. Praha: Paseka, 2010, 213 s. ISBN 9788074320385. info
• LEOPOLD, Aldo. Obrázky z chatrče a rozmanité poznámky. Edited by Robert Finch, Illustrated by Charles W. Schwartz. Vyd. 1. Tulčík: Abies, 1999, 269 s. ISBN 8088699134. info
• SEED, John, Joanna MACY, Pat FLEMING and Arne NÆSS. Myslet jako hora : shromáždění všech bytostí. Translated by Jiří Holuša, Illustrated by Dailan Pugh. Vydanie prvé. Prešov: Nadácia Zelená nádej, 1993, 144 stran. ISBN 8088699010. info
• ABRAM, David. Procitnutí do živé země. Edited by Jiří Zemánek, Translated by Michaela Melechovská. 1. vyd. Nymburk: OPS, 2008, 166 s. ISBN 9788090377394. info

Teaching methods

Reading, writing of reflections of the reading, class discussion.

Assessment methods

For each seminar class it is mandatory to read one of the given texts and to actively engage in classroom discussion. Alternatively a written reflection of the text may be submitted.
For each seminar a student can get 1 point - either for active engagement in discussion or for the written reflection
For successful completion of the course it is required to have at least 9 point out of 12. Those who have 7 or 8 points might gain the missing points by a larger substitute task (e.g. writing an essay).

Language of instruction

Czech

Further comments (probably available only in Czech)

Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Kurz se otevírá při 5 a více přihlášených studentech.

• Enrolment Statistics (recent)
  
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