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Anthropology: In Search of Principles for a Career Philosophy: Lessons from Art and Literature (B00828)

General information

Type:

OP

Curs:

5

Period:

S semester

ECTS Credits:

4 ECTS

Teaching Staff:

Group Teacher Department Language
Marc Vilanova Pichot Ciencias Sociales ENG
Ferran Macipe Catalán Ciencias Sociales ENG

Prerequisites

This course is a continuation of the one of similar spirit called "Anthropology: In Search of Principles for a Life Philosophy: Lessons from Art, History and Economics." The contents, however, are completely different and independent.

Workload distribution

Weekly readings of about 30 minutes followed by a brief, online, written reflection on the reading.

COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO PROGRAM

The purpose of this course is to provide students with a time and a space to acquire useful self-knowledge that can help them make the right career decisions in the early part of their life.

Course Learning Objectives

A time for students to conceive a map of their priorities, strengths and motivations (a career philosophy) on which to base job and professional decisions. Other learning objectives are:
. to learn to extract useful lessons from ideas and experiences
. to encourage the desire to read and to expand one's humanistic knowledge
. to cultivate our appreciation for literature and art
. to have a more clear and refined sense of direction regarding one's career

CONTENT

1. Introduction. Goals and methodology.

2. Bentham and Stuart Mill's utilitarianism

3. Nozick's libertarianism

4. Kant's case for freedom and duty

5. Pannel of guest speakers: Career choices and dilemmas

6. John Rawls' veil of ignorance

7. Aristotle's teleological justice

8. Art and career field trip

9. Map of social traps and pressures

10. Final thoughts and closing ceremony

Relation between Activities and Contents

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Presentation                    
Class commitment as a group: students' assessment                    
Class commitment and participation: professors' assessment                    
Peer evaluation                    

Methodology

A variety of subjects will be explained and discussed, both as a source of knowledge in themselves and, more importantly, as a springboard for another level of learning: to conceive a personal list of priorities, strengths and motivations (a career philosophy) on which to base our professional decisions.

The course offers students a supportive environment in which art plays a crucial role as a tool of learning and self-knowledge.

Each session will be devoted to a specific dimension of a career or job (talent, motivation, contradictions) exemplified through the life and the work of eminent artists. A discussion will ensue to try to extract, with everyone's insight, a lesson or a principle enlightening and useful enough for us to want to remember and include in our "career philosophy." The discussions will be enriched with the ideas obtained from short stories written by some of Literature's classic writers: Chejov, Flaubert, Whitman, Dinesen, Fitzgerald and others.

ASSESSMENT

ASSESSMENT BREAKDOWN

Description %
Presentation 25
Class commitment as a group: students' assessment 25
Class commitment and participation: professors' assessment 25
Peer evaluation 25

Assessment criteria

The evaluation system is designed to assess students' commitment to the course, through a) depth and effort in individual assignments and b) contribution to a class atmosphere in which doubt, experience and reflection are shared.

Bibliography

. Christiansen, Clayton, "How Will You Measure Your Life?, Harvard Business Review, July-August 2010
. Gombrich, E.H., The Story of Art, Phaidon Press, 2006
. Matsuo, T., Saito, Y., Terashima, T. and Fujimoto. T. "Scenario-Based Career Path Decision Support Services in Human Capital Development?, International Journal of Human Capital and Information Technology Professionals, Volume 3, Issue 1, 2012
. Pink, Daniel H., Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Riverhead Books, 2011
. Sandel, Michael, Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2010
. Shumpeter Blog, "Philosopher Kings?, The Economist, Oct 4th 2014
. Xu, Hui and Tracey, Terence J.G., "The Role of Ambiguity Tolerance in Career Decision Making?, Journal of Vocational Behavior 85, pp.18-26, 2014

Timetable and sections

Group Teacher Department
Marc Vilanova Pichot Ciencias Sociales
Ferran Macipe Catalán Ciencias Sociales

Timetable

From 2019/2/5 to 2019/4/23:
Each Tuesday from 11:00 to 14:00. (Except: 2019/3/19 and 2019/4/16)