What should you focus your time and attention on if you want your life to be more meaningful? Should philosophy be put in the service of action? Or is the main role of philosophy to feed our contemplative sides? Today we consider one proposal — the good life is one dedicated to justice and action on behalf of the good.
Read This:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail: Engage in Active Nonviolence
Key Concepts:
- Civil disobedience
- “Nonviolent gadflies”
Have questions or thoughts about the reading? Post them on PollEverywhere, and upvote any classmates’ responses that you’d like to cover in class. We’ll address the most upvoted responses during the Q&A part of class.
Do This:
- Complete your Apology essay by December 8.
- Complete your dialogue feedback survey by December 14.
- Reminder: If you would like to submit a “Living the Good Life” reflection on a prompt from the Meaning unit (“Choose Your Meaning” through “Reflect On Your Death”), the last day to do so is December 13.
Pre-Class Questions
Your responses to the following questions are due on Canvas before class. Your top 15 scores of the semester will count toward your final grade.
- In your own words, explain what Dr. King means when he says that “an unjust law is no law at all”. King states three conditions for a law to be unjust. Choose one of these to explain in your own words, and give an example that illustrates it, other than laws upholding segregation. (Your example can be real or hypothetical.)
- In your view, under what circumstances (if any) is lawbreaking an acceptable form of activism? Are there ever circumstances where any form of violence is acceptable in activism? Explain your reasoning.
