http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/history/lives-remembered/2016/02/27/werner-coppel-death-march-and-lived-tell/81032162/
‘Son of Saul,’ Kierkegaard and the Holocaust -
NYTimes.com
Monday, February 29, 2016
Current Events March
Obituary for Cincinnati's Werner Coppel, survived a Holocaust death march - Cincinnati.com
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/history/lives-remembered/2016/02/27/werner-coppel-death-march-and-lived-tell/81032162/
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/history/lives-remembered/2016/02/27/werner-coppel-death-march-and-lived-tell/81032162/
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Follow up from 17 Feb class (by 26 Feb)
Follow-up from Barry Chpts 4 & 5 and Capt. Peters' visit by picking 1 question from each category below.
Guest
Guest
- Did Capt Peters say anything that provoked you or made you wonder? What was that?
- Does death limit the possibilities of good that one could have experienced if her life had continued, doesn't it also limit the bad possibilities? Isn't that a good result for death?
- Can what you don't know hurt you? For example, is cheating on your spouse bad in itself, or only if it is discovered and causes harm?
- What are your life projects? Do you believe that having a prudent fer of death can help you make good decisions and finish those projects or do you think that having a fear of death can hold you back in life?
- Comment on this final paragraph in chpt 4, p. 80: "To the degree that we can approach the fact of our own mortality, and successfully integrate it into our lives, we are more of less free. The reason, it's worth repeating, is that entertaining thoughts of our mortality helps us live more consciously and thus avoid living the unexamined, counterfeit life of an Ivan Ilyich. In concentrating the mind, death helps us to live as we should, not merely as we are supposed to, so that when our times comes to die, we depart, not without regrets necessarily, but with the right ones."
- Do we have bodies? And minds? And souls? Explain. If there are 2 or even 3 separate substances which compose a human, how do they interact?
- Do souls exist? If our souls existed in a pre-life, then what about an afterlife? What happens to our souls when we die?
- Do we change substantially if we lose our memories? Is memory essential to personal identity?
- How are the Matrix films related to Descartes?
Ancient Philosophers (21 & 26 Feb)
What have you learned about the Ancients from your videos, readings, podcasts, and discussions? Are their questions still relevant? What's the value of studying the Ancient philosophers?
Initial post from the podcasts due Sunday 21 Feb; concluding wrap-up post due by Friday 26 Feb.
Initial post from the podcasts due Sunday 21 Feb; concluding wrap-up post due by Friday 26 Feb.
Aristotle video & review (by Thurs 25 Feb)
Post your link and description of some podcast/video on Aristotle. In a follow-up post, give your 5 sentence review of the podcast/video. Don't duplicate videos. If you can't find a video that doesn't duplicate your classmate, write two reviews.
Plato videos & reviews (Weds 24Feb16)
Post your link and description of some podcast/video on Plato. In a follow-up post, give your 5 sentence review of the podcast/video. Don't duplicate videos. If you can't find a video that doesn't duplicate your classmate, write two reviews. By Weds 24Feb16 @ 3:00pm
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Existentials (12 Feb)
In Barry's Chapter 3, we read about the Existentials. Who were/are they and what do they believe? Do you find their position attractive? Why or why not? Do their works help you understand death better? Explain.
Thursday, February 4, 2016
TED Talks on Death
Look what I found (thanks to Fr. Twaddell)
https://www.ted.com/topics/death
a whole series of TED talks on death. You are welcome!
https://www.ted.com/topics/death
a whole series of TED talks on death. You are welcome!
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
update: my late friend, Catherine
Monday 8 Feb
Dear Students,
Thank you for your prayers and kind thoughts. I have bad news to share:
Catherine did not survive lung transplant surgery last Thursday. There will be a visitation for her Wednesday night and a funeral Mass Thursday morning. It is dreadfully sad. Here's her obituary:
http://www.rohdefuneral.com/home/index.cfm/obituaries/view/fh_id/12403/id/3593251 You could ask me about it in class, but I'll probably cry...
(Because I'll go to the visitation on Wednesday, I won't be able to go to the religious liberty lecture that night. You are still encouraged to go for extra credit -- I'll ask my colleagues for a simple question for you to answer to earn your +2 points.)
Be well,
Dr. Cate
Did I say at the beginning of the term that we just never know when dying or death will appear in our lives? I have a story to share with you here because I wouldn't be able to talk about it in class without freaking you out with tears.
My college pal, Catherine, has cystic fibrosis (CF). I didn't actually know this until recently. She's not my closest college friend, but I do keep up with her on Facebook and see her around town at events like the Opening Day Parade or theater performances. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband, Mike, and their two kids. They are sweet, happy, generous, beautiful people. Catherine has be going into the hospital more and more frequently over the last 18 months for breathing treatments. This summer I saw her at a 4th of July parade she was wearing oxygen.
Last week she went back into the hospital and has, more or less, been unconscious since about Thursday. I think that some of that is deliberate because she can't waste what oxygen is getting to her system. On Friday she was moved to Duke University hospital, where she was put on an ECMO machine. Here's an explanation about ECMO (although it is written for parents of sick children): http://www.gosh.nhs.uk/medical-information-0/procedures-and-treatments/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-ecmo
Catherine is waiting for a lung transplant. This morning's (Wednesday's) news is that donor lungs are now available, and that they are not high risk lungs, which they had agreed to take in case that was the only option. This is great news. It has been a very long weekend for Catherine, her family and friends. I think we've all been very scared that donor lungs won't become available, or that if they do, the surgery won't work, or she won't recover, or .... The other good news is that there are very many people who are pulling for her and are willing to help with whatever is needed (e.g., bringing food to her kids, who are being watched by her sister). There are a lot of people who are supporting her husband, even if it is just through Facebook messages. Like this huge parade of people are cheering them on, remaining hopeful, working behind the scenes to keep life as normal as possible for the kids.
She is definitely still alive, even if she's unconscious. Her lungs are so fragile that it might be hard to remove them. She seems to be in this in-between spot, anchored by all the love of her family and friends, but working against biology. Clearly, she could die, but I think she also has a very good chance of making it through the surgery and continuing her life. Maybe not as actively, but maybe better, after all better breathing must make for better quality of life, right?! (Those details are not available to me -- I'm not that close to her family and it would be inappropriate to ask).
I wanted to say to you that you should try to live your life like Catherine, so that if you have an emergency, people will stand in line to accompany you on your journey, wherever that goes. Now that I've told you, you'll know what is going on if I get choked up in class. If you are so inclined, I'm sure Catherine would appreciate your prayers. Hopefully we'll have news today that the surgery was successful.
Dr. Cate
Dear Students,
Thank you for your prayers and kind thoughts. I have bad news to share:
Catherine did not survive lung transplant surgery last Thursday. There will be a visitation for her Wednesday night and a funeral Mass Thursday morning. It is dreadfully sad. Here's her obituary:
http://www.rohdefuneral.com/home/index.cfm/obituaries/view/fh_id/12403/id/3593251 You could ask me about it in class, but I'll probably cry...
(Because I'll go to the visitation on Wednesday, I won't be able to go to the religious liberty lecture that night. You are still encouraged to go for extra credit -- I'll ask my colleagues for a simple question for you to answer to earn your +2 points.)
Be well,
Dr. Cate
Did I say at the beginning of the term that we just never know when dying or death will appear in our lives? I have a story to share with you here because I wouldn't be able to talk about it in class without freaking you out with tears.
My college pal, Catherine, has cystic fibrosis (CF). I didn't actually know this until recently. She's not my closest college friend, but I do keep up with her on Facebook and see her around town at events like the Opening Day Parade or theater performances. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband, Mike, and their two kids. They are sweet, happy, generous, beautiful people. Catherine has be going into the hospital more and more frequently over the last 18 months for breathing treatments. This summer I saw her at a 4th of July parade she was wearing oxygen.
Last week she went back into the hospital and has, more or less, been unconscious since about Thursday. I think that some of that is deliberate because she can't waste what oxygen is getting to her system. On Friday she was moved to Duke University hospital, where she was put on an ECMO machine. Here's an explanation about ECMO (although it is written for parents of sick children): http://www.gosh.nhs.uk/medical-information-0/procedures-and-treatments/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-ecmo
Catherine is waiting for a lung transplant. This morning's (Wednesday's) news is that donor lungs are now available, and that they are not high risk lungs, which they had agreed to take in case that was the only option. This is great news. It has been a very long weekend for Catherine, her family and friends. I think we've all been very scared that donor lungs won't become available, or that if they do, the surgery won't work, or she won't recover, or .... The other good news is that there are very many people who are pulling for her and are willing to help with whatever is needed (e.g., bringing food to her kids, who are being watched by her sister). There are a lot of people who are supporting her husband, even if it is just through Facebook messages. Like this huge parade of people are cheering them on, remaining hopeful, working behind the scenes to keep life as normal as possible for the kids.
She is definitely still alive, even if she's unconscious. Her lungs are so fragile that it might be hard to remove them. She seems to be in this in-between spot, anchored by all the love of her family and friends, but working against biology. Clearly, she could die, but I think she also has a very good chance of making it through the surgery and continuing her life. Maybe not as actively, but maybe better, after all better breathing must make for better quality of life, right?! (Those details are not available to me -- I'm not that close to her family and it would be inappropriate to ask).
I wanted to say to you that you should try to live your life like Catherine, so that if you have an emergency, people will stand in line to accompany you on your journey, wherever that goes. Now that I've told you, you'll know what is going on if I get choked up in class. If you are so inclined, I'm sure Catherine would appreciate your prayers. Hopefully we'll have news today that the surgery was successful.
Dr. Cate
Monday, February 1, 2016
Buddhism (for 3 Feb)
This week you'll read about Buddhism. What material from the
internet can you find to illuminate some aspect of Buddhism?
Confucianism (for 3 Feb)
This week you'll read about Confucianism. What material from the internet can you find to illuminate some aspect of Confucianism?
Current Events Feb
United Arab Emirates Want to Top the World in Happiness,
Too - NYTimes.com
??? Minister of Happiness?
Diane Rehm writes raw memoir of widowhood
George Washington U. Stops Accepting Donated Cadavers After Losing Track of Body Identities – The Ticker - Blogs - The Chronicle of Higher Education
Essay about the author's friend's death
(you might not be able to access this...)
Access to Palliative Care - NYTimes.com
What Does a Parrot Know About PTSD? - NYTimes.com
I thought this would be interesting to think about human nature, particularly about suffering and healing. Also about the qualities that make us human -- what connects us but what sets us apart from non-human animals?
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