You guys should publish recorded lectures online. MIT Opencourseware was a game changer for me in high school, and if you’re doing something different than most universities, I think there are a lot of people who would be interested in them.
The Jewish tradition is foundational for the West. You do not have a singe text from it, or about it?! There are a zillion possibilities!! For a single instance, look at Leon Kass. If you want a superb, super accesible, and delightful short book, look at Reading Ruth. You will instantly learn how non-Greek and non-Roman, and truly Jewish our civilization is at the most fundamental level: family, children, love, loyalty, solidarity, friendship. C’mon people, get it together!
LOL, its an American university and they literally dont even have single element of the political philosophy or economic tradition within it. This list is a heavily European intellectual lineage of certain sorts that runs counter to both the principles and lived realities of the history American political economy. People like Adam Smith and David Hume articulated ideas deeply misaligned with the structure of the American experiment. Hume's political theory denied the legitimacy of popular sovereignty, favoring aristocratic order, and Smith’s Wealth of Nations envisioned a global division of labor that explicitly cast the Americas as permanent agricultural and raw material suppliers, a vision utterly rejected by America’s economic architects both abroad ad domestically, after the lower case "d" democratic revolution of the 1830s, California used democratic governance structures and American political philosophy to openly and peacefully challenge the ideas of men like them in reasoned debate for the right for semi-elf determination and the ability to not have the same development economics applied to them as the Congo has had applied to it for the pat fifty years.
We're lucky Van Buren won in California instead of Smith. Indeed, the Jacksonian, Lincolnian, straight through to even the entirety of the 1930s New Deal Era economies and political economies alike were explicit repudiations of Smithian reasoning and elite coordinated economic central planning ideology. And including writers like Malthus, Mill, and Marx without counterbalancing figures from the American republican or democratic tradition.
Terrific!—if he is the guy profiled at Tikvah. Count: how many heads do you have for instruction in Grecolatin civilization? You need the same number for the other—Jewish — pillar of Western civilization. This is a very long standing debt and here is a unique opportunity to make good on it.
No it is not. You’re an ethno-narcissist who is trying to manipulate reality so that your people are falsely made out as having done what exactly? Invented families, love, loyalty? What a joke. Western civilization is the unique collective product of western peoples.
Thanks, you make my point. UATX does not want to graduate students who are ignorant, and unaware of their ignorance, of the roots of Western civilization. My suggestion to you: go read something.
Yes. As I pointed out in my original post, our understanding of family, love, loyalty, is far more Jewish than it is Greek or Roman. To understand why, read the short book I cited, in its careful reading of a biblical source. (Oh, and in civil discourse: don’t call people names.)
No they didn’t. Jews are highly collectivist, incestuous (cousin-niece marriages are glorified in the Bible) and polygamous. Whereas western peoples are individualist, prohibited or discouraged incestuous practices, and practiced monogamy. Romantic courtly love is a uniquely Western phenomenon that is entirely absent from Jewish culture.
Interesting, but science seems to be a glaring omission in this curriculum. Thinking like a scientist is a useful skill to develop for the scientist and non-scientist alike.
Understanding how nature works seems Ike a fundamental and important question. Understanding why our brains want to solve important questions seems pretty important.
Hmmm, the scientific method is good is far as it goes, and it certainly has made my life more comfortable, but it doesn’t really get at any of the most important questions.
A science is a body of knowledge the parts of which may be subjected to measurement. Science does not purport to deal with the non-material, with first causes. That with which it deals is, however, critically important. Moreover, it disciplines the mind, enabling it to think more profitably in all matters material.
Agreed. Alas, all too often it seems those who embrace a scientific mindset dismiss all to which it does not pertain, those non-material first causes, those things which are beyond measurement, as illusion, self-deception, etc., with tremendously destructive consequences.
Interesting list. I don't know if UATX is open to suggestions from outsiders, so all I can do is try.
I would suggest adding to your roster of speeches "This Is Water!" by David Foster Wallace. As a commencement speech it's both profound and breathtaking in its introduction to the concrete realities no one ever learns in a classroom.
I love the whole idea of Univ of Austin—but there’s no way that all of these (excellent) texts are read in one semester by anybody, much less discussed in a meaningful way. And if they were all read, cover to cover, the experience would be akin to Tom Cruise through the British Museum: you could say that you were there, but did you get to see anything?
Unless—this is the complete list of all options available through coursework to the freshman class. The post implies that each student reads all of these.
In the study of beauty, I miss Aristotle's Poetics, a work which changed my own understanding of all literature and literary beauty, and gave me a way to think about literature in a disciplined way, thus enhancing my appreciation. More basic than Burke. "In all the good Greek of Plato/I lack my roastbeef and potato./ A better man was Aristotle, Pulling steady on the bottle."
Fairly impressive, and a welcome return to the humanities as such.
Any chance UA might have interest in extending a hand to a visiting prof of Chinese intellectual history? Teacher of Daoism, Neo-Confucianism, classical culture, Maoism?
The King James Bible is missing some books. You probably need that, but also the New Revised Standard Version - Catholic would be a beneficial edition. The split back in the days of Luther also came with the removal of some rather crucial texts for Catholics. Just a suggestion.
You guys should publish recorded lectures online. MIT Opencourseware was a game changer for me in high school, and if you’re doing something different than most universities, I think there are a lot of people who would be interested in them.
Great idea!
The Jewish tradition is foundational for the West. You do not have a singe text from it, or about it?! There are a zillion possibilities!! For a single instance, look at Leon Kass. If you want a superb, super accesible, and delightful short book, look at Reading Ruth. You will instantly learn how non-Greek and non-Roman, and truly Jewish our civilization is at the most fundamental level: family, children, love, loyalty, solidarity, friendship. C’mon people, get it together!
LOL, its an American university and they literally dont even have single element of the political philosophy or economic tradition within it. This list is a heavily European intellectual lineage of certain sorts that runs counter to both the principles and lived realities of the history American political economy. People like Adam Smith and David Hume articulated ideas deeply misaligned with the structure of the American experiment. Hume's political theory denied the legitimacy of popular sovereignty, favoring aristocratic order, and Smith’s Wealth of Nations envisioned a global division of labor that explicitly cast the Americas as permanent agricultural and raw material suppliers, a vision utterly rejected by America’s economic architects both abroad ad domestically, after the lower case "d" democratic revolution of the 1830s, California used democratic governance structures and American political philosophy to openly and peacefully challenge the ideas of men like them in reasoned debate for the right for semi-elf determination and the ability to not have the same development economics applied to them as the Congo has had applied to it for the pat fifty years.
We're lucky Van Buren won in California instead of Smith. Indeed, the Jacksonian, Lincolnian, straight through to even the entirety of the 1930s New Deal Era economies and political economies alike were explicit repudiations of Smithian reasoning and elite coordinated economic central planning ideology. And including writers like Malthus, Mill, and Marx without counterbalancing figures from the American republican or democratic tradition.
They just hired an excellent man by the name of JJ Kimche for next year as a professor of philosophy and religion, so I assume this will change.
Terrific!—if he is the guy profiled at Tikvah. Count: how many heads do you have for instruction in Grecolatin civilization? You need the same number for the other—Jewish — pillar of Western civilization. This is a very long standing debt and here is a unique opportunity to make good on it.
No complaints here!
Why not answer the question?
No it is not. You’re an ethno-narcissist who is trying to manipulate reality so that your people are falsely made out as having done what exactly? Invented families, love, loyalty? What a joke. Western civilization is the unique collective product of western peoples.
Thanks, you make my point. UATX does not want to graduate students who are ignorant, and unaware of their ignorance, of the roots of Western civilization. My suggestion to you: go read something.
Why not answer the question? Did Jewish people invent families, love, and loyalty?
Yes. As I pointed out in my original post, our understanding of family, love, loyalty, is far more Jewish than it is Greek or Roman. To understand why, read the short book I cited, in its careful reading of a biblical source. (Oh, and in civil discourse: don’t call people names.)
No they didn’t. Jews are highly collectivist, incestuous (cousin-niece marriages are glorified in the Bible) and polygamous. Whereas western peoples are individualist, prohibited or discouraged incestuous practices, and practiced monogamy. Romantic courtly love is a uniquely Western phenomenon that is entirely absent from Jewish culture.
“Western peoples”? Meaning?
Interesting, but science seems to be a glaring omission in this curriculum. Thinking like a scientist is a useful skill to develop for the scientist and non-scientist alike.
Understanding how nature works seems Ike a fundamental and important question. Understanding why our brains want to solve important questions seems pretty important.
Hmmm, the scientific method is good is far as it goes, and it certainly has made my life more comfortable, but it doesn’t really get at any of the most important questions.
A science is a body of knowledge the parts of which may be subjected to measurement. Science does not purport to deal with the non-material, with first causes. That with which it deals is, however, critically important. Moreover, it disciplines the mind, enabling it to think more profitably in all matters material.
Agreed. Alas, all too often it seems those who embrace a scientific mindset dismiss all to which it does not pertain, those non-material first causes, those things which are beyond measurement, as illusion, self-deception, etc., with tremendously destructive consequences.
I agree wholeheartedly!
Why are you teaching Christianity and Islam with no mention of Judaism?
They just hired an excellent man by the name of JJ Kimche for next year as a professor of philosophy and religion, so I assume this will change.
Interesting list. I don't know if UATX is open to suggestions from outsiders, so all I can do is try.
I would suggest adding to your roster of speeches "This Is Water!" by David Foster Wallace. As a commencement speech it's both profound and breathtaking in its introduction to the concrete realities no one ever learns in a classroom.
My extended discussion is here (this link should get anyone curious past the paywall): https://medium.com/@stevenyates/the-greatest-commencement-speech-ever-e14369b853f6?sk=b27f465674aaaa39c13bf94ca19c0e0c
Excellent read. Thanks!
Thanks!
Thank you for this treasure trove. This is great.
Even for a retired 73 year old, this is a wonderful reading list ! Thank you for posting this on Substack.
Excellent!
I love the whole idea of Univ of Austin—but there’s no way that all of these (excellent) texts are read in one semester by anybody, much less discussed in a meaningful way. And if they were all read, cover to cover, the experience would be akin to Tom Cruise through the British Museum: you could say that you were there, but did you get to see anything?
Unless—this is the complete list of all options available through coursework to the freshman class. The post implies that each student reads all of these.
crypto university, for when you need your scam to advertise another scam
Ex-Adjunct lecturer here in intro to science for gen ed requirements: I highly suggest this long form Lecture by Michael Crichton, M.D., which he presented to Caltech during one of their named lecture series - https://stephenschneider.stanford.edu/Publications/PDF_Papers/Crichton2003.pdf
In the study of beauty, I miss Aristotle's Poetics, a work which changed my own understanding of all literature and literary beauty, and gave me a way to think about literature in a disciplined way, thus enhancing my appreciation. More basic than Burke. "In all the good Greek of Plato/I lack my roastbeef and potato./ A better man was Aristotle, Pulling steady on the bottle."
Fairly impressive, and a welcome return to the humanities as such.
Any chance UA might have interest in extending a hand to a visiting prof of Chinese intellectual history? Teacher of Daoism, Neo-Confucianism, classical culture, Maoism?
Great list! Almost like 100 Great Books a la St. John's in Annapolis!
"Pulling an all nighter" is not a good thing. The brain cannot function properly if it does not get the sleep clean up process.
The King James Bible is missing some books. You probably need that, but also the New Revised Standard Version - Catholic would be a beneficial edition. The split back in the days of Luther also came with the removal of some rather crucial texts for Catholics. Just a suggestion.