What is the Good Life?

 As you just learned, in the Humanities we ask questions about living a human life. There might be no bigger question than this: "What is a good life?" Our entire class is really about this question. 

Is a good life about being healthy? Does it have to do with wealth or status? What is it we really want out of life? 

Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, famously explored this question in a work entitled Nichomachean Ethics. Aristotle's answer (translated from Ancient Greek to English) is that the good life is about the following:

"Activity of the soul in accordance with perfect virtue."

Hmm...what does that mean? To get us started thinking about the good life and what Aristotle might have meant, I'd like you to do the assignment below.

Assignment: 5-Year Goals

What do you want your life to look like in five years? Take a moment and write down at least one specific, realistic, yet optimistic goal for each of the following dimensions of your life:

Financial/Career/Education

Romantic/Social Life

Family

Physical/Psychological Well-Being

Contribution to Your Local or Global Community.

For full credit, you must respond with at least one sentence ("In five years, I'd like .......") to each of the five dimensions listed above. That comes out to a 5-sentence-minimum total response. :-)

What is the Good Life?

As you just learned, in the Humanities we ask questions about living a human life. There might be no bigger question than this: "What is a good life?" Our entire class is really about this question. 

Is a good life about being healthy? Does it have to do with wealth or status? What is it we really want out of life? 

Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, famously explored this question in a work entitled Nichomachean Ethics. Aristotle's answer (translated from Ancient Greek to English) is that the good life is about the following:

"Activity of the soul in accordance with perfect virtue."

Hmm...what does that mean? To get us started thinking about the good life and what Aristotle might have meant, I'd like you to do the assignment below.

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Assignment: 5-Year Goals

What do you want your life to look like in five years? Take a moment and write down at least one specific, realistic, yet optimistic goal for each of the following dimensions of your life:

1. Financial/Career/Education
2. Romantic/Social Life
3. Family
4. Physical/Psychological Well-Being
5. Contribution to Your Local or Global Community.

For full credit, you must respond with at least one sentence ("In five years, I'd like .......") to each of the five dimensions listed above. That comes out to a 5-sentence-minimum total response. :-)

As you just learned, in the Humanities we ask questions about living a human life. There might be no bigger question than this: "What is a good life?" Our entire class is really about this question. 

Is a good life about being healthy? Does it have to do with wealth or status? What is it we really want out of life? 

Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, famously explored this question in a work entitled Nichomachean Ethics. Aristotle's answer (translated from Ancient Greek to English) is that the good life is about the following:

"Activity of the soul in accordance with perfect virtue."

Hmm...what does that mean? To get us started thinking about the good life and what Aristotle might have meant, I'd like you to do the assignment below.

Assignment: 5-Year Goals

What do you want your life to look like in five years? Take a moment and write down at least one specific, realistic, yet optimistic goal for each of the following dimensions of your life:

Financial/Career/Education

Romantic/Social Life

Family

Physical/Psychological Well-Being

Contribution to Your Local or Global Community.

For full credit, you must respond with at least one sentence ("In five years, I'd like .......") to each of the five dimensions listed above. That comes out to a 5-sentence-minimum total response. :-)

is the Good Life?

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As you just learned, in the Humanities we ask questions about living a human life. There might be no bigger question than this: "What is a good life?" Our entire class is really about this question. 

Is a good life about being healthy? Does it have to do with wealth or status? What is it we really want out of life? 

Ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle, famously explored this question in a work entitled Nichomachean Ethics. Aristotle's answer (translated from Ancient Greek to English) is that the good life is about the following:

"Activity of the soul in accordance with perfect virtue."

Hmm...what does that mean? To get us started thinking about the good life and what Aristotle might have meant, I'd like you to do the assignment below.

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Assignment: 5-Year Goals

What do you want your life to look like in five years? Take a moment and write down at least one specific, realistic, yet optimistic goal for each of the following dimensions of your life:

1. Financial/Career/Education
2. Romantic/Social Life
3. Family
4. Physical/Psychological Well-Being
5. Contribution to Your Local or Global Community.

For full credit, you must respond with at least one sentence ("In five years, I'd like .......") to each of the five dimensions listed above. That comes out to a 5-sentence-minimum total response. :-)

What are the Humanities? An introduction to the Humanities

Where Are We Going?

During this first week of the term, you will learn how our course works (Orientation Module), get a sense for what we do in a Humanities course in creativity, and get a sense for how some people have described the human condition.

By the end of the week you will be able to answer the following questions:

What are the Humanities?

Who is Aristotle and what did he think about how to live a good life?

What does creativity have to do with living a good life?

What does the Garden of Eden story say about creativity & a good life?

What is the difference between values and virtues?

Who was Plato and how does he describe what it means to be human?

Let's get started by watching this week's overview video to answer that first, fundamental questions: What are the Humanities? Then, be sure to complete the Weekly Overview assignment at the end of this page.

Planning Ahead

Here's what's on your plate this week:

• A FlipGrid assignment that requires you to submit an initial post no later than Wednesday @ 11:59 PM and a reply to a classmate's post no later than Sunday @ 11:59 PM.
• Several reading assignments and lectures to complete ASAP, before our first in-class meeting.
• A quiz that needs to be completed no later than Wednesday @ 11:59 PM. 
• Attend our in-person class on Thursday in ADM 101 (12:30 PM - 2:45 PM).
• Complete your Week 1 Review by Sunday @ 11:59 PM.

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Assignment

What was the most interesting, inspiring, or intriguing thing you learned about the Humanities from the overview video above?

Enter your 3-sentence minimum response by clicking on the "submit" button.

What you will learn?

 Lecture of Professor G (Humanity Class)

course Overview

An introduction to the study of creativity in human life; its sources, development, social purpose, and role in culture change. Students analyze creativity as a central source of meaning and purpose in their lives as well as a development of their unique combination of human intelligences. Lives of creative people from all over the world are examined and contextualized. This course builds commitment to civic and moral responsibility for diverse, equitable, healthy and sustainable communities. Students engage themselves as members of larger social fabrics and develop the abilities and motivation to take informed action for change.

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Student Learning Outcomes

• Student Learning Outcome: Students synthesize their critical thinking, imaginative, cooperative, and empathetic abilities as whole persons in order to contextualize knowledge, interpret and communicate meaning, and cultivate their capacity for personal, as well as social change.
• Student Learning Outcome: Cultivate and demonstrate an awareness of the power of creativity and the potential of the creative process through direct involvement.

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Course Goals

1. Students will have been exposed to a broad, cross-disciplined approach to creativity by exploring this topic through the lens of neuroscience, psychology, business, art, spirituality, and by examining real-world examples of creative individuals.
2. Compared the difference between critical and creative thinking and examined how the two complementary cognitive faculties can be implemented for optimal living.
3. Through lecture, discussion, improvisational activities, games, and self-reflection, students will have further exercised their innate creative thinking skills and gained knowledge of psychological obstacles inherent within the creative process.
4. Students will have learned how the latest research into creativity advocates the need for a greater sense of play, a sense of humor, and provides greater reason to appreciate mythology, poetry, and religious practices.

By the end of the course students, will have developed a greater comprehension of the significance of creativity in maintaining a healthy society and in accessing a more meaningful life.

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Click "Next" to continue to the next page of this Orientation Module. -->

 

How Will You Learn?

 (Lecture of Professor G- Humanity Class) 

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Hybrid Course?

In a hybrid course you will be learning both online and in the classroom.

• Online: You'll begin most of your learning outside of our classroom through readings, recorded lecture videos, and online discussions on Canvas. Be sure to do required all readings, lectures and activities before their due date so that you are prepared for our live class sessions.
• In-Class: We all meet together at the end of each week to help each other make sense of what you've been learning by doing activities, watching movies, working on projects, and incorporating what you've learned online with new material.

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Weekly Flow of the Course

Our Canvas course is designed for you to go through each page of each module sequentially. There is usually no skipping or jumping past pages.

Here's a breakdown of important days of the week in our course:

1. Wednesday: All online readings, lectures, quizzes, and activities are due by Wednesday. I encourage you to do your work earlier in the week!
2. Thursday: Complete all of the above so you are prepared to participate in our live in-class meeting on Thursday.
3. Sunday: You will have projects, exams, and weekly reviews to complete before the end of Sunday.

*Note: If you have trouble opening an assignment, it's probably because you skipped past some earlier pages. You must go through each page of each module in order.

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Many Methods of Learning

We each have our own preferred ways of learning. Some of us learn best by reading on our own, while others learn best by working with others. Some us learn best by listening or watching, while others learn best by discussing or actively doing.

In an attempt to appeal to how you learn best, our class is designed with several methods of learning in mind. You can see the various methods of teaching I'll be using in class in the table below.

1. Feature Films (2)	2. Recorded Video Lectures	3. Live Lectures
4. FlipGrid Reflections	5. In-Class Activities/Games	6. "You Choose" Reviews
7. Readings	8. Office Hours	9. Assignment Feedback
10. Group Projects	11. Student Presentations

 

Many method of learning

 Lecture of Professor G 

Many Methods of Learning

We each have our own preferred ways of learning. Some of us learn best by reading on our own, while others learn best by working with others. Some us learn best by listening or watching, while others learn best by discussing or actively doing.

In an attempt to appeal to how you learn best, our class is designed with several methods of learning in mind. You can see the various methods of teaching I'll be using in class in the table below.

1. Feature Films (2)	2. Recorded Video Lectures	3. Live Lectures
4. FlipGrid Reflections	5. In-Class Activities/Games	6. "You Choose" Reviews
7. Readings	8. Office Hours	9. Assignment Feedback
10. Group Projects	11. Student Presentations

1. Be sure to complete the Orientation Module.

 The first week of the term can be a little crazy, so here are some gentle reminders on what you should do ASAP.

1. Be sure to complete the Orientation Module. As part of this module, you will see that you should turn on your Canvas "Announcements" notifications. Moving forward in our class, almost all of my messages to our class with be sent out as an announcement.

2. Be sure to start the Week 1 Module. You have several assignments due before Wednesday night.

 Get started on them as soon as you can so that you're all be complete them all before we meet on Thursday. 

Also, I will be dropping students who are not active on our Canvas Course within the first week. 

So, best to be active and be ahead!

Everything else you need to know is on my Welcome email sent last week (also found in my previous Canvas announcement).

I hope this gentle reminder (along with last week's Welcome email) helps you have a great start to our class. Good luck! And don't forget to have fun. :-)