Course Starts on June 3!
Consider the following statements and see if they apply to you:
- You are aware of the news of war, mayhem, and terror on a daily basis, but much of it leaves you feeling confused and overwhelmed.
- You see people on both conventional and social media arguing passionately for one side or another in a conflict, but you aren’t sure how to make up your own mind.
- You are baffled by the savagery of large-scale, organized violence, perpetrated around the world by apparently “civilized” people.
- You don’t want to blindly trust the judgments of news anchors and politicians, but you don’t know how to interpret their opposing claims.
- You wonder whether human beings are naturally aggressive and territorial, and therefore the idea of “world peace” is just a foolish dream.
Do the above statements resonate with you? If the answer is “yes,” you may want to keep reading!
What Students are Saying
What is this Course About?
“Critical Thinking for Violent Times” does not focus on any particular war or conflict. Instead, the course is designed to introduce you to a general framework for interpreting some of the most problematic aspects of our world and of human behavior. Once you have grasped the framework, you will be able to apply it to virtually any armed conflict as well as to a variety of social justice issues. The main purpose of the course is to learn how we can lift some of the veils that prevent us from seeing clearly and, in particular, how to think critically about violence, in the broad sense of the term, so that we may be able to make sense of our otherwise perplexing world.
What’s the Schedule?
“Critical Thinking for Violent Times” is a seven-week, online course consisting of fourteen 75-minute meetings (17.5 hours in total). The class will meet twice a week, first on TUESDAY for a lecture/presentation and then on the following SATURDAY for Q&A/discussion. This format allows the participants sufficient time and opportunity to consider, reflect upon, and process the information, both on their own and with the rest of the group.
Tuesday Lectures: June 3, 10, 17, 24; July 8, 15, 22
Saturday Discussions: June 7, 14, 21, 28; July 12, 19, 26
Classes will take place on Zoom, from 1:00 PM to 2:15 PM, Central Daylight Time. Check below for your local time.
What Can you Expect to Learn?
After completing this course, you will be able to
- Analyze and evaluate the most common types of arguments;
- Explain the importance of clarity and consistency when dealing with contested terms;
- Compare the standard definition of “violence” with three alternative definitions;
- Identify the principal types of violence and their mutual relationship;
- Recognize the cultural and psychological mechanisms that help justify violence;
- Compare the various standard and alternative definitions of “terrorism;”
- Identify the principal types of terrorism and their mutual relationship; and
- Define and explain the concepts of “peace” and “nonviolence.”
What Else is Included in the Course?
To enrich the course and to supplement the presentations, a number of relevant texts (articles and book chapters) will be made available as PDF files, as well as lecture notes and links to audiovisual resources. Your engagement with these resources is encouraged but not required.
Each of the seven lectures/presentations will be recorded and made available to the participants; after each video has been posted, you will have 48 hours to watch it. The Q&A/discussions will not be recorded.
How Much does it Cost?
I use a sliding scale, which means the enrollment fee for this course will vary according to your ability to pay. Choose an amount from the following options:
In case you can’t afford the lowest suggested fee ($75), you may ask for an additional discount:
Course Calendar
Course Outline
Week 1: Learning
🚩 What does it mean to learn something?
🚩 How does learning take place?
🚩 What values and attitudes are most conducive to learning?
🚩 What are main obstacles that can get in the way of learning?
🚩 How can we keep an open mind when discussing controversial topics?
Week 2: Definitions & Arguments
🚩 What is a definition? When do we need to define our terms?
🚩 How can we distinguish a good definition from a bad one?
🚩 What steps are involved in analyzing an argument?
🚩 What is the difference between contraries and contradictories?
Week 3: What, Exactly, is Violence?
🚩 How is the word violence typically understood?
🚩 What are some important alternative definitions of violence?
🚩 What are the pros and cons of these definitions?
🚩 What are the principal types of violence?
Week 4: War, Morality, and Human Nature
🚩 Are human beings violent and aggressive by nature?
🚩 Is the tendency towards war inherent in our biology?
🚩 Under what conditions is war morally justifiable?
🚩 Who decides if a war is just or unjust?
🚩 What is the International Humanitarian Law and why is it relevant?
Week 5: How do They Sleep at Night?
🚩 How do people commit violence without feeling guilt or dissonance?
🚩 How does culture influence individuals’ behavior?
🚩 What psychological mechanisms allow us to violate our own moral standards?
🚩 Why do we believe that humanity can never put an end to war?
Week 6: Terrorism
🚩 Why is terrorism a contested concept?
🚩 What are the standard definitions of terrorism?
🚩 What are some of the alternative definitions of terrorism?
🚩 What are the pros and cons of these definitions?
🚩 What is the ethical difference between just war and terrorism?
Week 7: Peace & Nonviolence
🚩 What is the standard definition of peace?
🚩 What are some of the alternative definitions of peace?
🚩 What is nonviolence? How does it differ from pacifism?
🚩 How is nonviolence related to peace?
🚩 Is the ethic of nonviolence compatible with the use of force?