Answer one of the following prompts with an essay of 6-7 well-developed paragraphs, citing specific evidence from the texts in question for support. 3 - 4 pages.
1. Explain how ideas of individual rights and justice apply and/or do not apply in the works we have read by King, Jefferson, and Freud. How does each author define these two terms and the relation between them?
2. In paragraph four of Chapter III of Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud discusses the proposition that the technological advances of civilization have made people happier. He then gives what he calls the "pessimistic criticism" of this proposition. Compare what Freud says about science and technology to what Bishop says in "Enemies of Promise." How might Freud criticize Bishop's argument? How might Bishop criticize Freud's argument?
3. Compare and contrast Freud and Carter on the origins of conscience, the role of religion, and the principle of ethical action.
4. John Yoo justifies the Bush Administration's policies on so-called enhanced interrogation techniques with technical arguments about the applicability of laws as well as with appeals to general principles beyond or behind the laws. How might Freud critique Yoo's logic? That is, what principles or "laws" of psychoanalysis would Freud see operating in this situation?
5. How would Freud's and King's explanations of the expansion of civil rights differ. What principles would they appeal to in order to explain why this expansion should happen?
6. Consider what Freud says about work as a sublimation of impulses, both as a means for an individual to negotiate the pleasure principle (footnote to paragraph 10 in Chapter II), and as a demand placed upon men by civilization (Chapter IV). Consider especially what Freud says about women and work in paragraph 7 of Chapter IV. Compare Freud's view to what bell hooks and/or Meridel Leseuer say about women and work in "Women and Work" and "Work Makes Life Sweet."
7. What does Freud mean when he writes in Chapter V, paragraph 10: "It is always possible to bind together a certain number of people in love, so long as there are other people left over to receive the manifestations of their aggressiveness"? Do the stories told by Maxine Hong Kingston in "No Name Woman," and Bich Minh Nguyen in "The Good Immigrant Student" support the truth of Freud's idea?