Kafka/Sartre Readings

POINTS: Up to 70 
DUE: Thursday, December 1 through 8 (earlier the better)
Length: 5-7 pages  


READ:  Joseph Kafka: The Trial 
(best to have a book to thumb through, but it's also online at:

Kafka's The Trial - Project Gutenberg

Also read Jean Paul Sartre's short play: The Flies
(Available in "No Exit and Three Other Plays" on amazon or in the
library)

For those who are a bit behind in points, I've upped the ante on this
final project so you can catch up. It will be work, but there are also
lots of points.

For an extra 30 points, read Albert Camus' short essay, "The Myth of
Sisyphus and include him in the outline below).       
You can by the entire book (cheap; paperback) which has lots of great
background information, or download the essay:
   http://stripe.colorado.edu/~morristo/sisyphus.html

Then, in your paper, think about these (or any other) issues:

1) Is our social world mysterious with forces beyond our control?

2) What is the role of "human freedom" in confronting the dilemmas of life,
including social injustice?

3) Does human agency (ie, action) have any effect, or is it all futile?

4) Is there such a thing as redemption? (think about CRASH)

You can use THIS CHART to guide you

We will draw on this for much of the last two weeks, so even if you don't
do the exercise, google the authors for a sense of what they're saying.

Go to jt's class homepage