CHID 110 A: The Question of Human Nature

"THE PROBLEM OF IMAGINATION: AESTHETIC EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY" (VLPA) IN THE OFT-REFERENCED BUT RARELY READ 9/11 COMMISSION REPORT WE FIND A STARTLING CONCLUSION IN THE FINDINGS OF THE COMMITTEE TASKED WITH CRITICAL EVALUATION OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE LEAD-UP TO THE CATASTROPHE. NAMELY, THAT THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP WAS A "FAILURE OF IMAGINATION." THIS COURSE EXPLORES SOME HISTORICAL IDEAS OF WHAT IT MEANS TO SUFFER A FAILURE OF IMAGINATION, HIGHLIGHTING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF ARTWORKS AND THE CRITICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE IMAGINATION AS A HUMAN CAPACITY GENERALLY FOR MAKING SENSE OF AND ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS OF OUR CURRENT MOMENT, ONE CHARACTERIZED BY POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC IMPERATIVES TO "RE-IMAGINE" JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING.