Course Title：比较认知传统

This course offers a thematic approach to comparative philosophy, structured into three units. Each unit focuses on a central philosophical question, analyzed through the perspectives of two or three philosophers representing distinct historical and cultural contexts. Students will engage with key excerpts and chapters from seminal texts and complete assignments designed to strengthen their communication, critical thinking, and argumentative skills. This is a reading-intensive, discussion-oriented course. Unit 1 investigates the interplay between civic duty and individual responsibility. The guiding question is: How does an individual balance personal needs and wants with responsibilities toward the state? Texts include Plato's Republic and Socrates’ Crito. Unit 2 explores leadership through the lens of the question: Which philosophy of leadership is most applicable to contemporary society? Philosophers under study are Confucius (Analects) and Niccolò Machiavelli (The Prince). Unit 3 examines the power and limitations of single narratives in shaping perceptions of individuals, cultures, and societies. The central question is: How do single narratives influence our understanding of the world, and what are the consequences of relying on them? Students will explore Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk, The Danger of a Single Story, as a foundational text, analyzing its arguments about the risks of reductive storytelling. Complementary readings may include excerpts from Edward Said's Orientalism to examine how dominant narratives have historically shaped cultural perceptions. Class discussions will aim to foster a nuanced understanding of each unit's central questions and the comparative insights of the featured philosophers. Contemporary case studies and examples from students’ own societies and cultures will contextualize philosophical concepts, enabling connections between theoretical frameworks and real-world applications. Students will gain disciplinary knowledge of each thinker and develop skills for critical comparative analysis.