Home For The Day But...

Usually on a Wednesday I'd be down in Brisbane attending my Lecture and Tutorial for PHIL2400: Ethics and the Passions, but not today.  Today I have off as this week is the Easter Holidays/Mid Term Break.  However, far from having a relaxing day to myself I'm head high in assessment!

Next Thursday I have a piece of assessment due for ABT31: Comparative Indigenous Studies.  This is a short Essay of 1500 words and is worth 30% of the total grade.  The assessment details are:
In Module One of the Online Study Guide you will find a range of different studies comparing the histories and contemporary situations of Indigenous peoples from North America, Australia and New Zealand.  Drawing upon this material, the Online Study Guide, and any other relevant material that you select, outline the nature of the field of Indigenous Studies and explain how the methodological issues involved in undertaking such comparative studies should be addressed.
(You should illustrate your essay with references to the various examples of comparative studies to which you have referred in your reading).

The following day, Friday, I have two pieces of assessment due.  The first, or I should say the one I'm writing first, is actually quite simple.  It's for PHI350 and is a film review of only 500 words.  I've requested from my T.A. that I just analyse a scene of a film as 500 words is quite limiting to analyse an entire film.  My T.A. agreed so that was a relief.  I'll be looking at a scene from Buster Keaton's The General, although I haven't decided upon a particular scene as of yet.

On the same day I have an essay due for REL22: Buddhist Meditation Traditions.  This is another 1500 word essay and is worth 25% of the overall grade.  The essay title is 'Write and (sic.) explination of the term "meditation" and discuss the relationship between meditation, prayer and ritual'.  This shouldn't be too difficult either as the lectures for this course have been very well structured.  The only issue that I think will face other students is their limited access to resources.  The text for this course, while being very easy to read, is of a very basic level and should students wish to look deeper in to any of the issues raised they may find it quite difficult to find texts to help.

The Following Friday I have a 1500 word essay due for PHIL2400: Ethics and the Passions.  This essay is worth 30% of the final grade and I get to choose from the following topics:
Critically discuss Aristotle's conception of the role of the passions in a virtuous life.
Does Seneca give an adequate account of the relations between the passions, emotions, and ethics?
How does Helouise's understanding of love affect the 'ethics of intention' and her view of Abelard's obligations?
Is Descartes right to argue that the virtue of generosity is 'the key to all the other virtues and a general remedy for all the disorders of the passions'? (The Passions of the Soul, article 161)
I think that I'll go with Aristotle as I covered him in my tutorial paper.  I would have gone with Descartes but we don't have the Descartes lacture/tutorial until next week therefore not leaving much time to get the essay done.

Further to this I've also been elected Chair of a Student Representative Committee helping organise an Undergraduate Humanities Conference at Macquarie University later in the year.  This has given me a little more wirk than I expected, but I'm not complaining.  I'd really like to see this conference go ahead and I'm looking forward to being a part of it.

Lastly, I'm working on a new website for a community organisation, the Bhaktivedanta Benevolent Association Incorporated.  I've installed and conigured a content management system for them and modified a generic theme to suit.  What I'm working on now is populating the database with the relevant data and having it all link up nicely.  You can see the work in progress at http://www.bbainc.org.au.

Ok then, time to get back to it all.  First up, REL22: Buddhist Meditation Traditions lecture revision!