southampton

Module overview

Reading the works of Friedrich Nietzsche is both exciting and troubling. He sets out to undermine the basis of many of our beliefs about values. Christianity, he believed, has had a powerfully negative effect on the potential of human beings. His method of ‘genealogy’ seeks to reveal the origins of our present-day values and make us question them. What are our values, and what should they be, if we no longer believe in God? Is morality good for us, or does it stifle great achievements? Why do we hold the values we do? What do our cherished beliefs in the values of compassion, equality, and safety from harm tell us about our own psychology? Are we under illusions about our own identity and freedom? This module will explore these issues through close readings of Nietzsche’s seminal works, On the Genealogy of Morals and Beyond Good and Evil.

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

the concepts and arguments that he draws upon.
how those concepts and arguments relate to issues in other areas of philosophy, for instance to issues in ethics, metaphysics and epistemology.
the central problems that Nietzsche claims to have diagnosed.

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Take notes from talks and written materials.
Undertake, with adequate supervision, independent work, including identifying and using appropriate resources.
Work effectively to deadlines.
Extract key information from complex texts.

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Interpret, synthesise and criticise complex texts and positions.
Present and debate ideas in writing, in an open minded and rigorous way.

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include

Lectures.
In-class discussion.
Individual consultation with the module co-ordinator during office hours or by appointment.

Learning methods include:

Attending lectures and taking notes.
Participating in class discussion.
Meeting with the module co-ordinator.
Doing research for and writing textual commentaries.
Independent study and revision for exams.

Study time
Type	Hours
Preparation for scheduled sessions	30
Follow-up work	20
Lecture	33
Tutorial	2
Wider reading or practice	25
Completion of assessment task	40
Total study time	150

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Friedrich Nietzsche. Beyond Good and Evil.

Friedrich Nietzsche. On the Genealogy of Morals.

Michael Tanner (1994). Nietzsche. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

David Owen (2007). Nietzsche’s ‘Genealogy of Morality’. London: Acumen.

Brian Leiter (2002). Nietzsche on Morality. London: Routledge.

Assessment

Assessment strategy

For MA students taking this module, expectations will be significantly higher than those for year 3 undergraduate students attending the same lectures, and the assessment criteria will accordingly by stricter. In particular students will be required to demonstrate extremely high levels of detailed and accurate exposition, critical engagement, organisation and presentation, with scholarship that draws on appropriate primary literature.

Formative

This is how we’ll give you feedback as you are learning. It is not a formal test or exam.

Business case or Essay plan

Assessment Type: Formative
Feedback: Written feedback on plan. Verbal feedback in tutorial with module coordinator.
Final Assessment: No
Group Work: No

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Essay	100%

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Resubmit assessments	100%

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External

Nietzsche