4ASN3: Illustrative Samples Essay

Surname, first name

1st paragraph - illustrate the sample scenario.  Sample scenario should be factual.  Include the link to the source.
2nd paragraph - explain what is it a sample of. Eg. Specific concept, theory or method.

4ASN2: Illustrative Samples Essay

Surname, first name

1st paragraph - illustrate the sample scenario.  Sample scenario should be factual.  Include the link to the source.
2nd paragraph - explain what is it a sample of. Eg. Specific concept, theory or method.

Pol 264: Les Miserables Lyrics List

1. Prologue
2. Valjean's Soliloquy
3. At the End of the Day
4. I Dreamed a Dream
5. Lovely Ladies
6. The Confrontation
7. Look Down
8. Stars
9. ABC Cafe / Red and Black
10. Do You Hear the People Sing
11. Dog Eats Dog
12. Javert's Suicide
13. The Wedding Chorale
14. Finale / Epilogue

POL 264 - Online Lecture (Thursday - Feb 15, 2018)

History as they say is written by the victor.  And in politics, being a constant struggle of power between political actors, right and wrong is relative to interpretation.  But just because one can speak an opinion, it doesn't mean that any opinion is right.  There are only reasoned and unreasonable opinions.  In such a way, written ideas require a certain accurate way of understanding.

The Essence of Hermeneutics

The study of analyzing political thought requires the process of hermeneutics.  My own professor in the UST Graduate School, etymologically explained the word hermeneutics as having the root word "Hermes," the name of the messenger of the gods in Greek mythology (Hornedo, 2013).  This is so because hermeneutics as a process was first used to interpret sacred texts, particularly the Bible.  Hence as Hermes was the one who brought the words of the Olympians to man, so was hermeneutics the process for man to better receive the meaning of the divine words.

Sacred texts were always linked with philosophical ideas, with theology being one of the branches of philosophy.  The ideas of the great thinkers, when written sometimes require a proper way of interpretation in order to decode it.  Hermeneutics doesn't have to be locked on interpreting sacred texts, or political philosophy, it can be used to decode or interpret human action, and human culture.

One example was a lesson from a different professor of mine.  This one explained the story of the judgment of the serpent in paradise.

God's judgment said: "as punishment, you shall henceforth crawl on your belly and eat dust all your life."

We all know that the snake crawls on its belly.  But does that mean because it crawls, it eats dust?  What is the meaning of "to eat dust" for the serpent?

To interpret, one must go back to the time of Adam's creation.  Man, particularly "corpus" the human body (in contrast to "anima" the soul) was made of dust.  

Hence, the serpent can attempt to continue to attempt to ensnare man, but the only thing that it can devour is the body, which dies, and not the soul.

The Process of Hermeneutics

The analysis of hermeneutics is a process.  Reading is not analysis, but a component of analysis.  When one reads, one simply understands written statements.  Analysis requires other components to help in reading in order to arrive at a proper interpretation.

1. Reading is the first part to interpretation.  Reading lets the reader know what's in the text.  It is the beginning of understanding.  
2. Aside from it, there is also rereading of the text.  Not simply because the first will not yield immediate understanding.  But also because there are details that the reader can miss at first reading.
3. What the reader has come to know, the reader can now cross reference with other texts.
4. Aside from texts, the reader has to know the background or context of the writer, and the background of the written material.  Take for example, Thomas Hobbes and John Locke.  Both are social contract thinkers, but the first lived in a time of war, and the other lived in a time of relative peace.  Hence, each has a different version of the origin of the social contract.
5. An important component is the use of language.  That is why foreign languages are taught in college, and PhD students are required another set of foreign language.  It is better to interpret the ideas of the writer as written in the language of the original printing.  A researcher who uses interpretive method, but does not know the language of the writer has a research limitation on translation.  And will have to depend on the translation of others.
6. An unlikely element is the experiential element of text.  Text should not be confined to letters, words, and sentences.  The material can also be conveying, or existing in, a particularly set of emotions and images.
7. All these previous components should help the reader arrive at an abstract image.  Called a paradigm - a mental image of an idea  This is the interpreted thought.
8. But it does not end there.  The text must again be reread in order to validate the accuracy of interpretation.

Hermeneutic Application

Aside from Pol 264 as being a course in the sub-discipline of political thought, the writings, even the way Rizal lived is a rich ocean of ideas for hermeneutic analysis.  As one of the Philippine national heroes (Take note that I say one of, there is no single Philippine National Hero, this will be discussed in another lecture.) his life can be considered both as a paragon and an object of scrutiny.  

Heroes are in essence ideals from which citizens are to model themselves from.  Paragons are ideas made flesh.  Take for example the statue of Athena below

http://minerva.union.edu/wareht/gkcultur/guide/10/

Athena is herself a paragon of wisdom in the field of war.  If this image is a text, what she holds on her right palm is a key to what she is.  Another paragon - this one is the statue of the goddess Nike, personification of victory.  She is in the minds of the Greeks, victory incarnate.  The very name of the goddes (Nike) itself is the word for victory.  And Athena holds her, showing that it is Athena's wisdom which leads to victory in war.

Rizal as a hero do not simply has heroic qualities.  But certain things that he did in life also become part of what makes him what he is.  Also, do we simply accept Rizal as a hero?  One of the questions I initially raised at the beginning of class was, is he a Nationalist or an Assimilationist?  So which one is he?  And does being either credit or discredit him as a Philippine national hero?

Not just what he did, but also what he thought of.  The wisdom that Rizal passes to us from his time to our time are not simply norms.  Rather, a true political analyst will also know the process of how such a great thinker arrived at his thoughts.

4Eco2 - Documentary Group Posting

One member of each group, please post the group topic and members list [alphabetical, (surname, first name)] through the comment box of this post.  Deadline is 12noon Wednesday, February 21, 2018.

4Eco1 - Documentary Group Posting

One member of each group, please post the group topic and members list [alphabetical, (surname, first name)] through the comment box of this post.  Deadline is 12noon Monday, February 19, 2018.

Political Economics: - Finals OBE

The Link below contains the class list for each of the two sections of 4Economics, along with it will be the Rubric of grading for the Final period OBE.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1m1iM8CzTXg9RN0aSmYl00xj8hVYhkn3_?usp=sharing

Task

Each section should divide itself into four groups.  The class lists are in the google drive folder link above.  4Eco1 as estimated will have 13 members per group except for one group which will have to be 14.  4Eco2 will have approx 14 members per group.

The task is to be able to create a documentary with you as speakers in that documentary.  No you will not assume fictitious roles.  In this documentary, you are fourth year economics majors.  If there is a need for authoritative source, you will quote them and cite them.  Imagine writing a paper, but instead of writing, you are speaking it in discourse.

Each group will choose a current issue in the country or internationally on which political-economic analysis can be applied.  In terms of content, group has three tasks: first to present a brief of what the issue is about.   Second to explain the method or theory through which the issue can be solved.  And Third, to argue their analysis of the issue.

Length of video is 11 - 13 minutes from the opening to the credits part.

Please see the rubrics in the google drive.  The rubrics contain what I expect for a perfect score.  Total score is 80pts for this activity, again the rubric shows the breakdown.

Expected outcome is to show 1) reasoning capacity, 2) analysis based on founded theory or framework, and 3) present ideas in a coherent way.

Format of submitted materials:

Submitted in an mp4 or other easily read video format.  Only soft copy submitted in class on the day determined for submission.  Filenamed with the groups’ topic.  Video accompanied by an excel file with the names of members.

No video hard copies on any disk.  Instead, prepare a half short-bond sized (8 ½ x 11) advertising for the documentary.  Mimic a movie poster ad. Contains the title, list of members, and appropriate picture.

As a reminder: students commit the mistake of making a documentary which is simply an interview of a resource person.  That's considered a failed documentary since it's not a documentary but a video of an interview.

Migration - Day 2 PPT

https://drive.google.com/file/d/13fyLsYavq7uVFuzVwJTB2V9RmMVTuye6/view?usp=sharing

Pol 264: Les Miserables song list

1. Prologue
2. Valjean's Soliloquy
3. At the End of the Day
4. I Dreamed a Dream
5. Lovely Ladies
6. The Confrontation
7. Look Down
8. Stars
9. ABC Cafe / Red and Black
10. Do You Hear the People Sing
11. Dog Eats Dog
12. Javert's Suicide
13. The Wedding Chorale
14. Epilogue

Topic Readings - Reference: Notes on Political Economics (Lopez, 2015)

Normative Political Economics

1. The politics of friendship... p. 238
2. Castigating political dynamics... p. 280
3. Gov't should take radical measures to crub crime... p. 329

Economics of Power

1. Smorgasbord power and economic downturn... p.35
2. Economic slump, another look into pork... p. 141
3. Dearth or monopoly of power... p. 224
4. Defining a good leader... p. 233

Propaganda and the Political Economic Capital of Reputation

1. It's the impeachment, people... p. 244
2. Post impeachment scenario... p. 247
3. Our economic waterloo and myths of surveys... p. 29
4. The morning after... p. 39
5. Business of social media... p. 158

Institutional Dynamics

1. The fight vs. corruption compromises economic growth... p. 15
2. Brillantes is testing the waters... p. 230
3. Certainly not about the SONA... p. 260
4. Cybercrime Act... p. 269
5. 'Vote wisely and intelligently... p. 285
6. Realities of Philippine oligarchy... p. 333
7. So what id DAP is unconstitutional... p. 340
8. DAP, savior or omen... p. 

Social Justice

1. Inaccessible benefits of economic growth... p. 57
2. Peace and order and selective application of law... p. 277
3. Discrimination in Philippine education... p. 337

Public Good of Crime Security and the Law

1. Legalizing the 'illegal,'... p. 25
2. Securing the securities and realities of crime growth... p. 54

International Political Economics and the International Political System

1. APEC and the myth of Globalization... p. 63
2. Economic and political sovereignty... p. 107
3. The politics of the ASEAN economic integration... p. 240
4. Are you going to Scarborough Fair?... p. 252

War

1. Economics of war... p. 113
2. China's economic militarization... p. 129