262. The Morality and Fate of Forbidden Knowledge
This course will investigate the perplexing ethical questions raised by the Renaissance shift in attitude toward the Faust legend. The flirtation with forbidden knowledge will be studied by drawing on religious, mythological, literary, philosophical and scientific texts. Taking recent developments in genetic engineering as a case in point, we will ask to what extent the pursuit of knowledge can enhance or be damaging to human experience.
(Tessa Lee)