Reading Rousseau with Human Nature and Society (JHNS2) Peer Tutor Grey Peters

In this article, the Board of SASS interviews Human Nature and Society (JHNS2) peer tutor Grey Peters. We hope that this article will help current and future Human Nature and Society (JHNS2) students in their academic journey!

When did you take Human Nature and Society (JHNS2), and who was your instructor?

I took JHNS2 last year (2019-20) in 8th grade. My instructor was the wonderful Dr. Hicks, who made many of the topics that were hard to understand much more enjoyable!

What did you enjoy about Human Nature and Society (JHNS2)?

There were so many things to enjoy about JHNS2! Dr. Hick’s enthusiasm for philosophy and wonderful uses of “yikes” combined with an amazing group of students that I have since become great friends with made discussion sections something to look forward to every week! It was also really interesting to be able to first read a passage and develop an understanding of the philosopher’s main point and then apply it to something that you came up with, for example having to brainstorm for a Maxim that would fit with Rousseau’s original three. This really helped my understanding of the course, and it made me really love philosophy.

What challenged you the most in Human Nature and Society (JHNS2)? How did you overcome those challenges?

Certain readings, for example Kant or Hobbes, were really difficult, and pushed me to comprehend ideas written in a way I was not at all used to. Overcoming this was a matter of developing a good way to get through the readings. I tried to read a sentence a few times and then mentally translate it into “normal” English. Once I had the normal English, it was much easier to analyze the main point of each philosopher. Discussion sections were also very useful for this--in more than one week I ended up with a completely wrong impression of what the philosopher was saying, but after the discussion session I was much more comfortable with the material. When there is one, the pre recorded lectures are super helpful for this as well.

What tips do you have that could be useful to students taking Human Nature and Society (JHNS2)?

Not to repeat myself too much, but paying attention in the discussion sessions and listening to the lectures (or taking notes on them as well) is super helpful. It can also be a good idea to discuss the readings with peers since that typically helps you to straighten out any confusion.

About how much time did you spend a week working on assignments and preparing for discussion sessions in Human Nature and Society (JHNS2)?

Depending on the reading and the assignment, I usually spent around 3 - 4 hours on JHNS2. Not just reading the passages, but understanding them, does take a significant amount of time, but it is completely worth it (especially when you get to midterms and finals!).

What did the typical week in Human Nature and Society (JHNS2) look like?

In a typically JHNS2 week, you will have one or two passages of reading, and sometimes a lecture, to prepare for the first discussion session. You will also often have Reading Questions or a Short Assignment, which are usually one to two pages double spaced (though I definitely had some where I wrote way more than that!). These are due on different days--it sort of depends on the week. For the second discussion you usually have another reading to prepare.

What was your favorite topic covered in Human Nature and Society (JHNS2)?

There were so many interesting topics in JHNS2, but my favorite was probably Pinker. Getting to read a longer book like The Language Instinct (actually written in plain English!) was really interesting. Language is definitely fascinating, and it was something I found myself wondering about occasionally even before the course. Pinker’s arguments are incredibly compelling, which also sets an example for how to structure a persuasive argument.

Do you have any resources (i.e. study tips, useful websites) to share with students who want to take the course?

As always, the Writing and Tutoring Center and your teacher’s office hours are incredibly useful! Also make sure that you have notes to look through as you’re doing the short assignments and studying for a midterm or final. Though this doesn’t really relate, I agree with Aidan--definitely ask Dr. Hicks about the Federer Incident!

Grey Peters is a peer tutor for Human Nature and Society and can be found on the Writing and Tutoring Center.

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