Read Part I of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Essay on the Origin of Inequality, paying particular attention to the theory of "the noble savage." Compare Rousseau's idea of the primitive and the pre- or non-civilized with the depiction of Corsican montagnard life presented by Merimee in "Mateo Falcone."

Discuss the concept of justice both in the abstract and as it relates to Merimee's "Mateo Falcone." Pay particular attention to Mateo's killing of Fortunato. If the killing strikes you as intuitively unjust, what then is the precise definition of justice? What is the just punishment in this case?

Research the history and ethnology of Corsica. Use an encyclopedia and other sources, if they are available. Does Merimee give a generally accurate picture of Corsican life? If not, where does his depiction diverge from reality?

Read the "Exordium" and the "Eulogy on Abraham" in Soren Kierkegaard's...