In the interest of exploring the similarities and differences in philosophical and folk understandings of "hedonism," this course will explore how theories of affect influence the "pleasure principle." Using literary (and some film) examples from the likes of Oscar Wilde, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and David Fincher, the course will run in a seminar format that uses student-led discussions to register the nuances in the presentation of pleasure. In addition to mandatory attendance, students will be expected to write 1-2 sentence(s) discussion posts weekly on bCourses and to submit a final paper of 2 pages at the end of the semester.