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Eric Brandon
TR -- 1:30-2:45 -- Tribble A306
This course aims to give both an historical and a thematic introduction
to some of the central problems of philosophy. Issues such as
virtue, the good life, the role of reason in human life, freedom
of the will, the origin of evil, the existence of God, and the
nature of knowledge will be explored through the use of classical
texts. These texts are categorized in four historical periods:
Ancient, Medieval, Early Modern, and Modern. Within each period
the readings will concentrate on problems which were especially
pertinent to the particular historical period in question. The
aim of the course is not to give a comprehensive survey of western
philosophy. Instead, the goal is to challenge students to think
deeply about philosophical problems by reading a few texts as
intensively as possible.
Andrew Cross
TR – 9:30-10:45 a.m. - Greene 308
The course is envisioned as a kind of workshop in philosophy.
What that means is that at least much of the time it will be
more like a “lab” section than a lecture course. The
emphasis will be not on learning the content of philosophical
doctrines, but on acquiring the skills involved in reading,
writing, and thinking philosophically--learning the practice
of philosophy largely by working through texts and problems
in class in a collaborative manner. In-class work (collective
discussion and exercises) will be an important part of this
process; however, such work will naturally require considerable
out-of-class preparation. The assigned readings will be a mix
of contemporary and classic sources, with considerable (though
not exclusive) emphasis on questions of ethics. Two papers,
a mid-term exam, and a cumulative final exam, along with various
short writing exercises, will be required.
Required readings: articles to be downloaded from course web
page
Michael Griffin
TR – 9:30-10:45 a.m. – Tribble A306
This course aims to give both an historical and a thematic
introduction to some of the central problems of philosophy.
Issues such as virtue, the good life, the role of reason in
human life, freedom of the will, the origin of evil, the existence
of God, and the nature of knowledge will be explored through
the use of classical texts. These texts are categorized in four
historical periods: Ancient, Medieval, Early Modern, and Modern.
Within each period the readings will concentrate on problems
which were especially pertinent to the particular historical
period in question. The aim of the course is not to give a comprehensive
survey of western philosophy.
Instead, the goal is to challenge students to think deeply about
philosophical problems by reading a few texts as intensively
as possible.
Hannah Hardgrave
MWF -- 11:00-11:50 a.m. -- Tribble A307
MWF -- 1:00-1:50 p.m. -- Tribble B306
Plato's Republic, Descartes' Discourse on Method, Kant's
Grounding of the Metaphysics of Morals, and Mill's Utilitarianism
provide the framework for this course. A detailed understanding
of the views of these four major philosophers will include not
only the reasons they give to justify their claims, but also
their place in the Western Critical Tradition -- how they came
to propose their ideas as well as the criticisms by their successors.
The historical understanding of these philosophical claims will
be the background for their application to a critical analysis
of selected films. Class discussions will focus on films to
be shown in class while topics for the assigned papers will
require a viewing of films outside of class. In addition to
the three papers, there will be short quizzes on the parts of
the reading relevant to the issues illustrated by the films.
Marcus Hester
MWF – 9:00-9:50 a.m. –Tribble A306
MWF -- 11:00-11:50 p.m. -- Tribble A306
In the first couple of weeks, we work on translating arguments
from English to logic and determining whether these arguments
are valid. Logic is an important tool of the course. I have
written a text for this part of the course. Then the course
consists of three problems:
1. The Nature of Morality, with two subparts:
1) Subjective Relativism and Objectivism.
We read some secondary material on the Sophists, who thought
every opinion is as true as any other. Then we read two texts
by Plato (the Apology and the Crito) about Socrates.
Socrates rejected the Sophists’ view and thought moral
opinions could be improved by critical questioning. Last we
read some early views of Plato in the Meno. Plato thought
that moral matters such as what is justice could be rationally
aroused in persons by questioning in a way parallel to questions
in math. This problem is whether expressions of a moral judgment
such as “abortion is wrong” are mere expressions of
taste or personal preference or whether such a judgments can
be defended objectively by rational means. This question is
about morality.
2) Substantial Moral Codes. Instead
of being merely about morality, substantial moral codes are
like the Ten Commandments in telling us how to actually make
moral decisions. J.S. Mill argues that the moral good is doing
that possible action which maximizes happiness among all those
affected by the action. Kant argues to the contrary that the
best action is done solely from duty defined by moral imperatives
such as “you should not make false promises.”
2. Free Will, Knowledge and Modern Philosophy. Aristotle
thought that our body parts, and most things in nature, served
a purpose and that you could not really explain them without
referring to these purposes, a view expressed in his Physics.
Descartes in his Meditations on First Philosophy
has no use for this sort of explanation of material bodies in
terms of purpose. Instead, our bodies, and all animal bodies,
are just machines behaving according to laws of nature. Yet
we do not think of ourselves as machines in our thoughts, actions
and art works. Descartes struggles to reconcile this modern
scientific mechanical view with the way we think of ourselves.
Then we read Aristotle’s theory of voluntary actions in
relation to his kind of science in his Nicomachean Ethics.
Last we read Hume’s attempt to reconcile liberty with his
belief that everything we do is causally determined.
3. Rational Grounds for Belief in God. Some thinkers
have thought that one can prove by argument that God exists.
Anselm tries to prove that the very definition of God, defined
as a being than which none greater is conceivable, implies that
God necessarily exists. Aquinas tries to prove that God exists
from things we see in nature such as motion and degrees of perfections
such as justice and goodness. Hume casts doubt on all such proofs
and argues that at best we can make belief in a powerful and
good God consistent with the massive evils we observe in the
world.
In terms of grading, we have short weekly tests on the readings,
and a midterm and final exam. The midterm and final exams consist
of problems in logic and essays on the problems covered in the
course. There is an optional paper on any topic in philosophy.
Charles Lewis
MWF – 10:00-10:50 a.m. – Tribble A306
MWF -- 12:00-12:50 p.m. -- Tribble A306
This course, after examining the common sense and religious
background of the first scientific thinkers or philosophers,
turns to the study of Plato and Aristotle, the major shapers
of pre-modern scientific, theological, and philosophical thought.
Then the course turns to Descartes, the first great architect
of the modern scientific and philosophical ways of thinking.
The study of this momentous departure from pre-modern belief
in the purposive natures of all things--and thus from classical
moral and political philosophy--is followed by the study of
Hume, one of Descartes’ major critics who takes modern
skepticism to a new level. Twentieth-century existential nihilism
is introduced along the way in order to consider its place in
modern thought and its radical critique of conventional assumptions
about the meaning or purpose of human existence. Attention is
given throughout to how an examination of modern and pre-modern
ways of thinking can help us to understand contemporary conceptions
of self and world.
Dorothea Lotter
TR – 12:00-1:15 p.m. Tribble A306
TR – 3:00-4:15 p.m. Tribble A306
The course will deal with basic problems of philosophy
in a twofold sense: First, in the sense of basic problems of
philosophical inquiry, and secondly, in that of basic problems
of philosophical method. We will discuss basic philosophical
questions about identity, knowledge, the mind, the world, God,
free will and morality. The emphasis on this part of the course
will not be on simply learning by heart a definite answer to
these questions, but rather on learning to think philosophically
about them according to one's own intuitions and reasons. Special
attention will be paid, moreover, to acquiring basic skills
as are required in reading, analyzing and criticizing a philosophical
text or argument, or in having a philosophical discussion.
Requirements: Active participation in class; a considerable
amount of short exercises, discusion assignments, and quizzes;
two short papers, each on one of the philosophical questions
discussed in class; a final take-home exam.
Textbooks:
Simon Blackburn, Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy,
Oxford University Press, 1999
Jay Rosenberg, The Practice of Philosophy. A Handbook for Beginners,
Prentice-Hall 1995
Clark Thompson
MW – 2:00-3:15 p.m. -- Tribble A306
MW -- 3:30 - 4:45 p.m. -- Tribble A306
We will study the following questions in political, social,
ethical, and religious thought: Do we have an obligation to
obey the law? What is the extent of the legitimate authority
of government in matters of religion? Have the arts and sciences
promoted moral progress, or have they contributed to moral decline?
What is the relation between morality and religion? Can God's
existence and attributes be established by appeal to the existence
of design in nature? Is the existence of an all-powerful, all-knowing,
and benevolent God consistent with the existence of suffering
and moral evil? What makes an act morally right?
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