Philosophy
Course Offerings -
Fall 2007
|
Phil
1000-01 |
Introduction
to Philosophy - C1,
CH
|
Griesmaier
|
|
MW With a discussion session on Fridays |
This course is designed to
introduce you to philosophy by focusing on three major areas of philosophical
research: epistemology, or the theory of knowledge, metaphysics, or the theory of the
ultimate nature of reality, the philosophy of mind, and ethics,
the investigation of the moral permissibility and/or obligatoriness of (types
of) human action. Discussion Sections held on Fridays: |
|
|
Phil
1000-02 |
Introduction to Philosophy C1, CH
|
Staff
|
|
MWF |
This course is designed to introduce you to philosophy
by focusing on three major areas of philosophical research: epistemology,
or the theory of knowledge, metaphysics,
or the theory of the ultimate nature of reality, the philosophy of mind,
and ethics, the investigation of the moral permissibility and/or
obligatoriness of (types of) human action. |
|
|
Phil
1200-01 |
Intellectual Community in Philosophy I
|
Moffett
|
|
MWF |
Philosophy is the critical study of the world in its
most fundamental aspects and of our place therein. In this course we will
explore a number of philosophical issues as they relate to everyday life. |
|
Phil
2310-01
|
Philosophy
of Religion C1, CH
|
Goodin
|
|
MWF |
Philosophical questions, arguments, and
theories will be discussed within the various topics of religion (i.e.,
existence and nature of God, character of religious language, etc.) |
|
Phil
2420-01
|
Critical
Thinking: Paradoxes/Puzzles C1, CH
|
Moffett
|
|
TR |
A paradox is a contradictory, absurd or otherwise
unacceptable conclusion derived from apparently true premises by way of a
seemingly valid line reasoning. In this course we will explore a number
paradoxes with an eye toward coming to a fuller appreciation of exactly what
reasoning (critical thinking) is all about. |
|
Phil 3000-01
|
TP: Global Justice
|
Sherline
|
|
TR |
This course takes a philosophical approach to
problems of global justice and injustice.
We will examine topics such as skepticism of global justice (political
realism, states as sovereignty), when it is justified to intervene in another
state's affairs for the sake of global justice, as well as substantive issues
of justice and injustice, such as extreme poverty, famine, massive
differences between rich and poor countries, the AIDs pandemic, malaria and
other global health issues, global warming, the loss of biodiversity, nuclear
proliferation, slavery, the servitude of women, immigration, the exporting of
democracy. These are the problems that
appear on anyones list of the most urgent moral problems facing us today. |
|
Phil 3000-02
|
TP: Feminist Ethics
|
Goodin
|
|
MWF 2:10-3:00 |
This course will examine both traditional ethical
theory and the feminist claim of
deficiencies in the traditional theories. We will examine the validity of the claims
that there are deficiencies in the theories and evaluate the feminist ethical
theories in terms of how well they deal with various ethical issues. |
|
Phil
3100-01
|
History of Modern Philosophy C1
|
Goodin
|
|
MWF 11:0011:50 |
This course provides a critical study of
philosophical figures during the 17th and 18th century:
Descartes, Locke, Spinoza, Leibniz, Berkeley, Hume and Kant. |
|
Phil 3560-01
|
Introduction to Metaphysics
|
Moffett
|
|
TR |
This course explores the most basic questions
concerning the fundamental structure of reality. We will consider questions
about the basic furniture of the universe (ontology), as well as the way in
which these constituents are inter-related (e.g., the nature of causation). |
|
Phil 4140-01
|
TP: Reductionism
|
Griesmaier
|
|
T |
Since at least the 19th
century, questions about the reducibility of one scientific discipline to
another have received a lot of attention. Could biology, e.g., be reduced to
chemistry and then to physics? In the 20th century, questions like
this became even more central. The idea of a Grand Unified Science was born
the idea that all areas of research can ultimately be reduced to physics as
the fundamental science. The main reason was that metaphysically, such a
thorough reduction would provide a beautifully unified world view: no
entities beyond those postulated by physics would have to be countenanced in
our ontology. The mind, for example, could be seen as a particular
manifestation of basic physics. This seminar will explore the plausibility of
such a program of reductionism: What exactly is it, what are its advantages,
and what its drawbacks? |
|
|
Phil
5020-01 |
Plato
|
Staff
|
|
W 3:10 5:40 |
TBA |
|
|
Phil
5300-01 |
Topics in Ethics:
|
Sherline
|
|
R |
We'll be working through
Derek Parfit's unpublished manuscript Climbing the Mountain, on normative
ethics. |
|