The College Catalogue

First-Year Seminars

Topics in first-year seminars change from time to time but are restricted in scope and make no pretense to being an introduction to the whole field of philosophy. They are topics in which contemporary debate is lively and as yet unsettled and to which contributions are often being made by more than one field of learning. For a full description of first-year seminars, see the First-Year Seminar section.

[16 {1036} c. Personal Ethics.]

18 {1038} c. Love. Spring 2013. Sarah Conly.

28 {1028} c. A Philosopher’s Dozen. Fall 2012. Matthew Stuart.

Introductory Courses

Introductory courses are open to all students regardless of year and count towards the major. They do not presuppose any background in philosophy and are good first courses.

111 {2111} c. Ancient Philosophy. Every fall. Fall 2012. Sarah Conly.

The sources and prototypes of Western thought. We try to understand and evaluate Greek ideas about value, knowledge, and truth.

112 {2112} c. Modern Philosophy. Every spring. Spring 2013. Matthew Stuart.

A survey of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century European philosophy, focusing on discussions of the ultimate nature of reality and our knowledge of it. Topics include the nature of the mind and its relation to the body, the existence of God, and the free will problem. Readings from Descartes, Locke, Hume, Kant, and others.

120 {1320} c. Moral Problems. Spring 2013. Sarah Conly.

Our society is riven by deep and troubling moral controversies. Examines some of these controversies in the context of current arguments and leading theoretical positions. Possible topics include abortion, physician-assisted suicide, capital punishment, sexuality, the justifiability of terrorism, and the justice of war.

142 {1442} c. Philosophy of Religion. Fall 2012. Scott Sehon.

Does God exist? Can the existence of God be proven? Can it be disproven? Is it rational to believe in God? What does it mean to say that God exists (or does not exist)? What distinguishes religious beliefs from non-religious beliefs? What is the relation between religion and science? Approaches these and related questions through a variety of historical and contemporary sources, including philosophers, scientists, and theologians. (Same as Religion 142 {1142}.)

145 {1435} c. Truth and Morality: One, Many, or None? Fall 2013. Scott Sehon.

If we disagree about whether or not the earth is flat, or whether Obama was born in Kenya, it seems that we are disagreeing about something to which there is a single true answer; we can’t all be right. On the other hand, when we contemplate the complexity of cultural diversity and worldviews in different times and places, it might seem implausible that there is a true moral view that applies to everyone at all times. Investigates whether there is moral truth: whether there are objective moral truths that hold for everyone, whether moral truth is somehow relative to particular cultures or whether there is no such thing as truth or morality. Readings from mostly contemporary sources.

152 {1252} c. Death. Fall 2013. Matthew Stuart.

Considers distinctively philosophical questions about death: Do we have immortal souls? Is immortality even desirable? Is death a bad thing? Is suicide morally permissible? Does the inevitability of death rob life of its meaning? Readings from historical and contemporary sources.

Intermediate Courses

200 {2100} c. History, Freedom, and Reason. Fall 2012. Lawrence H. Simon.

What are the causes of historical development? Is history progressive? Do freedom and reason manifest themselves in history? A study of the development of political philosophy and philosophy of history in nineteenth-century German philosophy from Kant through Hegel to Marx.

210 {2410} c. Philosophy of Mind. Spring 2014. Scott Sehon.

We see ourselves as rational agents: we have beliefs, desires, intentions, wishes, hopes, etc. We also have the ability to perform actions, seemingly in light of these beliefs, desires, and intentions. Is our conception of ourselves as rational agents consistent with our scientific conception of human beings as biological organisms? Can there be a science of the mind and, if so, what is its status relative to other sciences? What is the relationship between mind and body? How do our mental states come to be about things in the world? How do we know our own minds, or whether other people even have minds? Readings primarily from contemporary sources.

220 {2320} c. Bioethics. Fall 2013. Sarah Conly.

Examines issues central for physicians, biological researchers, and society: cloning, genetic engineering, biological patenting, corporate funding for medical research, use of experimental procedures, and others.

221 {2321} c. History of Ethics. Spring 2013. Lawrence H. Simon.

How should one live? What is the good? What is my duty? What is the proper method for doing ethics? The fundamental questions of ethics are examined in the classic texts of Aristotle, Hume, Kant, and Mill.

222 {2322} c. Political Philosophy. Fall 2013. Lawrence H. Simon.

Examines some of the major issues and concepts in political philosophy, including freedom and coercion, justice, equality, and the nature of liberalism. Readings primarily from contemporary sources.

223 {2223} a - MCSR. Logic. Every fall. Fall 2012. Scott Sehon.

The central problem of logic is to determine which arguments are good and which are bad. To this end, we introduce a symbolic language and rigorous, formal methods for seeing whether one statement logically implies another. We apply these tools to a variety of arguments, philosophical and otherwise. We also demonstrate certain theorems about the formal system we construct.

225 {2425} c. Philosophy of Science. Spring 2013. Scott Sehon.

Science is often thought of as the paradigm of rational inquiry, as a method that gives us an unparalleled ability to understand the nature of the world. Others have doubted this rosy picture, and have emphasized historical and sociological aspects of the practice of science. Investigates the nature of science and scientific thought by looking at a variety of topics, including the demarcation of science and non-science, relativism and objectivity, logical empiricism, scientific revolutions, and scientific realism.

227 {2427} c. Metaphysics. Spring 2013. Matthew Stuart.

Metaphysics is the study of very abstract questions about reality. What does reality include? What is the relation between things and their properties? What is time? Do objects and persons have temporal parts as well as spatial parts? What accounts for the identity of persons over time? What is action, and do we ever act freely?

[229 {2429} c. Philosophy in the Twentieth Century.]

233 {2233} - MCSR. Intermediate Logic. Spring 2014. Scott Sehon.

Investigates several philosophically important results of modern logic, including Gödel’s incompleteness theorems, the Church-Turing Theorem (that there is no decision procedure for quantificational validity), and Tarski’s theorem (the indefinability of truth for formal languages). Also includes an introduction to modal logic, the logic of necessity and possibility.

Prerequisite: Philosophy 223 or permission of the instructor.

241 {2341} c. Philosophy of Law. Spring 2014. Sarah Conly.

An introduction to legal theory. Central questions include: What is law? What is the relationship of law to morality? What is the nature of judicial reasoning? Particular legal issues include the nature and status of privacy rights (e.g., contraception, abortion, and the right to die); the legitimacy of restrictions on speech and expression (e.g., pornography, hate speech); the nature of equality rights (e.g., race and gender); and the right to liberty (e.g., homosexuality).

258 {2358} c. Environmental Ethics. Spring 2013. Lawrence H. Simon.

What things in nature have moral standing? What are our obligations to them? How should we resolve conflicts among our obligations? After an introduction to ethical theory, topics include anthropocentrism, the moral status of nonhuman sentient beings and of non-sentient living beings, preservation of endangered species and the wilderness, holism versus individualism, the land ethic, and deep ecology. (Same as Environmental Studies 258 {2408}.)

291–294 {2970–2973} c. Intermediate Independent Study in Philosophy. The Department.

299 {2999} c. Intermediate Collaborative Study in Philosophy. The Department.

Advanced Courses

Although courses numbered in the 300s are advanced seminars primarily intended for majors in philosophy, adequately prepared students from other fields are also welcome. Besides stated prerequisites, at least one of the courses from the group numbered in the 200s will also be found a helpful preparation.

[320 {3220} c. Metaphilosophy.]

[325 {3325} c. Utilitarianism and Its Critics.]

[332 {3432} c. Origins of Analytic Philosophy.]

334 {3434} c. Free Will. Spring 2013. Scott Sehon.

Do we have free will and moral responsibility? Can we have free will and moral responsibility if determinism is true? More broadly, can we have free will if all human behaviors can be explained scientifically? Readings from contemporary sources.

337 {3137} c. Hume. Fall 2012. Matthew Stuart.

An examination of the whole arc of Hume’s philosophy, including his metaphysics and epistemology, his theory of the passions, and his moral philosophy. Readings will be drawn from his early masterpiece, the Treatise of Human Nature, and from later works including his two Enquiries and the Dissertation of the Passions.

Prerequisite: Philosophy 112 or permission of the instructor.

346 {3346} c. Philosophy of Gender: Sex and Love. Fall 2012. Sarah Conly.

Issues of sex and love preoccupy us but may not be well understood. Considers what “counts” as having sex, why that matters, and what it is to love someone. These and other relevant topics explored through readings and discussion. (Same as Gay and Lesbian Studies 346 {3346} and Gender and Women’s Studies 346 {3346}.)

392 {3392} c. Advanced Topics in Environmental Philosophy. Spring 2014. Lawrence H. Simon.

Examines philosophical, moral, political, and policy questions regarding various environmental issues. Possible topics include the ethics of climate change policy, our obligations to future generations, benefit-cost analysis vs. the precautionary principle as a decision-making instrument, and the relationship between justice and sustainability. (Same as Environmental Studies 392 {3992}.)

401–404 {4000–4003} c. Advanced Independent Study and Honors in Philosophy. The Department.

405 {4029} c. Advanced Collaborative Study in Philosophy. The Department.