DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY
Department of Philosophy
Course Descriptions, Spring 2010
PHIL 110R 1M. Logic and Critical Reasoning
4.00 credits
McHugh, Nancy
Prerequisite: Math placement of 22.
This course is divided in two parts. The first part of the course considers important aspects of
philosophical reasoning in relation to the Aristotelian tradition by way of the study of categorical logic, the analytic tradition by way of the study of prepositional/predicate logic and its different
applications. Students will take exams and weekly quizzes to determine their competency during this part of the semester. The second part of the course helps students develop their critical thinking skills. Students will study an area of philosophy called the Epistemology of Ignorance. The epistemologies of ignorance ask us to think about how false knowledge is constructed. We will be reading material in this area on race theory, medical knowledge, gender theory, language, and food production. The second part of the class will be evaluated by weekly quizzes, in-class exercises and a final project. Math reasoning intensive.
PHIL 200R 01. Values and Contemporary Culture
4.00 credits
Gilson, Erinn
Prerequisite: none
This course serves as an introduction to philosophy as a discipline and philosophical reflection as a way of thinking. Throughout the course we will focus on the values that we hold, and the way we both see them enacted and enact them ourselves in our contemporary culture. In particular, we will focus on two paired values that are addressed in various ways in philosophy and in our society: freedom and responsibility. We will first explore various definitions of freedom and ways of understanding what it means to be free. Then, the course will investigate what it means to be responsible and how responsibility has different meanings in different contexts (individual responsibility, social or collective responsibility, and political responsibility). Our examination of these two topics will be interspersed with discussion of how freedom and responsibility are viewed and practiced in contemporary culture. Two specific lenses through which we’ll analyze these values are 1) the nature of consumer society (What forms of freedom and responsibility does it encourage? What forms does it discourage?) and 2) the experience of social difference (i.e., gender and race) (To what extent do forms of gendered and racial oppression limit our freedom? Who is responsible for challenging forms of discrimination and/or oppression? In what way are we free to choose different things because of our gender or race?). These concrete experiences will provide us with a context in which to discuss the meaning of freedom and responsibility. Evaluation in the course will primarily be based on reading quizzes, a number of short (2-3 pages) essays, class presentations, participation, and a final take-home essay exam.
PHIL 200R 02. Values and Contemporary Culture
4.00 credits
Gilson, Erinn
Prerequisite: none
See PHIL 200R 01 Values and Contemporary Culture description above.
PHIL 200R 03. Topic: Global Citizenship
4.00 credits
Martinez-Saenz, Miguel
Prerequisite: none
The primary aim of the course is to provide students with the abilities to recognize and evaluate ethical issues and perspectives as they relate to economic, social, cultural, political, and technological globalization. More specifically, students will be working through texts that examine what it means to consider oneself a ‘citizen of the cosmos.’ Using Kwame Anthony Appiah’s text Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in a World of Strangers and Jonathan Glover Humanity: A Moral History of the 20th Century as a foundation, we will read the work of Azar Nafisi, a literary critic, Martin Wolf, an economist, Deepa Narayan, part of the Poverty Group at the World Bank, and will consider the work of other prominent philosophical intellectuals, namely, Thomas Pogge, Onora O’Neill, Arundhati Roy, Friedrich Hayek, John Rawls and Robert Nozick. Also, students will watch a number of films including documentaries that make vivid the ideas under consideration. Students will be engaged critically with aspects of globalization ranging from the growing rates of economic inequalities, poverty and healthcare, and sexism and its effects on policy alternatives; engaging these issues from within a cosmopolitan perspective, students will be asked to consider both the theoretical and practical implications of several approaches.
PHIL 203R 01. Mysteries of Self & Soul
4.00 credits
Reed, Don
Prerequisite: none
In this course students will explore a range of definitions and descriptions of what we variously refer to as “the self,” “the mind,” “the soul,” “the spirit,” “the psyche,” “free will,” “personality,” “character,” etc. The two primary prompts for our considerations will be movies such as The Matrix and The Exorcist and texts from the history of philosophy and psychology, including Freud and Beauvoir. Evaluations will be based on quizzes, periodic tests, class participation, class presentations, and a final exam.
We will address questions such as the following:
PHIL 203R 02. Mysteries of Self & Soul
4.00 credits
Reed, Don
Prerequisite: none
See PHIL 203R 01 Mysteries of Self & Soul description above.
PHIL 303 1W. Ethics and Psychology
4.00 credits
Reed, Don
Prerequisite: PHIL 103R or 203R or permission of instructor.
This is a course focusing on issues at the intersection of ethical theory and developmental psychology. The goal of the course is to explore and evaluate theories of moral development, moral functioning, and moral education, especially as articulated by psychologists, sociologists, and anthropologists who base their empirical work on self-consciously philosophical concepts of morality and by philosophers in dialogue with them. Primary texts by such theorists as Piaget, Kohlberg, and Gilligan will be read. More recent work in the field of moral development will also be considered, especially essays from recent Handbooks of Child Psychology and a new (2009) collection of articles on moral personality. Students will write several short reflection papers, three 700 word book reviews, and a research paper to be delivered as a conference presentation. Writing intensive.
PHIL 311 1W. Modern Philosophy
4:00 credits
McHugh, Nancy
Prerequisite: PHIL 310 or permission of instructor.
Modern philosophy (1600-1900) is one of the most fascinating areas of philosophy. It is during the modern period that philosophy began to be concerned with the kinds of methods and ideas that we think of today as philosophical. Perhaps the most interesting thing about modern philosophy is that it is a period of radical scientific and social upheaval. The beliefs we have in democracy and the faith we have in scientific method, for example, developed during the modern period, as did navigation methods and optics. The modern period was one of the most hopeful times for social reform, but it also was a period of imperialism and colonialism, which did not have social reform for Others in mind. We will study Descartes, Locke, Hume, Kant, Wollstonecraft, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche as well as contemporary texts critiquing these readings.
The goals of this class are for you to engage texts from the modern period, to think critically about these texts and to understand the socio-political climate that lead to the development of these beliefs. You will be assessed through your writing of a book review and a final paper, as well as a midterm, final, and reaction papers. Writing intensive.
Optional Course Component: Cultures and Language Across the Curriculum
Interested in using your foreign language skills to earn extra credit connected to this course and to learn more about the subject matter of this course at the same time? If so, register for the CLAC components offered here. You don’t need to be fluent in the language to exercise this option. In fact, you need only to have completed two credits beyond 112 or to be currently enrolled in a course beyond 112. Your work will be guided by your professor and by faculty from the Languages Department. The CLAC module is designed for intermediate level language learners.
This course offers a foreign language component or CLAC component in the following languages:
German, Spanish, French, and Russian
Students who select the CLAC option will complete work in a foreign language that will supplement the work in this course. Students who complete the CLAC assignments successfully will earn 1 credit for the CLAC component.
To register for the CLAC component, you must also register for a one-credit LANG 230 CLAC module listed among the Language Department’s offerings. Meeting times and location will be arranged at the beginning of the semester. Credit for CLAC modules may be counted toward the requirements for International Studies and as elective credit in the Language department.
PHIL 400 1W. Senior Seminar – Advanced Research Methods in Philosophy
4.00 credits
Gilson, Erinn
Prerequisite: PHIL 312 or permission of instructor.
The goal of this course is to complete a senior thesis in philosophy. We will work on writing time management, thesis construction, research techniques, drafting, editing, writing collaboration, paper presentation and critiquing others' work. The course will include a symposium in which students will deliver brief versions of their theses for a department colloquium. Writing intensive.
PHIL 490 00. Independent Study
1.00-4.00 credits
Staff
PHIL 491 00. Internship
1.00-4.00 credits
Staff
PHIL 499 00. Senior Honors Thesis
0.00-4.00 credits
Staff
Prerequisite: DEPARTMENTAL PERMISSION.
PHIL 499 1W. Senior Honors Thesis
0.00-4.00 credits
McHugh, Nancy
Prerequisite: DEPARTMENTAL PERMISSION.
