Current Courses

To do philosophy is to reflect critically on our underlying beliefs (e.g., about reality, knowledge, freedom, responsibility) and to modify whatever doesn't stand up to scrutiny.  Whether we realize it or not, the very way we think is shaped by past thinkers -- which is why studying philosophy's history is a crucial part of doing philosophy.  In this course, we will focus on Ancient and Medieval thinkers as we strive to evaluate our views critically. This course has no prerequisite.

To do philosophy is to reflect critically on our underlying beliefs (e.g., about reality, knowledge, freedom, responsibility) and to modify whatever doesn't stand up to scrutiny.  Whether we realize it or not, the very way we think is shaped by past thinkers -- which is why studying philosophy's history is a crucial part of doing philosophy.  In this course, we will focus on Ancient and Medieval thinkers as we strive to evaluate our views critically. This course has no prerequisite.

This course is an introduction to philosophy focusing on the problem of free will. Students will be introduced to the current debate, but will also consider what the great minds of the past can tell us about the possibility or impossibility of acting freely. We will draw on both historical and contemporary sources, developing skills of philosophical analysis in connection with a single, hotly disputed topic. This course has no prerequisite.

This course is an introduction to philosophy focusing on the opposition between myth and reason. Students learn the skills of philosophical analysis by studying one topic in detail. Questions explored may include: How are myth and reason different? Are they opposed? What are the limits of reason? Can myth help reason? Can reason refute myth? What role does authority play in myth and reason? This course has no prerequisite.

A lecture course surveying ancient philosophy from the Presocratics to Plato. Philosophers covered may include: Anaximander, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Empedocles, Anaxagoras, Democritus, Gorgias, Protagoras, Socrates and Plato. Through readings of original sources and ancient testimony, the course analyses key questions in ancient philosophy, e.g. what is philosophy and what does it achieve? What is nature? What is the best life? Prerequisites: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

A study of the 17th and 18th century rationalist philosophers. Prerequisites: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

This course introduces different positions in moral philosophy to provide alternative ways of thinking about questions like: Is our happiness influenced by our moral condition? Can we say what makes an individual or a society morally good or bad? What is the relation between pleasure and moral action? Fundamental moral concepts are treated through the careful study of primary texts by philosophers like Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, and John Stuart Mill. This course has no prerequisite.

A lecture course in which students learn how to identify and evaluate arguments drawn from a wide variety of sources. It will develop informal methods such as the identification of argument structure and informal fallacies. It will also develop formal methods that involve taking arguments in English, symbolizing them in a formal language, and evaluating strengths and weaknesses of the argument forms. Also covered are basic probability theory, inductive logic, and statistical reasoning.

In this course, we will focus primarily on Kant's Critique of Pure Reason as we work through the implications his position has for both theoretical and moral philosophy. Prerequisite: PHIL 2153 or 2163 or permission of the instructor.

This lecture course will involve a close reading of some of Karl Marx's most influential work. As we read through portions of <i>The German Ideology<i>, the <i>Grundrisse</i>, <i>The Holy Family</i> and <i>Capital</i>, we will consider 1) Marx's relationship with and response to his predecessors, and 2) his critical reassessment of philosophical and political practice, human nature, history and economic theory. Prerequistie: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

To do philosophy is to reflect critically on our underlying beliefs (e.g., about reality, knowledge, freedom, responsibility) and to modify whatever doesn't stand up to scrutiny. Whether we realize it or not, the very way we think is shaped by past thinkers -- which is why studying philosophy's history is a crucial part of doing philosophy.  In this course, we will focus on Modern and Contemporary thinkers as we strive to evaluate our views critically.  This course has no prerequisite.

A lecture course surveying ancient philosophy from Aristotle to Hellenistic philosophy (Epicurus, the Stoics and the Sceptics). Through readings of original sources and ancient testimony, the course analyses key questions in ancient philosophy, e.g. what can philosophy achieve? What is the nature of reality? What does it mean to live together? Prerequisites: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

A study of the 17th and 18th century British empiricists. Prerequisites: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

A lecture course examining a specific topic in contemporary moral philosophy. Topics vary from year to year and may include: virtue ethics, metaethics, contemporary deontology, contemporary utilitarianism, emotivism, relativism, the is-­-ought debate, and others. Prerequisite: Take any 1000-level PHIL course or permission of instructor

Are moral judgements grounded in emotion or reason? Under what conditions are people morally responsible? Why should I be moral? Are all moral decisions motivated by self-interest? Do moral reasons depend on desires? How does virtue relate to moral motivation? These questions are central to moral psychology. The course presupposes no background in philosophy and may be of interest to students in psychology and the life sciences, as well as philosophy. This course will not count toward credits in Psychology (i.e. a Major). Prerequisites: none.

This course will involve a close reading of the major works of Dante Alighieri, especially <i>The Divine Comedy</i>. Attention will be directed to Dante's synthesis of Aristotelian philosophy and the theology and philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. Prerequisites: PHIL 1013 or 1023 or 1053 or 2263 or permission of the instructor.

This course will involve a careful study of Hegel's <i>Phenomenology of Spirit</i>, focusing primarily on the relationships between theory and practice, and truth and history. Prerequisite: PHIL 2153 or 2163 or permission of the instructor.

This course is an introduction to the study of politics. It has two objectives. The first is to give students a sense of the meaning and importance of politics. The second is to study a number of the concepts essential to the study of contemporary politics: the state, sovereignty, legitimacy and authority, law, power, equality, democracy, nationality, freedom and citizenship are typically covered. The specific content and readings used vary from section to section.