A beginning study of some of the major philosophical issues and thinkers.

Examines major philosophical approaches to ethical thinking and moral judgment, offering tools for a clearer understanding of ethical decision-making in our daily lives. Consideration of a range of perennial and contemporary ethical and social problems.

Experimental

Intensive study of selected problems, figures or movements in psychology with emphasis on the philosophical foundations or implications. Offered annually.

Various viewpoints regarding both the nature of love and of human sexuality. Offered annually.

Principles of correct thinking; deductive inference; inductive inference; use and misuse of language in reasoning.

Study of the works of important existentialist thinkers including Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche, Sartre, Camus, Beauvoir and others. Issues addressed include human freedom, the problem of life's meaning, the relation between the individual and society, the grounds of human relations, Existentialism and the problem of race, Existentialism and Feminist thought, and others. Discussion of existentialist themes in literary, cinematic and other artistic endeavors.

Examines the ethical problems society faces in regards to food production and consumption practices, offering tools for balancing the nutritional, public health, and normative needs of communities and individuals.

Experimental

Various ways people have confronted death and have sought to understand it. Offered periodically.

Examines basic ethical concepts, principles and theories, as well as applications of them to a range of issues in business and professional contexts. Students will explore case studies in a range of organizational and social settings; standards of professional ethics in various disciplines; and best practices relating to ethical conduct in various contexts. Prerequisite: ENG 110.

A study of biomedical moral and ethical problems. Offered annually.

Examines patterns of moral origins.

Co-Op Ed Experience in Phil

First-order predicate calculus with identity and functional symbols. Offered annually. Prereq: PHIL 211 or some background in mathematics.

A study of the contents of certain living world religions. Offered periodically.

The structure of scientific explanation; the logic character of scientific laws and theories; convention and description in science; probability and induction; the scientific method in the behavioral sciences. Offered periodically. Prereq: ENGL 110.

The pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Offered in fall. Prereq: ENGL 110.

Hnrs:Ancient Philosophy

Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant. Offered in spring. Prereq: ENGL 110.

Hnrs:Modern Philosophy

Investigation of philosophical themes, problems and questions raised in film. The medium of film provides a rich and lively context to explore traditional and current issues pertinent to the discipline of philosophy. Offered annually.

One or more major works or of a major philosopher or philosophers. May be taken any number of times for credit. Offered annually. Prereq: ENGL 110.

Hnrs:Philosophical Classics

A study of philosophy in America. Offered periodically.

Philosophical analyses of language and meaning across multiple philosophical traditions (e.g. Analytic Philosophy; Continental Philosophy; American Pragmatism; Feminism). Prereq: ENGL 110

Critical examination of the ways in which our understanding of the natural world affects our relationship with it as well as our concepts of human nature and society. Emphasis will be on how knowledge gained through the biological sciences (historically and presently) changes the way we think about ourselves and our place in the natural world. Specific topics include the social impact of evolutionary theory, sociobiology and evolutionary psychology, genetic engineering and aspects of environmental philosophy. Offered periodically. Prereq: COMM 100, ENGL 110 and junior status.

Examines major philosophical approaches, debates, and intersections between philosophy of the city, philosophy of technology, and public health. Offers tools for a clearer understanding of the competing tensions of city life, technological advancement, and problems of public health that affect the quality of our daily lives. Consideration of a range of perennial and contemporary social, technological, and public health problems.

A study of the European philosophical traditions of hermeneutics, phenomenology, existentialism and structuralism in their historical context, their relations to contemporary culture, particularly to psychology, literature, theology and political action. Offered periodically.

A study of significant ideas in the philosophical thought of Asia. Offered periodically.

Examines philosophical theories of reality (metaphysics) and knowledge (epistemology). Uses science fiction as a vehicle for exploring these ideas. Offered periodically.

Experimental

A philosophical examination of ethical issues emergent through globalization. Topics addressed may include wealth and resource distribution in a global economy; environmental crises, disaster, and government responses to them; social justice and social protest movements; philosophies of non-violence; peace studies and global conflict resolution.

An examination of the justifiability of religion and of the nature of the religious experience, especially religious language. Offered infrequently.

The history of the philosophy of art; an analysis of the aesthetic experience, the aesthetic object and the creative act. Emphasis will be placed on an analysis of the concepts employed in the criticism of literature, painting and music. Offered periodically. Prereq: ENGL 110.

Utopian thought, from classical philosophy to contemporary science fiction. Shows how different cultures have portrayed gender and gender roles as fixed by human nature or as manifestations of alterable social institutions. Prereq: COMM 100, ENGL 110, junior status and two courses in one area of the social sciences or two courses in philosophy. Offered periodically.

Co-Op Ed Experience in Phil

An examination of the inter-relation of philosophy and neuroscience. Our growing knowledge of the brain and nervous system has profound implications for a range of traditional philosophical issues including the nature of consciousness, personal identity, free will, action-theory and ethics/decision-making. Reciprocally, philosophy provides critical and interpretive tools for better understanding the methods and significance of findings in neuroscience. Topics covered in this course include: perception, the self and self-awareness, neuroscience of free will, neuroethics, and the cognitive neuroscience of language.

An examination of political and social philosophies with a view to discovering their relation to present political and social realities. Offered periodically.

Examines theories and practices related to philosophy of law, including topics in legal studies/legal theory, legal reasoning and deliberation, jurisprudence, and human rights.

Explores the core philosophical issues concerning theories of truth, knowledge and objective values. Emphasizes the development of the skills of critical reading and writing as well as performing philosophical research. May be taken any number of times for credit. Offered annually. Prereq: ENGL 110 and 3 credits in PHIL at the 200 level or higher or permission of instructor.

Experimental

For further information on independent study, see the Special Academic Opportunities section.

Departmental Honors

Co-Op Ed Exp In Phil