| Philosophy |
PHIL 401 - General Introduction to Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Depending upon the instructor, emphasizes basic
philosophic problems, recurrent types of philosophies, or
selected readings from the history of philosophy.
PHIL 401H - Honors/General Introduction to Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 401. Writing intensive.
PHIL 401W - General Introduction to Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 401. Writing intensive.
PHIL 402 - Concepts of the Self
Credits:
4.00
Who and what are you? What is it to be true to oneself? Do
humans really have selves? If so, is the self biological,
spiritual, or social in nature? Is it possible to know
oneself? Is the self one or many? How do systems of social
oppression shape people's conceptions of the self? This
study of philosophical theories of the self addresses such
questions from a variety of philosophical perspectives.
These may include Ancient Greek conceptions of the self's
flourishing; the concept of the self in East Asian
philosophies; the Existentialist conception of the
authentic self; Feminist, Marxist, and Postmodernist
criticisms of individualistic conceptions of the self; and
recent reconsiderations of the nature of the self in light
of research on the human brain.
PHIL 412 - Beginning Logic
Credits:
4.00
Principles of reasoning and development of symbolic
techniques for evaluating deductive and inductive arguments
PHIL 412H - Honors/Beginning Logic
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 412.
PHIL 417 - Philosophical Reflections on Religion
Credits:
4.00
Introduces philosophy of religion to help students become
critically aware of philosophical issues involved in
various forms of religious belief and some of the
persisting philosophical understandings of those issues.
PHIL 421 - Philosophy and the Arts
Credits:
4.00
Contemporary philosophic concerns and perspectives as
reflected in one or more of the arts (literature, theatre,
film, music, plastic art). Writing intensive.
PHIL 421H - Honors/Philosophy and the Arts
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 421. Writing intensive.
PHIL 424 - Science, Technology, and Society
Credits:
4.00
Consideration of the scientific endeavor and its social
import from a philosophical perspective.
PHIL 430 - Society and Morals
Credits:
4.00
Critical study of principles and arguments advanced in
discussion of current moral and social issues. Possible
topics: violence, rules of warfare, sexual morality, human
rights, punishment, abortion.
PHIL 430H - Honors/Society and Morals
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 430. Writing intensive.
PHIL 430W - Society and Morals
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 430. Writing intensive.
PHIL 435 - Human Nature and Evolution
Credits:
4.00
Philosophy of biology and the evolutionary process.
Readings of scientists and philosophers' commentary on
scientists. Examination of the differences between
scientific debate and philosophic debate. Philosophical
study of scientific theory stressing humans' place in the
natural world and the ethical implication of humans as
natural beings in the evolutionary process.
PHIL 436 - Social and Political Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Examines social and political thought that may include
texts from ancient through contemporary times, addressing
topics such as natural rights, revolution, law, freedom,
justice, power. Questions may include: What is a community,
and how are individuals related to communities? Can any
particular form of government be morally justified, and if
so, what kind of government? Can anarchism work? Is there
something wrong with a society in which there is private
ownership of property? What is oppressive? What is freedom,
and are we free? What roles should different forms of power
play in a society? Could and should there be a genderless
society? Is ethnic diversity valuable? Writing intensive.
PHIL 444 - Remaking Nature/The Ethics and Politics of Genetic Engineering
Credits:
4.00
Examines the biological, ethical, social, and political
issues raised by genetic engineering. Students, acting as
an "Advisory Council on Bioethics," formulate policy
recommendations about whether or not there should be a
Federal ban on research involving cloning of human embryos
and genetically modifying plants and animals for food.
PHIL 447 - Computer Power and Human Reason
Credits:
4.00
The historical origins of the science of computation. The
implications of the nature of information-processing for
understanding the mind-body relation. Examines the possible
social, economic, and educational consequences of the
computer revolution.
PHIL 447H - Honors/Computer Power and Human Reason
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 447.
PHIL 450 - Ecology and Values
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on historical and contemporary philosophies of
nature and their effects on human interaction with the
environment. Issues include obligations to future
generations and to animals, plants, and ecosystems; moral
limits on consumption and reproduction; and the existence
of objects of intrinsic value. Specific topics may include
species loss and biological diversity, population growth,
changes in the atmosphere, energy use, and sustainable
development.
PHIL 450H - Honors/Ecology and Values
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 450.
PHIL 496 - Topics
Credits:
4.00
Introductory-level seminar in specific topics or problems
considered from a philosophic point of view.
PHIL 500 - Workshop
Credits:
4.00
Introduces methods of studying philosophical texts.
Emphasizes reading philosophical texts and arguments for
comprehension, and on writing philosophically with accuracy
and clarity. Open to PHIL majors only (PHIL minors may
enroll if they receive permission). Writing intensive.
PHIL 510 - Philosophy and Feminism
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on the philosophical issues in feminism primarily
through the work of historical and contemporary
philosophers. Topics include the question of the nature of
women, feminism as an ethical and political theory,
feminism as an exploration and transformation of the self,
feminism as a philosophical methodology, the institutions
of marriage and motherhood. Writing intensive.
PHIL 520 - Introduction to Eastern Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Major Eastern traditions of philosophy. Concentration on
Indian, Chinese, and Japanese systems may vary from
semester to semester.
PHIL 525 - Existentialism
Credits:
4.00
Readings from existential philosophy and literature.
Selections may be drawn from the works of Kierkegaard,
Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, Camus, de Beauvoir, Buber,
Bultman, Merleau-Ponty, Tillich, Kafka, and others.
PHIL 525H - Honors/Existentialism
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 525.
PHIL 530 - Moral Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Critical examination of the development of philosophical
thinking regarding human values, rights, and duties.
PHIL #540 - Philosophy of Race and Racism
Credits:
4.00
Investigates the concept of race and how different
understandings of race underlie racist and anti-racist
politics; explores how racism is interlocked with gender,
economic, and other forms of oppression. Questions may
include: What is racism? Do racial categories (such as
black, white, Latino) have any scientific basis, or are
they socially constructed? If race is socially constructed,
is it still "real" and should it be treated as such? Should
public policies be "color-blind" with respect to race? Is
whiteness a problematic racial identity and what can white
people do about it? How is racism built into the structure
of the state? Can popular racial discourse serve to
support racist policies or attitudes even when it does not
contain explicitly racist claims?
PHIL #550 - Symbolic Logic
Credits:
4.00
Principles and techniques of modern logic. Topics:
propositional logic, truth tables, predicate logic, and,
time permitting, basic meta-theorems. Prereq: PHIL 412.
PHIL 560 - Philosophy Through Literature
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical implications of representative literary
works, read in tandem with philosophical works or
articles. The content will vary. The literary works
explored may be drawn from ancient times through modern
times. For examples, the classic Greek tragedy "Antigone"
might be explored for its implications regarding moral,
political, and feminist philosophy, or the philosophical
implications of an anti-utopian contemporary work like
"Brave New World" might be explored, or short stories drawn
from science fiction and other speculative fiction might be
used to explore the possibility of time travel or of
machines with mental lives. Writing intensive.
PHIL 570 - Ancient Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Development of Western philosophy from its beginnings in
Greece to the Roman period, with particular emphasis on
the thought of Plato and Aristotle.
PHIL 570H - Honors/Ancient Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 570.
PHIL 571 - Medieval Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical thought of the Middle Ages from inception in
the late Roman period with thinkers such as Plotinus and
Augustine through the late medieval speculative mysticism
of such figures as Meister Eckhart. Writings of Augustine
and Thomas Aquinas.
PHIL 580 - Modern Philosophy from Descartes to Kant
Credits:
4.00
The birth and development of distinctively modern
philosophy in the thought of such creative minds as
Galileo, Descartes, Hobbes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Locke,
Berkeley, Hume, Rousseau, Reid, Kant, and others. Prereq:
PHIL 570 or permission.
PHIL 616 - 19th Century Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical movements or philosophers associated with
philosophical movements, such as later German idealism,
French positivism, utilitarianism, Marxism, existentialism,
and vitalism. Content will vary. Consult the Time and Room
Schedule for topics. Course may be taken twice for credit
(a third time with permission of the undergraduate program
director) so long as the topic is different. May not be
repeated to improve grade without approval from director of
philosophy undergraduate program. Prereq: PHIL 574 or
575;/or permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 618 - 20th Century Anglo-American Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Major figures in the analytic tradition in England and
America. Content will vary. Consult the Time and Room
Schedule for topics. Course may be taken twice for credit
(a third time with permission of the undergraduate program
director) so long as the topic is different. May not be
repeated to improve grade without approval from director of
philosophy undergraduate program. Prereq: two courses in
history of philosophy (one of which may be concurrent);/or
permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 620 - 20th Century European Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
Major figures or philosophical movements such as
phenomenology, existentialism, critical social theory, and
post-modernism. Content will vary. Consult Time and Room
Schedule for topics. Course may be taken twice for credit
(a third time with permission of the undergraduate program
director) so long as the topic is different. May not be
repeated to improve grade without approval from director of
philosophy undergraduate program. Prereq: two courses in
history of philosophy (one of which may be concurrent);/or
permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 631 - Topics in the Philosophy of Science
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical problems raised by the physical, biological,
and social sciences. Content will vary. Topics may include
the nature of scientific explanation, the role of
mathematics in science, the relations of science to common
sense, the relation of theory to observation, the nature of
historical changes in scientific world view, claim to
objectivity in the natural and social sciences, the role of
values in scientific research, the relation of the logic of
science to the philosophy and history of science. Prereq:
two courses in history of philosophy;/or permission.
PHIL 635 - Philosophy of Law
Credits:
4.00
Systematic study of salient features of legal systems.
Possible topics: nature of law; concept of legal validity;
law and morality; individual liberty and the law; legal
punishment; legal responsibility and related concepts (for
example, legal cause, harm, mens rea, negligence, strict
liability, legal insanity). Writing intensive.
PHIL 660 - Law, Medicine, and Morals
Credits:
4.00
Critical examination of the diverse legal and moral issues
facing the profession of health care. Variable topics.
Possible topics: duty to provide care; nature of informed
consent to treatment; problems of allocating limited
health-care resources (e.g., withdrawal of life-support
systems, quality-of-life decisions, etc.); patient's right
to confidentiality. Problems relating to involuntary
preventive care (e.g., involuntary sterilization,
psycho-surgery, etc.). Writing intensive.
PHIL 701 - Topics in Value Theory
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical inquiry into the nature of value. Topics may
include the grounds of right and wrong, various
conceptions of morality, the nature of good and evil,
theories about the meaning of life, the nature of the
beautiful. Content will vary. Consult the Time and Room
Schedule for topics. Course may be taken twice for credit
(a third time with permission of the undergraduate program
director) so long as the topic is different. May not be
repeated to improve grade without approval from director of
philosophy undergraduate program. Prereq: permission.
Writing intensive.
PHIL 702 - Topics in Metaphysics and Epistemology
Credits:
4.00
Advanced study in one or more of the following topics:
nature of reality, relationship of thought and reality,
nature of knowledge and perception, theories of truth.
Content will vary. Consult the Time and Room Schedule for
topics. Course may be taken twice for credit (a third time
with permission of the undergraduate program director) so
long as the topic is different. May not be repeated to
improve grade without approval from director of philosophy
undergraduate program. Prereq: two courses in history of
philosophy;/or permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 720 - Philosophical Psychology
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical perspectives and problems concerning human
nature or the human condition; e.g., the nature of "self,"
human action, the body-mind problem, freedom of the will,
the meaning of "person," the nature of behavior, etc.
Prereq: PHIL 500 and either PHIL 570 or PHIL 580; or
permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL #725 - Topics in the Philosophy of Science
Credits:
4.00
Philosophical problems raised by the physical, biological,
and social sciences. Content will vary. Topics may include
the nature of scientific explanation, the role of
mathematics in science, the relations of science to common
sense, the relation of theory to observation, the nature of
historical changes in scientific world view, claims to
objectivity in the natural and social sciences, the role of
values in scientific research, the relation of the logic of
science to the psychology and history of science. Prereq:
two courses in history of philosophy;/or permission.
Writing intensive.
PHIL 730 - Theories of Justice
Credits:
4.00
The idea of justice is central to social, political, and
legal theory. Considerations of justice are appealed to in
assessing the legitimacy of governments, and the fair
distributions of goods, and opportunities both with
nation-states and globally, and to address specific social
concerns such as radical or gender discrimination or access
to health care. Examine both historical sources and
contemporary debates about the nature of justice. Prereq:
PHIL 500, 530, or permission.
PHIL 735 - Advanced Topics History of Philosophy
Credits:
4.00
In-depth examination of a major figure or philosophical
movement in the history of philosophy. Content will vary.
Consult the Time and Room Schedule for topics. Course may
be taken twice for credit (a third time with permission of
the Undergraduate Program Director) so long as the topic is
different. May not be repeated to improve an earlier grade.
Prereq: two courses in history of philosophy;/or
permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 740 - Advanced Topics in the Philosophy of Law
Credits:
4.00
Content variable. In-depth examination of special topics
(constitutional law, crime and punishment, international
human rights and gender, sexual orientation, race and class
in the law) or a major figure in the philosophy of law
(Dworkin, Habermas and Rawls). Prereq: PHIL 635 or
permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL #755 - Environmental Philosophy and Policy
Credits:
4.00
Explores philosophical and moral issues, principles, and
perspectives involved in human behavior toward, and
treatment of, the natural environment and their
implications for environmental policy. Various historical
and contemporary ethical perspectives compared and
evaluated, e.g., utilitarianism, natural law tradition,
deep ecology, anthropocentrism, eco-feminism, as well as
other social and religious approaches. Prereq: one course
on environmental issues (PHIL 450 or NR 435) or permission.
Writing intensive.
PHIL 780 - Special Topics
Credits:
4.00
Advanced study of special topics: a problem, figure, or
movement in the history of philosophy; or selected issues,
thinkers, or developments in contemporary philosophy.
Prereq: PHIL 500 and one course in the history of
philosophy; or permission. Writing intensive.
PHIL 795 - Independent Study
Credits:
1.00 to 8.00
For students who are adequately prepared to do
independent, advanced philosophical work; extensive
reading and writing. Before registering, students must
formulate a project and secure the consent of a department
member who will supervise the work. Conferences and/or
written work as required by the supervisor. May be repeated
to a total of 8 credits. Writing intensive.
PHIL 798 - Senior Thesis
Credits:
4.00
Two-course sequence open only to senior philosophy majors
in the University Honors Program, the philosophy
department honors-in-major program, or by special
permission from the department. All senior thesis
candidates must have a proposal approved in the spring of
their junior year and a thesis adviser assigned by the
undergraduate program director before registering for 798.
Students must orally defend their theses before the
department. (See department guidelines for further
details.) Prerequisite for 798: PHIL 500. Prerequisite for
799: B- or above in 798. Writing intensive.
PHIL 799 - Senior Thesis
Credits:
4.00
See description for PHIL 798. Writing intensive.