2019-2020 University Catalog archived
Philosophy (PHIL)
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Pierre S. duPont Foundation
HONORS: An Honors Program in philosophy is offered for qualified students.
Department Head: Paul Gregory
Faculty
First date is the year in which the faculty member began service as regular faculty at the University. Second date is the year of appointment to the present rank.
N. Melina Bell, Ph.D.—(2005)-2011
Professor of Philosophy and Law
Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania
Gregory J. Cooper, Ph.D.—(1999)-2016
Professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., University of Minnesota
Nathaniel Goldberg, Ph. D.—(2008)-2011
Professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., Georgetown University
Paul Gregory, Ph.D.—(2002)-2019
Professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., University of Illinois
Li Kang, Ph.D.—(2019)-2019
Assistant professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., Syracuse University
Angela Smith, Ph.D.—(2008)-2013
Roger Mudd Professor of Ethics and Director of the Roger Mudd Center for the Study of Professional Ethics
Ph.D., Harvard University
Erin Taylor, Ph.D.—(2016)-2016
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., University of California
Florentien Verhage, Ph.D.—(2008)-2016
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Ph.D., McGill University
NOTE: The philosophy courses are numbered according to the following schemes. With a few exceptions, all PHIL classes are open to all students and satisfy FDR HU.
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level
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subject
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100, Introductory
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00-09, general surveys
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200, Intermediate
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10-39, History of Philosophy or Major Figures
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300, Advanced
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40-69, Ethics, Value Theory, and Political Philosophy
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400, Dir. Indiv. Study, Thesis
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70-89, Metaphysics and Epistemology (except 170 and 180)
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90-99, Special Topics (95=HMF, 96=EVT, 97=ME)
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Continental = 198, 214, 215, 218, 230, 232, 235, 238, 239, 285, 298, 357, 380, 398 |
Major
Minor
PHIL 104 - Introduction to Moral and Political Philosophy
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
The course provides a broad historical survey of moral and political philosophy. Students read selections from the work of a number of great women and men from the ancient to the contemporary period, dealing with questions of ethics and moral and political philosophy. We consider how philosophy can be way of life and how we can pursue wisdom through careful argumentation and analysis of the foundations of our beliefs about the world, morality, human nature, good and evil, government and society, justice, and equality. Staff.
PHIL 105 - Introduction to Theories of Knowledge and Reality
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An introduction to philosophy, covering the following puzzles and questions: Do we really know anything? What is time like? Is time travel possible? What are selves? Does God exist? Do we have free will? Students see how these big questions are pursued in both Western and Eastern traditions and how they impact everyday life. The main goal of this course is to develop rigorous and disciplined methods of thinking and writing. Emphasis is especially placed on developing the abilities to extract, present, explain, and evaluate positions and arguments. Staff.
PHIL 110 - Ancient Greek Philosophy
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of the metaphysics of the pre-Socratic philosophers, especially the Milesians, Pythagoras, Xenophanes, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Zeno of Elea, and the Atomists, and the ethics and political philosophy of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Topics include the origin and nature of the kosmos, the nature and existence of the god(s), the trial and execution of Socrates, theories of virtue, the nature of knowledge and truth, justice and the ideal state, the nature of eudaimonia (happiness, flourishing), and the possibility of akrasia (weakness of the will). Taylor.
PHIL 120 - Modern European Philosophy: Descartes to Hume
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of some of the metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of religion of the European Enlightenment, including views of the rationalists Rene Descartes, Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia, and Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz; and the empiricists Catharine Cockburn, John Locke, and David Hume. Topics include skepticism about the external world, mind-body dualism, the existence and nature of God, theories of substance, personal identity, and causation. Goldberg.
PHIL 130 - Classical Chinese Philosophy
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An introduction to philosophy via classical Chinese philosophy. We cover major schools in classical Chinese philosophy, including Confucianism, Mohism, Daoism, and Legalism. Many ideas of these schools have significantly shaped cultural practice in East Asia. We focus on the philosophical articulation and defense of these schools, and we reflect on issues in cosmology, epistemology, ethics, and political philosophy. We also discuss the relevance of classical Chinese philosophy to Western philosophy as well as empirical research. No background is presupposed. Kang.
PHIL 145 - Contemporary Moral Problems
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Philosophical consideration of some of the main moral and political issues we confront in society and the world today, such as war, terrorism, global climate change, poverty, capital punishment, affirmative action, abortion, the treatment of animals, and hate speech. Topics vary. Bell, Smith.
PHIL 150 - Ethics and the Environment
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course is a philosophical exploration of one’s responsibilities to the natural world. It has three main objectives: first, to provide an understanding of different dominant ethical theories and their application to animals, plants, and ecosystems; second, to provide an understanding of major environmental issues in current political debates, such as climate change, species preservation, and sustainable development; and third, to facilitate the development of a student’s own ethic towards the environment. Cooper.
PHIL 170 - Introduction to Logic
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
The study of argumentation and modern formal logic. This course explores the basic principles of deductive and inductive reasoning. Students learn to symbolize and evaluate natural language arguments. Topics covered include sentential and quantificational logic. Goldberg, Gregory, McGonigal.
PHIL 195 - Seminar in History of Philosophy or Major Figures
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 196 - Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
Winter 2020, PHIL 196-01: First-Year Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory: Ethics and Emerging Technologies (3). First-Year Seminar. Prerequisite: First-year class standing only. By some accounts, technology is the defining aspect of modern society that shapes how we experience the world. At the same time, technology is accelerating at a pace that challenges our ability to take stock of the ethical issues at hand. In this seminar, we take a critical look at a number of cutting-edge technologies that are still largely on the horizon and attempt to decipher the ethical issues they present and how such problems might be mitigated. Some emerging technologies we critically analyze include artificial intelligence, human enhancement, virtual reality, surveillance technologies, synthetic biology, self-driving cars, and killer robots. (HU) Weissman.
Fall 2019, PHIL 196-01: First-Year Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory: Ethics and Emerging Technologies (3). First-Year Seminar. Prerequisite: First-year class standing only. By some accounts, technology is the defining aspect of modern society that shapes how we experience the world. At the same time, technology is accelerating at a pace that challenges our ability to take stock of the ethical issues at hand. In this seminar, we take a critical look at a number of cutting-edge technologies that are still largely on the horizon and attempt to decipher the ethical issues they present and how such problems might be mitigated. Some emerging technologies we critically analyze include artificial intelligence, human enhancement, virtual reality, surveillance technologies, synthetic biology, self-driving cars, and killer robots. (HU) Weissman.
Winter 2020, PHIL 196-01: First-Year Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory: Ethics and Emerging Technologies (3). First-Year Seminar. Prerequisite: First-year class standing only. By some accounts, technology is the defining aspect of modern society that shapes how we experience the world. At the same time, technology is accelerating at a pace that challenges our ability to take stock of the ethical issues at hand. In this seminar, we take a critical look at a number of cutting-edge technologies that are still largely on the horizon and attempt to decipher the ethical issues they present and how such problems might be mitigated. Some emerging technologies we critically analyze include artificial intelligence, human enhancement, virtual reality, surveillance technologies, synthetic biology, self-driving cars, and killer robots. (HU) Weissman.
PHIL 197 - Seminar in Metaphysics and Epistemology
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 214 - Religion and Existentialism
(REL 214) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A consideration of the accounts of human existence (faith and doubt; death and being-in-the-world; anxiety, boredom, and hope; sin and evil; etc.) elaborated by philosophers, theologians, and literary figures in the 19th and 20th centuries. The central figures considered are Søren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche. Attention is paid to their significance for future philosophers, theologians, artists, and literary figures, and consideration may also be paid to forerunners in earlier centuries. Kosky.
PHIL 218 - Heidegger and Being in the World
(REL 218) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course explores the work of Martin Heidegger and the development of its themes in the work of select philosophical, literary, and/or film artists. A close reading of the magisterial account of being in the world in Being and Time is followed by careful study of representative essays from his later work. After our reading of Heidegger, we consider the literary, cinematic, and/or philosophical work of major 20th- and 21st-century artists who let us reflect on the possibilities and/or problems that his account of being in the world poses for ethical, religious, and existential concern. Kosky.
PHIL 221 - Plato
(CLAS 221) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An in-depth examination of the philosophy of Plato. We look at Plato’s epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, ethics, and political philosophy through a careful analysis of several dialogues, including some or all of the following: Euthyphro, Laches, Apology, Gorgias, Meno, Phaedo, Symposium, Phaedrus, and Republic. In addition, we consider certain challenges posed by Plato’s use of the dialogue form, such as whether we are justified in assuming that Socrates is a mouthpiece for Plato’s own views, and how we should interpret Plato’s frequent appeal to myths and other literary devices within his dialogues. Smith.
PHIL 222 - Aristotle
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A study of Aristotle’s comprehensive philosophy of man and nature, including his logic, physics, metaphysics, psychology, ethics, and aesthetics. Staff.
PHIL 228 - John Stuart Mill
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A study of the life and ideas of a 19th-century philosopher who was ahead of his time. The class considers such questions as: Are liberty and individuality absolutely crucial to human happiness? Are we morally obligated to conduct our lives in ways that maximize the greatest aggregate happiness? Should women and men have equal rights and opportunities? How can we combine the benefits of capitalism (higher productivity and innovation) with the benefits of socialism (avoiding poverty and exploitation)? Is it more important to fill your head with knowledge or your heart with love? M. Bell.
PHIL 232 - Nietzsche
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of Nietzsche’s central philosophical conceptions - revaluation of values, genealogy of morality, self-overcoming, eternal recurrence - through selected readings from various periods in Nietzsche’s authorship. Staff.
PHIL 234 - American Pragmatism
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A survey of historical and contemporary American pragmatist philosophers, who believe that truth is linked to concrete consequences, meaning is a social phenomenon, and the line between philosophy and politics is permeable. Goldberg.
PHIL 235 - The Second Sex: Beauvoir on the Power of Gender
(WGSS 235) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Sixty years after its initial publication, The Second Sex is as eye-opening and relevant as ever. Simone de Beauvoir’s masterpiece weaves together history, philosophy, economics, biology, and a host of other disciplines to analyze the Western notion of “woman” and to explore the making and the power of gender and sexuality. The Second Sex is an important philosophical and political document about inequality and enforced “otherness.” Referring to the history of philosophy, new developments in existential thought, and drawing on extensive interviews with women, Beauvoir synthesizes research about women’s bodies and psyches as well as their historic and economic roles. Verhage.
PHIL 238 - Existentialism: Meaning and Existence
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Overview of existential thought in the 19th and 20th centuries. The course presents core existentialist thinkers and their critics - e.g. Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Sartre, de Beauvoir, Fanon, Heidegger, Camus - and explores important existential themes such as human experience, anxiety, freedom, authenticity, and absurdity. Verhage.
PHIL 239 - Postmodernism: Power, Difference, and Disruption
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
While many things are said to be “postmodern” –architecture, pop-culture, literature, art, philosophy– the term itself escapes many attempts at definition. In this seminar, we examine the philosophical roots of postmodern thought in an effort to gain better insight to its fluid character. The course concentrates especially on the writings of Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, and Gilles Deleuze. We read Foucault’s account of power and the docile body in Discipline and Punish; we discuss Derrida’s deconstructionist project and his concept of “differance”; and we explore the fascinatingly complex world of Deleuze’s and Guattari’s A Thousand Plateaus. After carefully exploring these complicated texts, we read several critical appropriations of these works in contemporary race theory, postcolonial studies, and feminist philosophy. Verhage.
PHIL 240 - Contemporary Ethical Theory
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An in-depth exploration of central questions in contemporary normative ethical theory, including the following: Which features of actions are morally important to determining their rightness (e.g., their motive, their intrinsic nature, their consequences)? What is the relation between moral values and personal values (e.g., those deriving from personal commitments and relationships)? How demanding is morality? How can we evaluate competing theories of normative ethics? Students consider these and related issues by examining contemporary philosophical defenses of consequentialism, deontology, virtue ethics, and contractualism. Staff.
PHIL 241 - Poverty, Ethics, and Religion
(POV 241)
Credits: 3
This course introduces students to some of the most influential and compelling ethical arguments (both secular and religious) about our moral obligations regarding poverty. The course also examines the benefits and challenges of doing comparative religious and philosophical ethical analysis of a pressing moral and social problem. In particular, students will consider the arguments for and against including religiously inflected arguments in public deliberation about anti-poverty policy. Pickett.
PHIL 242 - Social Inequality and Fair Opportunity
(WGSS 242) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An exploration of the different range of opportunities available to various social groups, including racial, ethnic and sexual minorities, women, and the poor. Topics include how to define fair equality of opportunity; the social mechanisms that play a role in expanding and limiting opportunity; legal and group-initiated strategies aimed at effecting fair equality of opportunity and the theoretical foundations of these strategies; as well as an analysis of the concepts of equality, merit and citizenship, and their value to individuals and society. Bell.
PHIL 243 - Martin Luther King Jr.: Poverty, Justice, and Love
(POV 243) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course offers students the opportunity to examine the ethics and theology that informed the public arguments about poverty made by one of the 20th century’s most important social justice theorists and activists, Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the competing views of his contemporaries, critics, forebears, and heirs. The course asks the following questions, among others: How do justice and love relate to one another and to poverty reduction? What role should religion play in public discussions and policies about poverty and justice? Are the dignity and the beloved community King championed the proper goal of anti-poverty efforts? Pickett.
PHIL 244 - Feminist Social and Political Philosophy
(WGSS 244) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course critically examines the gender norms that pervade our identities, govern our everyday behavior, and organize our social life. Questions addressed may include: What is gender? In what ways does it affect the quality of women’s and men’s lives? Is gender difference natural? Is it valuable? Can it contribute to, or interfere with, human flourishing? Can a gendered society be just? What can any of us do to promote good relations among women and men? Bell.
PHIL 245 - Poverty, Dignity, and Human Rights
(POV 245) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Is severe poverty a human rights violation? This course examines that question and others by means of an investigation of the main philosophical and religious debates about human rights. More broadly, the course provides students with the opportunity to examine our duties (individually and collectively) to those said to suffer from any human rights abuse. Questions considered include: Are human rights universal or culturally specific? What (if anything) grounds human rights? Are religious justifications of rights permissible in a pluralistic world? Is dignity a useful concept for defending and/or discerning human rights? Do we only have liberty rights (to be free of mistreatment) or do we also have welfare rights (to claim certain positive treatment from others)? What are the practical (moral, political. and legal) implications of identifying severe poverty as a human rights violation? Pickett.
PHIL 246 - Philosophy of Sex
(WGSS 246) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course explores questions related to contemporary conceptions of sexuality and its proper role in our lives. Questions addressed include: What is the purpose of sex? Are sexual practices subject to normative evaluation on grounds of morality, aesthetics, and/or capacity to promote a flourishing human life? We consider the relation between sex and both intimacy and pleasure, viewed from the perspective of heterosexual women and men, and gay men and lesbians. What are our sexual practices and attitudes toward sex? What should they be like? Bell.
PHIL 247 - Medicine, Research, and Poverty
(POV 247) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This seminar introduces students to central ethical issues in the provision of medical care and the conduct of medical research in the context of poverty. Specific topics include medical research on prisoners and the indigent; ancillary care obligations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs); meeting the standard of care in LMICs; access to essential medicines; allocation of scarce medical resources; and compensated donation for organs or tissues. Taylor.
PHIL 248 - Ethics of War
FDR: HU
Credits: 4
An investigation of important ethical issues concerning the justification, conduct, and consequences of war. The course concentrates, in particular, on traditional just war theory and on recent challenges that have been raised to the central tenets of this theory in light of the rise of terrorism and “asymmetric conflict” (i.e., conflicts waged between state and non-state parties), on the one hand, and reflection upon the moral responsibility of individuals who choose to support or participate in unjust wars, on the other. We address questions such as the following: Should we regard all combatants in war as having the same moral status, regardless of whether they are fighting for a “just cause”? Is it ever morally permissible to attack non-combatants? Is terrorism ever morally justified? Is torture ever morally justified? Is there a moral obligation to engage in humanitarian intervention to stop genocide? Can the conditions of war constitute an excusing condition for acts of moral atrocity? Smith.
PHIL 249 - Poverty, Oppression, and Privilege
(POV 249) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This seminar asks one overarching question: Are the increasingly common - and contested - concepts of “oppression” and “privilege” useful in poverty studies and in the pursuit of justice? Along the way, we consider the following more specific questions: Is poverty a form of oppression? Is systemic disadvantage always oppressive or is it sometimes justifiable? What is the relationship between privilege and moral responsibility? Is privilege blameworthy? Do the privileged have distinct responsibilities to advocate for the just treatment of the disadvantaged? For that matter, do the oppressed have their own distinct responsibilities or would such a burden be an additional form of oppression? Is advocating for the disadvantaged privileged and (sometimes) oppressive? If so, is failing to advocate even worse? Who is responsible for the pursuit of justice and what, if anything, should be done? Pickett.
PHIL 250 - Philosophies of Life
FDR: HU
Credits: 4
Prerequisite: 3 credits in philosophy or instructor consent. This course provides opportunities to explore philosophies of life held by influential philosophers and by ordinary people, focusing on what it means to live a good or worthwhile life. It also gives students a chance to clarify and develop their own vision of what a good life is for them. Projects include conducting interviews with members of the community outside the classroom. Bell.
PHIL 252 - Philosophy of Law
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of topics in the philosophy of law, such as the concepts of a law and of a legal system; Natural Law theory; legal positivist and legal realist theories of law; the nature of the relationship between law, morality, and religion; civil disobedience; rights in the U.S. Constitution; freedom of speech and pornography; abortion and the right to privacy; punishment and the death penalty; and different forms of legal liability. Readings include United States Supreme Court opinions. Bell.
PHIL 254 - Philosophy of the Family: Beyond Tradition
(WGSS 254) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course considers philosophical issues raised by family as a social institution and as a legal institution. Topics addressed include the social and personal purposes served by the institution of family, the nature of relationships between family members, the various forms that family can take, the scope of family privacy or autonomy, and how family obligations, mutual support, and interdependency affect individual members of families. Bell.
PHIL 256 - Free Will and Moral Responsibility
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course provides an introduction to the problem of free will and moral responsibility. It is natural to wonder what place there is for freedom in a natural world of cause and effect. Our ordinary practices of holding people responsible (which includes not just blame, but also, e.g., credit, where credit is due) seem threatened equally by either determinism or indeterminism, fate or chance. In this class, we ask: What sort of concepts are freedom and responsibility, and what must a person be for those concepts to be applicable? The course begins with a brief historical overview of the problem of free will and moral responsibility, and then examines a number of contemporary philosophical perspectives on this problem, including the seminal work of P. F. Strawson, Harry Frankfurt, Gary Watson, John Martin Fischer, Susan Wolf, and T. M. Scanlon, among others. Smith.
PHIL 260 - Political Philosophy: The Social Contract
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Is the government’s power over its citizens morally legitimate? Do citizens have any political obligations to their government? What is individual liberty and how should it be respected? How should a commitment to liberty be balanced against a concern for equality and the common good? Social Contract doctrine–to which the Declaration of Independence adverts–provides answers to these questions. This course surveys the Social Contract theories of three of the most influential political philosophers of the modern age, whose writings shaped our conception of the republic and its principles: Thomas Hobbes. John Locke, and Jean Jacques Rousseau. Taylor.
PHIL 264 - Aesthetics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course offers a wide-ranging, reflective overview of contemporary debates in the philosophy of art. We discuss the following kinds of questions: How are artistic experience and value interrelated? In what does beauty consist? What is the nature of aesthetic experience? Should we value works of art for what we can learn from them? How do pictures represent? What constitutes artistic expression? In what ways is the imagination involved in engaging with artworks? Can emotional responses to fiction be genuine and rational? Is artistic intention relevant to the interpretation of artworks? Are there general principles of aesthetic evaluation? What are the relations between the moral and aesthetic values of art? McGonigal.
PHIL 270 - Intermediate Logic
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: PHIL 170 or instructor consent. An examination of alternative formal logics and issues in the philosophy of logic. Topics include formal ways of modeling possibility, actuality, and necessity; obligation and permissibility; pastness, presentness, and futurity; and others. They also include informal considerations of topics like conditionals, counterfactuals, intuitionism, and others. Goldberg, Gregory.
PHIL 272 - Philosophy and Science Fiction
FDR: HU
Credits: 4
Discussion of one or more major works in science fiction and in philosophy that explore related themes. Goldberg.
PHIL 274 - Metaphysics: Existence and Reality
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of central issues in metaphysics. Topics include free will and determinism; cause and effect; space and time; being and existence; and possibility, actuality, and necessity. Goldberg.
PHIL 278 - Epistemology: Knowledge and Doubt
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of the basic problems in epistemology with an emphasis on contemporary discussions. Topics include skepticism, knowledge, justification (foundationalism, coherentism, reliabilism), relativism, and rationality. Cooper, Goldberg, Gregory.
PHIL 282 - Philosophy of Biology
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of philosophical issues raised by biology, with an emphasis on current evolutionary theory. Topics include the structure of the theory of evolution by natural selection, an examination of the concepts of fitness and adaptation, the role of teleological explanation in biology, reductionism, the nature of biological species, individuality, levels of selection, and sociobiology. Cooper.
PHIL 285 - The Unruly Body: Philosophy, Science, and Culture
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
“We are bodies.” This statement apparently affirms the obvious. But if this is so obvious why then do we so often disregard and disrespect our bodies and the bodies of others? In this interdisciplinary course, students study theories of embodiment through the study of the (i) history of philosophy, (ii) contemporary scientific and philosophical depictions of the body, and (iii) social-cultural structures affecting our bodies. Finally (iv), we consider how we can rethink, relive, regard, refigure, restore, and respect our body and the body of others in more productive and thought-provoking ways. Verhage.
PHIL 295 - Seminar in History of Philosophy or Major Figures
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring)
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
Fall 2019, PHIL 295A-01: Seminar in History of Philosophy or Major Figures: Chinese Buddhist Philosophy (3). An advanced survey of Chinese Buddhism. Buddhism was founded in India. After it entered China, Chinese Buddhists created four distinct forms of Buddhism—namely, Tiantai, Huayan, Chan/Zen, and Pure Land—by integrating Indian Buddhism with native Chinese ideas. We focus on the philosophical articulation and defense of these schools, and reflect on issues in metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of mind, and ethics. By examining the origin, development, and influence of Chinese Buddhism, students see how the three major trends of Chinese thoughts—Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism—are entangled with one another. We also discuss the relevance of Chinese Buddhism to Western philosophy. (HU) Kang.
PHIL 296 - Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
Spring 2020, PHIL 296-01: Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory: Ethics and Emerging Technologies (3). By some accounts, technology is the defining aspect of modern society that shapes how we experience the world. At the same time, technology is accelerating at a pace that challenges our ability to take stock of the ethical issues at hand. In this seminar, we take a critical look at a number of cutting-edge technologies that are still largely on the horizon and attempt to decipher the ethical issues they present and how such problems might be mitigated. Some emerging technologies we critically analyze include artificial intelligence, human enhancement, virtual reality, surveillance technologies, synthetic biology, self-driving cars, and killer robots. (HU) Weissman.
Fall 2019, PHIL 296A-01: Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory: Virtue Ethics and Liberal Arts Education (3). The mission of Washington and Lee is to provide a liberal arts education that helps students develop their capacities to think freely, critically, and humanely and to act with honor, integrity, and civility. These capacities are known as virtues, positive traits of intellect and character that are believed to be conducive to living well. Virtue ethics is one of the oldest and most important approaches to moral theory. Plato famously asked whether virtue can be taught. Aristotle’s Ethics attempts to answer Plato by giving an account of how the traits that are necessary to human flourishing can be acquired. In this seminar, students read classic and contemporary texts in virtue ethics, with the aim of evaluating W&L’s mission and the university’s efforts to fulfill it. What does it mean to think freely, critically, and humanely? What are the distinguishing characteristics of honor, integrity, and civility? Are these traits beneficial in every circumstance? Are there other virtues that the university should strive to cultivate in its students? How effectively do the culture, curriculum, and extra-curricular programs at Washington and Lee teach the virtues to which our mission commits us? Students reflect upon their own educational goals, choices, and experiences in light of the philosophical works that they read. (HU) Dudley.
PHIL 297 - Seminar in Metaphysics and Epistemology
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
A consideration of selected issues in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 310 - Kant
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A close reading of the Critique of Pure Reason, Kant’s most important work in metaphysics and epistemology and one of the most influential philosophical works ever written. Goldberg.
PHIL 315 - Hegel
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: At least sophomore standing. The truth is the whole. Hegel’s philosophy was inspired by an effort to reconcile various dichotomies of modern thought: nature and freedom, mind and body, immanence and transcendence, sensibility and understanding, reason and faith, romanticism and enlightenment, what is and what ought to be. This course examines the method and starting point of Hegel’s project, with a close reading of his Phenomenology of Spirit. In the process, we explore and assess his attempt to comprehend all of the perennial philosophical problems with a revolutionary, systematic approach. Because Hegel is also the first philosopher to take the history of philosophy seriously and make history a fundamental category of philosophy, we gain a better understanding of both his predecessors and those whom he influenced (including existentialists, Marxists, and postmodernists) in our own time. Lambert.
PHIL 340 - History of Ethics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A close examination of the writings of some of the philosophers and writers who have shaped ethical thought, including Sophocles, Cicero, Aquinas, Machiavelli, Montaigne, Shakespeare, Hobbes, Hume, Rousseau, Adam Smith, Kant, and Nietzsche. Topics include ambition, pride, revenge, friendship, family, deception, inequality, justice, law, God, sympathy, duty, reason, and evil. Staff.
PHIL 342 - Metaethics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course focuses on contemporary issues in metaethics. For example, we address questions such as the following: Do moral judgments express truths that are independent of our feelings and conventions? Are “goodness” and “wrongness” real properties of things, or do we simply use these terms to express our subjective preferences toward states of affairs? Can we reason about morality? Do moral considerations provide practical reasons for all rational agents, or does the normative force of these considerations depend upon an agent’s subjective desires? We also consider some meta-theoretical questions about the aims, methods, and authority of moral theory. Smith.
PHIL 344 - Virtue Ethics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course examines the recent resurgence of interest in virtue-based theories in ethics. These theories, which trace back to the Ancient Greek philosophers (particularly Aristotle), emphasize the importance of the virtues and good character to living a flourishing human life. Such views are increasingly being defended as an alternative to traditional rule-based (deontological) and consequence-based (consequentialist) theories in ethics. We begin by looking at some of the seminal articles that sparked this renewed interest in virtue ethics, and then examine a fully developed neo-Aristotelian virtue ethical account (and some criticisms that have been raised to this account). Smith.
PHIL 346 - Medical Ethics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of the issues arising out of the human impact of modern biomedical research and practice. Specific issues are selected from among the following: abortion, contraception, death and dying, experimentation/research, genetics, in vitro fertilization, intellectual and developmental disabilities, public health/community medicine, science/technology, transplantation and patients’ rights. Taylor.
PHIL 347 - Ethics of Globalization
(BUS 347)
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: At least junior standing. This seminar examines a number of ethical issues raised by the phenomenon of globalization. Though globalization is not new, recent business, technological, and policy developments have made the world more integrated and interdependent than ever before. Increasing economic, cultural, and political interconnections have created a host of new questions about how to conceive of the moral rights and responsibilities of individuals, multi-national corporations, nation-states, and global institutions within this new global framework. This course identifies and clarifies some of these questions, and considers how they have been addressed from a variety of different disciplinary perspectives. Questions concerning the ethics of globalization are approached through an analysis of a few specific topics, such as immigration, humanitarian intervention, and global poverty and inequality. Because the issues raised by the phenomenon of globalization cross disciplinary boundaries, readings are drawn from a wide variety of fields, including philosophy, business, economics, political science, and anthropology. Reiter and Smith.
PHIL 348 - Legal Ethics
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
An examination of the issues associated with lawyers’ roles in society and their impact upon and obligations to the client, the court, and the legal profession. The course also addresses questions of the role and function of law and the adversary system. Cooper.
PHIL 354 - Distributive Justice
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: Junior standing or instructor consent. How should the product of social cooperation be distributed in a just society? Is wealth redistribution through taxes fair? Is it a fair distribution of wealth that a just society depends on, or is distributive justice more complicated than that? Should we have welfare programs, and, if so, what should they be like? Our studies may include John Rawls’ political liberalism, Robert Nozick’s libertarianism, Ronald Dworkin’s equality of resources, Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach, Stuart White’s justice as fair reciprocity, and criticisms of the distributive paradigm. Bell.
PHIL 357 - Self and Social World
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course takes as its starting point the question of the ‘other.’ We explore such questions as: how do we perceive, and communicate with others who have different bodies, genders, cultures and histories? How do we see ourselves through the eyes of others? Can we speak for others? Can we build bridges across differences and forge common ground? We begin with traditional philosophical accounts of selves and others, i.e., Hegel’s dialectic of master and slave, Husserl’s alter ego, Buber’s philosophy of dialogue, Sartre’s account of shame, Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology of embodied intersubjectivity, and Levinas’ ethics of alterity. Later, we concentrate on the work of feminist philosophers, race theorists, and post-colonialist thinkers who critique these traditional philosophies and offer alternative ways of speaking about self and other. Verhage.
PHIL 365 - Advanced Topics in Environmental Ethics
(ENV 365) FDR: HU
Credits: 3
This course examines selected topics in environmental ethics. Topics may vary from year to year, and include the proper meanings and goals of environmentalism; the goals and methods of conservation biology; major environmental issues in current political debates; and balancing the ethical concerns of environmental justice and our responsibilities to future generations. Cooper.
PHIL 372 - Philosophy of Language
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A survey of central topics in the field, including some or all of the following: reference, meaning, truth, analyticity, speech acts, pragmatics, verificationism, indeterminacy, innateness, metaphor, and development of language in the species and in the individual. Goldberg, Gregory.
PHIL 375 - Philosophy of Mind
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
A consideration and assessment of dualism and materialism and of various theories of the relation between the mental and the physical, such as the identity theory, functionalism, and supervenience. Gregory.
PHIL 378 - Philosophy of Science
FDR: HU
Credits: 3
Discussion of philosophical issues raised by the natural sciences. Topics include the nature of scientific theories, evidence, and explanation, the demarcation of science from non-science, scientific revolutions, the unity of science, and scientific realism. Cooper, Gregory.
PHIL 382 - Human Enhancement and Transhumanism
FDR: HU
Credits: 4
Prerequisite: Instructor consent. What does it mean to be human? Must we stay that way? We address these questions by looking critically at the technological enhancement of human capabilities. We have the means - robotic, pharmaceutical, computational, neurological, and genetic - to alter and enhance our biological endowments. We can increase our lifespan, improve our physical, cognitive, and emotional abilities like never before. What is currently possible? What will be possible in the short, medium, and long term? Could we change ourselves to such an extent that we are no longer human - becoming transhuman or posthuman? What if our technological descendants far surpass us and enslave us? What are the dangers and moral/ethical considerations, and how are we to adjudicate them? We read authors ranging from essentialist bioconservatives to radical transhumanists. Gregory.
PHIL 395 - Seminar in History of Philosophy or Major Figures
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
Prerequisites: Usually one course in philosophy other than PHIL 170. Varies by topic. An intensive and critical study of selected issues or major figures in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 396 - Seminar in Ethics and Value Theory
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
Prerequisites: Usually one course in philosophy other than PHIL 170. Varies by topic. An intensive and critical study of selected issues or major figures in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 397 - Seminar in Metaphysics and Epistemology
FDR: HU
Credits: 3 credits in fall-winter-spring, 4 in spring
Prerequisites: Usually one course in philosophy other than PHIL 170. Varies by topic. An intensive and critical study of selected issues or major figures in philosophy. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different.
PHIL 401 - Directed Individual Study
Credits: 1
Prerequisite: Permission of the department. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different. Staff.
PHIL 402 - Directed Individual Study
Credits: 2
Prerequisite: Permission of the department. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different. Staff.
PHIL 403 - Directed Individual Study
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: Permission of the department. May be repeated for degree credit if the topics are different. Staff.
PHIL 473 - Senior Thesis
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Senior standing and major in philosophy. Senior thesis. Staff.
PHIL 493 - Honors Thesis
Credits: 3-3
Prerequisites: Honors candidacy and senior standing. Honors Thesis. Students must petition the department via the listed instructor. While awaiting a decision, the student must ensure a full credit load not including PHIL 493. The department honors program is outlined at https://www.wlu.edu/philosophy-department/about-the-department/about-the-major-and-the-minor/honors-program .
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