PHIL 1000 Logic and Critical Analysis

Introduction to the elementary tools of logic required for constructing and critically evaluating arguments and the claims they support. Topics include: the nature of an argument; argument structure; how arguments can fail both in structure and in content; formal and informal fallacies; propositional logic and predicate calculus; and critical analysis of rhetorical strategies for presenting arguments. Students will be encouraged to develop critical reasoning skills that can be widely applied.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: NSM, AN Art: NSM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Summer

PHIL 1010 Introduction to Scientific Reasoning

This course analyzes scientists' reasoning strategies. Case studies from the history of astronomy, epidemiology, molecular biology, and neuroscience, provide a basis for understanding of the character of scientific theories and the means by which they are evaluated. Special attention will be given to the construction and evaluation of statistical and causal hypotheses, including experimental design, and to the use of scientific knowledge in public policy decision-making. Students will acquire basic skills in critical thinking and scientific reasoning and an introductory understanding of issues in the philosophy of science.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: NSM, AN Art: NSM BU: SCI

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 1030 Problems in Philosophy

Introduction to philosophical methods and concepts through an investigation of major issues in Western philosophy such as: what counts as knowledge; truth and belief; the existence of God; the mind-body problem; materialism and idealism; moral theory and concepts of justice. A range of historical and contemporary views on these issues will be considered. The aim of the course is to prepare students to think and write about philosophical problems on their own.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 1040 Great Philosophers

In this course we focus on some of the most important texts in the history of Western philosophy in order to discuss a wide range of central philosophical problems. We typically consider, for example, the existence of God, the justification of claims to knowledge, and the requirements of a good human life, including the demands of morality. Among the philosophers most likely to be studied are Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Marx, Nietzsche, and Wittgenstein. Our goal is not just to appreciate the genius of some great philosophers but also to grapple with the current philosophical problems they have bequeathed to us.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

PHIL 1050 Introduction to Philosophy of Religion

There is a fundamental tension between Western philosophical thought, which emphasizes the import and efficacy of reasoned argument, and religious traditions, which stress the primacy of faith over reason. This conflict is the focus of this course. Topics to be considered include: the existence of God; atheism and agnosticism; the immortality of the soul; freedom of the will; the possibility of miracles; and, more generally, the nature of religious knowledge and the significance of religious diversity.

Credit 3 units. BU: ETH

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 1060 Present Moral Problems

An investigation of a range of contemporary moral issues and controversies that draws on philosophical ethics and culturewide moral considerations. Topics may include: racism, world hunger, war and terrorism, the distribution of income and wealth, gender discrimination, pornography, lesbian and gay rights, abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment. The aim of the course is to present diverse points of view regarding these topics and to provide conceptual and theoretical tools that enable the student to make headway in thinking carefully and critically about the issues.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 1996 Philosophy Elective: 1000-Level

This course is for transcribing 1000-level PHIL elective units

Credit 3 units. EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

PHIL 2010 Introduction to Philosophy of Cognitive Science

This course will introduce key philosophical issues raised by the advent of cognitive scientific studies of mind. Topics may include: mental imagery, concepts, rationality, consciousness and emotion, language and thought, machine intelligence, robotics, free will.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2020 Intro to Metaphysics & Epistemology

Introduction to the study of the nature of reality (metaphysics) and the scope and limits of human knowledge (epistemology). Some of the most pressing problems traditionally encountered in these two areas are introduced and subjected to critical scrutiny via the tools of contemporary analytical philosophy.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2040 Philosophy of Sex and Love

This course allows students to learn more about the philosophy of sex and love.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2060 Biomedical Ethics

A critical examination, in the light of contemporary moral disagreements and traditional ethical theories, of some of the moral issues arising out of medical practice and experimentation in our society. Issues that might be discussed include euthanasia, genetic engineering, organ transplants, medical malpractice, the allocation of medical resources, and the rights of the patient.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

PHIL 2070 Business Ethics

Study of the nature and justification of economic systems, business organizations, and business practices. Focus on contemporary business and the ideology it embodies. Discussion of moral problems arising in business includes both the analysis of structural factors that cause them and the evaluation of courses of action that might resolve them.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2080 Introduction to Environmental Ethics

A general survey of current issues in environmental ethics, focusing on problems such as the obligation to future generations, protection of endangered species, animal rights, problems of energy and pollution, wilderness, global justice, and business obligations. Students will also learn some ethical and political theory.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2090 Introduction to Aesthetics

Study of characteristic problems in aesthetics and the philosophy of art, e.g., the nature of aesthetic entities, of aesthetic experience, and of individual differences in the various arts. Primary emphasis on solutions various theories offer to these problems.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: AH BU: HUM

PHIL 2120 Philosophy of Film

This course allows students to learn more about the philosophy of film.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2201 Disagreement, Extremism, and Polarization

Americans are increasingly skeptical about the future of their democracy and about our ability to pursue equality and social justice within the existing political system, and many people identify irresolvable disagreement, political extremism, and partisan polarization as causes of the current crisis in American democracy. In this course, we will study disagreement, extremism, and polarization using insights and methods from philosophy, political science, and empirical psychology, with the aim of understanding these phenomena and the social and political challenges they pose. Our questions will include whether it is possible for reasonable people to disagree, whether democratic deliberation requires a background of agreement or shared facts, how our moral psychology shapes our political beliefs, whether prejudice and bias can be eliminated from political thinking, and whether there are some political positions that are so extreme they should not be taken seriously. There are no prerequisites for this course and no background in philosophy, political science, or psychology will be assumed

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 2202 Social Identity and Democratic Deliberation

Democracy is committed to citizens' status as political equals, including our right to have equal say in determining our joint political future. In a democracy, our voices are equal. At least in theory. As it turns out, many core deliberative practices, including argument and testimony, are distorted by individuals' social identities. In this class, we will proceed according to the following questions: How should argument and testimony work in a democracy? How does social identity, including gender, race and class, impact us as political agents within a deliberative context? More specifically, how does our social identity effect our practices of knowledge acquisition, maintenance, and transmission? We will study theories of democratic deliberation, standpoint theories in epistemology, theories of epistemic injustice, and conclude by considering several ameliorative theories.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, SC BU: HUM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2900 Internship in Philosophy

Students receive credit for a faculty-directed and approved internship. Registration requires completion of the Learning Agreement which the student obtains from the Career Center and which must be filled out and signed by the Career Center, the site supervisor, and the faculty sponsor prior to beginning internship work. Credit should correspond to actual time spent in work activities, e.g., 8-10 hours a week for 13 or 14 weeks to receive 3 units of credit; 1 or 2 credits for fewer hours.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 2996 Philosophy Elective - 2000 Level

This course is for transcribing 2000-level PHIL elective units

Credit 3 units. EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

PHIL 3000 Philosophy of Medicine

Philosophy of Medicine is an investigation into what doctors know and how they know it. This course will investigate the following questions: What is disease? What is health? How do we classify disease? What counts as good evidence and good evidential reasoning in medicine? Is medicine a science? If so, what makes it distinctive as a science? What kinds of evidential roles do case studies play in medicine? How should we measure and compare outcomes in clinical trials and in systematic reviews? What is the appropriate relationship between medicine and the basic sciences or between medicine and the public health sciences (e.g., epidemiology, biostatistics, economics, behavioral science)? What role, if any, should private industry (e.g., the pharmaceutical industry, the health insurance industry) play in shaping the practice of medicine? How should we define and measure effectiveness in medicine? Do values inform decision making about health policy, and, if so, how? The overall goal of the course is to develop a reasoned, reflective approach to research and practice in medicine through the critical analysis of texts and case studies in the history of medicine. Students do not need a background in philosophy to take this course. This course is intended to be of special interest to pre-health professionals and to philosophy and science majors. For graduate students in philosophy, this course satisfies the seminar requirement. Extra assignments will be provided to satisfy graduate course work; students should consult the instructor for details.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3020 Philosophy of Language

A survey of major philosophical problems concerning meaning, reference, and truth as they have been addressed within the analytic tradition. Readings that represent diverse positions on these focal issues will be selected from the work of leading philosophers in the field, for example: Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Davidson, Quine, Kripke, and Putnam. Students are encouraged to engage critically the ideas and arguments presented, and to develop and defend their own views on the core topics. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3030 Metaphysics and Epistemology

An introduction to the philosophical study of the nature of reality (metaphysics) and of human knowledge (epistemology) that relies on techniques of contemporary analytic philosophy. Metaphysical issues may include: the problem of universals, the nature of necessity, and the mind-body problem. Epistemological issues may include: correspondence and coherence theories of truth, the quest for certainty, and the nature of skepticism. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3091 Theory of Knowledge

An introduction to epistemology, which is concerned with questions about knowledge, belief, evidence, and intellectual conduct and character. This course focuses on selected issues in epistemology with the aim of providing a survey of contemporary work. Possible topics include the nature of knowledge and justification, probability, epistemic norms of assertion and action, philosophical skepticism, the value of knowledge, disagreement, intellectual virtue, and epistemic injustice. Prerequisite: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200 level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3100 Philosophy of Mind

An introduction to philosophical' analyses of the nature of mind, especially those developed by contemporary philosophers. The focus will be on questions such as the following: What is a mind? How does it relate to a person's brain? How does it relate to a person's body and the external world? Can a mind exist in a very different kind of body (e.g., a computer or a robot)? Does thinking require a language-like code? If so, can non-linguistic species think? What is it to have a mental image or to experience pain? Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3110 Mind and Morals

This course explores a number of issues at the intersection of ethics and cognitive science. Possible topics include: Are we rational? Do we know our own thoughts and motivations? Can one believe that one ought to do something without being motivated to do it? Do emotions impair or enhance our ability to reason? How do moral beliefs develop through childhood? Are traits such as intelligence and character unchangeable, and what implications follow if they are (or are not)? Does retaining my identity over time require having the same mind, and, if so, am I the same person now as I was as a child? Are non-human animals worthy of moral consideration? If brain activity is determined by causal laws, can we have free will? Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3130 Philosophy of Science

Pivotal concepts common to empirical sciences are examined and clarified. These include: explanation, confirmation, prediction, systematization, empirical significance, and the relationship of all these concepts to the structure of scientific theory. Examples may be drawn from both contemporary and historical science, including the social, biological, and physical sciences. Students with a background in science are particularly encouraged to consider this course. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3150 Philosophy of Religion

This course focuses on debates concerning the existence of God as well as on special issues that arise within religion generally and also on some that arise within specific religious traditions. Topics include: the rationality of religious belief, the problem of evil, the coherence of theism, and the freedom-foreknowledge problem.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3160 Classical Ethical Theories

Intensive readings of great works in the history of ethics, especially by Plato, Aristotle, Hume, Kant, and Mill. Topics may include: the sources of moral knowledge, the nature of practical moral judgment, the moral role of emotion and desire, weakness of will, moral autonomy, and the universality of moral norms. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3170 Feminist Philosophy

This course allows students to learn more about feminist philosophy.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3190 Philosophy of the Arts

An examination both of general issues that apply to all types of art and of issues specific to particular art forms. For example, what is art? What are the central artistic values: beauty, truth, emotional expressiveness, representational power, or something else? Does art have a moral or political function? How can we account for the history of art and for different artistic styles? In regard to selected forms, there are important questions concerning how pictures represent, whether music and dance are forms of 'language', and the nature of literary interpretation. Some consideration is given to the relation of psychology and theories of the mind to art. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 3200 Social and Political Philosophy

Study of certain fundamental issues concerning government, society, and culture. For example: what are the nature and limits of legitimate political authority? Are ordinary human beings capable of governing themselves justly? Do citizens have a duty to obey the state? If so, to what extent, if at all, is that duty grounded in consent or contract? Should the state limit or regulate the personal relationships of citizens, such as marriage, family, and sexuality? How should social institutions rectify a history of political or social injustice against oppressed groups? Readings from historical and contemporary sources. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3210 Problems of Moral, Legal, and Social Ethics

This course allows students to learn more about problems related to more, legal, and social ethics.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3220 Issues in Applied Ethics:

Advanced study of a selected topic in applied ethics. Abstract ethical theories and methods are brought to bear on the moral problems that arise in an area of social and professional practice such as medicine, business, law, journalism, engineering, or scientific and humanistic research. Possible topics include: reproductive healthcare and policy, the just distribution of medical resources, the social responsibilities of corporations, accountability in the media and public office, and the ethics of research on or affecting human subjects. Prerequisites: one course at the 100 or 200-level in applied ethics; or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3230 Philosophy of Law

This course will first focus on the philosophical foundations of law, examining both the relationship between law and rules, as well as the types of legal reasoning. Second, the course will focus on philosophical issues that arise in the key substantive areas of law: contracts, torts, property, criminal law, and constitutional law, as well in specialized areas such as family and employment law. The course will end with a brief discussion of several problems in legal ethics. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3240 Ancient Philosophy

An examination of the high-water marks of philosophy in ancient Greece and Rome, focusing primarily on Plato and Aristotle. A wide range of philosophical problems will be discussed, including the nature of the good life, the justification of knowledge, and the ultimate nature of mind and world. Attention will be paid to how these problems unfolded in their historical context and to how the ancient treatments of them compare to contemporary efforts. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3250 Introduction to Metaphysics

This course is an introduction to central debates of contemporary analytic metaphysics. Metaphysics is concerned with the nature of the most general kinds of things and the relationship between these things. We will discuss the nature of and relationship between properties, material objects, persons, time, space, and modality. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 3260 Descartes to Hume

An examination of major philosophical systems and problems in Modern Philosophy as presented in the original writings of the 17th and 18th centuries. Topics may include rationalism and empiricism, idealism, materialism, and skepticism, with readings selected from the continental rationalists, Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibniz, and from the British empiricists, Locke, Berkeley, and Hume. Central problems include the mind-body problem, representationalism, and transcendentalism. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3290 Kant and 19th-Century Philosophy

Examination of Kant and nineteenth-century philosophy. We will discuss Kant's Copernican Turn in metaphysics and epistemology, as well as his moral philosophy, and we will study works of selected nineteenth-century philosophers such as those of Hegel, Marx, Mill, and Nietzsche. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: ETH, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3300 Conceptual Foundations of Modern Science

Where does modern science come from? This course examines the winding paths by which the dominant scientific world-views of the 20th century became established. We will discuss a variety of broad themes: scientific method or methods, revolutionary science, the relationship between science and society, and the aims of science. This course is not intended to be a comprehensive survey of the history of science. Instead, we will focus upon a few key figures - Galileo, Newton, Darwin, - and we will read both primary and secondary literature on their significance to these broad themes. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3310 Philosophy of Emotions

Emotions like fear, joy, disgust, sadness, and love are central to how we engage with each other and understand the world around us. But what can we say about what emotions are, how they function, and when they are valuable? This course will draw on research in philosophy as well as the social and cognitive sciences. The aim will be to develop a rich combination of conceptual, empirical, and phenomenological resources and bring them to bear on central questions about the nature and significance of emotions.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: BA, HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3320 Art and the Mind-Brain

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the bearing of cognitive science on the perception and understanding of art. This interest has roots in tradition: historically, art, aesthetics, and vision science have often been linked. But the growth of knowledge in cognitive science has opened up new opportunities for understanding art and addressing philosophical questions. The converse is also true. The production, perception, and understanding of art are human capacities that can shed light on the workings of the mind and brain. This course considers questions such as: What is art? How do pictures represent? Does art express emotion? Why does art have a history? Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor. Priority given to majors in Philosophy & PNP.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3330 Contemporary Continental Philosophy

An examination of central texts of 20th-century philosophical thought in France and Germany. The work of Hegel and Heidegger will be considered, as well as that of thinkers they have influenced such as Adorno, Gadamer, and Habermas (in Germany), and Sartre, Foucault, Derrida, and Irigaray (in France). These philosophers reject any idea of pure knowledge and experience, and have reconceptualized human existence and understanding as fundamentally historicized, embodied, and linguistic. A focal question that this raises is, what does this reconceptualization mean for ideals of humanism? Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM BU: HUM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3340 Existentialism

The philosophical systems of selected philosophers such as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Sartre are examined to determine their historical origins, their ontological and epistemological ramifications, and their relationships to contemporary philosophy. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 100 or 200-level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3370 Pragmatism

The focus of this course is the classical pragmatist movement, a cluster of then highly controversial ideas developed from the 1870s through the 1940s by Peirce, James, Dewey, Meade and C. I. Lewis. Widely regarded as the distinctively American contribution to the history of philosophy, it has been profoundly influential in shaping much subsequent American philosophical theory, especially the work of recent and contemporary analytically oriented philosophers. We'll concentrate on classical pragmatism in the writings of its early proponents, but pay some attention also to the prominence of pragmatistic elements in the thought of Carnap, Quine, Davidson, Rorty, Putnam, and Goodman.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: SSC EN: S

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3380 Early 20th-Century Philosophy

The philosophy of the early 20th century represents a watershed in the history of Western philosophy, as the point when analytic and Continental approaches went their separate ways (despite common roots in Kantian philosophy) and also as the point when philosophy of language and philosophy of science emerged as central fields of philosophy. Against the background of the work of Frege, Husserl, and the neo-Kantians, this course will examine the exchanges among the philosophers of this period (including Russell, Wittgenstein, Moore, and the Vienna Circle), which set much of the analytic agenda for the rest of the century on such topics as meaning, reference, the unity of science, and the fact-value distinction. Prerequisites: one course in philosophy at the 100 and 200 level, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3390 Philosophical Writing

This seminar will have a different topic of central philosophical importance each semester. Significant attention will also be devoted to conceiving, researching, writing, revising, critiquing, and presenting philosophical essays. Limited to 15 students. Priority will be given to philosophy majors and minors who have not yet completed their Writing Intensive requirement.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, WI Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3970 Undergraduate Independent Study

students will be able to receive credit for undergraduate independent study.

Credit 6 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 3990 Philosophy Capstone Course

This course will focus either on classic writings from the past century or on contemporary writings that address a major philosophical concern, such as The Meaning of Life or The Concept of Self. In either case, the course will draw together a variety of philosophical specializations. Must be taken by all philosophy majors who are not writing an honors project. Work for the course will typically consist of one written project, one oral presentation, and one commentary on another student's oral presentation. Prerequisite: Senior standing, major in philosophy, preference given to those majors not pursuing Honors.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall Half A, Spring

PHIL 3996 Philosophy Elective

Credit 0 units. EN: H

PHIL 4064 Topics in the Philosophy of Language

Focus on the work of a single philosopher of language such as Carnap, Chomsky, Foucault, or Kripke, or on a central topic such as the theory of reference, the theory of meaning, or the problem of cross-cultural translation. Prerequisite: one course in epistemology, philosophy of language, or analytic philosophy, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 4065 Advanced Philosophy of Language

An advanced-level treatment of basic topics in the philosophy of language as this discipline is understood in the analytic tradition. The main positions and the problems they pose will be surveyed; focal themes include meaning, reference, and truth. The aim of the course is to help students develop effective expository techniques and to provide them with the necessary conceptual resources to analyze and criticize different theoretical views. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

PHIL 4100 Formal Methods for Philosophy

This course is an advanced course exploring formal methods in both logic and confirmation theory. It begins with an introduction to metatheory, which is explored in more depth in the 403-404 sequence on Mathematical Logic, addressing the basic metatheory for logic in addition to alternatives to standard first-order logic. The second part of the course focuses on modal and other intensional logics. The final part of the course focuses on non-monotonic logics, focusing especially on Bayesian confirmation theory and decision theory. Prerequisite: 6 units of philosophy or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: NSM, AN Art: NSM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4120 Advanced Epistemology

Competing theories of knowledge and belief justification will be considered. Careful attention will be given to selected problems such as skepticism, certainty, foundations, coherence, perception, induction. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4130 Advanced Metaphysics

Through readings from both classical and contemporary sources, a single traditional metaphysical concern will be made the subject of careful and detailed analytic attention. Possible topics include such concepts as substance, category, cause, identity, reality, and possibility, and such positions as metaphysical realism, idealism, materialism, relativism, and irrealism. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 4180 Topics in Advanced Philosophy of Science:

This course will vary in topics related to Philosophy of Science from semester to semester. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4200 Philosophy of Neuroscience

This course focuses on the historical roots of neuroscience as well as its contemporary developments. Topics include: (1) the nature of explanatory strategies in neuroscience; (2) the relation between neuroscience research and higher-level disciplines such as psychology; and (3) the epistemology of the investigatory tools of neuroscience. Prerequisites: one previous course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM

PHIL 4230 Topics in Ethics

Selected advanced topics in ethics. Prerequisite: 6 units of philosophy, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4240 Metaethics

Ethics asks questions about right and wrong, good and bad, virtue and vice. Metaethics asks questions about ethics, including questions about whether we have any reason to do the right thing or to be virtuous, questions about whether it is possible to know the answer to ethical questions, and questions about what we mean by such ethical terms as right and wrong or good and bad. Influential metaethical views include relativism (on which ethical judgments are only true or false relative to an individual or culture) and moral skepticism (on which ethical knowledge is impossible). This course will introduce metaethics through an examination of selected texts and questions. Prerequisites: One previous course in philosophy at the 300 level, graduate standing, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4250 Normative Ethical Theory

An exploration of the three major normative ethical theories debated by philosophers in the last hundred years: Kantian ethics, utilitarianism, and virtue theory. Authors covered in the course may include: Henry Sidgwick, R. M. Hare, R. B. Brandt, John Rawls, Bernard Williams, Philippa Foot, Thomas Nagel, Christine Korsgaard, Michael Slote, and Barbara Herman. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4280 Topics in the Philosophy of Feminism

This course addresses selected advanced topics in feminist philosophy.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4311 Aesthetics

A careful consideration of selected issues regarding the experience of visual art, architecture, music, or literature, as well as of the power or beauty of nature, people, and artifacts. For example, is there a special form of aesthetic experience or aesthetic attitude? In what do aesthetic power and beauty consist? Are they different in art and nature? Do the artists' intentions matter? Some central concerns are: how do visual art and literary texts have 'meaning', what role do the viewer's or reader's interpretations play, and how might recent work in cognitive science and social theory shed light on these issues? Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4321 Advanced Social and Political Philosophy

A selective investigation of one or two advanced topics in the philosophical understanding of society, government, and culture. Readings may include both historical and contemporary materials. Possible topics include: liberalism, socialism, communitarianism, citizenship, nationalism, cosmopolitanism, social contract theory, anarchism, and the rights of cultural minorities. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 4340 Plato

An examination of some of Plato's most important dialogues, typically including the Gorgias, Phaedo, and Republic, with the aim of grasping the development of Plato's most influential thoughts in ethics and in metaphysics and epistemology. In order to provide both historical understanding and philosophical evaluation, attention will be paid to the context and structure of the dialogues and to the best of recent secondary literature. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4350 Aristotle

This course offers a maximally full and detailed introduction to the works of Aristotle. His logic, natural philosophy, psychology, metaphysics, ethics, and political philosophy will be discussed, and stress will be laid on the interpretive problems facing contemporary philosophers seeking to understand Aristotle's achievement. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4360 Hellenistic Philosophy

The Hellenistic Age, traditionally dated from the death of Alexander and his (Macedonian) Empire at 323 BCE to the birth of Augustus' (Roman) Empire in 31 BCE, gave the West three of its most innovative and influential schools of philosophy: Epicureanism, Skepticism, and Stoicism. This course investigates the central features of their thought. Special attention is paid to the still-relevant debates between the Stoics and Skeptics about the possibility of knowledge, to the disagreements among all three schools about the issues of freedom, responsibility, and determinism, and to their ethical theories. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM, LCD Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4370 Continental Rationalism

A rationalist is a philosopher for whom at least one certain truth is inborn or comes from reason rather than from empirical or sensory experience. The major systemic writings of Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibniz will be examined with a focus on the question: does the epistemology determine the ontology of these philosophical systems, or vice versa? The lines of development connecting these philosophers will be traced, and such enduring problems as the relation of mind to body will be examined. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4380 17th & 18th Century British Philosophy

17th and 18th century British philosophy introduced a profound shift in how philosophers and scientists understood themselves, the natural world, society, politics, and culture. The new, Newtonian science altered their sense of the place of humans in the natural world and the scope of what could be studied scientifically. Social, political, and economic changes motived new conceptions of human nature, culture, and society. And because Britain was an Empire, the theories developed in the 17th and 18th centuries on this island remain embedded in the way many people and cultures understand themselves and the natural world to this day. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 0 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4420 Kant's Critique of Pure Reason

An in-depth investigation of Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, one of the most important books in the history of Western philosophy. Some supplementary readings from other philosophers will be used to situate Kant's work in a systematic and historical context, to present some 'Kantian' positions in current philosophy, and to bring in some important contrasting views and criticisms. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 4430 Kant's Moral Theory

An in-depth examination of Kant's practical philosophy: his moral and political theory. Readings include the Critique of Practical Reason, parts of the Metaphysics of Morals, Perpetual Peace, and other writings. Supplementary readings will be used to situate Kant's work in its systematic and historical context, to provide orientation in the world of Kant scholarship, and to introduce important contrasting views and criticisms. We will also discuss recent reformulations of Kantian themes in the works of contemporary philosophers. Prerequisites: one course in Philosophy at the 300-level, graduate standing, or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall

PHIL 4460 Topics in the History of Philosophy

Study of individual philosophers or themes from the ancient, medieval, and/or modern periods. Examples: Spinoza, St. Thomas Aquinas, neo-Platonism, universals in ancient and medieval thought, ancient and modern theories of space and time. Prerequisite: 6 units in philosophy, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Spring

PHIL 4490 History of Analytic Philosophy

This course will begin with the reaction of G.E. Moore to the dominant idealism of the 19th century, together with the advances in formal approaches launched by Gottlob Frege and Bertrand Russell. It will engage in the rise of ordinary language philosophy through the later work of Ludwig Wittgenstein, as well as the important influence of the Vienna Circle and the rise and fall of Logical Positivism/Empiricism, culminating in the resurgence of metaphysics with the work of Saul Kripke. The course will close with a look at philosophy that is still in the analytic tradition after analytic philosophy itself had been abandoned. Prerequisites: One previous course in philosophy at the 300 level, graduate standing, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units. A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4500 Topics in Analytic Philosophy

Focus on the work of a single contemporary analytic philosopher such as Davidson, Putnam, or Strawson, or a central problem area such as epistemological relativism or the problem of the identity of physical objects. Prerequisite: one course in epistemology, philosophy of language, or analytic philosophy, or permission of instructor.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

PHIL 4996 Philosophy Elective

Credit 0 units. EN: H

PHIL 4997 Undergraduate Independent Study

Prerequisite: Permission of the department. Credit variable, max 6 units.

Credit 6 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

PHIL 4998 Study for Honors

Prerequisites: senior standing, a 3.5 minimum grade point average overall, a 3.5 minimum grade point average in philosophy courses, and the permission of the department. Applications and further information are available in the Department of Philosophy. See further: artsci.wustl.edu/~philos/undergrad/honors.html

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring