Philosophy

PY 1731. INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION

Cat. I This course provides an overview of key concepts, methods and authors in both fields. These introduce the student to the types of reasoning required for the pursuit of in-depth analysis in each discipline. Emphasis on topics and authors varies with the particular instructor.

PY 2711. PHILOSOPHICAL THEORIES OF KNOWLEDGE AND REALITY

Cat. I This course introduces students to methods of philosophical analysis relating to the classification and conceptualization of entities and the nature of knowledge. The course will focus on a related set of problems or on the elaboration of a philosophical issue of knowledge or reality in the history of philosophy. Among themes and problems considered might be: How has the being of nature and knowledge of nature been represented in Western philosophy and science? What kind of a phenomenon is mind or thought and can entities in addition to human beings, such as computers, be said to have this attribute? What are reliable methods of arriving at and evaluating scientific knowledge, and are these methods identical for the natural and human sciences? Readings might include excerpts from the works of Plato, Aristotle, Bacon, Descartes, Kant, James, Dewey and Heidegger, as well as numerous contemporary philosophers. Suggested background: familiarity with basic philosophical concepts and terms (as in PY/RE 1731).

PY 2712. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

Cat. II This course examines metaphysical and moral questions that philosophers have raised about social and political life. Among questions treated might be: What are the grounds, if any, of the obligation of a citizen to obey a sovereign? Are there basic principles of justice by which societies, institutions and practices are rightly evaluated? What is democracy, and how can we tell if an institution or practice is democratic? To what degree do economic institutions put limits on the realization of freedom, democracy and self-determination? Readings might include excerpts from the works of Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and Marx, as well as numerous contemporary philosophers. Suggested background: familiarity with basic concepts in philosophy (as in PY/RE 1731). This course will be offered in 2013-14 and in alternative years thereafter.

PY 2713. BIOETHICS

Cat. II The purpose of this course is to evaluate the social impact of technology in the areas of biology/biotechnology, biomedical engineering and chemistry. The focus of the course will be on the human values in these areas and how they are affected by new technological developments. The course will deal with problems such as human experimentation, behavior control, death, genetic engineering and counseling, abortion, and the allocation of scarce medical resources. These problems will be examined through lectures, discussions and papers. Suggested background: knowledge of key terms and concepts as given in PY/RE 1731 and PY/RE 2731. This course will be offered in 2013-14 and in alternating years thereafter.

PY 2714. ETHICS AND THE PROFESSIONS: PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL, AND SOCIAL DILEMMAS.

Cat. II This course will present a framework by which various ethical dilemmas that arise in the professions, especially the science-related professions, can be identified, examined, and evaluated on the level of personal morality, professional codes of ethics, and social values. The goal is to study the solutions of these dilemmas in each of the three levels to determine what relation there may be between them, and whether or not resolutions of a dilemma on one level are appropriate for another level. Ethical concepts, professional codes of ethics, and policy positions will be used to analyze and evaluate these issues in a case study format. Representatives of appropriate professions will be invited to address specific issues pertaining to ethical dilemmas in their field. This course will be offered in 2014-15 and in alternating years thereafter.

PY 2716. PHILOSOPHY OF DIFFERENCE

Cat. II This course examines philosophical presuppositions and questions of value underlying and expressed in the construction of masculinity and femininity in modern society. The course may also examine social identities rooted in race, ethnicity, sexual preference , and ability/disability. Possible topics include: changing conceptions of love, sex, marriage, and parenting; how our conceptions of masculinity and femininity are influenced by and influence (for example) religion, science, politics, work, and art; and the relations between feminist theory and other critical social theories. This course will be offered in 2014-15 and in alternating years thereafter.

PY 2717. PHILOSOPHY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Cat. I This course will focus on the following questions: What is the scope of the current environmental crisis? What does this crisis reveal about the philosophical presuppositions and dominant values of our intellectual worldviews and social institutions? How can existing social theories help explain the environmental crisis? What implications does the crisis have for our sense of personal identity? What moral and spiritual resources can help us respond to it? Readings will be taken from contemporary and historical philosophers and naturalists. Suggested background: familiarity with basic concepts in philosophy (as in PY/RE 1731).

PY 2718. FREEDOM AND EXISTENCE

Cat. II This course takes up the question of the relationship between self and other, the tension between freedom and responsibility, and the problem of ethical and political commitment in an alienating world. How is individuality possible in a mass society? To what extent are we responsible for others? What would a philosophy of action look like? In examining such questions, the course will focus specifically on two important movements in 19th and 20th century philosophy, existentialism and phenomenology. Readings might include works by Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Levinas, Camus, DeBeauvoir, Sartre, Fanon, and Merleau-Ponty, as well as contemporary readings by feminist and critical race theorists working within the phenomenological tradition. Students will also encounter some of the great works of existentialist fiction and cinema. Suggested background: PY/RE 2731, Introduction to Philosophy and Religion. This course will be offered in 2013-14 and in alternating years thereafter.

PY 2731. INTRODUCTORY ETHICS

Cat. I This course will review at an introductory level theories of ethics, individual figures in the history of ethics, and selected problems in ethics. The emphasis will be on philosophical or religious ethics depending on the instructor.

PY 3711. TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY

Cat. I The purpose of this course is to expose students to somewhat more advanced and specialized study in philosophy. Its focus will vary, but will typically be one of the following types: a particular philosopher (e.g., Plato, Kant, Mill); a particular philosophical tradition (e.g., Pragmatism, Ordinary Language philosophy, Empiricism); a particular philosophical problem (free will, knowledge of other minds, historical explanation); or a particular philosophical classic (Hegel?s Phenomenology of Mind, Aristotle?s Ethics). Suggested background: three other philosophy courses.

PY 3712. PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION

Cat. II This course will focus on philosophical questions concerning the following topics: the existence and nature of God; the compatibility of God and evil; the nature of religious faith and the relationship between religion, science and ethics; interpretations of the nature of religious language; the philosophically interesting differences between Western and Eastern religions; philosophical critiques of the role of religion in social life. Authors may include: Hume, Kant, Kierkegaard, Buber, Tillich, Daly, Nietzsche and Buddha. Suggested background: familiarity with basic religious concepts and terms (as in PY/RE 1731). This course will be offered in 2014-15 and in alternating years thereafter.

PY 3731. PROBLEMS IN ETHICS AND SOCIAL PHILOSOPHY

Cat. I This course will examine in depth selected problems in ethical theory and social philosophy. The specific content or emphasis will be determined by the instructor. Suggested background: knowledge of either PY/RE 2731 or PY 2712.