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Philosophy Courses |
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Unless otherwise noted, all courses are 3 credits. PHIL 110 is a prerequisite for all higher level courses.
PHIL 110 Introduction to Philosophy (GE Requirement)
Representative problems of philosophy, ranging from methods of inquiry,
moral dilemmas, religious knowledge, problems of existence, artistic judgement
and criticism to political and social philosophy.
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PHIL 200 Ethics (GE Elective)
This course is taught in one of two ways: (1) an examination of representative
theories from Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, the Stoics, Hume, Kant,
Bentham, Mill, Dewey, and more recent philosophers; (2) an attempt to develop
moral criteria by examining representative moral problems confronting society.
An analysis is made of the nature of moral discourse and the meaning of
moral terms.
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PHIL 210 Logic (GE Elective)
Covers formal techniques in the logic of propositions and predicate
logic. Three kinds of deductive derivations (direct derivation, conditional
proof, and indirect derivation) are considered, as are shorter tests of
validity and consistency. Recommended for debaters, lawyers, public speakers,
and computer science majors.
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PHIL 215 The History of Ancient Philosophy
The history of philosophy from the Pre-Socratics through Socrates,
Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, the Epicureans, and early Neo-Platonists.
Recommended for history majors. Also provides literature majors with the
sources of classical intellectual allusions that abound in literature and
drama.
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PHIL 216 Philosophy in the Middle Ages
An introduction to philosophical ideas of the Middle Ages among Christians,
Muslims, and Jews. Emphasis on the metaphysics of Augustine, Avicenna,
Maimonides and the works of Aquinas and Ockham.
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PHIL 217 17th and 18th Century Philosophy:
The History of Modern Philosophy from Descartes to Kant
Deals with the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, principally with
the following problems: the assimiliation of science as faced by Descartes,
Spinoza, and Leibniz; the order of nature suggested by Newtonian science
and its effect on Locke, Berkeley, and Hume; natural theology in the Enlightenment;
and the natural rights political philosophy of Locke, the British moralists.
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PHIL 218 19th Philosophy:
Post-Kantian German Idealism
An introduction to post-Kantian German idealism as exhibited by Fichte,
Schelling, Hegel, et.al., and the transformation of and the reactions against
idealism as seen in the writings of Schopenhauer, Marx, Kierkegaard, and
Nietzsche.
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PHIL 220 Philosophy of Religion
An analytic study of religious beliefs. Emphasis on the problems of
the meaning and truth of religious utterances; the existence of God; the
compatibility of God and evil; the relationship among religion, psychology,
and morality; and the philosophical adequacy of mysticism, both East and
West.
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PHIL 221 Philosophy of Art
An examination of theories of art from Plato to Dewey. The role of
inspiration, and intelligence, skill, expression, experience, and emotion
in the arts is discussed.
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PHIL 222 Political Philosophy
Explores the relation between the state and the individual, asking
what obligations and duties each has to the other. Also considers acts
of civil disobedience and resistance and inquires into the role of tolerance
in contemporary society.
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PHIL 223 Philosophy of Science
Analyzes the logic of scientific inquiry and the logical structure
of its intellectual products. Primarily an examination of both logical
patterns exhibited in the organization of scientific knowledge and logical
methods whose use, despite changes in special techniques and revolution
in substantive theory, is the most enduring feature of modern science.
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PHIL 224 Philosophy of the Social Science
Deals with the logic of social inquiry. Asks whether customary scientific
methods apply to the social sciences. Examines explanatory proposals; e.g.
hermeneutic interpretation (verstehen), functionalism, structuralism, behaviorism,
et al.
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PHIL 225 Philosophy of History
A philosophical examination of historical language and inquiry, the
logic of historical development, problems of historical explanation and
generalization and value judgements.
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PHIL 227 Eastern Philosophy and Religion (Non-Western)
A comparative study of the principal past and present Eastern religions
and of man's religious feelings and experience.
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PHIL 228 Critical Thinking and Scientific Method
Covers methods of inquiry as used in empirical research. Explanation,
hypothetico-deductive method, confirmation and types of inductive thinking
form the basis of the course. In addition, special attention is given to
relating course material to the thinking of the student.
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PHIL 269 Philosophy of Sex and Love
The course investigates philosophical questions regarding the nature of sex
and love, including questions such as: what is sex? What is sexuality? What
is love? What kinds of love are possible? What is the proper morality of sexual
behavior? Does gender, race, or class influence how we approach these questions?
The course will consider these questions from an historical perspective, including
philosophical, theological and psychological approaches, and then follow the
history of ideas from ancient times into contemporary debates. A focus on the
diversity theories and perspectives will be emphasized. Topics to be covered
may include marriage, reproduction, casual sex, prostitution, pornography, and
homosexuality.
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PHIL 300 Contemporary Analytic Philosophy
A study of the development of an important philosophical movement of the twentieth
century, tracing its development from Bertrand Russell through the logical positivists.
Ayer and Carnap, G.E. Moore, Gilbert Ryle, to ordinary language analysis, exemplified
by Wittgenstein and Austin.
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PHIL 305 Existentialism and Phenomenology
Examines such existential themes as death, freedom, responsibility, subjectivity,
anguish, time and the self as they appear in both literary and philosophical
works. Phenomenology as one philosophical method that can be applied to them
is considered. Includes the works of Sartre, Kierkegaard, Camus, Kafka, Heidegger,
and others.
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PHIL 312 Metaphysics
Several traditional and recent views of the problems of existence and
associated problems are discussed. Included are the relation between appearance
and reality, mind and matter, mind and body, the nature of substance and
personal identity.
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PHIL 315 Philosophy of the Mind
The philosophical problems associated with the relation of mind and
body, mind and matter, willing and acting. Also, a consideration of some
representative solutions ranging from monim, dualism, epiphenominalism,
psychophysical parallelism and behaviorism. Recent research in psychology,
neurophysiology and robot and computer automata studies is considered.
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PHIL 317 Theory of Knowledge
An examination of the philosophical issues surrounding the notions
of necessary truth, empirical knowledge, a priori knowledge, analytic statements
and related topics. Views of traditional and contemporary philosophers
are discussed.
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PHIL 318 American Philosophy
An introduction to American philosophy through reading and examining selected
writings of such classical American philosophers as Pierce, James, Royce, Dewey
and Santayana.
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PHIL 319 Philosophy of Mathematics
An introduction to the philosophical aspects of mathematics. We consider (for
instance) what numbers are and whether or not they really exist. We deal extensively
with the existence and knowability of sets and the mathematical infinite.
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PHIL 324 Philosophy & Feminism (GE Elective)
The application of philosophical techniques of analysis to a study
of the nature and position of women in contemporary society. Focus is on
critical evaluation of the alternate models for understanding women's oppression.
Selected writers include Eva Figes, Betty Freidan, Simone de Beauvoir,
Frederick Engels and Shulamith Firestone.
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PHIL 326 Plato
A modern thinker said that all of the philosophy has been a series
of footnotes to Plato. This ancient Greek thinker developed in his Dialogues
a method of analysis and expression that is still fresh and vital. The
course examines such questions as the nature of human excellence, how to
succeed in life, how to tell a lie(and how to recognize one), what is the
best form of government and whom you should love. Typical readings include
The Republic, Symposium, Meno, Protagoras, and Phaedrus.
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PHIL 327 Aristotle
Aristotle was Plato's student and presented his ideas in a much more systematic
and straightforward manner. His works attempt to explain specific areas of human
experience, such as the basic rules of logical thought, the nature of mind,
how we should act and why poetry moves us to laugh and cry. Typical readings
include The Ethics, Politics, Organon (works on logic) and Metaphysics
(which examines why and how what is, is).
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PHIL 333 Philosophy of Law
Deals with both the development of law and an analysis of its principles
and concepts. Examines and discusses the relationship between law and morality
and law and injustice; the logical principles in legal arguments; and various
kinds of legal theories, e.g., natural law, legal positivism, and legal
realism.
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PHIL 334 Business and Ethics
A study of large corporations as quasi-political and social institutions.
Examines capitalism as a revolutionary force of the twentieth century and
the consequences for society implied in the social attitudes that prevail
and endure in these institutions.
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PHIL 335 Environmental Ethics
This course deals with ethical issues related to our interactions with
the natural environment, such as animal rights, aesthetic vs. monetary
well-being, responsibility to future generations, short-term and long-term
benefits vs. costs, intrinsic vs. extrinsic values, etc.
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PHIL 336 From Religion to Philosophy
Covers the transition from a reliance on prophets, poets, dramatists, and the
"wise man", to a reliance on the philosopher in matters dealing with human action,
inquiry and artistic products.
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PHIL 380 Indo-Tibetan Buddhism.
A study of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. Satisfies non-Western requirement.
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PHIL 399 Selected Topics
A topic not covered by an existing course is offered as recommended
by the department and approved by the dean. Prerequisite: Permission of
the department chairperson; 1-6 credits.
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PHIL 402 Advanced Logic
A study of the nature of a formal deductive system, including the proofs
of completeness, consistency and independence. The equipollence of deductive
systems is also examined, and more advanced notions of predicate logic,
multiple quantification, higher functional logic and logic of relations
are covered. Prerequisite: PHIL 110 and 210.
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PHIL 404 Seminar: Classics in Philosophy
A classic work in philosophy, such as one of Plato's dialogues, a treatise
from Aristotle, Augustine, or St. Thomas; or works such as Kant's Critique
of Pure Reason, Mills' Utilitarianism, James' Pragmatism,
Wittgenstein's Tractatus, et al., is explored in depth.
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PHIL 408 Philosophy of Language
Examines the philosophical theories of language.
Prerequisites: Either PHIL 210, PHIL 312, PHIL 315, PHIL 317, CS 410,
or ENG 401
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PHIL 499 Independent Study
As approved; see Department Chair; 1-6 credits.
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CGSI 200 Cognitive Science: The Interdisciplinary
Study of the Mind
In this course, students gain an understanding of how the different
constituent areas are the rich foundation of cognitive science by directly
interacting with the experts in those fields. This provides the student
with an overview of the field of cognitive science and the general methodologies
used within those fields. This course provides the foundation for later
courses by giving the student an overarching theoretical framework needed
to assimilate more detailed information. It also provides the students
with the basic terminology, the language of cognitive science.
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CGSI 300 Selected Topics in Cognitive Science
This course provides a review of brain anatomy and physiology and continues
with an examination of the ways in which theorists have conceived the relations
between neuronal events and the conscious mind. The impact of the computer
metaphor in cognitive science is explored and the way in which theorists
have applied this metaphor to describe and explain the human mind. Topics
for further exploration range from theories on how we construct our visual
world to the representation of the self.
Prerequisite: CGSI 200.
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CGSI 401 Cognitive Science Honors Thesis I
This is an intensibe research course. Students select a topic for thier
research project in consultation with faculty. The exploration of the research
topic is the primary focus of the course. Research methods open to the
student include computer modeling and simulations, experimental and quasi-experimental
research design, qualitative research methodologies, discourse analysis,
and thinking aloud protocols. The "how-to" of research is explored in detail.
Prerequisite: CGSI 300.
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CGSI 402 Cognitive Science Honors Thesis II
This is the second component of the cognitive science honors thesis.
Students complete the literature review for their research topic. The focus
of this component is on data collection and analysis and finally on the
oral and written presentation of the students' research. In addition to
the in-class presentations, students are expected to present their work
to a wider audience.
Prerequisite: CGSI 401.
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