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Spring 2007
Fall 2006
Spring
2006
Fall 2005
Spring 2005
Fall 2004
Spring 2004
Fall
2003
Spring 2003
Fall 2002
PHIL 105 Western Philosophy
.001 MTh 8:30-9:45AM Erfani, F
.004 MW 5:20-6:35PM Erfani, F
In this course, a historical introduction to the Western philosophical tradition,
students closely examine classic and contemporary texts on the nature of reality,
truth, morality, goodness, and justice; the possibility of knowledge; faith,
reason, and the existence of God; and the issue of freedom and determinism.
.002 TF 3:35-4:50PM Gougelet, D
.005 MW 6:45-8:00PM Gougelet, D
A historical introduction to the Western philosophical tradition. Students
closely examine classic and contemporary texts on the nature of reality, truth,
morality, goodness, and justice; the possibility of knowledge; faith, reason,
and the existence of God; and the issue of freedom and determinism.
.003H TF 11:20-12:35PM Tschemplik,
A
This course provides a historical introduction to the Western philosophical
traditions. Students will be introduced to the three major branches of philosophy—metaphysics,
epistemology, and ethics. The course invites students to address some of the
philosophical problems, which have seized the attention of great thinkers
throughout history: What is the nature of Reality? What is the good life?
How should one live? What is justice? How do human beings achieve knowledge?
Does God exist? Do human beings have free will? The objectives of the course
are: (1) to familiarize students with some of the great philosophers' answers
to these questions and (2) to provide a background for students as they begin
to formulate their own answers to these major philosophical problems. The
format of the course will be lecture and discussion.
This course is a foundation-level course in the General Education Program, Area 2, Cluster 2: "Traditions that Shape the Western World".
PHIL 200 Introduction to Logic
.001 TF 11:20-12:35PM Carr, R
This beginning course introduces students to the study of formal logic and
its relation to critical thinking and ordinary language. Logic has been an
important part of the Western philosophical tradition at least since the time
of Aristotle, and developments in the Twentieth Century have given us more
powerful logical tools than were ever available before. We will learn to recognize
“arguments” in ordinary language, to distinguish between inductive
and deductive reasoning, to identify informal fallacies, and to determine
the validity of deductive arguments through the use of truth tables, Venn
diagrams, and the construction of formal proofs using both truth-functional
and quantificational notation. The study of logic improves reasoning and analytical
abilities, and provides intellectual skills that are helpful both in the conduct
of daily affairs and as preparation for further study.
PHIL 220 Moral Philosophy
.001 TF 12:45-2:00PM Springs, J
.002 MTh 9:55-11:10AM Gougelet, D
The theories concerning the nature of goodness found in Western philosophy.
The major discussion issues are traditional principles for evaluating goodness
and telling right from wrong; the difference between fact and value; the justification
of normative judgments; objectivity in ethics; and the relationship between
moral and nonmoral goodness.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape the Western World.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Individual Freedom vs. Authority, Work and Community, Western Legal Tradition, Western Philosophy, or Religious Heritage of the West.
PHIL 230 Meaning & Purpose in the Arts
.001 MW 6:45-8:00PM Erfani, F
Leading theories of the nature, purpose, and meaning of artistic activities
and objects examined through writings of philosophers, artists, and critics
of ancient and modern times. Both Western and non-Western viewpoints are considered.
Student projects apply critical ideas to particular works in an art form familiar
to them.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 1, Cluster 2: The Creative Arts.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Art: The Historical Experience, Visual Literacy, Interpreting Literature, or Critical Approach to the Cinema.
PHIL 235 Theories of Democracy & Human Rights
.001 MTh 3:35-4:50PM Peach, L
In this course, we will examine the classic and contemporary theories about
the nature and moral foundations of democracy and human rights, as well as
contemporary problems regarding democracy and human rights. Examples of the
former include the dangers of democracy, the problems with “free trade
democracy,” and democracies in different cultural contexts. Examples
of the latter include the debate over human rights as political and civil
only or also social, cultural and economic; group rights as human rights;
and the complications of nationality, gender, and sexuality in thinking about
the universality or cultural relativism of human rights.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape the Western World.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Individual Freedom vs. Authority, Work and Community, Western Legal Tradition, Western Philosophy, or Religious Heritage of the West.
PHIL 240 Ethics in the Professions
.001 MTh 9:55-11:10PM Peach, L
This course provides a framework for thinking generally about ethics in the
context of the professions. In addition, it addresses ethical dilemmas that
arise in the professions of law, politics, business, medicine, the media,
and education. We will consider ethical theories and case studies pertinent
to each of these areas.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 4, Cluster 1: Social Institutions and Behavior.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Understanding Mass Media, Macroeconomics, Politics in the United States, or Global Sociology.
PHIL 300/600 Ancient (and Medieval) Philosophy
.001 TF 2:10-3:25PM Tschemplik, A
In this course we will examine and puzzle through the fragments of the “Pre-Socratic”
thinkers, engage Plato’s dialogues, analyze Aristotle’s intricate
arguments, and map out the Hellenistic thinkers’ path to happiness.
We will concentrate on the development of the following concepts: Logos (Reason,
Speech, Definition, Argument, etc.), Psyche (Soul, Animating Principle), and
Kosmos.
Prerequisite: PHIL-105 Western Philosophy or permission of instructor.
PHIL 302/602 Nineteenth Century Philosophy
302.001 W 11:20-2:00PM Stam, J
602.001 M 11:20-2:00PM Stam, J
This course explores continental philosophy from Hegel through Nietzsche.
Beginning with the Kantian background, we move from Hegel to Schopenhauer,
Feuerbach, Kierkegaard, Marx, and Nietzsche. Consciousness, will, history,
freedom, religion, and different applications of the dialectical method, will
be among the major themes. Emphasis will be on concentrated reading of the
texts—some of them difficult—and the continuities and contrasts
among these thinkers.
Prerequisite: PHIL-105 Western Philosophy or permission of instructor.
PHIL 312/612 Recent and Contemporary Philosophers: Derrida and
Buddhism
.001 Th 5:30-8:00PM Park, J
Derridean deconstruction is arguably one of the most influential continental
philosophies of the late 20th century. The class will examine major works
by Jacques Derrida, compare Derridean deconstruction with Buddhist philosophy,
and consider the influence of the deconstructive mode of thinking in our understanding
of self and others and its ethical and political implications.
Prerequisite: PHIL-105 Western Philosophy or permission of instructor.
PHIL 314/614 American Philosophy
.001 TF 9:55-11:10AM Carr, R
From the time of the Civil War to the outbreak of WWII, three American philosophers
made original entries into the encyclopedia of philosophy. The entries come
under the heading "Pragmatism", a theory of meaning that accounts
for the ways in which thinking enters into experience and experience determines
the truth of our concepts and beliefs. Charles Peirce (1839-1914), William
James (1842-1910), and John Dewey (1859-1952) are the classical pragmatists
and their works are the subject of this course. Some consideration will be
given to Alain Locke, a little heralded pragmatist of this period who was
the intellectual spokesman of the Harlem Renaissance, and neo-pragmatism.
Prerequisite: one introductory course in philosophy.
PHIL 386/686 Selected Topics in Philosophy: Latin American Thought
.001 W 2:10-4:50PM Oliver, A
Presentation of a range of Latin American thinkers chosen to demonstrate the
power, vitality, and usefulness of Latin American intellectual life for North
American social and cultural issues. Topics include identity, marginality,
latinidad, argentinidad, mexicanidad, mestizaje, critiques of power, role
of ideology, feminism, social justice, liberation, culture in human psychology,
and indigenous peoples.
Prerequisite: PHIL-105 Western Philosophy or permission of instructor.
PHIL 391/691 Internship in Philosophy
.001 T 8:10-10:40PM Tschemplik, A
An internship provides the opportunity to test the claim that philosophy is
the kind of discipline that teaches transferable skills such as critical reading,
analytical problem-solving and clear and careful writing. These skills are
desirable since many research institutes, non-profit organizations, think
tanks and legal and business organizations--all of which Washington supports
in abundance--are in search of individuals with such skills. Students enrolled
in the internship will design, in consultation with the internship coordinator,
a reading list and individual syllabus appropriate to their internships. Students
will meet together throughout the semester, beginning the second week of classes.
Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
PHIL 392/692 Cooperative Education Field Experience
Prerequisite: permission of department chair and Cooperative Education office.
PHIL 486 Colloquium of Philosophy: Self-Transformation
.002 T 8:10-10:40PM Oliver, A
(10/03/07-10/31/07)
This one-credit colloquium will address questions of how and why people choose
to change their bodies to express inner gender identity. Case studies of gendered
technologies revolve around topics such as cosmetic surgery, transsexuality,
and weight loss dieting. We will read Self-Transformations: Foucault, Ethics,
and Normalized Bodies, by Cressida Heyes, and related articles. We will explore
ethical insights into human responsibilities toward changing (or not) our
bodies.
PHIL 498 Honors Project in Philosophy
Prerequisite: permission of department and University Honors Director.
PHIL 797 Master's Thesis Seminar
Prerequisite: permission of department chair.
Religion
RELG 105 Religious Heritage of the West
.001 TF 8:30-9:45AM Schaefer
The contribution of religion to Western civilization. An exploration of the
religions that have formed the foundations of Western civilization, including:
Greco-Roman and other Ancient Pagan Traditions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam,
Unitarianism, Mormonism, and American Civil Religion. Where possible, primary
source texts, including the scriptures of the religions, will be used.
This course is a foundation-level course in the
General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape
the Western World.
RELG 185 Forms of the Sacred
.001 MTh 9:55-11:10AM Pathak, S
This survey of five Asian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism,
and Shinto) centers on classical texts of these traditions (the Bhagavad Gita,
Dhammapada, Tao Te Ching, Analects, and Kojiki) and considers the relationships
between these works and present-day practices. The course strongly emphasizes
comparative analysis.
.002 TF 3:35-4:50PM Springs, J
.003 TF 2:10-3:25PM Springs, J
An introduction to the methods of studying the history of religions. A brief
survey of comparative analysis of major eastern religions and philosophies,
including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Daoism, and Confucianism.
This course is a foundation-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 3, Cluster 2: Global and Multicultural Perspectives.
RELG 210 Nonwestern Religious Traditions
.001 MTh 2:10-3:25PM Park, J
This course examines how non-Western religious traditions function as systems
of symbols, how they interact with both indigenous religious traditions and
external religious traditions, and how they respond to modernization and imperialism.
The first three weeks will be devoted to create a frame to understand religious
phenomena by reading selections from The Idea of the Holy and Variety of Religious
Experiences and then the class will read selected texts from Asian religious
traditions, examine their interaction with the Western intellectual world,
and explore their modern transformations.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 3, Cluster 2: Global and Multicultural Perspectives.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Culture: The Human Mirror, Third-World Literature, Forms of the Sacred, Cross-Cultural Communication, Views from the Third World.
RELG 371/671 Topics in Jewish Religion: The Changing Face of
Jewish Peoplehood
.002 T 9:55-12:35PM Brown, E
Is being Jewish today a national, ethnic or faith-based identity? We will
use texts from the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, Jewish philosophy, rabbinic literature
and contemporary sociology to explore issues surrounding Jewish identity including:
membership, conversion, citizenship, Israel and Zionism, gender, anti-Semitism,
exile, and Diaspora. Geographic location, position in society, external and
internal definitions of Jewishness, oppression, and acceptance all impinge
on definitions of individual and collective identity. We will explore.
RELG 386/686 Selected Topics in Religion
.001 How to Compare Myths
MTh 2:10-3:25PM Pathak, S
This course examines six major approaches to the cross-cultural comparison
of myths (linguistic, anthropological, historical, psychological, literary
critical, and sociological), and aims to provide students with the historical
awareness and methodological knowledge required both to compare myths of different
cultures and to criticize constructively the comparative work of others.
.002 Religion, Politics, and Human Rights
T 5:30-8:00PM Peach, L
This course will explore a variety of philosophical and ethical perspectives
on issues emerging from the intersection of these topics, including: the merits
of different religious and political philosophies for protecting human rights;
the rise of religious nationalism and its impact on human rights around the
world; the influence of religion on public policy making in protecting and/or
undermining human rights, especially of women; and the role of human rights
in protecting and/or undermining religious freedom around the world. Readings
will encompass feminist, postcolonial, and other critical approaches to these
issues as well as more traditional philosophical theories.
RELG 498 Honors Project in Religion
Open only to students in the University Honors Program.
Prerequisite: permission of department chair and
university honors director.
Summer 2007
PHIL 105.C01 Western Philosophy
TTH 9:00AM-12:10PM Erfani, F May 21 – June
28
In this course, a historical introduction to the Western philosophical tradition,
students closely examine classic and contemporary texts on the nature of reality,
truth, morality, goodness, and justice; the possibility of knowledge; faith,
reason, and the existence of God; and the issue of freedom and determinism.
This course is a foundation-level course in the General Education Program, Area 2, Cluster 2: "Traditions that Shape the Western World".
PHIL 220.F01 Moral Philosophy
TTH 1:00PM-4:10PM Erfani, F July 2 – August
9
The theories concerning the nature of goodness found in Western philosophy.
The major discussion issues are traditional principles for evaluating goodness
and telling right from wrong; the difference between fact and value; the justification
of normative judgments; objectivity in ethics; and the relationship between
moral and nonmoral goodness.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape the Western World.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Individual Freedom vs. Authority, Work and Community, Western Legal Tradition, Western Philosophy, or Religious Heritage of the West.
PHIL 230.H01 Meaning and Purpose in the Arts
TTH 5:30PM-8:40PM Greenberg, G July 2 –
August 9
Leading theories of the nature, purpose, and meaning of artistic activities
and objects examined through writings of philosophers, artists, and critics
of ancient and modern times. Both Western and non-Western viewpoints are considered.
Student projects apply critical ideas to particular works in an art form familiar
to them.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 1, Cluster 2: The Creative Arts.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: Art: The Historical Experience, Visual Literacy, Interpreting Literature, or Critical Approach to the Cinema.
PHIL 235.F01 Theories of Democracy and Human Rights
TTH 9:00AM-12:10PM Erfani, F July 2 – August
9
This course analyzes traditional Western theories of democracy and rights,
both separately and in relation to each other, as well as contemporary approaches
such as Habermasian, post-modern, feminist, and critical race theory. It also
considers the East-West debate on human rights.
This course is a second-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape the Western World.
Prerequisites for General Education credit: GOVT105G Individual Freedom vs. Authority, HIST115G Work and Community, JLS110G Western Legal Tradition, PHIL105G Western Philosophy, or RELG105G Religious Heritage of the West.
PHIL 310/610.D01 Plato’s Republic
MTWTh 1:00PM-4:10PM Tschemplik, A May 21 –
June 7
In this course we will work through the entire Republic in order
to arrive at some provisional answers regarding the relationship between the
individual and the community. We will investigate the complex analogies and
imageries that Socrates uses to illustrate the function of soul and the possibility
of knowledge.
Prerequisite: one course in philosophy.
RELG 105.B01 Religious Heritage of the West
TTh 5:30PM-8:40PM Greenberg, G May 21 –
June 28
This course explores the contribution of religion to Western civilization,
the eastern Mediterranean roots of Western religions, the emergence of Christianity
in the Greco-Roman world, the rise of Islam, the mature religious synthesis
of Medieval Europe, and modern secularism’s challenge to this tradition.
This course is a foundation-level course in the
General Education Program, Curricular Area 2, Cluster 2: Traditions that Shape
the Western World.
Fall
2007