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Fall 2006
Spring 2006
Spring 2007
Philosophy
PHIL 105/105G Western Philosophy
.001 MTH 3:35-4:50PM Feder, E
The history of philosophy, like that of humanity, may be read as a history
of love and desire. From the famous “Platonic love” that seeks
wisdom to the historical desires that make up human consciousness for Hegel,
from the medieval passion for God to the postmodern desire for Otherness,
love and desire have been central to the philosophical constructions of human
identity, moral meaning, and the very project of understanding. In this course
we undertake a survey of Western philosophy from the perspective of love and
desire, exploring the ways in which these terms have been understood and have
in turn formed our philosophical understanding.
.002 TF 11:20-12:35PM Tschemplik,
A
.003 TF 3:35-4:50PM 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 MTh 3:35-4:50PM Stam, J
Basic principles of formal deductive logic, both Aristotelian (syllogistics)
and modern (propositional and predicate calculus), with some attention to
informal logic also. Text and exercises supplemented by discussions on history,
applications, and critical appraisal of different logical systems.
PHIL 220/220G Moral Philosophy
.001 MTh 9:55-11:10AM Reiman, J
In this course, we will read four of the greatest works in the Western philosophical
tradition, with the aim of exploring some of the major theories of the good
and the just found in Western philosophy. Among issues to be discussed are
the moral evaluation of actions and persons; the justification of moral judgments;
the possibility of objectivity in ethics; and the relationship between moral
goodness, virtue, and happiness. We will read Aristotle’s Nicomachean
Ethics, Kant’s Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, Mill’s
Utilitarianism, and Mill's On Liberty.
.002H TF 12:45-2:00PM Harre, R
(Open only to students in the University Honors Program.)
Attitudes to the most pressing issues of our own times will be addressed through
studies of the basic conceptions of the moral thinking, proposed by philosophers
of both East and West. The course will cover moral systems based on personal
virtues, on the idea of duty, on the principle that morality can be defined
in terms of human happiness, and so on. Students will be encouraged to engage
in discussion and debate on such matters as capital punishment, euthanasia,
the concept of a just war, and moral issues around human reproduction such
as cloning and surrogacy. An introduction to the moral principles of the great
Eastern thinkers, such as Confucius, Lao Tzu, and Gautama (the Buddha), will
be a feature of this course. There will be a midterm and a final.
.003 TTh 8:10-9:25PM Seng, P
Moral Philosophy is generally understood to comprise two things: 1) a claim
about what is ultimately good, whether in conduct, social values, personal
actions or any other arena and 2) a standard for evaluating our attempts to
attain the ideal, otherwise thought of as a means of measuring the quality
or moral worth of one's actions, values, etc. as they pertain to the good.
The history of philosophy does not always focus on ethical or moral questions,
but for the most part works by the major figures in this history have moral
dimensions. In this course we will selectively cover the history of moral
theory's main movements: moral idealism, virtue ethics, duty ethics or deontology,
and utilitarianism. After these ideas are engaged more recent developments
from Nietzsche and The Dalai Lama will be examined for their unique approaches
to the tradition of philosophical morality.
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 235/235G Theories of Democracy & Human Rights
.001 MTH 8:30-9:45AM Erfani, F
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 301/601 Modern Philosophy from Bacon to Hegel
.001 T 5:30-8:00PM Tschemplik,
A
The rise of early modern science in the beginning of the Seventeenth Century
marks an important turning point in Western Philosophy. The collapse of the
mediaeval religious-philosophy synthesis and the rise of a new understanding
of the universe gave birth to philosophic movements which still influence
contemporary discourse. British empiricists such as Locke, Berkeley, and Hume
develop philosophies which contrast sharply with the rationalism of such continental
philosophers as Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibnitz. The Eighteenth-Century Enlightenment
figures prepare the ground for the French Revolution and Kant and Hegel attempt
new comprehensive philosophic syntheses which rival their mediaeval predecessors.
PHIL 311/611 Modern European Movements: Existentialism
.001 M 5:30-8:00PM Erfani, F
This course focuses on 19th and 20th century existentialism, with a particular
emphasis on the role of imagination in creating one’s identity. We will
read philosophical works by Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Sartre, Heidegger and
de Beauvoir, as well as literary works by Camus, Dostoyevsky and also Sartre.
PHIL 312/612 Recent Contemporary Philosophy: Wittgenstein’s
Humanity
.001 TF 11:20-12:35PM Harré, R
Wittgenstein is one of the most influential philosophers of the modern era.
This course covers his earlier works, then investigates his later studies
of 'meaning,' 'rule-following,' 'future directed thought,' 'intentions' and
'perception.' Wittgenstein's aim was to free us from the spell of misunderstandings
of our language and to advance positive claims about meaning, religious faith
or cognition.
PHIL 314 American Philosophy
.001 Th 5:30-8:00PM Carr, R
The background and substance of American philosophy since colonial times.
The role of philosophical ideas, European and indigenous, in the growth of
American culture.
Prerequisite: one course in philosophy.
PHIL 390/690 Independent Reading in Philosophy
Prerequisite: permission of instructor
PHIL 391/691 Internship in Philosophy
Feder, E
Prerequisite: permission of instructor.
PHIL 392/692 Cooperative Education Field Experience
Feder, E
Prerequisite: permission of department chair and
Cooperative Education office.
PHIL 486 Colloquium of Philosophy: Liberation Philosophy
.001 W 5:30-8:00PM Oliver, A
(Meets 1/31/07-2/28/07)
Recent developments in Latin America continue to promote "liberation"
as a major political and cultural goal. This course examines works by Paulo
Freire and Leonardo Boff. Students can expect clearer senses of liberation
philosophy and liberation theology, and how ideas affect various publics in
Third World nations.
PHIL 490/690 Independent Study Project in Philosophy
Oliver, A
Prerequisite: permission of instructor and department
chair.
PHIL 498 Honors Project in Philosophy
Oliver, A
Prerequisite: permission of department and University Honors Director.
PHIL 525 Modern Moral Problems
.001 T 5:30-8:00PM Peach, L
In this course, we will examine a range of contemporary philosophical issues
relating to human rights such as the following: Is there a persuasive philosophical
basis for universal human rights or are human rights culturally relative?
If the former, which rights should be considered to be universal? What priority
should be given to protecting human rights versus meeting human needs? Is
the conception of human rights expressed in the international law human rights
system inappropriately western and/or male biased? Can and should non-state
actors (such as corporations) be responsible for protecting human rights?
Can women’s rights be adequately recognized and respected under the
rubric of human rights? How should conflicts between human rights and religious
and cultural traditions be resolved? Can and should group rights be recognized
along with individual human rights? How valuable are human rights without
an effective enforcement mechanism? In addition, we will consider some current
moral dilemmas involving human rights, such as genocide, the death penalty,
female genital mutilation, environmental protection, and torture in wartime.
Prerequisite: one introductory course in philosophy.
PHIL 702 Graduate Seminar in Philosophy:
Michel Foucault
.002 Th 5:30-8:00PM Feder, E
Reason, truth, history, power: It is difficult to invoke any of these terms
at the heart of contemporary philosophy without also invoking the work of
Michel Foucault. This course will focus on the intersections of these ideas
in Foucault’s writings, and particularly as these are examined in the
work from his middle, “genealogical” period. We will place that
work in the context of his earlier, “archaelogical” work, in which
he connects knowledge and reason to power. While the bulk of the course will
be devoted to the primary texts, we will also study selected contemporary
applications of Foucault’s work which is distinguished for its wide
influence across the humanities and social sciences.
PHIL 797 Master's Thesis Seminar
Prerequisite: permission of department chair.
Religion
RELG 105/105G Religious Heritage of the West
.001 TF 8:30-9:45AM Schaefer, M
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 185/185G Forms of the Sacred
.001 MTh 9:55-11:10AM Springs, J
.002 MTh 2:10-3:25PM Springs, J
An introduction to the methods of studying the history of religions. A brief
survey of primal religions and Judaism, Christianity, and Islam provides a
basis for comparative analysis of the major Eastern religions: Hinduism, Buddhism,
Chinese religion, and Shinto.
This course is a foundation-level course in the General Education Program, Curricular Area 3, Cluster 2: Global and Multicultural Perspectives.
RELG 210/210G Non-Western Religious Traditions
.001 MTH 8:30-9:45AM Springs, J
How non-Western religious traditions function as systems of symbols, how they
interact with both indigenous religious traditions and external religious
traditions such as Islam and Christianity, and how they respond to modernization
and imperialism.
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, and Views from the Third World.
RELG 220/220G Religious Thought
.001 TF 3:35-4:50PM Greenberg, G
This course examines the history of Christian thought, according to representative
thinkers and essential issues. Thinkers include the Church Fathers (Tertullian
and Origen), Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, John Wesley, and in the modern period,
Schleiermacher and Bultmann. Issues include the nature of man's relationship
to God, reason and revelation, history and the kingdom of God, holy scripture
and myth, and martyrdom.
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.
RELG 386/686 Mysticism
.001 T 8:10-10:40PM Greenberg, G
A comparative study of moments of self-transcendence, based upon sacred texts
in English translation selected from religions across the world. Hindu, Buddhist
and Sikh mysticism from the east, and Jewish, Christian and Islamic mysticism
from the west.
RELG 390/590 Independent Reading Course in Religion
Prerequisite: permission of department chair.
RELG 490/690 Independent Study Project in Religion
Prerequisite: permission of department chair.
RELG 498 Honors Project in Religion
(Open only to students in the University Honors Program.)
Prerequisite: permission of department chair and university honors director.
Honors
HNRS 300 Honors Colloquium: Persons and Selves
.001H TF 9:55-11:10AM Harré, R
(Open only to students in the University Honors Program.)
The concept of a person is one of the most widely used ideas in all aspects
of life: philosophy, psychiatry, the law, psychology, politics and religion.
Yet, it is one of the most contested concepts in our repertoire. What is it
to be a person? What is it to be just this person? Do other cultures recognize
personhood the way it is recognized in the West? Could there be more than
one person in a single human body? Very closely associated with the concept
of a person yet distinct from it, is the concept or concepts of the self.
How are the concepts of ‘person,’ ‘self,’ and ‘individual’
related? This course explores the history of personhood, and the complex pattern
of relationships with other concepts that are evident in many of our conceptual
practices. We will study philosophical, linguistic, and psychiatric aspects
of personhood.
HNRS 300 Honors Colloquium: The Ethics of Killing
.004H W 2:10-4:50PM Reiman, J
(Open only to students in the University Honors Program.)
In this course, we will examine philosophical writings on the question of
if and when the intentional ending of human life is morally permissible. We
will address four main problem areas: euthanasia, abortion, capital punishment,
and war. Students will be expected to reflect on the national and international
policy implications of the philosophical arguments considered.