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Fall Semester Course Overview:
101 - Introduction to Moral and Political Philosophy
Throughout the history of Western
philosophy, there have been debates concerning how human beings
should live: What should we do both with our lives as wholes and
in specific problematic situations? The debates have addressed us
both as individuals and as members of political communities. This
course aims to aid us in responding to these debates, and in
living our lives, on the basis of reasoned conclusions rather than
from unrecognized presuppositions. The course concentrates on
Plato's Republic, the most influential ethical and political text
within Western philosophy, but we assess the Republic in light of
elaborations and criticisms that have developed over the past 2500
years, in works by Aristotle, Kant, and Mill.
Format:
lecture/discussion.
Requirements: class discussion. frequent short
papers (totaling 20-30 pages).
No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit:
19 per section. Preference given to first-year students and
sophomores.
Instructors:
SAWICKI, McKEEN
102 - Introduction
to Metaphysics and Epistemology
Metaphysics and epistemology are
the two core pursuits of theoretical philosophy (as opposed to
practical philosophy, the focus of Philosophy 101). Metaphysics is
concerned with the ultimate character of reality. The metaphysician
seeks to develop knowledge (as opposed to mere opinion or belief) of
all things natural, human, and divine. She asks, for example: Are we
free, or are our acts determined? Is there a God? If so, what must
God be like? Epistemology is concerned with how we determine the
difference between knowledge and mere opinion. The epistemologist
thus asks: What does it mean truly to know something? How can we
acquire such genuine knowledge? Answers to these epistemological
questions are essential if we are to have any confidence in the
methods and results of our metaphysical investigations. This course
will emphasize the established historical classics that provide the
basis for understanding contemporary work on metaphysics and
epistemological issues; we will consider, among others, the work of
Descartes, Hume, and Kant.
Format: lecture/discussion.
Requirements:
class discussion. frequent short papers (totaling 20-30 pages).
No
prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 19 per section (expected: 19 per
section). Preference given to first-year students and sophomores.
Instructors: McPARTLAND, WHITE
131 - Introduction to Logic and Sematics
This course is an introduction to both formal logic and the study of linguistic meaning. Throughout the course, a formal system of logic will be developed, and its adequacy for describing linguistic meaning will be tested. Topics to be covered include the meaning of words and sentences, first-order predicate logic, logical deduction, interpretation and understanding, and pragmatics.
No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 40 (expected: 40). Preference given to students using the course to fulfill requirements for a major or concentration; such students should contact the instructor in advance to guarantee placement in the course.
Instructor: SANDERS
204 -
Endtimes: Messianism in Modernity
This course's aim is to use messianism as a focal point around which to consider the dynamic relationship between philosophy and Judaism in modernity. This course will expose the mutual influences of these two forces, illustrating both how Enlightenment conceptions of progress helped to create the notion of "messianism" understood as an abstract idea, and how the modern/post-modern philosophical conception of the "messianic" as a force that interrupts time is dependent upon historical studies of the messianic dimension of traditional Judaism.
Format: Seminar.
Requirements will include regular participation, weekly writing assignments of 2-3 pages, and a final 12- to 15-page paper on an approved topic of the student's choice.
No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 19 (expected 19). Preference given to Religion majors and Jewish Studies concentrators.
Instructor:
HAMMERSCHLAG
221 - Greek Philosophy (Same as Classics 221)
In this course, we will investigate what the Greeks were doing when they claimed to practice "philosophia". We will start with the "Pre-Socratics" who were active in the Mediterranean world of 4th and 5th c. BCE. We will study some of Plato's dialogues, which feature Socrates as philosophical protagonist. We will grapple with Aristotle's views on reality and on the soul. And we will look at development in Hellenistic philosophy. Our main focus will be on the questions concerning reality, knowledge and the soul.
Format: Lecture/discussion.
Requirements: four short papers, attendance and active participation in class.
Prerequisite: No prerequisite
Enrollment limit: 19 (expected: 10-15).
Instructor: MCKEEN
226 - Big Games: The Spiritual Significance of Sports
This course will attempt to comprehend the significance of sports by attending to their role as a source of three distinctive forms of "spiritual" experience: patriotism, beauty, and divinity. We will consider the extent to which the fundamental elements of contemporary sports (games, athletes, equipment, arenas, fans, and media) can be interpreted as together comprising a complex phenomenon that provides opportunities for all participants to share in these experiences. Throughout we will investigate actual examples, taken from particular sports, chosen for their ability to illuminate different aspects of spiritual experience.
Format: Lecture/discussion
Requirements: scheduled discussion groups once per week, quizzes, short writing assignments and a final exam.
Prerequisite: No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 120 (expected 120)..
Instructor:
DUDLEY
227 -
Death and Dying
In this course we will examine traditional philosophical approaches to understanding death and related concepts, with a special focus on the ethical concerns surrounding death and care for the dying. We will begin with questions about how to define death, as well as reflections on its meaning and function in human life. We will move on to examine ethical issues of truth-telling with terminally ill patients and their families, decisions to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatments, the care of seriously ill newborns, physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia, and research efforts to extend the human life-span. In addition to key concepts of death, dying, and terminal illness, we will develop and refine notions of medical futility, paternalism and autonomy, particularly within the context of advance directives and surrogate decision making.
Format: lecture/discussion
Requirements: active participation in class discussions, two mid-length papers (7-10 pages), and weekly short writing assignments (2 pages). Possible experiential learning component.
Prerequisites: No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected 19).
Instructor: J. PEDRONI
274T -
Messing with People: The Ethics of Human Experimentation
A number of conceptual themes will emerge throughout the course of the term, including notions of exploitation and coercion, privacy and confidentiality, and the balance between public interests and individual rights. Specific issues will include the ethics of placebor research, deception in research, studies of illicit/illegal behavior, genetic research, experimentation with children, pregnant women and fetuses, and persons with diminished metnal capacity, among other topics. Students will meet with the professor in pairs for approximately one hour per week, writing and presenting 5- to 7-page essays every other week, and commenting orally on their partners' essays in alternate weeks.
Format: Tutorial. Evaluations will be based on written work, on oral presentations of that work, and on oral critiques.
Prerequisites: No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 10 (expected: 10). Preference will be given to
prospective philosophy majors and students committed to taking the tutorial. Tutorial meetings to be arranged.
Instructor:
J. PEDRONI
288 -
Embodied Mind: A Cross-Cultural Exploration (Same as Religion 288)
This course examines some of the central questions concerning the nature of the mind: the place of intentionality, the role of emotions, the relation with the body, the nature of subjectivity, the scope of reflexivity, etc. In confronting these questions, we do not proceed purely theoretically but consider the contribution of various observation-based traditions, from Buddhist psychology and meditative practices to phenomenology to neurosciences.
Format: Seminar.
Requirements: attendance to a day-long introduction to the practice of meditation, regular practice of meditation, a class presentation and a research paper (15 pages).
Prerequisites: No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 22 (expected: 15). Preference given to students with relevant background.
Instructor:
DREYFUS
311T - Body Politics: Power, Pain, and Pleasure (Same as Women's and Gender Studies 311T)
In this course we will juxtapose Western philosophical treatments of the body (egs., Platonic, Aristotelian, Hobbesian, Cartesian, Freudian, Foucauldian) with cultural analyses of contemporary issues in body politics. How
do we reconcile the body and its pleasures with the demand for social and political order? What sort of bodily
training is necessary for entry into society? Is the body an inevitable source of resistance and rebellion? Is it
instead a vehicle of power and social control? How do different bodies matter differently? If bodies and pleasures are historically and socially constituted within unequal power relationships, what can or should we do to transform them? Does the body really matter any more? We take up these and other questions with reference to particular practices concerning body image (dietary and fitness regimes, cosmetic surgery) as well as more general
questions concerning consumerism and gender, sexual, and racial identities.
Format: tutorial. Students will work in pairs. Requirements: each student will write and present orally a five-page
essay every other week. Students not presenting essays will prepare oral critiques of their partners’ essays. Evaluation
will be based on written work, oral presentations of essays, and oral critiques.
Prerequisites: one course in either Philosophy or Women’s and Gender Studies, or permission of instructor. Enrollment
limit: 10 (expected: 10). Preference will be given to students who are committed to taking the tutorial.
Tutorial meetings to be arranged.
Instructor: SAWICKI
340 - Contemporary Metaphysics (W)
In this course, we will examine a number of issues in contemporary metaphysics. Possible topics include: realism
and anti-realism, the problem of universals, the nature of necessity, causation, material constitution, the nature of
time, personal identity, and freedom of the will. While we will be concerned to place our discussions of these
issues in historical context, almost all of the reading for the class will consist in articles written by contemporary
philosophers working in what is sometimes called the “analytic” tradition.
Format: lecture and discussion. Evaluation: two long papers (at least one of which will be re-written), short response
papers, and active participation in class.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 102 (familiarity with formal logic helpful but not required). Enrollment limit: 15 (expected:
10).
Instructor: McPARTLAND
389 - Everything
The history of theoretical inquiry since the seventeenth century is plausibly viewed as a process whereby philosophy,
for the Greeks the home of virtually all inquiry, is increasing deprived of subject matters by the developments
of the various natural and social sciences. At an extreme, it can appear—and does appear, to many
philosophers—that philosophy as inquiry is (or ideally would be) left with no proper subject matter except perhaps
those sciences themselves. On a different view, however, this process can appear instead as one that clarifies
a proper subject matter for philosophy; that subject matter is the all-encompassing domain within which are
found all of the restricted domains constituting the subject matters of the natural and social sciences. Comprehensive
philosophical treatments of this all-encompassing domain may reasonably be termed“theories of everything.”
This seminar examines central components of such a theory that is currently under development; this is
the structural-systematic philosophy presented in part in Structure and Being (Lorenz Puntel, translated by and in
collaboration with Alan White) and A Philosophical Theory of Everything (Alan White). Among the topics to be
examined, as systematically interconnected, are language, knowledge, ontology, truth, philosophical methodology,
mindedness, ethics, aesthetics, being as a whole, and being as such.
Format: seminar. Requirements: attendance, preparation, participation; regular short writing assignments and/or
class presentations; a term paper (10- to 15-pages).
Instructor: WHITE
401 - Senior Seminar: The Self (W)
This course is required of, and restricted to, senior philosophy majors. It will be conducted in two sections. Since
the interests of the participants will help shape the syllabus in each section, the two sections might differ. The
common theme for both sections will be philosophical issues that involve the idea of the self. The self is a subject
of experiences, something that has thoughts and feelings, motivation and agency; it is thought of as continuous
over time, and as related to, perhaps even constituted by, other selves. Thus, the concept of self plays a significant
role in metaphysics, epistemology, moral and political philosophy, and of course in the philosophy of mind. It has
been analyzed and discussed throughout the history of philosophy, in both “analytic” and “continental” traditions.
Conceptions of self equally underlie scientific research programs (especially in psychology) and literature
(especially plays and novels). Are the conceptions of self developed within different cultures, historical periods,
philosophical traditions and disciplines radically different conceptions of self, or is there a common core to all of
them a philosophical inquiry may hope to isolate? To answer this question, we may try to first answer some of
the following ones: What is the self? How do I know that I am one? What constitutes my knowledge of myself,
and does that knowledge differ in any significant respect from my knowledge of physical objects and other
people? Can one generalize about self-knowledge? The cognitive phenomenology of the self is deeply connected
with our affective attitudes towards ourselves. Is that a philosophically desirable connection? Could we,
and should we, influence it in the direction of minimizing the role of emotions in our self-understanding, or on
the contrary, increase the mutual dependence of the two? What is the defensible interpretation and the desirable
role of the ideal of authenticity, frequently expressed by quoting Polonius’ “To thine own self be true” out of
context?
Students are encouraged to think in advance about the specific issues they would like to pursue in this seminar,
and to communicate to the instructor any interesting ideas that they may develop.
Format: seminar. Requirements: class participation, weekly short papers, class presentation and 12-15 pages long
final paper.
Enrollment limited to senior philosophy majors.
Instructor: MLADENOVIC
Spring Semester Course Overview:
101 - Introduction to Moral and Political Philosophy
Throughout the history of Western
philosophy, there have been debates concerning how human beings
should live: What should we do both with our lives as wholes and
in specific problematic situations? The debates have addressed us
both as individuals and as members of political communities. This
course aims to aid us in responding to these debates, and in
living our lives, on the basis of reasoned conclusions rather than
from unrecognized presuppositions. The course concentrates on
Plato's Republic, the most influential ethical and political text
within Western philosophy, but we assess the Republic in light of
elaborations and criticisms that have developed over the past 2500
years, in works by Aristotle, Kant, and Mill.
Format:
lecture/discussion.
Requirements: class discussion. frequent short
papers (totaling 20-30 pages).
No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit:
19 per section. Preference given to first-year students and
sophomores.
Instructors:
BARRY, J. PEDRONI
102 - Introduction
to Metaphysics and Epistemology
Metaphysics and epistemology are
the two core pursuits of theoretical philosophy (as opposed to
practical philosophy, the focus of Philosophy 101). Metaphysics is
concerned with the ultimate character of reality. The metaphysician
seeks to develop knowledge (as opposed to mere opinion or belief) of
all things natural, human, and divine. She asks, for example: Are we
free, or are our acts determined? Is there a God? If so, what must
God be like? Epistemology is concerned with how we determine the
difference between knowledge and mere opinion. The epistemologist
thus asks: What does it mean truly to know something? How can we
acquire such genuine knowledge? Answers to these epistemological
questions are essential if we are to have any confidence in the
methods and results of our metaphysical investigations. This course
will emphasize the established historical classics that provide the
basis for understanding contemporary work on metaphysics and
epistemological issues; we will consider, among others, the work of
Descartes, Hume, and Kant.
Format: lecture/discussion.
Requirements:
class discussion. frequent short papers (totaling 20-30 pages).
No
prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 19 per section (expected: 19 per
section). Preference given to first-year students and sophomores.
Instructors:
MLADENOVIC, McPARTLAND, WHITE
222 - Minds, Brains, and Intelligent Behavior: An Introduction to Cognitive Science
This course will emphasize interdisciplinary approaches to the study of intelligent systems, both natural and artificial.
Cognitive science synthesizes research from cognitive psychology, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience,
and contemporary philosophy. Special attention will be given to the philosophical foundations of cognitive
science, representation and computation in symbolic and connectionist architectures, concept acquisition,
problem solving, perception, language, semantics, reasoning, and artificial intelligence.
Format: lecture/discussion. Requirements: midterm and final exams, and self-paced weekly computer lab exercises.
Prerequisites: Psychology 101 or Philosophy 102 or Computer Science 134. Background in more than one of
these is recommended.
Enrollment limit: 25 (expected: 25). Preference given to first-and second-year students.
Satisfies one semester of the Division II requirement.
Instructor:
KIRBY
231 - Ancient Political Theory (Same as Political Science 231)
The core activity of this seminar is the careful reading and sustained discussion of selected works by Plato and Aristotle, but we will also engage such other thinkers as Epictetus and Augustine, and, from a political and theoretical point of view, selections from the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. Among the questions that we will address: What is justice? How can it be known and pursued? How is political power generated and exercised? What are the social and ethical prerequisites - and consequences - of democracy? Must the freedom or fulfillment of some people require the subordination of others? Does freedom require leading (or avoiding) a political life? What does it mean to be "philosophical" or think "theoretically" about politics? Although we will attempt to engage the works on their own terms, we will also ask how the vast differences between the ancient world and our own undercut or enhance the texts' ability to illuminate the dilemmas of political life for us.
Format: lecture/discussion.
Requirements: four 5-page papers.
No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 35 (expected: 18). Preference given to Political
Science majors.
Political Theory Subfield.
Instructor:
DOGERT
232 - Modern Political Theory (Same as Politcal Science 232)
The dominant moral, political and social theoretical framework associated with the Enlightenment generally, and with the development of capitalism in England and the rise of modern physical science more specifically, is markedly different from that of the Ancients. It is arguably the framework within which most debate in the West still occurs. Yet while (or perhaps because) it constitutes something of a shared horizon, the framework itself is often simply taken for granted. The project of this course will be to make the parameters of much contemporary thought explicit by tracing the development of the tradition to which we are in large part heir. Class will involve careful reading and critical discussion of works by Machiavelli, Hobbes, Burke, Locke, Rousseau, Kant, Hegel, Marx and Mill.
Format: lecture/discussion.
Requirements: active and constructive class participation, three 5-page papers.
No prerequisites.
Enrollment limit: 25 (expected: 18). Preference given to Political Science concentrators.
Political Theory Subfield.
Instructor: MARASCO
236 - Contemporary Ethical Theory (W)
Moral life is filled with difficult decisions. For instance, is it ever appropriate to sacrifice the welfare of an individual
for the sake of the community, or does each individual have an inviolable status that must be respected?
Are some actions so morally objectionable that they must never be done, even to promote very good ends? And
how centrally should moral considerations figure in our personal decision-making? Should they always take
priority, even at the expense of our personal projects and intimate relationships, or are there some spheres in
which we should be free to pursue our goals without concern for morality? Finally, should our moral regard
extend only to our fellow rational beings, or should it reach to non-human animals and the environment as well?
We will explore these and related questions by systematically comparing what the two dominant ethical theories
of the twentieth century, consequentialism and deontology, have had to say about them. While both theories find
their roots in earlier thinkers—consequentialism in Bentham and Mill, deontology in Kant—our focus will be on
contemporary developments of these views. After examining these two approaches in depth, we will turn our
attention to recently developed alternatives that attempt to transcend the dichotomies that continue to divide consequentialist
and deontological approaches. Readings will include works by the following authors: Bentham,
Mill, Nozick, Railton, Brink, Williams, Wolf, Taurek, Rawls, Smart, Scheffler, Nagel, Kant, Kamm, Quinn, Kagan,
Ross, Scanlon. This is a writing intensive course.
Format: lecture/discussion. Requirements: several short response papers; two 8- to 10-page papers
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101, Philosophy 102, or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected:
15).
Instructor: BARRY
273T - Hume's Treatise of Human Nature (W)
Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature, one of the greatest books in the history of philosophy, still exerts a considerable
influence on contemporary epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of science, philosophy of action, ethics
and moral psychology. Unfortunately, the relevance of Hume’s ideas and arguments for particular philosophical
disciplines has too often led to a piece-meal reading of his work: the three books of Treatise (“Of the Understanding”,
“Of the Passions” and“Of Morals”) are typically considered in isolation from one another. Epistemologists
don’t seem to think that Hume’s account of human psychology, morality and taste can in any way illuminate
his treatment of skepticism and natural belief, while moral philosophers often neglect Hume’s conclusions
about the limits of our knowledge in analyzing his conception of motivation, action, obligation and virtue. In
contrast with this interpretive tendency, this tutorial will focus on Hume’s“science of human nature”—his overall
philosophical project in Treatise—and cultivate the discussion of different philosophical issues and arguments in
light of this general aim of the work as a whole.
We will start by situating Hume’s project within the historical tradition in which he thought and against which
Treatise was directed; we will read Descartes, Locke, Berkeley and Newton, as well as some lesser known figures.
For clarification and discussion of the points made in Treatise, we will read parts of Hume’s later works,
especially the two Enquiries. Throughout the course, our reading of Hume will be supplemented, on the one
hand, by historical and interpretive essays on his work, and on the other hand, by the works of contemporary
philosophers engaged in the problems and questions raised in Treatise. (For example, we will read some of the
present-day discussions of skepticism, causation, inductive inference, the self, nature of emotions, motivation
and action, virtues and moral obligation.) Throughout the course our focus will be on three broad issues: Hume’s
conception of theoretical rationality, his conception of practical rationality, and his views about the role and relevance
of non-rational (on some readings, irrational) elements in a good life of a wise person.
Format: tutorial. Requirements: Each student will write a 5-page paper every second week, and comment on the
tutorial partner’s paper on alternate weeks. In the last week of classes, all students will write a paper and comment
on the tutorial partner’s paper.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101 and 102; or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limit: 10 (expected:10). Preference
given to philosophy majors.
Tutorial meetings to be arranged.
Instructor:
MLADENOVIC
290 - The Philosophy and Economics of Higher Education(Same as INTR 290) (W)
Students compete ferociously for the opportunity to pay large sums of money for the privilege of attending Williams
College. The value of the educational experience they receive is usually taken to be self-evident. Less obvious,
however, are the nature of education, and the factors that determine how much it costs, who has access to
it, and how successful it is.
This interdisciplinary seminar will explore both the philosophy and the economics of higher education. Which
purposes can and should college serve? Which curricular and extra-curricular programs best accomplish those
purposes? How can we measure and evaluate the effects of policies concerning college admission, pricing, and
financial aid? How can we assess and enhance educational productivity?
Students will read and discuss texts in the philosophy of education, while also learning to apply economic theory
and econometric techniques to the analysis of educational issues.
Format: lecture/discussion. Requirements: Evaluation will be based upon the writing and revision of three
8-page papers, as well as the quality of contributions to class discussion.
Prerequisites: Economics 110 and at least one philosophy course. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected: 19). Preference
given to sophomores intending to or juniors majoring in either philosophy or economics.
Students will get credit for one philosophy course, which fulfills one-semester of the Division II requirement.
Instructor: SCHAPIRO and DUDLEY
300 - Mute Witness: Disability, Gender, and Testimony (Same as WGST 300) (W)
Inspired by a 1994 film, Mute Witness, in which the lead character plays a mute makeup artist who witnesses a
murder and is not believed when she reports it, this course is an introduction to the philosophy of disability
through two critical approaches. One is through the concepts of gender and sexuality; the other is through an
epistemology of testimony.
“Philosophy of disability” expresses at least a two-fold concept. One focuses on the meaning of disability: what
does it mean to have a disability or to be disabled? The other focuses on the meaning of philosophy: what new
problems and concepts are raised by the phenomenon of disability? In other words, what does the experience of
disability reveal about traditional questions in philosophy such as What is the meaning of life (to be healthy)?
What is a good life (can disabled people have meaningful lives)? Who can know (can mentally disabled people
know legitimately)? Who can speak (are disabled people authoritative witnesses)?
Through this course you will be able to: 1) explain both the material and social construction of disability by
identifying and locating the myriad forces that have shaped various understandings and experiences of disability;
2) explain and demonstrate the intersectionality of race, gender, sexuality, and disability; 3) understand the relationship
between embodiment and disability; 4) explain the existence of a dominant model of testimony in the
Western affluent world and its impact upon the disabled minority.
Format: seminar. Evaluation will be based on class presentations, three short response papers (4-5 pages), final
paper (12-15 pages, with revisions).
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101, Philosophy 102, Women’s and Gender Studies 101 or permission of instructor.
Enrollment limit: 19 (expected 10).
Instructor:
SCHRIEMPF
305 - Existentialism and Phenomenology (W)
According to Jean-Paul Sartre, the only philosopher to ever refer to himself as an “existentialist,” existence precedes
essence. What is essential to human being is not any fixed set of characteristics, but rather what a human
being becomes and how it defines and creates itself under conditions it does not choose. In this course we address
key themes and figures from two of the most influential movements in twentieth century European philosophy,
namely, existentialism and phenomenology, a philosophical approach to which existentialism is indebted. We
will discuss major works (philosophical, literary, visual) by such figures as Edmund Husserl, Martin Heidegger,
Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and Richard Wright, Ingmar
Bergman and Jean-Luc Godard. We will raise questions concerning the task of philosophy, the structure and
meaning constituting function of consciousness, the relationship between self and other, the mind-body relationship,
freedom, authenticity, and absurdity.
Format: seminar. Requirements: short critical response papers, occasional short class presentations based on outlines
of the text, and three 5- to 6-page papers. Students will be required to re-write one of the three papers in lieu
of a final exam.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101 or 102 or 240 or 271T or 304T or permission of instructor. Enrollment limit: 19
(expected: 10-15). Preference given to majors and those considering a major in philosophy.
Instructor:
SAWICKI
307T - Free Will (W)
According to the twelfth-century Persian poet Jalalu’ddin Rumi,“There is a disputation that will continue till
mankind is raised from the dead, between the necessitarians and the partisans of free will.” Rumi’s prediction has
not yet been disproved. This seminar will examine the“disputation” as it exists at present, made far more complex
than for Rumi by developments within the physical sciences. We will consider the positions of those who
affirm freedom and reject global determinism (“libertarians”), those who affirm determinism and reject freedom
(not surprisingly,“determinists”), and those who attempt to affirm both freedom and determinism (“compatibilists”),
but we will also seek alternative ways of framing the issues. The relevance of the free-will issue to ethics
and perhaps to theology will also be considered. Students who took 272T in Fall 2005 require permission of the
instructor to take this course for credit.
Format: tutorial. Requirements: attendance, preparation, participation; regular short writing assignments and/or
class presentations; a term paper (10- to 15-pages).
Prerequisite: Philosophy 102 or permission of instructor. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected: 10). Preference to current
and prospective Philosophy majors.
Tutorial meetings to be arranged.
Instructor:
WHITE
309 - Kant
This course will provide an intensive study of the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. Kant’s transcendental idealism
is profoundly important: it constitutes a challenge to rationalist metaphysics, a response to Hume’s empiricist
skepticism, and systematically integrates epistemology, ethics, and aesthetics in a way that has shaped modern
Western thought. It is also profoundly difficult: more than 200 years after its development, there is still vehement
disagreement not only over whether or not Kant was right, but over what Kant actually said. In this course our
goal will be to understand Kant’s philosophy as a systematic whole, in terms of the tight-knit relationships that
bind all his ideas into one comprehensive vision. We will attempt to understand what Kant said and why, how it
is important, and the extent to which it is right. We will read significant portions of all three of Kant’s most
important works (the Critique of Pure Reason, Critique of Practical Reason, and Critique of Judgment), and
may occasionally make use of secondary literature.
Requirements: several short assignments; final paper of 12-15 pages.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 102. Expected enrollment: 5-15.
Instructor: DUDLEY
332 - Aristotle (Same as Classics 332)
Aristotle’s status as a central figure in Western philosophy is undisputed. For hundreds of years during the
Middle Ages, Aristotle was simply referred to as “The Philosopher.“ Aristotle is also credited with the invention
of logic, biology, physics, political science, linguistics, and aesthetics. His writings on metaphysics, epistemology,
and ethics set the course for much of the subsequent philosophical discussion which continues to the present
day. In this class, we will examine some of Aristotle’s central metaphysical, epistemological and ethical views.
There are two main objectives in this course: (1) We will work to sympathetically reconstruct Aristotle’s views
from translations of his primary texts; (2) We will investigate the extent to which these views are relevant to
contemporary discussions in philosophy.
Format: lecture and discussion. Requirements: several short writing assignments, final paper, attendance and active
participation in class.
Prerequisites: Philosophy 101 or 102 or 221. Enrollment limit: 15 (expected: 12).
Instructor: MCPARTLAND
498 - Independent Study
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