Introduction to Reason & Persuasion
50:730:101:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 2:00 pm – 3:20 pm (Gen Ed: LQR)
Professor Sacks
Development of skills in reasoning. Consideration of what an argument is, how arguments go wrong, and what makes an argument valid. Application of techniques for clarifying meaning, evaluating, and constructing arguments. Enrollment not open to students who have taken 50:730:201.
Moral and Social Issues
50:730:105:01, In Person, Mon/Wed 12:30 pm – 1:50 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Young
Introduction to moral theory and application to selected contemporary issues. Possible topics include abortion, infanticide, euthanasia, punishment, equality, sexism, racism, affirmative action, privacy, obligations to the world’s needy, treatment of animals, drug use, and the meaning of life.
Introduction to Philosophy
50:730:111:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 2:00 pm – 3:20 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Rooney
An exploration of central philosophical problems, such as truth, justice, mind, and person, with a view to surveying the field and locating particular philosophical specialties within it such as logic, ethics, and metaphysics.
Introduction to Philosophy
50:730:111:90, On line , (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Young
An exploration of central philosophical problems, such as truth, justice, mind, and person, with a view to surveying the field and locating particular philosophical specialties within it such as logic, ethics, and metaphysics.
Introduction to Philosophy
50:730:111:92, On line, (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Denehy
An exploration of central philosophical problems, such as truth, justice, mind, and person, with a view to surveying the field and locating particular philosophical specialties within it such as logic, ethics, and metaphysics.
Nature of Mind
50:730:221:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 3:35 pm – 4:55 pm , (Gen Ed: EAV )
Professor Rooney
What is the mind? Is it part of physical reality, or something separate? Can science explain the nature of the mind? Is it possible for a properly programmed computer to have a mind? If the mind is completely physical, is it located entirely in the brain? We will investigate these questions, and contrast philosophical approaches to them with the methods employed in neuroscience and empirical psychology.
Self and Identity
50:730:222:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 11:10 am – 12:30 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Rooney
An exploration of the nature of the self, with emphasis on the conditions for remaining the same person over time and the relation between selfhood and moral responsibility.
Ethics
50:730:226:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 11:10 am – 12:30 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Gentzel
An examination of fundamental issues in ethical theory through the works of contemporary philosophers and key figures in the History of ethics such as Aristotle, Kant, and Mill. Topics may include human goodness, moral obligation, rights and duties, the relation of happiness to duties, the idea of role obligations specific to professional contexts, and the possibility of objective justifications of value judgments as contrasted with views from moral nihilists, skeptics, and relativists.
Biomedical Ethics (Gen Ed: EAV)
50:730:249:90 Online – Professor Gentzel
50:730:249:92 Online – Professor Gentzel
50:730:249:94 Online – Professor Gentzel
50:730:249:96 Online – Professor Young
50:730:249:98 Online – Professor Denehy
Exploration of moral issues in medicine and medical research. The course will typically focus on issues raised by the creation and termination of life and include topics such as abortion, stem cell research, cloning, prenatal screening for disability, right to medical care, human experimentation, genetic enhancement and eugenics, animal experimentation, the diagnosis of death, and euthanasia.
Philosophy of Law
50:730:258:H1, In Person, Tues/Thurs 11:10 am – 12:30 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Agule
Introduction to philosophical issues concerning the nature of law and its relation to morality and to power. Focuses on the concept of justice and punishment, the function of law, and types of legal argument. Legal materials include cases drawn from constitutional law, contracts, torts, and criminal law.
Contemporary Legal Issues
50:730:320:01, In Person, Tues/Thurs 9:35 am – 10:55 am (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Agule
This course provides an in-depth examination of a selected theoretical or applied problem in the law. Specific topics covered are rotated from term to term depending on the interests of participating faculty and students. Some examples of special topics are: theories of judicial interpretation, theoretical problems in criminal justice, and the contours of the moral obligation to obey the law.
AI and Society
50:730:328:40, In Person, Mond 7:00 pm – 9:50 pm (Gen Ed: EAV)
Professor Walker
Examines how AI systems that aim to emulate human learning, reasoning, self-correction, and perception impact humanity, societies, and the natural world.
Independent Study in Philosophy
50:730:389, 01 and 02
An individual reading and research project under the guidance of a member of the philosophy department in an area of interest to the department. Prerequisite: Permission of department.Coming soon.