Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of fundamental questions concerning the nature of what is and what ought to be. The basis of the study of philosophy is the ancient search for self-knowledge and the love of wisdom. In Plato's Dialogues, Socrates says, "Wonder is the feeling of a philosopher, and philosophy begins in wonder." The study of philosophy employs the human capacity to reflect, reason, and make critical judgments in order to consider questions such as: What is the good? What is justice? What is the nature of reality? What if anything can be known for certain? What is the nature of beauty? What is the meaning of human history and human life? Philosophy also examines the principles of logical, scientific, and religious thought, and the great systems of nature and culture employed in the search for truth. Students majoring in philosophy often enter the fields of law, medicine, or business. For these fields a background in logic, ethics, and critical thinking is particularly important. Some students who major in philosophy pursue graduate study in philosophy leading to positions in university teaching. On the graduate level, the department offers programs leading to master of arts and doctor of philosophy degrees.
Concentrations
Faculty
- Chair
- Noelle McAfee
- Director of Undergraduate Studies
- Jessica Wahman
- Core
Courses
PHIL 100-Level Courses
This course surveys basic problems in philosophy, such as questions concerning truth, knowledge, justice, beauty, and the good.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of correct reasoning, including the recognition, analysis, and criticism of arguments; relevant topics include informal fallacies, syllogistic reasoning, and systems of deduction.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- QR
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
What is Existentialism? We will look at the history of existentialism and see how it challenged the traditional philosophical approaches to questions of human subjectivity and the nature of the good life. In particular, we will explore the works of Jean Paul Sartre and Albert Camus.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Topics may include nature and role of experience in developing knowledge and improving practice, consideration of theories of truth, relationship between values and lived experience, the role of criticism in creating improved practices: politics, education, social life.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
The course will examine the most significant philosophical concepts and traditions in Asian thought.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course explores key topics in Latin American and Latinx thought, including identity, liberation, coloniality and decoloniality, and border feminisms.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAE
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Introductory examination of fundamental moral questions, such as the best way of life for a human being, the relationship between happiness and moral excellence, and the nature of ethical reasoning, as treated by major philosophers in the history of philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central questions of biomedical ethics, such as end-of-life issues, abortion, and justice in the distribution of health care.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course should encourage you to uncover and explore assumptions and evaluations concerning the so-called "natural world" or "environment". Each individual and society exists within an environment, and the character of this relation not only influences the relations of human and non-human creatures, but also lies at the heart of human self-understanding. Through reflection upon these and related issues, this course will develop critical reading, writing, and thinking skills by way of an introduction to and encounter with contemporary issues in environmental philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
An introduction to important issues and problems in the ethical conduct of business: What is the proper goal of business in a democratic society? How should businesses protect against conflicts of interest? [Prior to Fall 2010, this course carried the number PHIL 202.]
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Examination of a broad range of moral and social issues, such as abortion, capital punishment, sexism, war, environmental policy, euthanasia, and racism.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central concepts in social and political philosophy, such as liberty, equality, justice, and fairness.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central concepts in philosophy of law.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central concepts in philosophy of social science. (1)The distinction between interpretation and explanation. (2)The interplay of culture and nature. (3)The possibility of human universals. (4)The possible genetic basis of culture.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central issues in feminist philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central questions in the philosophy of race and ethnicity, such as the concept of race: its historical origins, its cogency, and the various uses to which it has been put, including its possible intersection with other forms of oppression.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAE
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to central issues in the philosophy of science: (1)scientific explanation. (2)evidence and verification. (3)probability theory. (4)the relation of science and politics.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Explores basic questions of inquiry, including theories of truth and justification, the relevance of standpoint to knowledge claims, the nature of facts, theory's relation to data, and questions of socially situated ignorance and ideology.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central question of metaphysics: what is the nature of reality?
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers the nature of literature, its epistemic import, and its personal and social value.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central themes in the philosophy of religion, such as the nature of religious experience, the question of God's existence, and the relation of faith and reason.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Relations between art, beauty, and aesthetics; the artist and the artist's work; normative principles in the fine arts; value of art for the individual; functions of art in culture; and problems of criticism.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course is an introduction to the central question of the philosophy of film. (1)What is film theory? (2)What is the nature of film? (3)Do films have authors? (4)How do films engage our emotions? (5)Can films be socially critical?
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
What is distinctive about a human being? What did it mean to be a human in ancient times, as it differs from what it means in modernity? Who are we, and what are our possibilities? What can we become? The responses to these questions affect our ethics, our politics, and the meaning of our lives.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers the significant philosophical reflection on the nature of romantic love and non-romantic friendship.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
An opportunity to explore special topics and thinkers not offered in the standard curriculum, or to explore aspects of the standard curriculum in greater depth and detail than the ordinary curriculum courses allow.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
An opportunity to explore special topics and thinkers not offered in the standard curriculum, or to explore aspects of the standard curriculum in greater depth and detail than the ordinary curriculum courses allow.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 5
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study and analysis of the thought of one major philosopher or the study of a special problem or set of related problems in philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- FS
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
PHIL 200-Level Courses
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in ancient Greek and medieval philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in ancient Greek and medieval philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAW
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in Renaissance and modern philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in Renaissance and modern philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAW
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in 19th and 20th century philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will introduce the principal figures and topics in 19th and 20th century philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAW
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Surveys key texts in political philosophy, including ancient, early modern, 19th and 20th century sources. Key issues include the nature of the just state and the rights and responsibilities of citizens.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HA
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Surveys key texts in political philosophy, including ancient, early modern, 19th and 20th century sources. Key issues include the nature of the just state and the rights and responsibilities of citizens.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAW
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
An opportunity to explore special topics and thinkers not offered in the standard curriculum, or to explore aspects of the standard curriculum in greater depth and detail than the ordinary curriculum courses allow.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
An opportunity to explore special topics and thinkers not offered in the standard curriculum, or to explore aspects of the standard curriculum in greater depth and detail than the ordinary curriculum courses allow.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 5
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- One PHIL course or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
PHIL 300-Level Courses
An inquiry into fundamental questions in epistemology and metaphysics, with special attention to how problems in one area impacts problems in the other. The course will include texts from various historical periods, providing students with some sense of philosophical questions evolve over time.Philosophy course.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Selected topics and readings from such philosophers as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, and Merleau-Ponty.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course explores the central questions of biomedical ethics, such as end-of-life issues, abortion, and justice in the distribution of health care.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers advanced topics in environmental ethics.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Topics may include the ethical priority of stake holders, conflicts of interest, the danger of externalized costs. Explores questions like: What is "business"? How does it relate to social life? What should I do? How or why should I do it? What sort of person should I be? How should I live my life?
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course concerns "the American Dream" in the USA-its multiple meanings, its historical impact on strivings, hopes, and senses of self for individuals and different groups, and its viability in the present.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Nature of law and justice; relation of law to ethics and custom; the limits of law; and problems of coercion and unjust law.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Survey of the basic tenets of Marxist thought from Marx to the present. Issues include the nature of value under capitalism, alienation and exploitation, the philosophy of history, class division and struggle, ideology, and revolution. Texts from figures such as Marx, Lenin, Luxemburg, and Mao.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Surveys feminisms of color addressing issues of race, racism, class, ethnicity, history, and politics in a U.S. and global context. Topics include Black feminisms, intersectionality, coloniality of gender, "third world" feminisms, racialization of trans identities, and decolonial feminisms.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- ETHN
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Examines key texts in Decolonial Thought. Assess the move from the language of colonialism and decolonization to coloniality and decoloniality. To these ends, the course will consider conceptions of the human, history, capital, race, gender, and sexuality.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- ETHN
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Explores what freedom entail in a political context, and what enables and frustrates its emergence. Texts range from 18th century to the present, including those by Kant, Arendt, Dr. King, Mill, Alcoff, Davis, Douglass, Beauvoir, Lorde, Douglass, and Obama.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- ETHN
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Relevance of philosophic theory to educational practice, illustrated with a study of some specific fundamental philosophic issues and the way these impinge upon specific problems of education.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Relevance of philosophic theory to educational practice, illustrated with a study of some specific fundamental philosophic issues and the way these impinge upon specific problems of education.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Covers issues in patient care including: ethic duty to care, limits to care, role of confidentiality, irrational patients, dignity and respect for patient autonomy. Topics may include tension between advancing medicine and patient desires, handling conflicts of interest, setting priorities for care.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Comedy addresses love and friendship, exclusion and oppression. With laughter, we work through identities, power struggles, relationships, and personal philosophies. We will explore how philosophy has understood comedy, and why it has tended to neglect comedy's transformative power.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course explores the nature of music and why it matters. Themes include: music and emotion; the politics of music; improvisation and freedom; musical communication; music and meaning. Various genres will be engaged such as ambient, blues, classical, EDM, jazz, rap, and world music.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- MUS 366
This course explores the nature of music and why it matters. Themes include: music and emotion; the politics of music; improvisation and freedom; musical communication; music and meaning. Various genres will be engaged such as ambient, blues, classical, EDM, jazz, rap, and world music.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- MUS 366W
Selected topics and problems in philosophy. Content will vary in successive offerings of this course. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Selected topics and problems in philosophy. Content will vary in successive offerings of this course. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 5
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
Reserved to register credits taken abroad in acceptable courses that do not have a correlate in Emory's catalogue.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- None
- Cross-Listed
- None
PHIL 400-Level Courses
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Ancient Greek Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 200. For example, a topics course might focus on Ancient Greek Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics, or Political Philosophy among others.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Ancient Greek Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 200. For example, a topics course might focus on Ancient Greek Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics, or Political Philosophy among others.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers, in depth, particular facets of medieval philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers, in depth, particular facets of medieval philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HSCW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Renaissance Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 202. For example, a topics course might focus on civil society, human nature, or Political Philosophy among others.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Renaissance Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 202. For example, a topics course might focus on civil society, human nature, or Political Philosophy among others.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Modern Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 202. Course might focus on Modern theories of knowledge, truth, proofs of the existence of God, or other areas of extended inquiry into metaphysical, epistemological or ethical questions.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers in depth a particular fact of Modern Philosophy, building upon the survey offered in PHIL 202. Course might focus on Modern theories of knowledge, truth, proofs of the existence of God, or other areas of extended inquiry into metaphysical, epistemological or ethical questions.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course covers figure(s) and/or topics in the philosophy of the 19th century. The course is repeatable for credit.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course covers figure(s) and/or topics in the philosophy of the 19th century. The course is repeatable for credit.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HSCW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers, in depth, particular facets of 20th century philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers, in depth, particular facets of 20th century philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Topics are drawn from contemporary philosophical discussions, for example, the nature of the self, reason's relation to affect, the authority of science, or the politics of poetry.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Topics are drawn from contemporary philosophical discussions, for example, the nature of the self, reason's relation to affect, the authority of science, or the politics of poetry.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of the twentieth-century tradition of language analysis and empiricism; readings from such philosophers as Moore, Russell, Wittgenstein, Ryle, Carnap, Strawson, Quine, Grice, and Searle.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
An advanced exploration of key texts and issues in phenomenology. Typical figures include Husserl, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, and Edith Stein. Possible issues include the nature of consciousness, human embodiment, affect and empathy, the imagination, and temporality. Philosophy course.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course surveys important perspectives, ideas, and theories in the writings of major American writers. It will focus on pragmatism as developed by such thinkers as Charles Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and George Herbert Mead.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course surveys important perspectives, ideas, and theories in the writings of major American writers. It will focus on pragmatism as developed by such thinkers as Charles Peirce, William James, John Dewey, and George Herbert Mead.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HSCW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of the philosophical significance of the ideas, images, symbolism, and methods of understanding in Taoism, Buddhism, and Zen Buddhism. May include attention to C.G. Jung's conception of archetypes of collective unconscious and to his commentaries on the classics.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Explores the philosophy of the Frankfurt School, or critical theory. Topics may include relation of theory to practice, nature of reason and potential to facilitate emancipation and contribute to domination. Explores the role of theory in cultural criticism, legitimation and social reconstruction.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will investigate moral theories as presented by their famous proponents, including such topics as virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will investigate moral theories as presented by their famous proponents, including such topics as virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers advanced topics in the philosophy of nature.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will investigate social and political philosophies as presented by some of their most famous proponents. Discussion will include such topics as the legitimate basis of the state, the structure of the social contract, and the nature of liberty and equality.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will investigate social and political philosophies as presented by some of their most famous proponents. Discussion will include such topics as the legitimate basis of the state, the structure of the social contract, and the nature of liberty and equality.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Explores central concepts of social sciences: relationship between natural science and social science, contributions to naturalism and humanism, the difference between explanation and understanding, problems of inquiry not repeatable in lab conditions, and problems of generalizing social behavior.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course explores the central issues in feminist philosophies.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course explores the central issues in feminist philosophies.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers advanced topics in the philosophy of science, including the nature of scientific truth, scientific explanation, and empirical verification.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course considers advanced topics in the philosophy of science, including the nature of scientific truth, scientific explanation, and empirical verification.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- CW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will focus on the nature of knowledge and justification. It will look at the skeptical challenges to reason, and ask after the relationship between true belief and justification. It will explore the criteria for establishing justified beliefs and knowledge.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Leading theories of being in Western thought; idealism and realism; naturalism and supernaturalism; materialism and immaterialism; monism, dualism, and pluralism; the mind-body problem. Readings drawn from throughout the history of philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Leading theories of being in Western thought; idealism and realism; naturalism and supernaturalism; materialism and immaterialism; monism, dualism, and pluralism; the mind-body problem. Readings drawn from throughout the history of philosophy.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Truth and symbol in literature; aesthetic judgment; literature and cultural change; and literary conceptions of human nature.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will explore philosophical investigations of the nature of God, the tension between faith and reason, knowledge and belief, and the varieties of religion experience more generally. Thinkers may include Otto, van der Leeuw, Tillich, Dewey, James and Freud among others.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
This course will explore philosophical investigations of the nature of God, the tension between faith and reason, knowledge and belief, and the varieties of religion experience more generally. Thinkers may include Otto, van der Leeuw, Tillich, Dewey, James and Freud among others.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
The course explores the nature of art and the beautiful.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Philosophical study of meaning and language: pragmatics, truth, analyticity, reference, translation, the relationship between language and mind, and the social and political aspects of language use.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Philosophical study of meaning and language: pragmatics, truth, analyticity, reference, translation, the relationship between language and mind, and the social and political aspects of language use.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Critique of historical knowledge and methods; historical relativity; explanation and understanding in history; and philosophers of history such as Vico, Hegel, Marx, and Dilthey.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Experience and culture; institutions and historical processes; myth and symbol; and the origins of culture.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HSC
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
We often say we "have" a mind or body, which raises questions. Are they separate? How do they interact? And who are "we" if we possess them? This course concerns the nature of the mind, consciousness, and the body, as well relationships among the mental, the physiological, and the world.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
We often say we "have" a mind or body, which raises questions. Are they separate? How do they interact? And who are "we" if we possess them? This course concerns the nature of the mind, consciousness, and the body, as well relationships among the mental, the physiological, and the world.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- CW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Prerequisite: either Philosophy 358 or one course in religion. The religious and philosophical consciousness in confrontation with each other; investigation of their differing natures and methods; and exploration of their possible contribution to the clarification and solution of problems of mutual concern.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- REL 470
Intensive study and analysis of the thought of one major philosopher. May be repeated for credit when the subject varies.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Intensive study and analysis of the thought of one major philosopher. May be repeated for credit when the subject varies.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of particular subjects pertaining to Philosophy. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Writing-intensive study of particular subjects pertaining to Philosophy. May be repeated for credit when topic varies.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
An opportunity for students to discuss philosophy in a small group setting where they will be responsible for directing a seminar meeting and preparing substantial contributions throughout the course of the term.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
A seminar reserved for senior PPL majors. It integrates each of the majors areas: the politics, law, and some subfield of philosophy such as ethics, epistemology, metaphysics, etc.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
A seminar reserved for senior PPL majors. It integrates each of the majors areas: the politics, law, and some subfield of philosophy such as ethics, epistemology, metaphysics, etc. The course is writing intensive and culminates in a final paper.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- CW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of the nature of philosophy, relationships among the various fields of philosophy, and connections among various fundamental problems in philosophy, approached from the perspective of each student's own course of undergraduate study in philosophy. Required of all philosophy majors.
- Credit Hours
- 3
- GER
- HAP
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Study of the nature of philosophy, relationships among the various fields of philosophy, and connections among various fundamental problems in philosophy, approached from the perspective of each student's own course of undergraduate study in philosophy. Required of all philosophy majors.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- HAPW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Open to students approved by the department to write an honors thesis.
- Credit Hours
- 4
- GER
- XA
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
Open to students approved by the department to write an honors thesis.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- CW
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None
A course of readings decided in consultation with a member of the faculty.
- Credit Hours
- 1 - 4
- GER
- None
- Requisites
- Two PHIL courses or equivalent transfer credit as prerequisite.
- Cross-Listed
- None