Undergraduate Catalog 14-16 : School of Arts & Sciences

Philosophy

Philosophy

PHI 100 Introduction Philosophy 3 SH
A study of philosophical problems and theories as they are defined and expressed in the writings of the great philosophers and in the representative schools. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 103 Introduction to Critical Reasoning 3 SH
This course involves the beginning student with the recognition, analysis and evaluation of arguments, encouraging him/her to acquire the techniques of critical reasoning useful in everyday life. Topics include analysis of arguments in English, informal fallacies of reasoning and common deductive and inductive argument forms. Because the emphasis is on the acquisition of skills rather than on the mastery of theory, lecture and discussion is heavily supplemented by classroom exercises and (as time permits) oral debate. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 110 Ethical Issues in Business 3 SH
Explores current ethical issues and value conflicts from the standpoint of the organization, the employee, the marketplace and public policy. Case studies of actual situations will be analyzed. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 111 Ethical Issues in Health Care 3 SH
Explores current ethical issues and value conflicts in health care from the standpoint of the health care professional, the patient and public policy. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 112 Ethics and the Nonhuman 3 SH
The course involves the application of ethical thinking to issues raised by the animal rights and environmental movements. Topics include: a historical overview of our conception of the nonhuman and our attitudes towards it, especially those found in the Judeo-Christian religious traditions; the significance of new data from molecular biology and communication studies with primates and other animals; the use of nonhuman animals in biomedical research, product testing and dissection; the use of nonhuman animals in agrobusiness; the moral basis of vegetarianism; issues concerning the environment and land use (hunting, trapping, endangered species and zoos). General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 120 Introduction to Ethical Theory 3 SH
A study of prominent ethical theories as they are defined and expressed in the writings of the great philosophers and in the representative schools. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 211 Symbolic Logic 3 SH
An introduction to the principles and techniques of deductive and inductive logic. The student will learn how to construct, analyze and criticize arguments. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 215 Philosophy of Language 3 SH
A philosophical theory of meaning is one that attempts to answer several general questions about linguistic meaning, such as: how do linguistic expression (sentences, names, descriptions, etc.) come to be meaningful at all, how do they have the specific meaning that they do, and how is it novel sentences can be effortlessly understood by beings with finite capacities. This course provides a survey of philosophical theories of linguistic meaning, such as the ideational theory, proposition theory, ‘use’ theories of meaning, Gricean theories of speaker-meaning, verificationism, and truth-conditional semantics. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 226 Environmental Philosophy 3 SH
An introduction to the philosophical issues surrounding and underlying the contemporary environmental crises. These include such matters as the value inherent in the nonhuman world and the ultimate nature of our relationship to that world. Prerequisite: A 100-level philosophy course. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 227 Ethics in Computing 3 SH
This course will address the topics of Social Context, Analytical Tools (Basics of Ethics), Professional Ethics, Intellectual Property, Privacy and Civil Liberties, Sustainability, Economies of Computing, Security Policies, Laws and Computer Crimes. After establishing the context of computing within our society students will study basic ethical theory and then the remainder of the course is addressing the issues inherent in computing as listed above. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 231 Ancient Philosophy 3 SH
A study of the founding figures in the history of Western philosophy from the pre-Socratics through the major writings of Plato and Aristotle. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 232 Medieval Philosophy 3 SH
This course will explore and evaluate the roughly 1100 years of medieval philosophy from the early Christian theologians such as Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian to late medieval philosophers such as Meister Eckhart and Catherine of Siena. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 233 Modern Philosophy 3 SH
A study of the major trends in philosophy from the humanism and new science of the Renaissance through Kant. The course includes continental rationalists, the British empiricists and Kant’s attempt to synthesize them. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 234 19th and 20th Century Philosophy 3 SH
This course will explore and evaluate the history of philosophy in the 19th and 20th centuries, from Bentham through Nietzsche in the 19th century, and from Husserl through Derrida in the 20th century. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 240 Philosophy of Religion 3 SH
An examination, from various philosophical points of view, of some of the main topics in the philosophy of religion. These topics include: the concept of God, grounds for belief in God, faith and reason, the problem of evil, religion and morality, religious experience and religious language. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 244 Philosophy of the Self 3 SH
This course explores a variety of conceptions and theories about the nature of the self from the perspectives of Eastern and Western philosophy. Students begin with a study of the conception of the self as articulated by Hindu scriptures. The Upanishads introduce the idea that the self (atman) is identical to a kind of encompassing spiritual substance (Brahman). The first part of the course will offer a careful exposition of this position, and a related but distinct position found in Descartes’ view that the ‘I’ denotes an essentially thinking thing and its associated dualist metaphysics. The second part of the course will explore those views of the self that deny that it is something enduring. Students will examine this view as articulated by early Buddhist scriptures such as the Dhammapada, and scrutinize the arguments of Western counterparts of the ‘no-self’ view, such as David Hume and Derek Parfit. The ethical ramifications of such different views about the self and personal identity will be discussed. Other philosophers pertinent to the course will include Mark Sederits, Joel Kupperman, Eliot Deutsch, Charles Taylor, and John Locke. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 245 Philosophy of Death and Dying 3 SH
Drawing on some of the great philosophical thinkers of the past, this course will investigate the topics of death and dying along with some of the ethical ramifications of these topics. First the course will attempt to clarify the boundaries of these concepts: what is meant by ‘death’ and ‘life,’ and examine some criteria for death. The course will then provide several philosophical perspectives on death, survival and immortality. The final part of the course will concern the moral status of suicide, abortion, and euthanasia. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.  

PHI/ART 250 Philosophy of Art 3 SH
A critical examination of some of the major philosophical theories about the origin, structure, function and criticism of works of art. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 252 Philosophy in Film 3 SH
This course explores the fundamental philosophical problems through the lens of film. It requires that students watch films and read before class in order to have extensive discussions. The course enables the student to practice philosophy as opposed to just learning about it. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 262 Philosophies of Love and Friendship 3 SH
A critical study of philosophical theories of the nature of love, with readings from classical to contemporary authors representing a variety of philosophical schools and points of view. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 265 Philosophy of Happiness 3 SH
This course will examine philosophical definitions and theories of happiness, current scientific findings and psychological studies, and public policy implications of happiness theories. Students will think critically about the reading as well as perform some “hands on” assignments that help them explore some essential components of happiness such as meditation, gratitude, altruism and service to others. Standard assignments on comprehension of material will be combined with critical thinking, practical assignments and assignments for self-reflection. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 298 Faculty Developed Study 1-6 SH
PHI 299 Student Developed Study 1-6 SH

PHI 315 Philosophy of Language 3 SH
A philosophical theory of meaning is one that attempts to answer several general questions about linguistic meaning, such as: how do linguistic expression (sentences, names, descriptions, etc.) come to be meaningful at all, how do they have the specific meaning that they do, and how is it novel sentences can be effortlessly understood by beings with finite capacities. This course provides a survey of philosophical theories of linguistic meaning, such as the ideational theory, proposition theory, ‘use’ theories of meaning, Gricean theories of speaker-meaning, verificationism, and truth-conditional semantics. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 316 Philosophy of Science 3 SH
The course will begin with an examination of the evolution of scientific theories. This history illuminates science as a social institution as well as the components of scientific theories and the “logic” of theory formation. Students will be encouraged to pursue independent readings and to develop seminar presentations. Prerequisite: Any PHI class or permission of the instructor. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 320 Social and Political Philosophy 3 SH
The course is concerned with such questions as the nature and source of law, property, origin and limitation of sovereign authority, and the rights and duties of citizens.  Prerequisite: Any PHI class or permission of the instructor.  General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 332 American Philosophy 3 SH
An examination of the chief contributions in American philosophic thought as reflected in the works of authors such as Emerson, Royce, Pierce, James, Dewey and Santayana. Major focus is on developments in pragmatism. Prerequisite: Any PHI class or permission of the instructor. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 334 Existentialism 3 SH
An examination of the works of major existentialist thinkers. Special topics taken from existentialist writings include: being, time, freedom, consciousness, existential psychoanalysis, and faith. Prerequisite: Any PHI class or permission of the instructor.  General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

PHI 340 Non-Western Philosophy 3 SH
A study of the development of ethics, political philosophy, aesthetics and metaphysics in Indian, Chinese, Japanese and Persian writings. Prerequisite: Any PHI class or permission of the instructor. General Education: Humanities/Philosophy.

The following courses also have been approved and are offered periodically:
PHI 224 Special Topics