107 Critical Reasoning
4, x Phillips
Focuses on principles and standards applicable to thinking critically on any topic. Arguments and their analyses, the nature and use of evidence, fallacies both formal and informal, are included in the matters addressed in the course. Intended for freshmen and sophomores; open to juniors and seniors by consent only.
109 Symbolic Logic
4; not offered 2004-05
An introduction to the methods of symbolic logic, including the propositional calculus, quantification theory, the logic of relations, and elementary modal logic. This course is quantitative and relies on reasoning similar to that in mathematics. Prerequisite: Philosophy 107 or Mathematics 125 or consent of instructor.
117 Problems in Philosophy
4, x Hanrahan
An introductory study of some of the major problems of philosophy. Among those general problems considered will be the nature of philosophy, problems of knowledge (epistemological questions concerning the origin, nature, and limits of knowledge), and the problem of a world view (metaphysical questions concerning materialism, idealism, and naturalism). Other problems will be considered as time permits. Requirements will include written assignments, a mid-term, and a final. This course is intended for freshmen and sophomores; open to juniors and seniors by consent only.
119 The Examined Life
4, x T. Davis
Socrates famously asserted, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Do we really believe this? If so, what does it mean to practice, day-by-day, an examined life? Beyond the ancient Greeks, Montaigne took up these questions at the beginning of Modernity through writing a new kind of philosophical essay. This new kind of philosophically self-reflexive writing was extended by Emerson in his day-by-day journal; and the demands of the examine life were then further developed in the writings of such thinkers as Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Foucault. Using exemplary selections from these thinkers, we will work out the necessary and sufficient conditions of the practice of the examined life, and then experiment with different essay forms in order to work out the kind of writing that today is a necessary, if not sufficient, condition for living an
127 Ethics
4, 4 Carey and Frierson
Consists of the careful reading and discussion of several classical texts of moral philosophy. For freshmen and sophomores; juniors by consent only; not open to seniors.
128 Social and Political Philosophy
4; not offered 2004-2005
An introductory examination of social and political questions from a philosophical perspective. For freshmen and sophomores; juniors by consent only; not open to seniors.
135A Introduction to Feminist Philosophies
4; not offered 2004-05
This course will introduce students to different feminist philosophies by exploring such questions as: What does it mean to say that women are “oppressed”? How do the institutions of motherhood, marriage, beauty, and sex shape women’s lives? What makes someone a woman? To answer these questions, we will read works by Marilyn Frye, bell hooks, Andrea Dworkin, Susan Bordo, and Christina Hoff- Summers.
148 Philosophy of Religion
x, 4 Frierson
An introduction to some of the central arguments in the philosophy of religion, focusing on proofs for and against the existence of God and discussions of the nature of religious belief. For first-year students and sophomores. This course is open to juniors and seniors by consent only.
177 Special Topics: Contemporary Problems for Thought
4
How is philosophy a necessary resource for responding to the most complex personal and social problems facing us today? The temptation, most especially for “pragmatic” Americans, is to see philosophy as a mildly interesting but ultimately abstract self-indulgence, and certainly not to see it as a necessary resource for, first, understanding, and then adequately addressing the most important problems we face. This course will explore the philosophical response to one such problem.
177A Special Topics: Evil and Non-violence
x, 4 T. Davis
How can non-violence become an adequate response to evil? Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, we have heard much of a “monumental struggle” between “good” and “evil.” But at least until 9/11, many of us, especially in the Pacific Northwest, have lived in a society deeply skeptical of the very existence of “evil.” Just what is “evil” for us today? And if we have now been forced to admit that evil exists, do we know how best to respond to it? Beginning with Hannah Arendt’s essay “On Violence” and selections from her examination of the “banality of evil” in Eichmann in Jerusalem, we will examine the multi-faceted nature of evil today, and then consider whether the practice of non-violence can be an adequate response to it. To work out the nature of this practice we will study Socrates’ nonretaliation to injustice in the Crito, Jesus’ turning the other cheek and his innovation in the practice of forgiveness in Luke, Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience,” and Gandhi’s appropriation of the Bhagavad-Gita in his politics of non-violent resistance. Papers will focus, first, on your response to undergoing a personal act of violence you consider evil, and, second, on your critical examination of an adequate response to a specific example of social evil.
201 Ancient Philosophy
4, x T. Davis
A close reading of selected texts from Plato and Aristotle. May be elected as Classics 201.
202 Medieval Philosophy
x, 4 Carey
A careful reading and discussion of several primary texts of major medieval philosophers. Intended primarily for (but not limited to) philosophy majors.
210 Epistemology
4, x Clearfield
This course focuses critically on theories of knowledge, truth, and justification, and the issues and problems they severally raise.
220 Philosophy and Literature
4; not offered 2004-05
We will use texts from philosophy and literature to explore specific problems.
225 Critical Race Theory
x, 4 J. Davis
This course is a philosophical consideration of race and recognition, focusing specifically on the African-American experience. It seeks to guide students towards the creation of what bell hooks terms a “critical consciousness” as itself a form of critical thinking. Distribution are: humanities or alternative voices.
230 History and Philosophy of Science
4, x Frierson
An historical look at the philosophical development of method and at philosophical issues in conflicts (theoretical, evidentiary, and social) in science.
239 Aesthetics
4; not offered 2004-05
After developing a critical vocabulary through an examination of Hume’s notion of taste, Kant’s “reflective judgment,” and Heidegger’s reconceptualization of the work of art in “Building Dwelling Thinking,” we apply this vocabulary to architecture using Karsten Harries, The Ethical Function of Architecture, to help us critically assess the “aesthetic” governing Whitman’s Penrose Library renovation project. Then moving from the “public” to the “private,” we consider the sense of “aesthetics” at work in building your own home, using as a guide Witold Rybczynski’s The Most Beautiful House in the World. May be elected as ArtH 249.
241 Environmental Aesthetics
4; not offered 2004-05
Beginning with an examination of the relation between the concepts of “beauty” and the “sublime” in Edmund Burke, Kant, Emerson, Thoreau, and Heidegger, we will explore the work of art as constituting an interface between nature and culture. We will then move on to the work of specific artists that articulate this interface, including the “land art” movement and Maya Lin. We will conclude by exploring how a garden can be a work of art. The final project will be designing your own garden. May be elected as ArtH 241. Distribution area: humanities.
248 Philosophy and Professions
4; not offered 2004-05
This course in applied ethics explores philosophical problems and issues in business and professional life. The course format is primarily discussion based on readings and students’ papers. Prerequisites: Philosophy 127 or consent of instructor.
250 Environmental Thinking
4; not offered 2004-05
This course will explore the differences between instrumental rationality and “poetic dwelling” as ways of thinking about nature. After reviewing the depiction of nature in First-year Core texts, we turn to Thoreau’s Walden as a carefully staged confrontation with nature experienced from out of the intersection between dwelling and writing. To further explore this relationship, we consider several late essays by Martin Heidegger in which he develops the notion of “poetic dwelling.” With this conceptual framework, we next turn to essays by such figures as Wendell Berry, Annie Dillard, and Barry Lopez, whose nature writings address the challenge of dwelling in a contemporary American context. Themes of place, identity, and technology will be emphasized in our examination of these essays. Prerequisite: completion of General Studies 145 and 146.
255 Environmental Ethics
4, x Hanrahan
Does the non-human world have any intrinsic value or is it valuable only because of its relation to human interests? That is, does anything besides humanity have “moral standing”? If so, what is its basis? Should we, for instance accord rights to all those creatures that are sentient? If we do, will we have gone far enough, morally speaking? What about those creatures that lack sentience? What about the environment in which all creatures, human and nonhuman, live? Does it have moral standing? In answering these questions, we will consider the works of Aldo Leopold, Peter Singer, Karen Warren, Arne Naess, and Julian Simon, among others.
270 Metaphysics
x, 4 Hanrahan
In this course we will study the nature of reality. Possible topics will include existence, causation, personal identity, determinism, and the mind/body relationship.
303 Early Modern Philosophy
4, x Phillips
A study of the development of western philosophy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Emphasis will be on the development of the British Empiricists and the Continental Rationalists.
304 Kant and the Nineteenth Century
x, 4 Frierson
A study of the development of western philosophy from Kant through the beginning of the twentieth century, with special emphasis on Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, Frege, and Husserl. Prerequisite: Philosophy 303 or consent of instructor.
309 Heidegger
x, 4 T. Davis
A close reading of Martin Heidegger’s Being and Time. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
310 Philosophers and Philosophical Movements: Plato’s Republic
4, x Carey
An exploration of the entire text of the Republic.
322 Kant’s Moral Philosophy
4; not offered 2004-05
This course explores Kant’s moral theory and recent appropriations of that moral theory in contemporary neo-Kantian ethics. Prerequisite: Philosophy 127 or Philosophy 304 or consent of instructor.
330 Analytic and Linguistic Philosophy
4; not offered 2004-05
An analysis of contemporary movements in Anglo-American philosophy as it derives from the foundational work of Russell, G.E. Moore, and Wittgenstein. Also considered will be the development and demise of logical positivism as a movement, and some major problems regarding meaning, and the relation between language and world.
337 Philosophy of Mind
4, x Phillips
A study of the nature and function of mind and consciousness and their place in the world of physical stuff. Readings will include classical as well as recent and contemporary work. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
338 Special Topics: Philosophers and Philosophical Movements
4
An examination of a philosopher or philosophical movement.
338A Special Topics: Hegel’s Moral and Political Philosophy
4, x Frierson
This course will be a close reading of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right, his primary text dealing with moral and political philosophy. We will supplement this reading with relevant secondary sources and sections of other works by Hegel. Prerequisites: At least one previous course in ethics or political theory, or consent.
338B Special Topics: Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason
x, 4 Frierson
This course will be a close reading of Kant’s most important philosophical work, the Critique of Pure Reason. We will supplement this reading with relevant secondary sources and sections of other works by Kant. The course will be conducted as a tutorial, where the class will be divided into pairs. Each pair of students will meet with the professor for 60-75 minutes each week. At each meeting one student will make a prepared presentation, and read a prepared essay (five-seven pages), and the other student and the professor will engage with the student who is presenting his/her work about various aspects of the presentation. These questions will lead to detailed discussion of the material. A tutorial is directly concerned with teaching students about arguments, about arriving at and defending a position, and about responding on the spot to suggestions and questions. Over the course of the semester, each student will write at least six papers and prepare at least six responses. Prerequisites: by consent only.
340 Philosophical Problems: Contemporary Ethical Theories
4, x Clearfield and Clearfield (Psych)
This course explores several of the most important ethical theories of the past 25 years. The focus is on normative theory rather than applied ethics. Prerequisite: Philosophy 127 or consent of instructor.
340A Philosophical Problems: Philosophy and Psychology of Language
4, x Clearfield and Clearfield (Psych)
In this course we will work toward an integrated understanding of the nature of language through an examination of both empirical research and theoretical writings. Specific topics may include: language acquisition, the nature of meaning, the relation between language and non-linguistic communicative behavior, concepts and categorization, the relation between language and thought, language use in different cultures, and the (possible) linguistic abilities of primates. May be elected as Psychology 347D. Prerequisites: at least six credits of philosophy or at least six credits of psychology or consent of the instructors.
345 Animals and Philosophy
x, 4 Hanrahan
Many people’s lives are intertwined with animals. But while animals are clearly very important, few wonder about what kinds of creatures they are. Are they merely organic machines or are they conscious in some way? Do they think? Do they feel pain? Can they have beliefs? Moreover, do animals have rights that oblige us to protect them from harm? These are the questions we will be addressing in this class. Prerequisite: At least one other course in a related field.
400 Values
x, 4 Carey
A substantive consideration of one or more values (such as justice, happiness, or charity), based on primary sources from Western philosophy. For Spring 2004, we will consider the various kinds of love: eros, philia, and agape. Prerequisite: Philosophy 127 or 128 or consent of instructor.
408 Studies in American Philosophy: Thoreau
x, 4 T. Davis
A close reading of Walden and Stanley Cavell’s The Senses of Walden. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
410 Topics in Continental Philosophy
4; not offered in 2004-2005
This course will explore the distinction between works of art and things as it evolves in Heidegger’s thinking. We will focus in particular on Being and Time, “The Origin of the Work of Art,” and “The Thing.” Course requirements include papers and seminar presentations. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
483, 484 Independent Study
1-4, 1-4 Staff
Study of selected philosophies or philosophic problems. Prerequisite: consent of and arrangement with instructor.
490 Senior Seminar
2, x T. Davis
Reserved for, and required of, senior philosophy majors. This class meets with the departmental faculty each week to engage in philosophical discussions of contemporary philosophical themes.
493 Senior Thesis Research
2, 2 T. Davis
This course is to be taken during the first term of the senior year and is devoted to research of the thesis topic and an initial presentation of the results. Required of, and open only to, senior philosophy majors.
497 Senior Thesis
2, 2 Staff
This course is to be taken during the second term of the student’s senior year. It is devoted to some further research, the writing of the thesis, and an oral defense of the central issues of the thesis. Required of, and open only to, senior philosophy majors not taking Philosophy 498. Prerequisite: Philosophy 493.
498 Honors Thesis
2, 2 Staff
A course designed to further independent research or projects resulting in the preparation of an undergraduate honors thesis and including an oral defense of the central issues of the thesis to be taken during the second term of the student’s senior year. Required of and limited to senior honors candidates in philosophy. Prerequisites: admission to honors candidacy; Philosophy 493.