Fall 2007
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PHILOSOPHY ELECTIVES
The focus of this course is going to be on the social contract theory. We will begin by reading and discussing Hobbes’ "Leviathan" and then move on to other early modern social contract theories such as Locke’s and Rousseau’s. While the first part of the course deals with the classical texts in political philosophy, the second part will be devoted to the more recent debates concerning political rights and duties and concerning the principles of distributive justice. In particular, we will contrast John Rawls’s political liberalism and Robert Nozick libertarianism. Thus, our two primary texts will be "Political Liberalism" (1993) on the one hand and "Anarchy, State, and Utopia" (1974) on the other. In addition to our primary texts, we will be discussing various interpretations, responses, and criticisms of them in the contemporary secondary literature.
Fulfills the 1983 General Education Requirement (GER)-Humanities, Philosophy/Religion.
Dr. Kirk McDermid
MW- 10-11:15am
Room: UN 2044/2012
Call Number:15297/Honors 12272
This course will examine a fundamental part of what it means to be a person: to be conscious; to have a mind. This is not a psychology class: we’re not asking how the mind actually works. Instead, we’re asking questions that are more foundational: what is “the mind”? Is it just the brain, or something different? How could it be just the brain? How could it be something different? How can a physical thing like the brain produce mental things, like thoughts and consciousness? Can science (cognitive science, neurophysiology, etc.) possibly answer these questions, even if they completely explain how the brain works?
We’ll also be asking some related questions, such as: Do we have free will? Do people have minds (and how would you know)? How do our views about the mind & consciousness affect our views about possible life after (physical) death? Are other creatures conscious? Is consciousness morally significant?
As with most philosophy courses, we will at best end up with a whole array of very tentative, imperfect answers – but finding answers isn’t really the point of a philosophy course. By surveying various answers to these sorts of questions, we will at least learn how to think of difficult problems like consciousness, if not what to think of them. (And those sorts of skills are very practical and transferable to non-philosophical issues…)
PHIL 331 – History of Philosophy: Ancient Philosophy
An introduction to the major figures of classical philosophy in the ancient world. The course will focus on the writings of Plato and Aristotle, the two greatest and most influential thinkers in ancient philosophy, whose writings are still a goldmine of creativity and conceptual subtlety. The course will include also the beginnings of philosophy in the fragmentary thought of the Pre-Socratics in the sixth century B.C. Classical philosophy first defined the central issues and ideas that came to shape Western culture, including the ideas of truth, beauty, and goodness; democracy and freedom; knowledge, reason, and experience; and reality, time, space, infinity, and God. Modern thought can be understood only through its relationship to classical thought and culture. This course will provide an introductory overview of this early, formative period in philosophy.
PHIL 264 - Critical Reasoning& Argument Honors - HONP 301 02
This course will apply logical and rhetorical analysis to real-world situations. There will be emphasis on the use of critical thinking skills to solve problems, but there will also be stress on the use of such tools in ordinary contexts, where a philosophical way of looking at the claims made is essential. The course will introduce key themes and concepts from the history of logic and rhetorical theory, with some discussion of major figures, such as Aristotle, and with some coverage of the nature of ethical, legal, and scientific arguments.
GNED 201 01, 03, 05, 07- Contemporary Issues I: Scientific Issues
An examination of the basic features of scientific inquiry and the fundamental issues common to the philosophy of mind and contemporary cognitive science. This course will be team taught by Dr. Benfield and Dr. Townsend and will meet as a large lecture on Monday and as a smaller discussion section on Wednesday.
RELG 200 – Old Testament: Genesis to Joshua
An examination of the history and theology of Israelite religion as seen in the biblical books covering the Primeval, Patriarchal and Mosaic periods (creation-1250 B.C.). A close reading of the Biblical text and analysis from a variety of scholarly schools of interpretation and criticism. The course will include treatment of the various schools of thought (documentary, form, etc.) as to the authorship and dates of the texts under examination. The student will also be exposed to various hermeneutical approaches to the texts (philosophical, mythic, psychoanalytic, etc.) A follow-up course of Old Testament II, covering the books from Joshua to Daniel will be offered in the Spring semester.
RELG 221 01 – Religion & Culture RELG 221 02-Relgion & Culture
This course takes an historical approach in studying the interactions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam with the broader cultures they impact and inhabit. Hard-working students will learn amazing amounts of religious and secular history (especially Western) throughout the course. In the second half of the course, students will be immersed in fascinating (sometimes troubling) topics/foci, gaining insight into dynamics still very much driving us (and driving us crazy) in our new century and millennium.
Students must attend the classes, survive two tough tests, and faithfully work at weekly written assignments. (thought questions, analyses, long summaries of videos viewed during class, etc.) Fulfills the 1983 General Education Requirement (GER)-Humanities, Philosophy/ Religion. Fulfills the "New" GER".
RELG 273 -The Holocaust: Religious Perspectives
A study of the Nazi extermination of 6,000,000 Jews during World War II and the moral and religious issues raised by this event. ( a more detailed description to follow)
RELG 350– Mysticism
The practice of religion often stays on the
surface of people's lives, with its subtle intentions and deeper messages
being lost or ignored. Mysticism, on the other hand, is religion and
philosophy at its depths – having regained its roots in human
experience. Mysticism aims to uncover profound insights about life and
death, and to be a call to genuine spirituality.
In this course we will explore selections from
the great variety of mystical philosophies, methods, and experiences that
dedicated people have reported throughout history. The course will cover
both Eastern and Western mystical traditions, focusing on selected
mystical phenomena, such as stages of ascent, prayer and meditation, the
fire of love, mystical symbolism and dreams, secret mystical language,
sacred silence, discipline, asceticism, monastic lifestyles, and mystics'
problems with established religious authorities. At the same time we will
be exploring selected theories about mysticism. Is mystical experience
limited by the language and culture of the experiencer? Can it be reduced
to psychology or physiology? Why is it that widely different religious
traditions appear quite similar when viewed from the mystic's perspective?
Is the term "mysticism" something that we have invented, and now
struggle to define?
RELG 352 - T. S. Eliot /Relg 462 Seminar- T. S. Eliot / HONP 301 03- Honors: Ways of Knowing
This course will be a close reading and analysis of virtually all of T. S. Eliot's poems. We will examine the form, style and structure of the poems but will emphasize the rich idea content. Eliot's view of the intellectual and spiritual crises of contemporary civilization, the isolation of modern man and the fragmentation of our culture will be discussed. As the great religious poet of our age, his views on religious faith and tradition and the spiritual struggle of the individual in the age of the "death of God" will be given particular attention.
NOTE: This class may be counted as a seminar or non-seminar (for purposes of meeting the requirements for the major in Religion).
RELG 355- Celtic and Irish Religion
A survey introduction to Ireland's religious history and experiences, from the earliest people and Queen Medb, through Padraig and Brigid, the Vikings and Cromwell, and much much more, toward the 20th-century and America. Heavy readings and wide-ranging lectures will travel the following syllabus:
--Celtic Irish paganism: complete with goddesses, druids, and dynamic shape-shifting. . . .
--Celtic Christianity: the original real deal, unique in the world for centuries, its missionary monks helping re-educate Europe out of their "dark ages." Meanwhile, the uniquely Celtic Christians had pioneered being communally what today we might call being "spiritual, but not religious." Then, after centuries of such independence....
--Christian Ireland Roman-Catholicized: still recognizably Irish but "regularized" under Norman English absorption, and then....
--Irish Catholicism under the gun -- victimized and distorted by four centuries of Protestant English brutalities and persecution. . . .
No pre-requisites, but good note-taking, class attendance, and in-class participation are required. Short weekly writing assignments and serious tests.
RELG 467 - Islamic Ethics and Law
This course provides students with scholarly views and analyses on the topic of ethics and the religious law of Islam. We will study the main schools of Islamic ethics and law and their views on what constitutes right action and ethical values in Islam. The course will focus on addressing the Islamic view on contemporary controversial issues such as abortion, euthanasia, war and peace, stem cell research, and many others. In addition, students will read selected sections from classical and modern works of Islamic law.