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Spring,
2003 Electives
Philosophy and Religion Department |
Click on discipline or faculty name for information about electives offered by the
Philosophy and Religion Department in Spring, 2003.
Spring, 2003 Electives (for information about Philosophy GER courses offered by the
department, click HERE):
Spring, 2003 Electives: (for information about Religion GER courses offered by the
department, click HERE):
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NOTE: Check linked documents for further information about the courses offered this
semester, including information about specific texts covered, writing assignments and
other work required, general grading policies, etc. For information about GER courses
offered by the department, click HERE.
Philosophy
Electives
PHIL 206 –
Philosophical Issues: Law & Justice
Is "sharing" music files via the Internet actually theft? If so, who is being stolen from? Should business executives who are convicted of cheating
investors out of millions of dollars receive lighter sentences than someone
convicted of robbing a convenience store? In this class we will consider the
philosophical side of such questions, with an eye towards overall theories
of justice. It will also pay close attention to specific issues like rights
and personal freedom, the connection between public law and private ethics,
and the various responses to criminal behavior, including
behavior-modification and rehabilitation. In examining these issues, the
course will consider the various interpretations of responsibility and guilt. The course will also explore the philosophical issues related to the
death penalty and other controversial forms of punishment. Throughout the
semester, we will apply theoretical aspects of law to concrete examples taken from current events.
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PHIL 212 – Social and Political
Philosophy
Introduction to the grand themes of
political and social philosophy, including the following: the nature
of political ideals; the justification of democracy as a form of
government; the connection of governmental structure and authority to
human nature; the meaning and scope of freedom; the ideals of equality
and justice; the morality of an individual citizen's decision to
disobey a law; and the viability of the notion of universal human
rights. Primary readings will come from the work of the great
political and social thinkers of history, such as Machiavelli, Hobbes,
Locke, Rousseau, Mill, and Rawls. NOTE: Fulfills GER requirement for
Philosophy/Religion and also fulfills a requirement for the major in
Philosophy.
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PHIL
262 – Philosophy of Religion (crosslisted)
HONP301 –
Ways of Knowing
“Are all
religions true?” “What
sort of God, if any, exists?” “Are there any miracles?”
“Do we exist after our bodies die?” These are all important
questions. If you are interested in attacking these and related questions
using reason and the tools of analytic philosophy, this is the course for
you. The nature of all forms
of truth will be investigated. We
will scrutinize the traditional proofs for the existence of God and spend
considerable time examining the major attempts to reconcile a universe
managed by a Maximally Great Being with the obvious existence of real
evil. The necessary conditions for personal life after the death of the
body will be explored. The course has no prerequisites; however, an open
and tolerant attitude toward other religions will be essential. Course
will meet f2f but there will be an assignment requiring learning about
online religion. Requirements: weekly journal entries; class-presentation;
mid-term take-home exam; and a final examination.
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In this course, we will focus on the metaphysical issue of personal
identity. On one sense of the term, the notion of personal identity is
importantly connected to the specificity of a person’s self-image
and values. The sense of personal identity that we will examine is
that of numerical identity over time: a thing at one time is
numerically identical with something at a different time if they are
one and the same object in the midst of change and variation. In this
sense, the problem of personal identity is to determine the conditions
that must be satisfied for a person to continue to exist over time.
Among the questions to be considered are the following: What is it to
be a person? Are you the same person you were when you were one year
old or even fourteen years old? Why? We will also address practical
issues raised by these topics. Readings for the course will come from
classical authors, such as Locke, Hume, and Butler, and from articles
by contemporary philosophers, such as Parfit, Dennett, Williams, and
Perry.
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PHIL 333 – History of
Philosophy : Modern Philosophy
An introduction to
European philosophy in the 17th and 18th centuries, which defined
modern thought. Readings will be from the central works of Descartes,
Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant. The main themes
will be the nature of knowledge, reality, and the human mind. Some of
the specific issues to be considered are the following: Is it possible
to prove that I really exist, or that the physical world exists? Do
these questions even make sense? Is perception the basis of human
knowledge, or can we learn things about the physical world just by
logical thought (like mathematical deductions in theoretical physics)?
Is the world a vast, unified structure in which each event is linked
to other events by natural laws? Or is the world instead a
miscellaneous collection of unconnected events that we simply think of
more usefully in some ways rather than other ways? Can knowledge of
the material world be as reliable as the direct knowledge I have of my
own thoughts? What mental structures or capacities are needed to make
either sort of knowledge possible?
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Religion
Electives
Spring, 2003 Electives: (for information about Religion GER courses offered by the
department, click HERE):
RELG 206 – New Testament II:
Paul and the Early Church
A close study of
Luke-Acts, John, selected letters of Paul and other later Epistles. The
course explores the development of the theology and institutions of the
early Church as revealed in the New Testament documents of the first and
early second centuries.
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RELG 216 – Islamic Religious
Traditions
The
course will start by examining the rise of Islam through
the eyes of two fundamental Islamic texts, the Qur’an and the biography
of Prophet Muhammad.
It will then
explore the history of Islam’s classical and formative period (632-1258
CE) in terms of theology, philosophy, jurisprudence, and mysticism, while
emphasizing diversity of
perspectives.
The heart of Islam
will be approached through the teachings of the Qur’an,
hadith, and the Islamic intellectual tradition,
and the encounter between Islam and other religious
traditions will be traced briefly.
Major trends in
contemporary Islam (traditionalism, liberalism,
revivalism, etc.) will be identified and discussed
through the writings of their major proponents.
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RELG 217 –
Taoism
This course explores Taoism, the most
mystical of the religions that originated in China. While
Confucian-oriented governments came and went, Taoism developed in
remarkable ways at the grassroots level of the population--in village life
and especially through the teachings of fascinating sages who lived
somewhat apart from society, reverencing the powers of the Tao that reveal
themselves in Nature. We will be exploring scriptures such as the Tao
te Ching, Chuang-Tzu, the I-Ching, and many others dealing with a great
variety of topics. These include yin-yang, natural symbols expressive of
Tao, Taoist physiology--connecting the human body with the divine powers
in the natural world, defining "natural action" and "unity
with Tao," Taoist uses of external and internal Alchemy, the
development of Chinese medicine through the search for immortality,
various meditation practices, Taoist deities and the Immortals, who are
thought to help society and the poor, Taoist ethics, various rituals and
priests, sectarian groups and their leaders, systems of exercise and the
practice of martial arts, and geomancy (aligning one's external
environment with natural principles).
We will also examine the connections
between Confucian and Taoist values and organization, and the relationship
between Buddhism and Taoism. Buddhism was at first interpreted as
"Taoist," and we find that joint Taoist-Buddhist groups
developed in the later periods.
This course is suitable for both introductory and
advanced students.
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RELG 225 - Religion and Social
Change
Section 1
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MW 10-11:15am
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Room PA 216
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Call Number 12578
Section 2
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T 5:30-8pm
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Room DI 276
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Call Number 12579
How does
religion help or hinder social development? This course historically
reviews important interactions of religion and social change in
American life. Heavy reading and lecture, with special attention to:
religious vs. national faiths; civic tradition and civil rights;
Malcolm X and Martin Luther King; and how the early 2000's are no
replay of the 1960's.
Note: This course fulfills the Contemporary Issues GER requirement; it also
counts toward both Philosophy and Religion major requirements.
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RELG 332 –
Myth, Meaning, and Self
This
course has no prerequisites, but is especially rewarding for students
with some background in religion studies, mythology, art history, or
psychology. We explore the power and impact of religious myth and
symbols on our everyday growth into -- and struggles with -- becoming
our own selves in today's world.
This semester we shall move from Joseph
Campbell's familiar work to more recent and pointed uses and insights
for men and women. Featured will be theoretical and practical feminist
writings gathered by Carol Christ and Judith Plaskow (Weaving the
Visions), theoretical and practical responses by humanist Sam Keen
(Fire in the Belly), and provocative exploration of the powers of
traditional Irish Catholicism, African-American Protestantism, and
conservative Judaism by psychologically-astute practitioners.
Heavy lecture and readings, regular written
work and strict attendance policy. Fun and worthwhile!
RELG 355 - Religion &
Film
This
course will explore how religion is depicted and interrogated in
film. Topics will
include:
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The
connection between bodies and souls
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Ideas
of free will and sin
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Depicting
the religious “other”
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Relationships
between the human and the divine
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The
role of charismatic religious leaders
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The
promises and perils of organized religion
Films
screened in class will vary from biblical epics like The Ten Commandments to controversial retellings of scripture such
as Jesus of Montreal; from the
apocalyptic dramas of the Left
Behind series to Western portrayals of Eastern religions like Kundun; from the reverent (Man
for All Seasons) to the ridiculous (Sister
Mary Explains it All). Throughout,
students will work to develop their ability to view films as “texts”
that both express and repress religious themes and provide a fascinating
window onto the place of religion in contemporary American culture (and
occasionally elsewhere).
RELG
352 -
Religious Texts: Heidegger
RELG 462 –
Seminar: Heidegger
This class will read together Heidegger's great work, Being and Time. Emphasis will be placed on his existential theory of
human being-in-the-world, the meaning of human life, the nature of truth and the
experience of dying and death. Students will find Heidegger's work to be a powerful tool for self-understanding which speaks to real-life
human beings in their day-to-day existential situation.
Special Recommendations: This course can be taken as a seminar for the Religious Studies
Major requirement.
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