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Courses - Spring 2023
PHIL
Philosophy Department Site
PHIL100
Introduction to Philosophy
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
An introduction to the literature, problems, and methods of philosophy either through a study of some of the main figures in philosophic thought or through an examination of some of the central and recurring problems of philosophy.
PHIL140
Contemporary Moral Issues
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
The uses of philosophical analysis in thinking clearly about such widely debated moral issues as abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, pornography, reverse discrimination, the death penalty, business ethics, sexual equality, and economic justice.
PHIL170
Introduction to Symbolic Logic
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: FSAR
This course will introduce the basic concepts and techniques of modern symbolic logic, with an emphasis on developing skills in two areas: first, translating between ordinary language and logical notation; second, establishing the validity or invalidity of arguments using the methods of truth tables, deductions, and countermodels. Although the subject of symbolic logic was developed by mathematicians and philosophers for their own special purposes (which we will discuss), logical concepts and techniques have found applications in a variety of disciplines, including computer science, economics, law, linguistics, and psychology. We may also consider some of these applications.
PHIL203
The Rights and Wrongs of Killing People
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU, SCIS
Credit only granted for: PHIL209J or PHIL203.
Formerly: PHIL209J.
Virtually everyone thinks it's permissible to kill people only in special circumstances. But why is killing usually wrong? Is it ever acceptable to kill an innocent human being intentionally? This course raises these and related questions and examines cases such as terrorism, suicide, abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, war. Except for a brief discussion of animals, all the controversies considered deal with killing and causing death to human beings.
PHIL205
Are Sports Ethical?
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU, SCIS
Credit only granted for: PHIL205, PHIL209G, or HONR229E.
Formerly: HONR229E.
Things happen routinely in sports that would seem morally unacceptable in other context: violence between the participants, attempts to trick the referee, fans hoping that some players would do embarrassingly badly, spectators feeling anger towards whole nations. Nonetheless, all of this may seem reasonable and even justifiable within a sporting context. This course will investigate the ethical structure of sports, and what it tells us about the ethics of everyday life. Philosophy will provide the primary disciplinary context, but we will also think about sociological, legal and anthropological perspectives on sports. Issues will include the nature of sportsmanship, what types of violence in sports are acceptable, drug use in sports, what it means to be a fan (for example, asking why loyalty to your team is valuable) and how our view of sports interacts with our view of nations. By the end of the course you should have gained familiarity with a variety of ethical concepts and a sensitivity to the ethical issues in sports. You should also find that by thinking about morality in the context of sports, you will look at larger ethical issues in new ways.
PHIL220
Bioethics: Regulating Right and Wrong
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU or DSSP
Credit only granted for: PHIL209A or PHIL220.
Formerly: PHIL209A.
Bioethicists formulate ethical guidelines. They answer questions such as: When life-saving health resources are scarce, who should get them? Should we increase supply of one such resource, kidneys, by buying them from living "donors"? If drug trials in developing countries benefit patients who consent to participate, are the trials ethical, even if the same research would be forbidden in the US? If a sick person aims to hasten her death, how, if at all, might her doctor permissibly help her? In this course, students construct and defend ethical rules in four domains: research ethics, allocation of scarce resources, markets in organs, and physician-assisted dying.
PHIL236
Philosophy of Religion
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
Cross-listed with: RELS236.
Credit only granted for: PHIL236 or RELS236.
A philosophical study of some of the main problems of religious thought: the nature of religious experience, the justification of religious belief, the conflicting claims of religion and science, and the relation between religion and morality.
PHIL245
Political and Social Philosophy I
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
A critical examination of such classical political theories as those of Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, Marx, and such contemporary theories as those of Hayek, Rawls, and recent Marxist thinkers.
PHIL261
Philosophy of the Environment
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
Credit only granted for: HONR218F or PHIL261.
Formerly: HONR218F.
An evaluation of different kinds of arguments for the claim that the natural environment should be preserved. Perspectives cut across the disciplines of philosophy (environmental ethics and philosophies of nature); economics (cost-benefit analysis); and biology (evolution, ecology, environmental studies).
PHIL271
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: FSAR
Recommended: PHIL170.
This course provides students with a thorough treatment of the basic concepts and techniques of modern symbolic logic, through classical first-order logic with identity. We will concentrate on the construction of natural deduction proofs and on the evaluation of logical statements in semantic models. Along the way, we will study some of the concepts from set theory (sets, functions, relations) used in the definition of semantic models for logical systems. We may also introduce some alternative, or non-classical logics. Although the subject of symbolic logic was developed by mathematicians and philosophers for their own special purposes (which we will discuss), logical concepts and techniques have found applications in a variety of disciplines, including computer science, economics, law, linguistics, and psychology. We may also consider some of these applications.
PHIL308B
Studies in Contemporary Philosophy; Mind, Matter, and Meaning: Thinking Systems in a Physical World
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Humans can think about things and events in the external world, including some that are very remote. We have beliefs about Pluto, couches, the weather, and our moral obligations, to name a few. This is a remarkable fact, and philosophers have raised a number of questions about it. What does it take to be able to represent objects and events? Can computers or other machines have this capacity? Can we have a science of representation, in the same way as we have, for example, a science of the brain? This course will address these and related questions, focusing on contemporary work in philosophy, cognitive science, and linguistics.
PHIL308U
Studies in Contemporary Philosophy; The Philosophy and Practice of Yoga
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
PHIL309X
Philosophical Problems; Chomsky and Wittgenstein on Language and Reality
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
PHIL313
From the Stoa to Silicon Valley: Ancient and Modern Approaches to Stoic Philosophy
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
Cross-listed with: CLAS313, PHPE313.
Credit only granted for: CLAS313, PHIL313, or PHPE313.
Stoicism, ancient Rome's most popular philosophy, posited that virtue is the only human good and that individuals must detach themselves emotionally from the material world in order to live ethical lives. Principles of Stoic philosophy will be explored together with the wide array of artistic, political, and intellectual traditions that have drawn inspiration from it, from the Haitian revolutionary movement of the late 18th century, to the sexist "manosphere" of Reddit and Twitter, to modern cognitive-behavioral therapy.
PHIL318B
Studies in Epistemology/Metaphysics; The Wisdom of Crowds
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
An investigation of how the ability to obtain knowledge can be enhanced or distorted by different kinds of social structures. We will look at classic work about how different kinds of interactions within groups create new ways of knowing or being deceived. We'll also look at recent work on the nature of disagreement, polarization, and the use of networks in scientific research.
PHIL320
Knowing Oneself and Knowing the World: Early Modern Philosophy from Descartes to Kant
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
GenEd: DSHU
Prerequisite: 6 credits in PHIL courses; or permission of instructor.
A study of major philosophical issues of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries through an examination of such philosophers as Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Cavendish, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant
PHIL328X
Studies in the History of Philosophy; Individual and Society in Chinese and Greek Philosophy
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
PHIL338E
Studies in Value Theory; Black Existentialism
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Cross-listed with AASP340 and PHPE308C. Credit only granted for AASP340, PHIL338E, or PHPE308C.

This course examines the critical transformation of European existentialist ideas through close readings of black existentialists Aime Cesaire, Frantz Fanon, George Lamming, and Wilson Harris, paired with key essays from Sartre, Camus, and Merleau-Ponty. As well, we will engage black existentialism not just as a series of claims, but also a method, which allows us to read works by African- American writers such as W.E.B. Du Bois, James Baldwin, and Ralph Ellison in an existentialist frame. Lastly, we will consider the matter of how and why existentialism continues to function so centrally in contemporary Africana philosophy.
PHIL360
Philosophy of Language
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: LING311; or 2 courses in PHIL and (PHIL170 or PHIL370); or permission of ARHU-Philosophy department.
Cross-listed with: LING350.
Credit only granted for: LING350 or PHIL360.
The nature and function of language and other forms of symbolism from a philosophical perspective.
PHIL364
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in PHIL courses.
Formerly: PHIL464.
The study of some central metaphysical concepts and issues including the nature and validity of metaphysical thinking, universals, identity, substance, time, God, and reality.
PHIL366
Philosophy of Mind
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite: 6 credits in PHIL courses.
An introduction to core issues in the philosophy of mind, focusing especially on the basic metaphysical question of dualism versus physicalism.
PHIL386
(Perm Req)
Experiential Learning
Credits: 3 - 6
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F
Restriction: Permission of ARHU-Philosophy department; and junior standing or higher.
Consult Director of Undergraduate Studies: C. Manekin. Prerequisites: 12 credit hours of philosophy and 3.0 GPA. Carries no credit toward philosophy major.
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL408X
Topics in Contemporary Philosophy; Making Things Happen: Causation and Causal Reasoning between Science and Ordinary Life
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Causation appears to be everywhere, and science often aims at formulating causal explanations of phenomena. Yet it's hard to say what causation is. What is it for an event to cause another, aside from the two happening one after the other? Moreover, it is notoriously hard to distinguish causation from correlation. How can we correctly infer that an event was caused by another, as opposed to the two merely occurring together? This course will take an interdisciplinary approach to these issues, surveying work on causation and causal reasoning in philosophy, psychology, and computer science.
PHIL409X
Advanced Studies in Contemporary Philosophy; Quantum Mechanics and Metaphysics
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Quantum mechanics raises a variety of metaphysical issues -- about causation, metaphysical grounding, determinateness, realism, logic, and various other matters. Fortunately, exploring these connections does not require extensive knowledge of quantum physics. This course will be a self-contained introduction to issues at the intersection of quantum mechanics and metaphysics. While the course presupposes a comfort with moderately mathematical/formal presentations and a taste for abstraction, there are no specific course prerequisites. Students should have at least two courses in philosophy or permission of the instructor.
PHIL446
Law, Morality, and War
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
An exploration of fundamental moral and legal issues concerning war.
PHIL478
Topics in Philosophical Logic
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F
Prerequisite: PHIL271 or equivalent or permission of the instructor.

Philosophy and artificial intelligence often rely on logical models of reasoning, yet standard logic, originally designed to systematize reasoning in mathematics, applies only in domains where information is certain. In many scientific fields, as well as in ordinary commonsense reasoning, both people and machines must reason on the basis of information that is uncertain, incomplete, or even inconsistent. This course is focused on logics-sometimes known as "defeasible" or "nonmonotonic" logics-designed for reasoning with information of this kind.
PHIL498F
(Perm Req)
Topical Investigations; Topical Investigation
Credits: 1 - 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite:Two courses in philosophy or permission of the department.
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL498G
(Perm Req)
Topical Investigations; Topical Investigation
Credits: 1 - 3
Grad Meth: Reg, P-F, Aud
Prerequisite:Two courses in philosophy or permission of the department.
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL640
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud, S-F
A basic course in value theory for beginning graduate students, covering a number of topics in depth, to provide a springboard for further study and research in the area.
PHIL688C
Selected Problems in Philosophy
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud
Philosophy and artificial intelligence often rely on logical models of reasoning, yet standard logic, originally designed to systematize reasoning in mathematics, applies only in domains where information is certain. In many scientific fields, as well as in ordinary commonsense reasoning, both people and machines must reason on the basis of information that is uncertain, incomplete, or even inconsistent. This course is focused on logics-sometimes known as "defeasible" or "nonmonotonic" logics-designed for reasoning with information of this kind.
PHIL788G
(Perm Req)
Research in Philosophy; Research in Philosophy
Credits: 1 - 6
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL788I
(Perm Req)
Research in Philosophy; Research in Philosophy
Credits: 1 - 6
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL799
Master's Thesis Research; Masters Thesis Research
Credits: 1 - 6
Grad Meth: S-F
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL808V
Seminar in the Problems of Philosophy; Evidence and Language
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud
This seminar will investigate how language encodes evidential relations, by studying, in equal proportions,(1) the epistemology literature on the nature of evidence and in particular on epistemic significance of purely statistical evidence (2) the linguistics literature on evidentiality and (3) the philosophy of language literature on acquaintance inferences, evidential constraints on assertion and other speech acts, as well as the relationship between evidentiality and modality.
PHIL848
Seminar in Ethics; . Ethical Issues in Artificial Intelligence
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud, S-F
PHIL879
Seminar in Philosophy and Cognitive Studies
Credits: 3
Grad Meth: Reg, Aud, S-F
PHIL888
Professional Mentoring for Doctoral Students
Credits: 1 - 3
Grad Meth: S-F
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL889
(Perm Req)
Pedagogical Mentoring for Doctoral Students
Credits: 1 - 3
Grad Meth: S-F
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL898
Pre-Candidacy Research
Credits: 1 - 8
Grad Meth: Reg
Contact department for information to register for this course.
PHIL899
(Perm Req)
Doctoral Dissertation Research; Doctoral Dissertation Research
Credits: 6
Grad Meth: S-F
Contact department for information to register for this course.