printer friendly pagePHIL 25SI: The Animal-Human Relationship: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
The ethical, scientific, and spiritual problems that arise from the interaction between humans and other animals. Can animals have empathy? What does it mean for an animal to feel pain? How did humans come to dominate other animals? What moral obligations do humans have towards animals? Where do animals fit in religious thought? Is animal research ethical, and is it effective? What role does meat consumption play in modern society? How can the environmental impacts of livestock production be mitigated? Guest lecturers from philosophy, literature, biology, neurology, religious studies, psychology, anthropology, and environmental science.
Last offered: Spring 2009
PHIL 27S: Human Nature and its Discontents
In different ways, Thucydides, Hobbes, Rousseau, Kant, and Schopenhauer all emphasize a just so, descriptive account of human beings that, on the surface at least, reveals a profound pessimism with respect to their views about human nature. One of the themes running throughout Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War, for example, is the suggestion that human nature is motivated solely by passions of fear, envy, greed, and ambition. Thucydides highlights the ways in which he sees Athens as appealing to these passions while attempting to justify its unspeakable crimes against humanity in the name of "democracy." The aim of this course will be to work through some of the more salient examples of what I will call psychological or anthropological pessimism as outlined in the works of these thinkers, asking about the role their pessimism about human nature plays in their positive philosophical project. Our guiding question will be to explore whether and how each of these thinkers reconciles their philosophical optimism with their psychological pessimism about human nature.
Last offered: Summer 2014
PHIL 28: The Literature and Philosophy of Place (OSPSANTG 28)
Literature and philosophy, primarily, but not exclusively from Latin America, that raises questions about place and displacement through migration and exile, about how location shapes our understanding of ourselves and of our responsibilities to society and environment, about the multiple meanings of home. Among the questions we will consider are the difference between the experiences of people who are at "home" and those who are "away," how one person's claim on home can be another's experience of being invaded, the interdependence of self and place, the multiple meanings of "environment." Readings by Gabriela Mistral, Pablo Neruda, Carmen Lyra, Jorge Gracia, Otavio Paz, Maria Lugones, among others.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II, WAY-EDP
Instructors:
Longino, H. (PI)
;
Miner, V. (PI)
PHIL 30S: Justifying justice at home and abroad
It is difficult to read the news today without getting enmeshed in discussions about justice both at home and abroad. Whether it be sequestration, Wall Street regulations, health care reform, the use of drones in war, or humanitarian aid abroad that grabs your attention, there is no doubt that we are living in tumultuous times. What do you think when you read about the new restrictions on abortion in Arkansas? Or about the deregulation of marijuana in Colorado? Or about the abolition of capital punishment in Connecticut? To figure out how to frame answers to these kinds of questions, we shall look at some of the main topics in social and political philosophy: rights, property, justice, criminal punishment, humanitarian intervention and just war theory.
Last offered: Summer 2014
PHIL 32S: Socrates: The Making of a Philosopher
Socrates is a key figure in the history of western philosophy. He is credited for inventing moral philosophy and for revolutionizing the way we think about and do philosophy. Moreover, his historical influence is often compared to that of Jesus and Buddha, partly because his life's mission was to benefit others, but also because his life and cause remain mysterious.nInterest in Socrates tends to divide along these exact lines: some (like Xenophon) are more interested in the man, his life and his impact on his friends and fellow citizens; others (like Aristotle) are more interested in his contribution to philosophy, his views, arguments and methods. nIn this course, we will try to learn more about both parts of Socrates' career by examining the relation between them. We will start by focusing on what is characteristic of his life: What did he do? And why did he do the things he did? In particular, how did he become a philosopher and how did he develop his distinctive approach to philosophy, his own philosophical voice?
Last offered: Summer 2015
PHIL 34S: Good, Bad, and Rotten: The Philosophical Study of Moral Character
We ordinarily think there's a sense in which someone can be a good person, over and above doing well at her particular occupation (e.g., being a good firefighter), familial role (e.g., being a good sister), or political function (e.g., being a good citizen). But what does it take to be a good person, in this very general sense? And what about the opposite -- what does it take to be a bad person? We also tend to feel strongly about whether others, or ourselves, are good or bad people. In particular, we blame people for being bad and praise them for being good. But only sometimes -- if someone is bad only because, say, he had a traumatic childhood, then we tend to hold back from blaming him. So, what must be true if someone really is deserving of blame for being bad (or, of praise for being good)? And, finally, there seems to be an important difference between being bad and being completely depraved, or evil. But what underlies this difference? What distinguishes everyday badness from extraordinary evil? This course is dedicated to learning how to look for and evaluate answers to these questions. Readings will be pulled from historical and contemporary sources, including Aristotle, Augustine, Immanuel Kant, Hannah Arendt, Philippa Foot, Bernard Williams, Susan Wolf, Gary Watson, and Nomy Arpaly,
Last offered: Summer 2014
PHIL 37S: Law and Morality
What makes a law just? How should a judge interpret the law? When, if ever, ought I to disobey a law? In this course, we will consider central questions in the philosophy of law concerning the relationship between morality and law. Students will gain an understanding of the history of these questions by reading classic works of literature and philosophy, including Homer, Sophocles, Plato, and Aquinas, alongside contemporary scholarship on the philosophy of law. We will also apply this theoretical background to practice as students assume the roles of judges and attorneys and consider how relevant law in actual court cases should be interpreted. Students will gain a grounding in the history of the natural law tradition, legal positivism, and legal interpretivism, as well as wrestle with problems of interpretation faced by judges today.
Terms: Sum
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Espeland, A. (PI)
;
Lewis, C. (TA)
PHIL 41Q: Truth
Preference to sophomores. Central issues animating current work in the philosophy of truth. What is truth? What is it about a statement or judgment that makes it true rather than false? Are there any propositions that are neither true nor false? Could truth be relative to individuals or communities? Do people have different notions of truth for different enterprises such as mathematics and ethics? Might truth be a matter of degree? Sources include the instructor's book manuscript and other contemporary writers.
Last offered: Autumn 2008
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum
PHIL 42: Philosophy through Theater: Choice and Chance
Dramatic literature as a window into philosophical work on freedom of the will and indeterminism. Students participate in the production of original one-act plays.
Last offered: Winter 2009
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum
PHIL 43S: Happiness: Positive Psychology and Philosophy
The connection between research in positive psychology to determine what happiness is and the conditions under which human beings are happy with issues in moral philosophy regarding whether we should aim at happiness or think of it as a good. The assumptions about happiness made by positive psychologists. The philosophical insight into the question of how people should live that is gained by looking at the empirical results provide by psychologists.
Last offered: Summer 2010
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