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The Greeks defined “philosophy” as “the love of wisdom,” and inaugurated a tradition that has defined Western culture. Philosophy encompasses the most basic human questions: “What is Truth?”, “What is the Good?”, “Is there a God?”, “What is ultimately Real?”. Philosophy does not profess to know; rather, it commits itself to the search for knowledge and the critique of existing bodies of knowledge. Over the course of 2500 years, Western philosophy has generated a formidable body of literature, which has had an immense influence on religion, culture, and the development of science. The academic study of philosophy is first of all the mastery of this literature. But philosophy is more than the study of old books. It is primarily the art of interrogating your own existence. As Immanuel Kant put it, the questions of philosophy are reducible to three: “What can I know?”, “What may I hope?”, and “What must I do?”. As philosophers, we cannot promise you final and definitive answers to these questions. What we can promise you is a greater skill in thinking about such things.
Where to go from here?
The study of philosophy cultivates skill in conceptual analysis. Philosophy students generally possess an ability to theorize unmatched by any discipline. By studying philosophy you will learn what the greatest minds have said about the most important questions. You will also gain a power and facility to think about your life. Pragmatically, you will gain an ability to analyze concepts, formulate questions, and root out ambiguities in thinking, which has an application in virtually any job where clear thinking and writing is valued. Mount Allison philosophy majors have gone on to graduate studies at Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, and the University of Toronto. Philosophy is also an excellent preparation for the study of law, theology, and public policy.
Our Programs
The Department offers a minor, major, and honours degree in philosophy. Our regular course offerings constitute a rigorous and critical immersion in the History of Western Philosophy. The Department also offers electives in Aesthetics, Indian Philosophy, Environmental Ethics, and the Philosophy of Science. The capstone of a Philosophy Honours degree is the honours thesis, in which a student conducts independent research under the supervision of one or more faculty members in an area of philosophy of their choice. Theses written in the Department include: “The Necessity of the Possibility of Evil in the Free Human Being”; “What is Music?”; “Self-Knowledge: The Beginning and the End of Virtue”; and “The Challenge and Promise of a Darwinian Environmental Ethic.” Scholarships are available for students who show philosophical promise. Our students have been successful in securing summer research fellowships, which have permitted them to deepen their understanding of certain philosophical problems and texts over the course of the summer in Sackville.
Facilities and Resources
The Department of Philosophy is located on the first floor of Hart Hall. Students are encouraged to use the Johnson library, which houses a significant collection of classics in philosophy in a charming ‘old world’ setting. The Johnson library is also used on occasion for advanced seminars. Every other year, the Department hosts the Hastings lecture. This is given by a prominent philosopher invited to Mount Allison for this purpose. Three or four times a semester, the Phoenix club meets in the Johnson library. The club is composed of faculty members from different departments who share an interest in philosophical approaches to their areas of specialization. The members of the club deliver papers and discuss each other’s work. Honours philosophy students are encouraged to attend. The Department hosts the Philosophy and Film Centre, designed and run by Mount Allison students. The Centre is a virtual space where the interface between philosophy and popular film is explored. Its goal is to facilitate the use of film in the study of philosophy, and to open up a forum for the discussion of the philosophical relevance of films. The Centre’s principle resource is an interactive philosophy and film database archiving classic and current films with philosophical relevance.