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Courses
In Fall Term 2009
Fall Timetable (pdf)
Philosophy 1601 (3cr) - Plato's Republic
Instructor: R. Majithia
A study of Plato's The Republic can serve as an introduction to almost all the issues that are central to our western philosophical tradition. The problems of virtue (temperance, courage, wisdom), justice, order (social, political and cosmological), knowledge, the nature of the psyche, of beauty, and of reality in general will all arise in the study of this text, providing a good basis for discussion.
Philosophy 1611 (3cr) - Images of the Self
Instructor: J. Dryden
What is a self? What is the most important thing for a self? What is a human self? What differentiates us from animals? Our ability to think? Our freedom? Are we free? Are all human beings free to the same extent? Are we in charge of our own lives? How do we relate to other selves? This course will offer a survey of some of the main ideas about the self and the human person in the history of Western philosophy, as well as contemporary challenges to those ideas.
Philosophy 2511 (3cr) - Introduction to the Philosophy of Science
Instructor: P. Bogaard
Successful science claims to give us knowledge of what exists in the universe, and it claims to explain why what happens in a given localized system happens. The italicized words in the last sentence indicate philosophical assumptions within science which this course will explore. Based on historical cases, philosophical interpretations will be compared from logical positivism to Kuhnian paradigms, and the most recent critiques from social constructivism and feminism.
Philosophy 2701 (3cr) - Introductory Ethics
Instructor: R. Majithia
An introduction to the history and philosophical problems of ethics in the western tradition.
This will acquaint the student with a number of received traditions based on metaphysical,
religious, rational, and pragmatic grounds, as well as introduce certain fundamental perennial
problems of moral decision-making.
Prereq: Three credits from Humanities 1600 Series; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 3000 (6cr) - Ancient Philosophy
Instructor: P. Bogaard
The issues which develop before and with Plato establish the framework for all subsequent philosophic reflection.
This course will examine some of these issues as they appeared prior to Plato and employ these "pre-Socratics"
as an entry into Plato's philosophy. Subsequently, aspects of Aristotle's thought will be explored as
alternatives to and developments of Plato's philosophy.
Prereq: Three credits from 2000-level Philosophy; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 3221 (3cr) - Modern Philosophy: The Rationalist Tradition
Instructor: R. Majithia
An investigation of the leading seventeenth century continental thinkers who formulated the great a priori systems.
The capacity and function of human reason fully to understand the world is a theme common to these thinkers, and
constitutes one of the major concerns of the course, a concern balanced by investigation of why these systems have
reached such diverse answers to the substantive issues of how the world is to be understood.
Prereq: Three credits from 2000-level Philosophy; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 3250 (6cr) - 19th Century German Philosophy
Instructor: J. Dryden
It has been said that the philosophical revolution in Germany and the ascent of German idealism was Germany's counterpart to the French Revolution next door. It challenged the traditional understanding of the relationship of mind and world, and the nature of reality itself. This course will begin with the late 18th century, with J.G. Fichte's attempt to carry on the spirit of the Kantian critical philosophy by grounding it in the radical freedom of the I. We will cover the Romantics, Novalis and Schlegel, then Schelling, Hegel, and finally Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. Questions to be pursued in the class include: What is the effect of different philosophical styles (fragments vs. treatises)? What is the purpose of philosophy? What is the relationship of philosophy to life? How is thought itself shaped by culture and history?
Prereq: Three credits from PHIL 2801, 3221 or 3231; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 3991 (3cr) - Analytic Philosophy: Origins to 1950
Instructor:
R. Moser
This course is an historical introduction to the major philosophers and movements in the analytic philosophical tradition from the turn of the twentieth century to 1950. The course opens with a presentation of British and American philosophy at 1900, including short introductions to British Idealism by way of Bradley and Pragmatism by way of James. Students will situate the philosophical climate that precipitated Russell’s and Moore’s reasons for breaking with the tradition. Students will read primary texts from Russell and Moore, and will examine their development and advancing of a general method of philosophical analysis. We will look at the significance of Russell’s communication with Frege, as well as texts that present Frege as ‘grandfather’ of the linguistic turn in analytic philosophy. The centerpiece of the course is Wittgenstein’s Tractatus, and students will critically engage the text with a view to understanding the problems Wittgenstein was attempting to address, and the methods he employed to do so. The later section of the course examines the reaction to Wittgenstein in the development of logical positivism and the writings of A.J. Ayer and the Vienna Circle. In the last week of class, students will hear a brief preview of the impact of Wittgenstein’s return to Cambridge after the War. This will introduce students to some themes that will continue in the senior seminar in analytic philosophy.
Prereq: 3 credits at the 2000 level in Philosophy; or permission of the department.
Philosophy
4101 (3cr) - Advanced Ancient & Medieval Philosophy: Aristotle and Contemporary Virtue Ethics
Instructor: P. Bogaard
We will begin by reviewing Aristotle's Physics and Plato's Timaeus. The remainder of the course will look back on these two classics from the lengthening perspective of the Middle Ages. We will likely draw, for example, from the 5thC commentary on the Timaeus by Proclus, then some passages from Augustine's Confessions on time, followed by Aquinas' commentary on Aristotle's Physics.
The point will be to appreciate not only the shifting perspectives from which these commentaries were written, but also shifting styles, modes of presentation and philosophical expectations. If there is time, we might explore others as well.
Prereq: Permission of the Department.
Courses
In Winter Term 2010
Winter Timetable (pdf)
Philosophy 1651 (3cr) - The Changing Image of Nature
Instructor: P. Bogaard
Our intellectual heritage is laced with shifting and conflicting attitudes towards "Nature" which impact everything from how we can come to know about nature, scientifically, to ethical imploications for how human beings relate to other natural beings. This course will use readings from the history of western philosophy, especially from the early modern era, to assess the extent to which we have inherited these convictions or developed alternatives to them.
Philosophy 2401 (3cr) - Introductory Aesthetics
Instructor: J. Dryden
What is art? Who gets to define art? Who is an artist? How do we recognize something as beautiful or sublime? How does art help shape us? What does art say about us as a culture? This course will offer a survey of theories about art, from those of Plato and Aristotle to those of contemporary philosophers, and will allow students to develop the ability to think through a coherent position and defend it with a clear argument; to go beyond saying merely "there's no accounting for taste."
Prereq: Three credits from Humanities 1600 Series; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 2611 (3cr) - Introductory Logic
Instructor: R. Moser
This is an introduction to reasoning broadly conceived. It will consist of three sections including the analysis of argument structure and informal fallacies, issues in inductive reasoning, and an introduction to symbolic logic including syllogisms, Venn diagramming, truth table analysis of arguments, and some basic natural deduction proofs.
Prereq: Three credits from Humanities 1600 Series; or permission of the Department. Philosophy
3000 (6cr) - Ancient Philosophy
Instructor: R. Majithia
The issues which develop before and with Plato establish the framework
for all subsequent philosophic reflection. This course will examine some
of these issues as they appeared prior to Plato and employ these "pre-Socratics" as an entry into Plato's philosophy. Subsequently, aspects of Aristotle's
thought will be explored as alternatives to and developments of Plato's
philosophy.
Prereq: Three credits from 2000-level Philosophy; or permission of the
Department.
Philosophy
3231 (3cr) - Modern Philosophy: The Empiricist Tradition
Instructor: R. Majithia
An investigation of the thought of the English language thinkers of the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These authors, among whom are to
be counted Locke, Berkeley and Hume, in part may be understood as reacting
to the a priori tradition examined by Philosophy 3221. But they also make
claims that are not merely reactive, and the extent to which one or more
of them proposes a coherent interpretation of the extent and the limitations
of human understanding will be investigated.
Prereq: Three credits from 2000-level Philosophy; or permission of the
Department
Philosophy 3250 (6cr) - 19th Century German Philosophy
Instructor: J. Dryden
It has been said that the philosophical revolution in Germany and the ascent of German idealism was Germany's counterpart to the French Revolution next door. It challenged the traditional understanding of the relationship of mind and world, and the nature of reality itself. This course will begin with the late 18th Century, with J.G. Fichte's attempt to carry on the spirit of the Kantian critical philosophy by grounding it in the radical freedom of the I. We will cover the Romantics, Novalis and Schlegel, then Schelling, Hegel, and finally Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. Questions to be pursued in this class include: what is the effect of different philosophical styles (fragments vs. treatises)? What is the purpose of philosophy? What is the relationship of philosophy to life? How is thought itself shaped by culture and history?
Prereq: Three credits from PHIL 2801, 3221 or 3231; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy
3511 (3cr) - Philosophy of the Life Sciences
Instructor: P. Bogaard
In recent decades the philosophical assumptions underlying the life sciences have been seen increasingly as distinct from the physical sciences. This course will examine this difference as well as the linkage between them, then turn to the philosophical issues within evolutionary theory, with the notion of species, in problems of classification, persistent controversies surrounding sociobiology, and the difficulties of explaining either the origin of life or the implications of human consciousness.
Prereq: Normally, Philosophy 2511 is expected. However, BSc students already doing 3/4000-level work in their own field, and students in either the Environmental Science or Environmental Studies programs, will be admitted; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 3711 (3cr) - Biomedical Ethics
Instructor: J. Dryden
This course will examine the ethical issues involved in biomedicine, which go far beyond individual medical decisions made by doctors and patients. In order to understand the context of biomedicine, the course will begin by investigating the way that disease, pathology, illness, and disability are not purely biological concepts but are also shaped by social, cultural, and historical factors. We will then cover power relations at work within the medical system, including issues of patient autonomy, paternalism, individual and colective responsibility, resource allocation, and the nature of expertise and authority. We will also investigate the relationship between medicine and the public at large: how does the public perceive illness? What are public reactions to those perceived as medically abnormal? What kinds of rhetoric are used to assuage (or provoke) public fears of illness or pandemic? In addition to these theoretical questions, we will also examine case studies and government policy documents in order to understand how these questions play out in Canada and other countries.
Prereq: PHIL 2701; or permission of the Department.
Philosophy 4661 (3cr) - Analytic Philosophy: 1950 to Present
Instructor:
R. Moser
This course is an historical and topical introduction to the major figures and trends in the analytic philosophical tradition from 1950 to the present day. The course opens with brief review of the developments and influences of the previous 50 years, followed by an extended reading of Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations. Students will gain an appreciation of the impact of this work on subsequent philosophy in the analytical tradition. This is followed by a critical reading of the work of the ‘ordinary language’ philosophers J.L. Austin and Gilbert Ryle, highlighting the origins of dominant themes in present-day philosophy of mind and language. W.V. Quine is next presented as a pivotal figure both in attacking the logical positivism of the early twentieth century, and in the emergence of ‘naturalism’ in much current philosophy. Students will read reactions to Quine from Kripke, Davidson and Putnam. The re-emergence of metaphysical investigations in these latter writers segues into the final section of the course, which presents an introductory look at the ongoing revival of ethics, offered by Anscombe and Foot, after the rejection of the emotivism of the early twentieth century.
Prereq: Phil 3991; or permission of the department.
Philosophy
4951 (3cr) - Contemporary Ethical Theory
Instructor: R. Majithia
The course will consist of an intensive investigation of two important contributions to contemporary ethical theory of the last fifty years: Alasdair MacIntyre’s After Virtue and Charles Taylor’s Sources of the Self. While After Virtue is a central text in the revival of Aristotelian virtue ethics based on a fierce critique of enlightenment values, Sources of the Self is an attempt to defend modernity by correcting our self-image particularly against thinkers like MacIntyre. Both projects are deeply historical and amply display how a good understanding of the history of philosophy is essential to tackling contemporary problems well. Topics discussed will include, but are not limited to: community, selfhood, virtue and goodness.
Philosophy
4990 (6cr) - Honours Topics
[Anyone considering honours should speak to the Head of the Department.]
The content of study is to be determined by the student in conjunction
with one or more supervisors of the course. The format will include:
1) Departmental approval of project by Sept. 30th
2) Written submission and interview with Department, by the end of Fall
term classes.
3) Final written submission, and oral defense before Department, prior
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