Philosophy 101: Introduction to Philosophy
Fall 2008 Sec. N002 (5841): T,Th 8 - 9:15am, Room 221 Sec. N003 (5843): M,W,F 2 - 2:50pm, Room 221 Professor: Tait Szabo Office: 210 Office Hours: M,W,F 1 - 1:50pm; T,TH 1 - 2:15pm; by appointment. (Subject to change.) E-mail: tait.szabo@uwc.edu Course Description: What can I know? Does God exist? Do I have a soul? Am I free? What is good? This course is designed to introduce students to these kinds of questions and to how philosophers go about answering these questions. Course content includes both classical and contemporary works. Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this class.Recommended coursework: ENG 101 and/or ENG 102.
Associates Degree requirements: Humanities.
Required Text: Readings for this course will be taken from the anthology below, unless otherwise noted: Feinberg, Joel and Shafer-Landau, Russ (eds). Reason and Responsibility: Readings in Some Basic Problems of Philosophy. 13th ed. Thomson Wadsworth, 2008.
Course Requirements and Assessment: Proficiencies: The goal of the course is to teach students how to think and write critically about philosophical questions. Students will learn how to analyze, synthesize, evaluate and interpret philosophical ideas, and to recognize fallacious and inconsistent reasoning. Communication Skills will be assessed in this class, further details will be provided at the appropriate time. Assessment: A UW Colleges-wide assessment program has been put into place to enhance the quality and effectiveness of the curriculum, programs, and services of the institution. The following areas of proficiency will be assessed because they are of primary importance in the education of our students: Analytical Skills, Quantitative Skills, Communication Skills, and Aesthetic Skills. For more information, go to Assessment Program. Please find the assessment exam and answer key in the following links. Please submit your complete answer key to the appropriate drop box on D2L before Monday December 8th. There is no need to "cheat" on this "exam" -- the "grade" you get on the assessment exam will not effect your grade in the class (although simply taking it will count toward participation). Please complete the exam honestly, so that we can get accurate results. Assessment Exam. Assessment Exam Answer Sheet. Reading Responses: Reading responses will be assigned each week there is not an exam, except the first and last weeks of the semester. Each one must be submitted before the class during which we discuss the relevant reading. Reading responses must be submitted online through D2L. Reading responses are short (approximately two page) essays in which you must explain the best argument in the reading and critically evaluate it (more details will be provided). Reading responses will be graded on the following scale: 0=not completed, 1=completed mostly incorrect, 2=completed mostly correct, 3=completed entirely correct. Reading responses will count for 40% of your final grade. Exams: There will be two exams: a mid-term and a final. Each will count for 20% of your final grade. Participation: Good participation includes (but is not limited to) attending class, being prepared for class (i.e. doing the reading), attending office hours, making thoughtful comments or other positive contributions to class. Completion of assessment-related assignments will also count toward good participation. Bad participation includes (but is not limited to) poor attendance, lack of preparation, not allowing others to speak, text messaging, answering your cell phone, reading the newspaper, using your laptop for purposes other than taking notes, sleeping. Participation counts for 20% of your final grade. Appointments and Office Hours: Please feel free to drop by my office during office hours. If you wish to see me outside these set times I am always available by appointment. Email can be sent any time. Give me a day or two to answer. Please include the phrase "PHI 101" in the subject line. Policy Statements: Academic Integrity: There is a zero-tolerance policy for academic misconduct. Academic misconduct may include: cheating, plagiarism, aid of academic dishonesty, fabrication, lying, bribery, and threatening behavior. All incidents of academic misconduct will be reported. Students who are found to be in violation of academic integrity may be subject to academic discipline. Classroom Behavior: Students and faculty each have responsibility for maintaining an appropriate learning environment. Those who fail to adhere to such behavioral standards may be subject to academic discipline. Professional courtesy and sensitivity are especially important with respect to individuals and topics dealing with differences of race, culture, religion, politics, sexual orientation, gender, gender variance, and nationalities. Class rosters are provided to the instructor with the student's legal name. I will gladly honor your request to address you by an alternate name or gender pronoun. Please advise me of this preference early in the semester so that I may make appropriate changes to my records. Disabilities: If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please inform me in a timely manner (i.e. during the first two weeks) so that your needs may be addressed. Religion: I will make every effort to reasonably and fairly deal with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments or required attendance. In this class, every effort will be made to accommodate all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, provided they notify me well in advance (at least two weeks) of the scheduled conflict. If an exam is scheduled on a religious holiday, affected students may be provided with the opportunity for a makeup exam. Class Schedule: The following is a tentative schedule of the course and may change if required. You will be expected to have read the assigned reading by the time you attend the relevant class. Readings are referred to by author, title and page numbers (all page references are to the text edited by Feinberg). Important Dates: October 23-24: Mid-Term Exams Sec. N002: Oct 23 Sec. N003: Oct 24 November 27-29: Thanksgiving Recess December 15: last day of classes December 17-23: Final Exams Sec. N002: Dec 18 8-10am Sec. N003: Dec 22 1-3pm Final Exam Topics Section 1: Introduction Introduction to Philosophy - Read this short Newsweek article online: I Think, Therefore I Am Misunderstood Section 2: Knowledge Knowledge and Skepticism - Pollock: A Brain in a Vat 137-139 Reason - Descartes: Meditations on First Philosophy 164-173 Experience - Berkeley: Of the Principles of Human Knowledge 205-212 Induction - Hume: An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding (section IV, parts 1 and 2; section VII, part 2) 222-228, 240-242 Science - Popper: Science: Conjectures and Refutations 264-268; Kitcher: Believing Where We Cannot Prove 268-277 Section 3: God The Ontological Argument - Anselm, Gaunilo, and Rowe 6-20 The Cosmological Argument - Aquinas, Clarke, and Rowe 21-32 The Teleological Argument - Paley: The Argument from Design 32-37 Hume: Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion 38-43, 49-51 (parts II and V) The Argument from Practical Rationality - Pascal: The Wager 119-122 Clifford: The Ethics of Belief 101-105 James: The Will to Believe 106-114 Clark: Without Evidence of Argument 114-118 The Problem of Evil - Dostoevsky 72-78 Mackie 78-85 Schlesinger 86-89 Swinburne: Why God Allows Evil 89-97 Johnson: God and the Problem of Evil 97-101 Section 4: Freedom and Determinism Hard Determinism - Holbach: The Illusion of Free Will 458 Libertarian Free Will - Chisholm: Human Freedom and the Self 438 Compatibilism - Ayer: Freedom and Necessity 414 Frankfurt: Alternate Possibilities and Moral Responsibility 486 Section 5: Mind Dualism - Gertler: In Defense of Mind-Body Dualism 285 Jackson: The Qualia Problem 297 Physicalism - Carruthers: The Mind is the Brain 301 Churchland: Bahaviorism, Materialism and Functionalism 309 Section 6: Moral Theory Divine Command Theory - Quinn: God and Morality 610 Egoism - Feinberg: Psychological Egoism 520 Rachels: Ethical Egoism 532 Moral Relativism - Midgley: Trying Out One's New Sword 567 Virtue Ethics - Aristotle: The Nature of Virtue (selection from Nicomachean Ethics) 570 The Categorical Imperative - Kant: The Good Will (selection from Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals) 625 Utilitarianism - Mill: Utilitarianism 640 Section 7: Applied Ethics Euthanasia - Rachels: Active and Passive Euthanasia 697 Famine Relief - Singer: Famine, Affluence, and Morality 678 Animal Welfare - Singer: All Animals Are Equal 701