FUNDAMENTALS OF PHILOSOPHY,
INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY Fall
2007
Dr. Christine A. James
80379 PHIL
2010H A Honors Fundamentals of Philosophy
MWF 11:00am-11:50am in WH 104
This syllabus is available online, and may
be updated, at http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/FUNDAMENTALSOFPHILOSOPHYFallHonors2007.htm
Office: 110 Ashley Hall
Office Hours: MTWR 2:00pm-3:00pm, in
between and after classes and by appointment as needed.
Telephone:
259-7609
Mailbox: Philosophy Department Office
Fax: 259-5011
E-mail address: chjames@valdosta.edu
Course content: This course
provides an introduction to philosophy, giving a basic understanding of the
various areas and specializations within philosophy. Our readings come from various approaches
(theories of knowledge, social and political philosophy, ethics, feminist theory) and from various time periods in the
history of philosophy (from classical philosophers like Socrates to
contemporary philosophers who are still living, like Daniel Dennett and Rita
Manning). This is a reading intensive
course, so it will require you to read, think about, and write about a
considerable amount of material.
Requirements:
Class participation and attendance, two written examinations, and two
papers. Pop Reading Quizzes may also be
given during the semester.
Required Texts:
Fifty Readings in Philosophy, Donald C.
Abel, ed. (You should have the third
edition, which is the enhanced Fifty Readings Plus, it
includes information on how to access additional materials online.)
Be sure to do the reading before the class for which it is
assigned. Please bring the relevant book(s) and/or article(s) with you to
class, along with a designated notebook and some pens.
In addition, Philosophy and Religious Studies faculty encourage
you to use Andrea A. Lunsford, St. Martin’s Handbook, 5th ed. (required
in ENGL 1101 and 1102). These books are available for purchase at the VSU
Bookstore. The
How grades will be calculated:
A =
100 - 90% Class
participation, attendance = 20%
B =
89 - 80% 2
Exams at 20% each = 40%
C =
79 - 70% 2
Papers at 20% each = 40%
D =
69 - 60% Total
= 100%
F =
59 - 0%
Please note that I am not obligated to
accept late work or to allow “make up” work after the date an assignment or
exam or paper is completed by the other members of the class.
I also make no promises about extra credit
items, although I will routinely announce events on campus that can result in
some extra credit points for you.
Exams and Papers: The exams in our class will be “short answer” written exams. Usually I ask six questions and a complete
answer should be no less than four complete sentences. These exams are “objective” in the sense that
the answers can be directly related to class discussions and the textbook.
http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/PHIL2010PaperHandout.htm
Here are some extra links, if you would like to use outside
sources and secondary source material:
http://books.valdosta.edu/gal1.html (click on “Full Text Journal Title List”) and
http://www.valdosta.edu/library/learn/guides/philosophy.shtml
The direct
link for the database (Academic Search Complete)
http://www.galileo.usg.edu/express?link=zbac
http://www.libs.uga.edu/ejournals/locators/acadsearchframe.html
Attendance Policy: I do care that
you attend class regularly. As you know,
VSU policy is that missing 20% of class meetings results in an automatic grade
of “F”. Faculty can also institute added
attendance policies in their syllabi. Our class will have a 10% rule for
absences. You can miss up to 10% of the
class meetings with no grade penalty.
10% of our 30 class meetings is 3.
On absence number 4, your final grade for the course will be reduced by
one whole letter grade; on absence number 5, your final grade for the course
will be reduced by two whole letter grades; on absence number 6, you will
automatically fail the course. Be
considerate of your fellow students – don’t be late, and don’t leave your cell
phones and pagers on. Note that if you are
regularly late to class, or leave class early, I will begin to count each as an
absence. Please note that this policy
makes no distinction between excused and unexcused absences.
Special Needs:
Students requiring classroom accommodations or
modification because of a documented disability should discuss this need with me
at the beginning of the semester. If you
are such a student, but you are not registered with the Access Office, you
should contact them too. Students
requesting classroom accommodations or modifications because of a documented
disability must contact the Access Office for Students with Disabilities
located in room 1115 Nevins Hall. The phone numbers
are 229-245-2498 (voice) and 229-219-1348 (tty).
LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of the semester,
1. You will be able to understand the distinctions among the various sub-fields of philosophy, including epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics as comprising basic branches of the discipline.
2. You will be able to recognize how philosophical inquiry applies to ‘real-world’ circumstances and to individual reflection on the meaning of life.
3. You will become conversant with the history of philosophy. The course emphasizes Western philosophy in particular, including such significant developments as empiricism, materialism, idealism, rationalism, pragmatism, and existentialism.
4. You will be able to recognize and define different world views, adopting a reasonably viable one and justifying it in a philosophically informed way that emphasizes critical reasoning and argument.
5. You will be able to demonstrate the ability to discuss, in both oral and written discourse, the philosophical issues explored in the course.
6. You will be familiar with what academic philosophy is, and you will understand how it can be applied to daily life as well as specific careers.
Members of the faculty in Philosophy and Religious
Studies have verified that these outcomes are in line with the outcomes of the
course as it is taught at peer institutions in the State System of Georgia.
Participate!
Once you
arrive at class, make an effort to get involved in the conversation. Don’t
hesitate to ask questions if you need clarification or would like more
information: if you are confused, it is likely that others are too! The
participation percentage you receive will depend on a variety of factors,
including (but not limited to) the frequency and helpfulness of your
contributions to class discussions and the care you take when peer editing.
Pop
Reading Quizzes:
If I
notice that there are many students who are not keeping up with the reading, I
may periodically administer reading quizzes in class. These will not be
announced in advance. No “make-up” quizzes will be given, and a missed quiz
will result in a grade of zero. These
quizzes are a solid reward for attending class, participating, and keeping up
with the readings.
Online Discussions:
(Special Thank You to
Richard Amesbury and other faculty members who teach using WebCT
Vista, and the eCore staff!)
During
certain weeks of the semester, you also will be expected to participate
regularly in on-line discussions using WebCT Vista.
Use this opportunity to comment on the week’s readings, ask questions, raise
objections, and respond to what others have written or said in class.
To use
To log in
to Vista and the course “shell,” go to the VSU homepage and click on the words WebCT Vista in the upper right-hand corner.
Your username and password are the same as for your BlazeNet
e-mail account. For instructions on getting started, go to: http://www.valdosta.edu/vista
When
posting in an online bulletin board, like those in the Discussion area of WebCT Vista, you must (1) post at least one original
message of your own, (2) read all the messages posted by others, and (3)
respond substantively to at least one
message from another student. Your postings are due the same day as the
readings are listed in the schedule below (i.e., no later than
Your first
message on a given topic should be about 200 words in length. That is roughly
the length of two medium-sized paragraphs (e.g., this one and the next). Your
second (response) posting can be about half that length, but it should be substantive (i.e., involving serious
content). Try not to simply repeat what others have said already. Additional
postings can be as long or as short as you desire. Be sure to give the first
message an interesting title in the “Subject” line. This will help alert the
rest of us as to what it will be about.
When you
are ready to respond to someone else, do so by opening their message and
hitting the “Reply” button. This will create a “thread” that others can add on to.
Keep in mind that although it is fine to disagree with what someone else has
said, it is important to do so in a way that is polite and constructive. If
someone says something that makes you angry, pause and take a breath before
firing off a reply! You can preview your message before you send it, but once
you have hit “Post,” your message will no longer be editable.
Academic
Honesty:
Members
of the
E-Mail:
VSU
policy mandates that all official communication by e-mail take place through
VSU e-mail accounts or through the WebCT Vista Mail
tool. Please check your VSU
(@valdosta.edu) e-mail account regularly.
Note: This
syllabus is not a legal contract; the content of this course is subject to
revision by the professor.
|
|
Schedule
|
|
8/13 M |
Introduction to the class. Syllabus First reading together: Academic
Integrity http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/acin.htm http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/acin.doc http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/acin.pdf For the next class, read the textbook’s
Preface, Intro, and reading #1 in Ch. 1. (Each date in the class after this one
assumes that you will have read that day’s assigned discussion reading before
class.) What is Philosophy? Do Philosophy majors get jobs related to
that major? Here are two pages to
answer that: |
|
8/15 W |
Discussion of Philosophy and Plato's Euthyphro,
which is |
|
8/17 F |
Discussion of Plato, and Russell,
“Problems of Philosophy: The Value of Philosophy” which is reading #2. |
|
8/20 M |
Discussion of Plato, King and the Value of
Philosophy, |
|
8/22 W |
More
background on Plato’s Republic |
|
8/24 F |
Review day, Plato’s Republic |
|
8/27 M |
FIRST EXAM |
|
8/29 W |
Today, begin to post in the online WebCT
Vista Discussion board for our class.
Topics will be listed in the class, under the Discussion tool link. |
|
8/31 F |
Begin Theories of Knowledge (Epistemology), introducing Descartes and Locke |
|
9/3 M |
Labor Day, No class meetings |
|
9/5 W |
Discussion of Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy, #13,
and Locke, #14 (This week, Dr. James is presenting a paper at a conference in
Birmingham, England. Discussion will
take place in WebCT Vista.) |
|
9/7 F |
Discussion of Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, #14 (This week, Dr.
James is presenting a paper at a conference in |
|
9/10 M |
Video presentation and discussion on
Williams syndrome (social knowledge) |
|
9/12 W |
Discussion of |
|
9/14 F |
Discussion of Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, #16 |
|
9/17 M |
Discussion of Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, #17 |
|
9/19 W |
Discussion of Peirce, Fixation of Belief, #18 |
|
9/21 F |
Discussion of Puhakka,
Invitation to Authentic Knowing, #19 Help with papers. |
|
9/24 M |
FIRST PAPER DUE TODAY Be ready to discuss your papers in class. |
|
9/26 W |
Begin Ethics,
Chapter 6; Discussion of Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics, #34 (On this date, Dr. James is presenting a paper
at a conference in |
|
9/28 F |
Discussion of Kant, Metaphysics of Morals, #36 (On
this date, Dr. James is presenting a paper at a conference in |
|
10/1 M |
Discussion of Mill, Utilitarianism, #37 Are you anticipating having a job interview? Here’s a document that might help! http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/jobsearch.pdf http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/jobsearch.doc |
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10/3 W |
Discussion of Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil, #48 |
|
10/5 F |
Discussion of Sartre, Existentialism is a Humanism, #40 |
|
10/8 M |
Discussion of Rachels, The Challenge of Cultural Relativism, #41 |
|
10/10 W |
Discussion of Manning, Just
Caring, #42 |
|
10/12 F |
Begin Social
and Political Philosophy Discussion of Hobbes, Leviathan, #44 |
|
10/15 M |
Fall
Break, No class meetings |
|
10/17 W |
Discuss Hobbes, Leviathan, and Locke's Second
Treatise, #45 |
|
10/19 F |
Discussion of Rawls, A Theory of Justice, #50 |
|
10/22 M |
SECOND PAPER DUE Be ready to discuss your paper in class. |
|
10/24 W |
Discussion of Free Will and Determinism http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/Determinism.doc Discussion of d'Holbach, System of Nature, #27 and Hospers, |
|
10/26 F |
Discussion
of James #29 |
|
10/29 M |
Discussion
of |
|
10/31 W |
God,
Creation, and Evil: The Philosophy of Religion through Film With
special attention to Chapter 3 of Classic Questions and Contemporary Film Available
as a Word .doc or a .pdf for printing: http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/religionandfilm.doc http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/religionandfilm.pdf
Chapter 3: Does God Exist? |
|
11/1 F |
3.1
Philosophy and Religion: How does one do philosophy of religion, and how do
we “know” about God? |
|
11/5 M |
3.2
Ineffability and the Divine Nature |
|
11/7 W |
3.3 The
Ontological Argument |
|
11/9 F |
3.4 The
Cosmological Argument |
|
11/12 M |
3.5 The
Design Argument |
|
11/14 W |
3.6 The
Problem of Evil |
|
11/16 F |
3.7
Anselm and Gaunilo: The Greatest Possible Being |
|
11/19 M |
3.7
Thomas Aquinas: The First |
|
11/21 and 11/23 |
Thanksgiving
Holiday, No class meetings |
|
11/26 M |
3.7
William Paley: The Argument from Design |
|
11/28 W |
3.7
Charles Darwin and The Origin of Species |
|
11/30 F |
3.7 John
Hick: The Irenaean Theodicy |
|
12/3 M |
3.7 Søren Aabye
Kierkegaard: The Unknowability of God and the Leap
of Faith
Review for Final Exam |
The last official class day for all Fall Semester classes is
Monday 12/3.
FINAL EXAM:
For classes that normally meet MWF at 11:00, the Registrar has set
the official exam time for Friday, December 7 at 12:30pm-2:30pm in the usual
room.
If you are not sure about how the final exam times are assigned
for your other courses, use this link, and check the Final Exam Schedule on
page 3 of the Registrar’s Fall 2007 Guide document:
http://www.valdosta.edu/it/eas/sis/documents/RG_Fall_07.pdf
Tips for doing well in Philosophy classes, adapted from a handout
by Robert Scott
1.
Read text with a pencil, underline the important ideas and key concepts.
Write down technical ideas, key terms, key distinctions between two terms,
definitions, diagrams, etc. to help you remember them.
2.
Write questions or reactions you have to the text in the margin of the
book. Ask about these questions in
class, and keep them in mind, since they may provide good points to make about
that author in papers you will write for class.
3.
Read ahead to see the ultimate objectives of the chapter and of the individual
readings. Keep in mind the overall
picture of the chapters given in the introductory sections to each chapter in
the book.
4.
Work with the new terminology frequently, and try to apply it to
situations outside of class. I would
recommend flash cards to help you memorize the meanings of new terms quickly.
5.
For longer readings, be sure to review the reading as a whole after you
have read it section-by-section. What
was the main question the author wanted to address? What were the answers? What
concepts were used to make the points?
6.
When confronted with a difficult reading or question, break it down into
parts, and into individual ideas. This
will at least help to clarify the question, even if it might not give the
answer. And for philosophy, clarifying
the question is really half the battle!
7.
Ponder an unsolved problem and return to it every so often to see if it
will give. Inspiration may happen at an
unexpected time, and the subconscious mind does work on problems even when we
aren't consciously aware of it.
8.
Begin work on all the class tasks early, and spread out your work over
time so as to maximize your chances for comprehending the readings accurately,
memorizing the information, and grappling with the questions for papers.
9. If
you do need to meet with an instructor outside of class, be sure to have your
questions for the instructor planned out ahead of time, to make the meeting as
productive as possible.
10.
Always think about the philosophical issues for yourself, rather than
waiting to be told what to think or believe.
11.
Study for all exams on a daily basis, for at least a week before the
exam date. You will need to know who said what, from memory.
12.
Try to anticipate the questions that will be asked on an examination
beforehand. Questions may come from the
readings or from lectures and class discussions, but in either case, certain
terms and concepts will be emphasized more than others.
13.
Listen carefully to different points of view, and actively respond (when
you read, when you are in class, and when you write your philosophy papers)!
14.
Philosophy involves skills, like learning to appreciate a good debate,
learning to imagine the world differently than we assume it to be, and
appreciating the world with a sense of wonder.
(1) A really great website for students about how to write
academic papers is maintained by the Dartmouth Writing Program:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/materials/student/toc.shtml
In addition to lots of helpful general information, it has
special pages on "Writing the Religion Paper" and "Writing the
Philosophy Paper."
(2) A great website that explains the importance of
critically evaluating web resources -- always a problem area for students – is
maintained by Robert Harris:
http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm
(3) A third thing I'm planning to do this semester is to
require students to own a copy of the
Dr. Richard Amesbury