Syllabus
Course Description and Overview:
This course will survey some topics of interest to philosophers and prepare students for further work in various areas of philosophy. We will examine some perennial philosophical questions and their treatments by both classical thinkers and contemporary philosophers. Topics to be discussed include the nature of reality, the veridicality of experience, space and time, personal identity, the nature of mind, and moral judgments.
Successful study of philosophy requires both quiet study and active engagement. I expect students in this course to read serious philosophy and to participate in class discussions. This course is designated as writing-intensive; students will complete five writing assignments and have some opportunity to re-write in response to comments. Students will write a précis, four papers and a final exam. Additionally, each student will prepare an in-class presentation. Less formally, students should come to each class prepared to discuss the assigned readings..
Texts
Articles posted below.
My notes, posted here after classes.
Assignments and Grading:
Your responsibilities this course include the following, with their contributions to your grade calculation in parentheses:
All the readings (or other preparatory assignments) listed below.
In-class participation (10%)
Five writing assignments (60% total):
(Up to) Three Précis: First due on September 9 (5%)
Exegesis: (600-800 words) due September 18 (10%)
Compare and Contrast: (800-1000 words) due October 7 (10%)
Argumentative Essay #1: (1250-2100 words)
due to peer reviewers October 30
due to me, with revisions, November 6 (20%)
Argumentative Essay #2: (1000-1800 words) due December 11 (15%)Presentation (10%)
Final Exam (20%)
The given weights are rough, and subject to adjustment.
Readings and Classes: Your preparation for class will ordinarily consist of either of two kinds of assignments: 1. Philosophical texts, or 2. Illustrative readings. The nature of class discussion will vary depending on the assigned reading or movie. Some classes will be discussions. Some classes will be exegetical lectures. Some classes will have ad hoc group activities.
Our class is a cooperative endeavor, and I expect you to attend every class. There is no immediate penalty for missing class. But our class is small and any absence will be noted. You should discuss any missed classes with me, preferably in advance.
Writing Assignments: All writing assignments will engage one or more philosophical texts but may also invoke illustrative readings. I will provide detailed assignment sheets for each. The précis is a short expository writing exercise on some small topic in one of our readings. You have three opportunites to submit précis, starting at the beginning of our fourth class, on September 9; everyone in class must submit a précis that day. Only fully successful précis will receive a grade. You must submit a new précis at the beginning of each of the next two classes unless you submit a fully acceptable one. Précis are to be no more than 500 words. The exegesis is a more-extended, but still brief, analysis of a philosophical text. The compare and contrast essay is like two exegeses run together, with connections between them. The two argumentative essays are standard, rhetorical papers, defending a thesis. The first will be distributed to peer reviewers who will comment on the essay. You will hand in your original essay, your peer comments, and a final, revised draft.
Standards for academic writing vary by discipline. Philosophical writing should be clear and focused and attentive to every detail. Do not be misled by the brevity of some of our assignments. Expect to revise your papers several times before submitting them.
Many Hamilton students take advantage of the excellent tutors at the writing center, located in KJ 152. I do not require that you use the writing center, but I may, early in the term, make a strong suggestion that you do so. You may approach them with early drafts of a paper, or even earlier in the writing process. You must make appointments, which you can do easily at their website. You are always welcome to ask for my help on a paper, in advance of the due date. I do not have strict guidelines about how much time you must give me before the due date, but you can not expect me to provide comments in less than two full days.
The exegesis and compare and contrast assignments may be re-written for an improved grade. All rewrites are due by November 20. You should submit the original versions of your papers with the rewrites.
Presentations: Your presentation will be an exegetical discussion of one of the philosophy readings. A more specific assignment will be distributed in class. We will sign up for presentations early in the term. The Oral Communication Center, in KJ 222, can help you prepare an effective presentation. If you wish, you can practice your presentation, and have it recorded and analyzed. If you wish to do use the OCC, you should make an appointment early. See their website.
Final Exam: For each assigned philosophical text, I will prepare reading guides, which are lists of questions corresponding to the reading. You can use the reading guides to help you determine your comprehension of the assignments. The final exam will be based directly on the reading guides.
On Grades: Grades on assignments will be posted on Blackboard, along with a running total, which I call your grade calculation. Your grade calculation is a guide for me to use in assigning you a final grade. There are no rules binding how I translate your grade calculation, which appears in Blackboard as a percentage, into a letter grade. In particular, the Hamilton College key for translating your letter grades into percentages, used for graduate school admissions, is not a tool for calculating your final grade. I welcome further discussion of the purposes and methods of grading, as well as my own grading policies.
The Hamilton College Honor Code will be strictly enforced
Office Hours
My office hours for the Fall 2014, term are 11am - noon daily. My office is 202 College Hill Road, the Philosophy Building, Room 210.
Schedule:
Note: The readings listed in each row are to be completed before class.
Class |
Date |
Topic |
Readings to do Before Class |
Presentation |
1 |
August 28 |
What is Philosophy? |
||
2 |
September 2 |
Reality |
||
3 |
September 4 |
Illusion |
Descartes, from Meditations on First
Philosophy |
|
4 |
September 9 |
Sense Experience |
||
5 |
September 11 |
Idealism |
||
6 |
September 16 |
Commonsense Realism |
Moore, "Proof of an External World" |
|
7 |
September 18 |
Paradoxes of Motion |
||
8 |
September 23 |
Absolute and Relational Space |
||
9 |
September 25 |
The A-Theory |
Zimmerman, "The Privileged Present: Defending an "A-Theory" of Time" |
|
10 |
September 30 |
The B-Theory |
||
11 |
October 2 |
Abortion and Personhood |
Noonan, "Abortion is Morally Wrong" |
|
| 12 | October 7 Compare and Contrast due |
Personal Identity | Heinlein, "All You Zombies" (html version) | |
13 |
October 9 |
The Soul Theory of Identity |
Isabel | |
14 |
October 14 |
The Consciousness Theory of Identity |
Locke, "The Prince and the Cobbler" |
Jacob |
| October 16 | No Class - Fall Break | |||
15 |
October 21 |
Irreducibility and Essentialism |
Courtney | |
16 |
October 23 |
The Bundle Theory |
Hume, "The Self" |
Miller |
17 |
October 28 |
Personal Identity: A Case Study |
||
18 |
October 30 |
The Mind |
TBA |
|
19 |
November 4 |
Dualism |
Descartes, "On the Nature of Mind" |
Allen TJ |
20 |
November 6 |
Behaviorism |
Skinner, from Science and Human
Behavior |
Henry |
21 |
November 11 |
Materialism |
Travis | |
22 |
November 13 |
Functionalism |
Emily | |
23 |
November 18 |
Epiphenomenalism |
Sarah | |
24 |
November 20 |
Ethics and Meta-Ethics |
Ginger | |
| No Classes | Thanksgiving Break | |||
25 |
December 2 |
Morality and Self-Interest |
Leah | |
26 |
December 4 |
Consequentialism |
John | |
27 |
December 9 |
Kantian Deontology |
Jordan | |
28 |
December 11 |
More Kant |
Final Exam: Monday, December 15, 7pm - 10pm
Support
Peer Mentor: As part of the first-year experience, our course has a peer mentor, Jackson Kushner ‘17, jkushner@hamilton.edu.
First-Year Experience Librarian: Alexandra Rihm, arihm@hamilton.edu, x4321
Writing and Presentation Support: In addition to peer tutoring, both the Writing Center and the Oral Communications Center have an astoundingly wonderful set of resources to help you write and speak more effectively. Many of these resources are available on their respective websites.
Accommodations: Hamilton College and I will make reasonable accommodations for students with properly documented disabilities. If you would like to make a request for this course, please discuss it with me during the first two weeks of class. You will need to provide Allen Harrison, Associate Dean of Students (Elihu Root House; 315-859-4021) with appropriate documentation.