Students will be introduced to various significant philosophical issues and thinkers and to the practice of philosophical analysis.

My theme for this semester's exploration of philosophy is "Human Knowledge and Reality." We will consider some of the major issues involved in metaphysics and epistemology, focusing on the ultimate nature of reality and the relation between any such reality and human knowledge.

There are no course prerequisites for Introduction to Philosophy. A passing score or the equivalent on the reading and writing portions of the skills assessment is required.

Please note that you must complete the online Orientation (in Blackboard) prior to beginning work on this course. See Blackboard for additional course information.

For more information about this course, click here or email me.

Course Materials

Required

Descartes. Meditations on First Philosophy (ISBN 002367170X)*

Hume. Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding(ISBN 0812690540)*

Recommended

Palmer. Looking at Philosophy, 5th edition (ISBN-13 

9780073407487)

Birkenstein and Graff. They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing (ISBN-13 9780393924091)

The required texts (marked with an asterisk) are are available online; I will post links to these texts on the reading assignments page. These texts are also available in many bookstore(s), if you prefer to do your readings off-line. I do not recommend a particular translation or edition; however, the ISBN will help you find an edition that is quite similar to what is online. If you decide to purchase the texts, you may find that the translation or pagination do not match the online versions.

The recommended texts (which are widely available) include an entertaining overview of the history of philosophy (with explanations of most of the major figures) and a guide to academic writing. It may be helpful in filling in gaps or as a resource for your coursework.

Instructional Methodology

The class will consist predominantly of exploration of the course material through discussion and group work conducted by means of discussion boards, written lectures, and assigned readings.

The major forms of individual assessment will be writing assignments (essays, etc.). I may also use online forms to gather information about your progress in the coursework. Writing assignments must be submitted electronically in the Blackboard classroom.

Course Rationale

Philosophy is one of the principal forces that have shaped Western civilization and history, so a basic understanding of the method and subjectmatter of philosophy affords a deeper understanding of ourselves and an informed grasp of the present. In addition, the critical thinking skills are so central to the method of philosophy that the study of philosophy provides an opportunity to learn and practice those skills in a focused way.

PHIL1301 Objectives

Departmental Objectives/Outcomes

1. Students will demonstrate improved critical reading, thinking, and writing skills.
2. Students will be able to reason philosophically about issues of both personal and universal significance.
3. Students will be able to identify major divisions and concepts in philosophy.

Coursework includes reading assignments, online lectures, quizzes, and essays. The Coursework Guide provides a more detailed discussion of the coursework. We will also use a bulletin board and a virtual classroom for class discussion. I encourage you to post questions and comments about the course material, but I will remove material that is not substantially relevant to the coursework.

Your grade for this course will be based on written work demonstrating the pursuit of the goals of the course. There are two types of written assignments: (1) fifteen weekly quizzes on the reading assignments and lectures and (2) three essays on topics that I will provide. The final grade is determined by the grades on these elements, weighted according to the following chart:

Please review the Grading and Evaluation System for a detailed exposition of my approach to evaluation. You will find additional guidelines for each assignment in the Coursework Guide. You may hand in assignments earlier than the due date, but assignments must follow the stated sequence. (For instance, I will not accept essay 3 before essay 2.
)

Course Outline

The outline below is organized for a 16-week session. Shorter sessions will be be more compressed but cover the same units. See the Coursework Calendar in Blackboard for details.

A complete Coursework Calendar, which includes course assignments, is available online (in Blackboard). Check the Course Calendar frequently for due dates, announcements, and important links.