Courses

All courses at 200 level or higher require PHI 105, Foundations of Philosophy, or permission of department chair. Students in the Mid-degree, Plus Two, and Degree Completion programs are exempt from this requirement.

PHI 105 (3 credits)
Introduction to Philosophy
Historical introduction to fundamental problems and methods of philosophy based on readings in ancient, medieval and modern literature.

PHI 200 (3 credits)
Ethics: Values and Quality of Life
Systematic study of ethics with the aim of arriving at objective values and principles of moral conduct as the means to genuine happiness. Normative ethics is compared and contrasted with descriptive ethics and meta-ethics. Cultural, philosophical and historical approaches to ethics are also considered.

PHI 210 (3 credits)
Professional Ethics
Study of ethical issues in the professions. Inquires into the nature of professional responsibility and the social role of the professions. Topics include an examination of professional codes of ethics, legal regulation of the professions, the relation between professional rights and social responsibilities, and professional ethics in a global society.

PHI 220 (3 credits)
Ethics and Law
Examination and evaluation of principal theories of the nature and purpose of law: natural law, legal realism and legal positivism. Foundations of the American legal system are examined in relation to these theories.

PHI 230 (3 credits)
Introduction to Logic
Introduction to traditional and modern logic designed to develop analytical and critical thinking skills in formulating definitions, analyzing arguments, and evaluating hypotheses. Topics include sentential calculus, the syllogism, formal/informal fallacies, and issued of inductive logic.

PHI 235 (3 credits)
Existentialism
Exploration of the threat of nihilism and the attempt to find or create meaning in contemporary life. Topics include central existentialist themes such as absurdity, alienation, anxiety, responsibility, freedom, engagement, and authenticity. This course considers both Christian and secular approaches to existentialism. Prerequisite: PHI 105.

PHI 240 (3 credits)
Philosophy of Art and Beauty
Investigation of the nature and function of art, as well as the cognitive and moral import of the experience both of nature and artistic beauty. Readings in ancient philosophy, in the tradition of aesthetics, in phenomenology and in analytic and post-modern thought; artistic works and the writings of artists themselves will also be considered. Pre-requisite: PHI 105

PHI 245 (3 credits)
Introduction to Eastern Philospohy and Religion
Exploration of philosophical and religious traditions of Asia. Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, and Daoism will be discussed and compared to Western Traditions (Judeao-Christian Tradition and Ancient Greek Philosophy). Satisfies the Diversity requirement. Crosslisted with THE 245

PHI 310 (3 credits)
Metaphysics
Introduction to some of the main problems in the tradition of Western metaphysics. Issues considered include the nature of time and becoming, free will and determinism, the relation between mind and body, and the nature and existence of God. Discussions focus on the value and significance of humanity’s efforts to provide a unified understanding of reality with respect to perennial philosophical problems.

PHI 332 (3 credits)
Minds, Brains, and Computers
Study of philosophical and foundational issues and basic concepts of cognitive science, including information processing, computation, representation, and the mind-body problem. Cognitive science is the scientific study of cognition, integrating contributions from the study of minds, brains, and computers. The idea that binds these different studies together is that the mind is a computational device run by the brain. The course will examine and evaluate this research program.

PHI 335 (3 credits)
Philosophy of Love and Friendship
A study of love and friendship in western philosophy and literature. The course will examine some basic questions about the nature of love and friendship that have been raised in the history of Western thought. Prerequisite: PHI 105 or 345.

PHI 345 (3 credits)
Problems of Philosophy
A study of the fundamental problems of philosophy. Readings in Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Hume, Kant, and contemporary Philosophy. This course philosophy for students in the Innovative Degree Programs (Plus Two, Mid-Degree, Degree Completion). Other students must have permission of the instructor.

PHI 351 (3 credits)
Ancient Philosophy
A study of the fundamental problems of philosophy. Readings in Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Hume, Kant, and contemporary Philosophy. This personal development of a unified con- is designed as an introduction to philosophy for students in the Innovative Degree Programs (Plus Two, Mid-Degree, Degree Completion). Other students must have permission of the instructor.

PHI 352 (3 credits)
Medieval Philosophy
A study of the history of philosophy from Boethius to William of Oakham. Reading include selected works from Boethius, Augustine, Abelard, Maimonides, Avicenna, Averroes, Aquinas, Bonaventure, and others.

PHI 353 (3 credits)
Modern Philosophy
Survey of the history of Western philosophy from then renaissance to the 19th centure. Readings from thinkers such as Descartes, Pascal, Locke, Spinoza, Leibniz, Hume, Berkley, Kant, and Nietzche. Pre-requisite: PHI 105

PHI 354 (3 credits)
Topics in Contemporary Philosophy
Study of selected developments and controversies in 19th, 20th, and 21st Century philosophy. Topics could include German idealism, phenomenology, hermeneutics, philosophy of language, analytic philosophy, philosophy of the subject, American pragmarism, postmodernism, post-structuralism, critical theory, feminist philosophy. Course may be repeated for credit. Pre-requisite PHI 105.

PHI 415 (3 credits)
Philosophy of Religion
An inquiry into the place of reason, faith, and experience in religion. Readings include clasics in eastern and western thought.

PHI 420 (3 credits)
Social and Political Philosophy
Readings from major historical sources in social and political philosophy. Focus on issues such as the grounds of political obligation, nature of justice, and relation between freedom and human rights.

PHI 425 (3 credits)
Philosophy of Education
Basic concepts and methods applied to educational issues, including a survey of philosophies of education and approaches to development of personal philosophy of education.

PHI 440 (3 credits)
Great Thinkers
Intensive study of the thoughts of outstanding philosophers from the ancient, medieval, modern or contemporary periods.

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