PHL 201 - Intro to Philosophy
Hill
General introduction to philosophy; its practice and major areas of study. Topics typically include introductions to metaphysics (study of being), epistemology (study of knowledge), philosophy of language, morality, and critical thinking.
PHL 212 - Philosophy in Literature
Elliott
An introduction to traditional philosophical issues as they appear in literature, especially in fiction. The specific philosophical problems and the literary works will vary from term to term and from instructor to instructor.
PHL 301U – Ancient Philosophy
Berman
An introduction to ancient Greek philosophy with a primary focus on the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle. May include topics in epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of science, human flourishing, and political philosophy.
PHL 303 – Early Modern Philosophy
Coventry Online
An introduction to seventeenth- and eighteenth-century philosophy. May include topics in epistemology, metaphysics, mind and religion with readings by major thinkers such as Descartes, Spinoza, Conway, Locke, Cavendish, Leibniz, Berkeley, Shepherd, Amo, Hume, and Reid.
PHL 306U - Science and Pseudoscience
Goldman Online
An examination of basic issues in philosophy of science through an analysis of creation science, faith healing, UFO abduction stories, and other pseudosciences. Some of the questions addressed: What distinguishes science from pseudoscience? How are theories tested? When is evidence reliable? Must we invoke the supernatural to explain certain aspects of reality?
PHL 308U – Elementary Ethics
Weber, Jokic Online
General introduction to ethical theories and topics such as whether there are objective moral distinctions, what makes right actions right and wrong acts wrong, and how we know (if we do) that actions are right or wrong, and how we know (if we do) that actions are right or wrong. Topics also include relativism, egoism, utilitarianism, and Kantianism (deontology).
PHL 309U – Business Ethics
Hardy Online
Study of the ethical aspects of practices and organizational structures in the business world. The bulk of the course is devoted to specific contemporary topics, for example: the moral status of corporations; the concept of work place rights; responsibility in advertising; environmental constraints on business; affirmative action in hiring; the social roles of profit and private property; and the role of work in the life of the individual.
PHL 310U – Environmental Ethics
Hiller, Mueller Online
Study of our moral responsibilities with respect to the environment (e.g., treatment of non-human animals, rights of animals, trees, rivers and possibly our planet) in light of some of the central environmental problems (e.g., population growth, global warming, and endangered species).
PHL 313U - Life & Death Issues
Jokic Online
Study of moral problems dealing with life and death issues including abortion, euthanasia, the death penalty, starvation, and war.
PHL 314U - Computer Ethics
Patrick Online
Examines the moral principles and judgments relevant for computer-related practices. Topics include: ethical aspects of new information technologies; are technologies value-laden; freedom, privacy and control; security, reliability, and professional responsibilities; piracy and ownership; ethics of hacking; ethics of virtual environment; and international aspects of new technologies.
PHL 316U - Social & Political Philosophy
Gillis
Survey of main theories of social and political justice (utilitarian, liberal, equalitarian, communitarian, and libertarian) through classic and modern representatives.
PHL 317U - Philosophy of Art
Elliott Online
Philosophical issues concerning the creation, interpretation, and consumption of art. May include an overview of the major philosophical theories about the nature of art and/or an examination of how art relates to topics in ethics, relativism, pornography, psychology, feminism, Non-Western culture, computers, neuroscience, nature, the city and the street.
PHL 319U - Intro to Asian Philosophy
Komito Online
A study of different systems of Asian philosophy through the main classical texts drawn from Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Topics include: the nature of reality, the self, causality, language, knowledge, and ethics.
PHL 320U – Critical Thinking
Sharpsteen Online
Designed to improve reasoning and skills of critical assessment of information. Focuses on practical methods that are applied to case studies from public media such as editorials, essays, propaganda, advertisements, and newspaper reports of scientific studies.
PHL 322U - Minds & Machines
Cwik
Study of philosophical aspects of artificial intelligence including its functionalist ontology. Topics include the nature of computation, learning, and intelligence and the role of consciousness in thinking and behavior.
PHL 324U - Intro to Formal Logic I
Weber Online
A course in basic formal logic. Major topics include the methods of deduction for showing propositional arguments valid and the method of counter-example for showing such arguments invalid. Truth table methods, tests for consistency, and syllogistic arguments are optional topics.
PHL 331U - Philosophy of Education
Elliott
Exploration of the nature, aims, and value of education by situating it in its historical and contemporary philosophical context and perspective.
PHL 333U - Philosophy of Law
Hill
Examines the nature of law, legal obligation and legal interpretation. Is law a part of morality, or nothing more than an expression of social power? When are we permitted or required to disobey the law? What is the proper methodology for interpreting laws and deciding cases? Do judges discover or create law? Readings include classics of jurisprudence (e.g., Austen, Hart, Dworkin) as well as judicial opinions in a selected topic.
PHL 341 - Latinx Philosophy
Spencer Online
Latinx Philosophy will explore the philosophical contributions of indigenous, Hispanic, and Latinx thinkers in the Americas and in the Iberian Peninsula, situating philosophical thought in its social and political contexts. Students will grapple with the questions of Latinx identity and philosophy, read philosophical and literary works from pre-Columbian civilizations, scholastic, and Marxian traditions, as well as engage contemporary thinkers on feminism, race, social movements, and migration.
PHL 355U - Morality and Health Care
Gillis Online
Examination of issues in health care such as euthanasia, abortion, allocation of transplantable organs, rationing health care, treatment of impaired newborns, and others.
PHL 367U - Philosophy of Sports
Spencer Online
An examination of the central conceptual, ethical, and existential issues concerning sports. Topics include the nature and role of sports in human flourishing, theories of embodiment, and the morality of sports as an institution and culture including competition and violence.
PHL 369U - Philosophy of Sex & Love
Spencer Online
An examination of some of the central philosophical issues emerging from a reflection of sex and love. Topics include: conceptual or ontological ones such as the possible essence of heterosexuality, homosexuality, and asexuality; ethical ones such as the morality or immorality of different expressions of sex and love such as sadomasochism, polygamy, and philandering; existential ones such as the role of sexuality and romantic love in our self-conception and a good life; epistemological ones such as the nature of our experiences of sexuality and love and the possible influence that conceptual sources have on them.
PHL 373 - Queer Philosophy
Mueller
The aim of this course is to illuminate the theoretical underpinnings and the radical epistemological, social, and political possibilities that are afforded by queer philosophy/theory. Queer Philosophy problematizes and challenges rigid identity categories, norms of sexuality and gender and the oppression and violence that such norms justify. This course will interrogate the metaphysical, epistemological, phenomenological, social, and political dimensions of queer philosophy.
PHL 379U - Feminist Care Ethics
Hamington Online
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to care ethics from its origins in feminist theory to its present multidisciplinary and international manifestations. The implications of care ethics for ontology, epistemology, aesthetics, identity, performativity and moral theory are addressed. Care ethics is differentiated from mainstream ethical theories. Care theory is applied to a variety of academic and professional disciplines including but not limited to business, education, healthcare, literature, political science, performance studies, and psychology. (Cross-listed with WS)
PHL 433/533 - Philosophy of Language
Hiller Online
A study of the nature of language and of the problems of meaning, reference, and truth.
PHL 451/551 - Major Figures: The Stoics
Berman
More info coming soon!
PHL 470/570 - Philosophy of Science
Seppalainen Online
History and philosophy of the scientific method. Topics include an overview of the major models of the scientific method (inductivism, falsificationism, Kuhnian paradigms, etc.) and issues pertaining to their rationality such as theory-ladenness of observation, testing-holism, and the incommensurabliity of theory change.
PHL 485 - Honors Seminar
Seppalainen
Students conduct research and produce substantial written material on a topic, to be shared and critiqued.