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Philosophy 111.02: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY Fall, 1999
There will also be a packet of copied material available from the College Bookstore. Course Objectives The purpose of this course is to provide students with a general introduction to some of the major figures in the history of Western philosophy. During the semester, we will examine a number of basic philosophical approaches (idealism, realism, rationalism, empiricism, existentialism) as well as some of the main philosophical problems which the advocates of these approaches have addressed: the sources of knowledge; the relation between the human mind and the human body; freedom, determinism and responsibility; proving the existence of God; etc. In our examination of these philosophical approaches, the basic philosophical skills of reasoning, argumentation, and evaluation will be developed – that is, we will examine what these philosophers have said, why they have made these claims, and whether or not they have good reasons for making these claims. By the end of the semester, students should be both more adept at utilizing these skills and more familiar with the way some representative philosophers have utilized them in attempting to answer some fundamental philosophical questions. Final grades will be determined on the basis of the following requirements:
ATTENDANCE: You are expected to attend class. Although attendance normally will not be taken, excessive unexcused absences will result in a lowering of your grade for the class participation component. More than EIGHT unexcused absences will result in failure of the course. You will be responsible for the material covered in class, not all of which will be found in the readings. In addition, you may find some of the selections difficult; there should be ample time for you to raise questions in class as well as for class discussions, during which some of the more difficult ideas should be clarified. LATE POLICY: Written assignments which are submitted late will be penalized one letter grade for each 24 hours late. Papers submitted more than 48 hours late will NOT be accepted. Exceptions to this policy will be made only for medical reasons.
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