PHIL 201
Printable Syllabus
PHIL 201: Introduction to Philosophy
Instructor: Jonathan Tsou
Iowa State University
Office: Catt Hall 429
Course Description: This course provides an introduction to philosophy, focusing on topics in metaphysics (theory of existence) and epistemology (theory of knowledge). The course requires no previous familiarity with philosophy and has no prerequisites. Specific topics covered in the course include: (1) the nature of philosophy, (2) the nature and limitations of human knowledge, (3) the existence of God and rationality of religious belief, (4) the mind-body problem, and (5) the problem of freedom and determinism. Students will read a variety of important historical and contemporary philosophical readings, including writings by Plato, René Descartes, St. Thomas Aquinas, John Locke, David Hume, Bertrand Russell, and Thomas Nagel. This course will be of interest, not only to philosophy majors, but to all students interested in learning about the history of Western thought.
Course Text:
Louis P. Pojman and James Fieser (eds.) (2007). Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings, 4th edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Required)
Course Evaluation:
Attendance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15%
Quizzes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10%
Midterm Exam (Theory of Knowledge) . . . . . . . . . . .15%
Assignment 1 (Philosophy of Religion) . . . . . . . . . . . 15%
Assignment 2 (Philosophy of Mind) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15%
Final Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30%
There will be 10-15 pop quizzes to test whether students have done the readings (worth 10% in total). There will also be two short (3-4 pp.) writing assignments (worth 15% each) that require students to write succinct answers to questions on a topic related to the readings. The midterm (worth 15%) and final (worth 30%) exams are multiple-choice format. There will also be opportunities for students to pick up extra bonus marks (worth up to 5%) for participation in classroom discussion and group activities.
Reading Schedule:
All readings are in Pojman and Fieser’s, Introduction to Philosophy, 4th ed. Readings should be read prior to the date they appear
Philosophy Timeline
1. WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?
Week 1 What is Philosophy? (Recommended)
Bertrand Russell, The Value of Philosophy
Week 2 Plato, Socratic Wisdom: The Trial of Socrates
John Locke, Philosophy as the Love of Truth versus Enthusiasm
2. THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE
Week 3 Theory of Knowledge (Recommended)
Plato, The Theory of Forms and Doctrine of Recollection
René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy (Meditations 1-2)
Week 4 René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy (Meditations 3-4)
John Locke, Knowledge through Experience
Week 5 David Hume, Experience and the Limits of Human Reasoning
Richard Rorty, Dismantling Truth: Solidarity versus Objectivity
Daniel Dennett, Postmodernism and Truth
Week 6 Lorraine Code, A Feminist Epistemology?
* * * MIDTERM EXAM * * *
3. PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
Week 7 Philosophy of Religion (Recommended)
St. Thomas Aquinas, The Five Ways
Samuel Clarke and David Hume, The Causal Argument for God
F. C. Coplestone and Bertrand Russell, A Debate on the Argument from
Contingency
Week 8 William Paley, The Watch and the Watchmaker
David Hume, A Critique of the Teleological Argument
Anselm versus Gaunilo, The Ontological Argument
Week 9 Bruce Russell, The Problem of Evil: Why Is There So Much Suffering?
Richard Swinburne, A Theistic Response to the Problem of Evil
Week 10 Blaise Pascal, Faith is a Rational Wager
W. K. Clifford, The Ethics of Belief
William James, The Will to Believe
4. PHILOSOPHY OF MIND
Week 11 * * * ASSIGNMENT #1 due in class * * *
Philosophy of Mind (Recommended)
René Descartes, Interactive Dualism
Anne Conway, Mind and Body as Continuum
Week 12 Paul Churchland, A Critique of Dualism
Paul Churchland, On Functionalism and Materialism
Thomas Nagel, What Is It Like to be a Bat?
Week 13 David Chalmers, Against Materialism: Can Consciousness Be Reductively
Explained?
Paper Workshop Class (optional)
5. FREEDOM AND DETERMINISM
Week 14 * * * ASSIGNMENT #2 due in class * * *
Freedom of the Will, Responsibility, and Punishment (Recommended)
Baron Paul Henri d’Holbach, A Defense of Determinism
Richard Taylor, Libertarianism: Defense of Free Will
Week 15 W. T. Stace, Compatibilism: Free Will Is Consistent with Determinism
Harry Frankfurt, Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person
Susan Wolf, Sanity and the Metaphysics of Responsibility
TBA * * * FINAL EXAM * * *