Philosophy

This unit engages students with fundamental philosophical questions through active, guided investigation and critical discussion of two key areas of philosophy: epistemology and metaphysics. Students investigate relevant debates in applied epistemology and metaphysics, and consider whether the philosophical bases of these debates continue to have relevance in contemporary society and our everyday lives. Students will undertake a philosophical inquiry to analyse philosophical viewpoints and arguments, including those in metaphysics and epistemology.

This unit enables students to explore these questions in relation to different categories of value judgment within the realms of morality, political and social philosophy and aesthetics. Students will discover if there are basic principles and underlying ideas of morality and assessing ethical viewpoints and arguments according to standards of logic and consistency. Philosophers consider a range of other types of values, including social, political and aesthetic value. Students will explore how philosophical methods can be brought to bear on a range of questions regarding value. They will undertake a philosophical inquiry.

This unit considers basic questions regarding the mind and the self through two key questions: Are human beings more than their bodies? Is there a basis for the belief that an individual remains the same person over time? Students examine the views of those who argue that the mind is nothing more than the body, as well as those that think there is more to the human mind than just the body, and consider whether the two can exist independently of each other. They will explore selected positions on personal identity and the arguments for and against them. Students will apply their understanding of philosophical concepts and problems related to personal identity to analyses of contemporary debates such as organ transplants and cloning.

This unit considers the crucial question of what it is for a human to live well. Students critically compare the viewpoints and arguments in set texts to their views on how we should live, and use their understandings to inform a reasoned response to contemporary debates. They are exposed to philosophical concepts, debates and perspectives on the nature of the good life through a study of philosophical texts, additionally, students will develop their own critical responses to the authors’ viewpoints and arguments. They will develop and justify responses to debates on technological development in relation to the good life. This will include the interplay between the changing conditions of contemporary life and our ability to live a good life.