PHILOSOPHY CATALOG INFORMATION

REQUIREMENTS FOR A PHILOSOPHY MAJOR

A major may be earned by taking 30 semester hours in philosophy, and must include 311, 314 and 355; one course selected from 312, 313, 315, 316; and one course selected from 360, 361, 390.

Philosophy majors must complete a comprehensive examination consisting of four essay questions on broad philosophical topics. These questions will require significant reference to philosophers and philosophic positions central to the western philosophical tradition. Students will be eligible to take this examination after completing 75 hours of course credit and at least two History of Philosophy courses (311, 312, 313, 314, 315, 316). The philosophy comprehensive examination will be administered once each semester. Seniors intending to graduate in the Spring semester must first take the exam the previous Fall semester. Those intending to graduate in the Fall semester must first take the exam the previous Spring semester. Students who fail one question will be given an opportunity to re-take a partial examination during the same semester. Students who fail more than one question will be required to re-take the entire examination during a subsequent semester. A bank of questions from which the exam questions will be drawn will be made available to students at the beginning of each semester. Grades for this examination will be Partial Fail (PF), Fail (F), Pass (P), and Distinguished Pass (DP). 

REQUIREMENTS FOR A PHILOSOPHY MINOR

A minor may be earned by taking 15 semester hours in Philosophy, including two courses selected from 311, 312, 313, 314, 315, and 316.

REQUIREMENTS FOR PHILOSOPHY HONORS

Majors may attain Departmental Honors in Philosophy by completing the following requirements:

(1) maintain an overall 3.5 grade point average in philosophy

(2) complete satisfactorily two of the following courses: 360, 361, or 390

(3) present an honors thesis based on a closely supervised research project to be approved by all members of the Department.

COURSE INFORMATION

PREREQUISITES

No 100-level courses have prerequisites.  All 200-level courses have the following prerequisite: FYS 101.  Prerequisites for all other courses are as listed.  All 100-level and 200-level philosophy courses (180, 190, 195, 205, 220, 230, 240, 250, 290) satisfy block 4 gen-ed requirements.

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

180. Logic and Language (3 hours)
A study of the principles used in distinguishing correct from incorrect reasoning. Special emphasis will be placed upon the application of these principles to everyday language and reasoning. Topics to be studied include: informal fallacies, definitions, categorical propositions and syllogisms, elementary truth functional logic, truth and validity, and induction.

190. Introduction to Philosophy (3 hours)
An introduction to reading, writing, and thinking about philosophy. The western tradition of philosophical thought will define the subject matter of the course. Emphasis will be placed on the cultivation of a philosophical attitude and the development of the art of conceptual analysis and synthesis. Not open to seniors.

195. Introduction to Ethics (3 hours)
A study of the principal ethical traditions of Western culture and their application to contemporary moral issues and social problems. Not open to seniors.

205. The Quest For Meaning (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
Questions of the meaning and purpose of human life are a dominant theme in our reflections on ourselves and our world. What are the sources of meaning in human life? What ideals and possibilities for human life have people in the past envisioned? How does the present age shape or meet our needs for meaning and purpose? The course is designed to explore these questions through readings in philosophy, theology, literature, and the social sciences.

220. Philosophy of Science (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
A study of the nature and logic of the sciences and an analysis of the relation of science to other human concerns: emphasis will be placed on the nature of scientific evidence, explanation, and theory, the nature and history of scientific discovery; the place of science in understanding humans, values, and society. Recommended for junior and senior science majors.

230. Political Philosophy (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
This course will provide an introductory examination of fundamental political issues such as the meaning and requirements of justice and the legitimate source of political authority.  The course may be taught with an historical emphasis, by looking at prominent political philosophers, or with an emphasis on key topics in political philosophy.

240. Philosophy of Religion (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
A study of some of the major problems that arise in the encounter between philosophy and religious belief.

250. Philosophy of Mind (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
This course is an introductory survey in topics in the philosophy of mind.  Topics that will be covered in the course include theories of the nature of mind (dualism, behaviorism, functionalism, etc.), theories of personal identity, and puzzles and problems relating to role and nature of consciousness.  Other topics may include philosophical treatments of: mental causation, perception, mental content and/or artificial or non-human intelligence.

290. Special Topics in Philosophy (3 hours)
Prerequisite: FYS 101.
A study of some significant topic in philosophy.  Suitable for students with no background in philosophy.  May be repeated with a different topic.

312. History of Philosophy II: Hellenistic and Early Medieval Philosophy (3 hours)
Prerequisite: PHI 311.
A survey of Hellenistic and early Medieval philosophy, which can include the Epicurean, Stoic, Skeptical, and Neo-Platonist schools of the Hellenistic world, as well as early Christian thinkers such as Augustine, Boethius, and Anselm.

314. History of Philosophy IV: Early Modern Philosophy (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy.
A survey of early modern philosophy, including figures such as Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, Berkeley, Hume, and Rousseau.

315. History of Philosophy V: Kant and the Nineteenth Century (3 hours)
Prerequisite: PHI 314.
A survey of Kant and nineteenth century philosophy, including figures such as Hegel, Schopenhauer, Marx, Mill, and Nietzsche.

316. History of Philosophy VI: Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century (3 hours)
Prerequisite: PHI 314.
A survey of late nineteenth and early twentieth century philosophy, which can include the schools of existentialism, phenomenology, pragmatism, and analytic philosophy.  Possible figures to be covered include Peirce, James, Husserl, Dewey, Russell, Wittgenstein, Heidegger, and Sartre.

325. Existentialism and Phenomenology (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy.
A study of the major themes of existentialism and phenomenology with some attention to their historical roots in the nineteenth century.

337. Philosophy and Literature (3 hours)
Prerequisite: one course in philosophy.
An examination of the relationship between philosophy and literature, including reading classic and contemporary literary texts as philosophy, and reading representative philosophical texts as literature. Commonalities and distinctions between these two modes of discourse, as well as their historical influence on one another, will be considered.

355. Formal Logic (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy or nine semester hours in mathematics or computer science.
This course is a formal study of inference.  Subject matter may include the syllogism, modal logic, consequences, truth functions, and quantification theory.

360. A Great Ancient or Medieval Philosopher (3 hours)
Prerequisite: PHI 311.
An intensive study of the works of an ancient or medieval philosopher of major importance in the Western tradition. The course is designed to acquaint the student with the principles of philosophical research, as well as to provide an extensive knowledge of the philosophy selected. Typical thinkers include but are not limited to: Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Aquinas. The philosopher selected will appear in the annual schedule of courses and be recorded on the student’s transcript. The course may be taken twice with the consent of the instructor, for a maximum of 6 semester hours credit.

361. A Great Modern Philosopher (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy.
An intensive study of the works of a modern philosopher of recognized stature. Typical thinkers include but are not limited to: Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Marx, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, James, Dewey, Whitehead, Wittgenstein, Heidegger. The philosopher selected will appear in the annual schedule of courses and be recorded on the student’s transcript. This course may be taken twice with the consent of the instructor, for a maximum of 6 semester hours credit.

380. Human Nature and Art (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy or permission of instructor.
This summer course is a study of the changing notions of the human condition in the western tradition as discerned in great works of visual art and architecture studied in situ. At least one week is spent on the Macon campus, orienting students to the aims and requirements of the course; at least two weeks of study abroad, examining appropriate art objects and artifacts, follow.

390. Special Topics in Philosophy (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy, junior or senior status, and consent of the instructor.
An intensive study of some significant topic in philosophy, not otherwise covered in departmental course offerings.

420. Directed Independent Research (3 hours)
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy, junior or senior status, and consent of the instructor.
This course is intended to provide the student with the opportunities to do guided reading in a field of interest. At least one substantial paper is required, and the student must have the project approved by the end of the third week of the semester. The course is available each semester.