PHL - Philosophy

An introduction to philosophy, the practice of deep reflective exploration of life and the world. It critically introduces some of the major approaches, topics, and figures that have shaped the discipline. Course sections may center on a specific philosophical theme including contemporary social justice issues or non-western approaches. Students will also apply basic principles of logic and critical reasoning. A writing embedded course.

This course develops knowledge and skills for living ethically by exploring and critically examining philosophical perspectives (historical or contemporary) on topics like: how we should choose to act, what beings are owed moral concern, what kind of character we should cultivate as part of a community, what counts as a life well-lived, and how these issues may intersect with concerns about forms of oppression and the nature of a just society.

Analysis of some major topics in contemporary socio-political thought, e.g., freedom, social justice and structural violence, equality, the relation between rights and obligations, sovereignty, authority, legitimacy, and consent.

An investigation of the philosophical underpinnings of various feminist theories and their implications for philosophical inquiry from De Beauvoir to Irigaray.

This course offers an introduction to basic concepts of logic, including the nature and evaluation of arguments as well as an examination of common informal fallacies. Students will also be introduced to major systems of logic (categorical, propositional, and/or predicate logic) including ordinary-language statements into each logical system and testing arguments for validity within each system.

An inquiry into our obligations to the non-human world and the philosophical basis of that obligation.

This course will examine ethical issues in medicine, biotechnology, and related fields. Issues to be discussed may include the concept of informed consent, stem cell research, reproductive technologies, human enhancement, end of life issues, the global AIDS epidemic, genetics, biomedical research, and justice in the distribution of healthcare.

This course will delve into the growing philosophical and scientific literature on the nature of consciousness, exploring which non-human animals could be said to be conscious and why, whether insects are conscious, and whether it makes sense to talk about plant consciousness. The course engages the interdisciplinary field of consciousness studies and looks at the ethical implications of finding consciousness in the non-human world.

This course surveys the field of metaphysics, including its basic concepts (e.g., likeness, identity, and existence), ontological categorizations (e.g., abstract and concrete objects, actual and merely possible entities, particulars and universals), and some central topical issues (e.g., free will, God, personal identity over time, and the mind-body problem). Salzburg Only. Approval of Studies abroad Director Required.

This course explains the nature and source of reality in classical and contemporary Asian philosophies. It focuses on such questions as the origin and nature of ultimate reality, the nature of the self in relation to reality, freedom and causality in human existence, idealism and realism, and methodological approaches to apprehending reality.

This course explains a set of conceptual problems involving the nature of mind and of psychological explanations of behavior. These range from classical discussions of the "mind-body problem" to contemporary debates concerning consciousness, mental representation, mental content, innate ideas, the nature of concepts, and the plausibility of psycho-physical reductionism.

This course explains a broad range of metaphysical issues concerning the nature of God (or a god) and religious experience. It focuses on some major areas of debate such as arguments for the existence of a god, whether such a god should be conceived as a person, the problem of evil, and the relationship of faith and reason.

This course studies some major topics and approaches in the history of philosophical reflection on Being and ontology from the beginnings of metaphysical speculation in the pre-Socratics through the contemporary period. Topics may include potency and act, essence and existence, causality, the ontolological foundations of logic, and the question of God.

This course studies a range of metaphysical issues relevant to the nature of personal identity and self-consciousness such as identity over time, what makes someone a person, the nature of self-consciousness, the relationship of the self to a body, freedom of the will, the development of the self in the context of society and socio-political relations.

This course explores Native American Philosophy with particular emphasis on Mexico or the continental US. Topically, the course focuses on metaphysical aspects of Native American thought such as the nature or reality, time, space, truth, freedom, the self and the relationship between the self and the world.

This course explores various philosophical conceptions of freedom and the issues that they raise. Topics may include free will and determinism, existentialism and freedom, whether freedom is related to reason, and the implications of metaphysical freedom for political liberation and moral responsibility.

This course explores the metaphysical views of the Ancient Greeks with particular emphasis on the broad historical, cultural, and political context out of which their views emerge. Possible topics include their conceptions of reality, change, knowledge, philosophical method, love, and friendship. The course will also explore the influence of these ideas on the Western philosophical tradition.

A study of how the elements of text and performance in Shakespeare’s plays engage metaphysical questions, including the nature of mind and agency, the distinction of truth from illusion, the significance of gender and class in personal identity, and the struggle between faith and reason. Students attend performances at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. Taught 2nd summer term. Fee: $350

This course explores philosophical issues regarding fundamental concepts of science that grew out of the Scientific Revolution. It asks the following questions: What metaphysical presuppositions about the world changes from the medieval world to the modern world? What conception of science grew out of this period? And what does our “modern” perspective owe to the so-called “dark ages” of the medieval period?

This course covers central topics in social epistemology, a field that examines the social dimensions of knowledge. Students will study peer disagreement, polarization and epistemic injustice, examining both the nature of such phenomena and the morally and rationally appropriate responses to them. The course aims to familiarize students with these debates and develop the skills of critical reasoning and writing.

The origins of Western philosophy and its development up to Plotinus, including the pre-Socratics, Plato, Aristotle, Hellenistic schools (Epicureans, Stoics, Skeptics), and Neoplatonism. Taught biennially.

The major philosophers from Augustine through late scholasticism with particular attention to Augustine, Anselm, Aquinas, Bonaventure, Scotus, and Ockham. Taught biennially.

Philosophical figures and topics from the Renaissance through Kant: the scientific revolution, continental rationalism (Descartes, Leibniz), British empiricism (Locke, Hume, Berkeley), and Kant's transcendental philosophy. Taught biennially.

An examination of nineteenth-century philosophy focusing upon the work of Hegel. The course traces the roots of Hegelianism in German idealism, the British Economists, and romanticism, and its influences on subsequent involvements including Marxism, existentialism, and American pragmatism. Taught biennially.

This course provides a critical examination of “race”, gender, and colonialism in the theory and practice of “Western”/Global North philosophy and history.  Metaphysical, epistemological, ontological, phenomenological, and ethical issues will be highlighted, as well as the intersectional dimensions of gender, sex, economic class, language, and other factors.

Examines political foundations of education alongside epistemological, ontological, phenomenological, metaphysical, and ethical lines of inquiry.  Addresses issues relating to educational injustices, such as discrimination, oppression, colonialism.  Features thinkers outside the "Western" canon of philosophy, and thinkers “outside” the discipline of philosophy, as this discipline has often been construed by the "Western" tradition. 

The basic philosophical principles of justice and law in the Western legal traditions: morality and law; natural and positive law; Roman law and common law traditions; logic, language, and symbols of law; Marxian concept of law; legal education.

An analysis of fundamental concepts of science: fact, law, observation, theory, explanation, truth, discovery, progress, methods of scientific reasoning, science and pseudo-science, moral implications of scientific research, science and society.

An inquiry into current issues and debates in the field of ethics. The course will consider the relationship of ethical debates to other areas of philosophy. Investigation may focus on issues such as autonomy, internalism, moral realism, and/or the relationship between moral philosophy and problems in social and political philosophy.

A survey of existential philosophers including Sartre, De Beauvoir, Marcel, and Merleau-Ponty; a critical study of their reflections on the nature and meaning of human existence, freedom, and authenticity.

Credit arranged.

Research, study, or original work under the direction of a faculty mentor, leading to a scholarly thesis document with a public presentation of results. Requires approval of thesis director and department chair.