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Mendocino Hall
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D. Kolak & R. Martin
The Experience of Philosophy
Jostein Gaarder
Sophie's World
Plato
Aristotle
Epicurus
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Hobbes
David Hume
Immanuel Kant
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| time & place |
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Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9:00 - 9:50 am
Alpine Hall, Room 232
Office Hours: Wednesday, 10:00 - 11:00 am and by appointment |
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| description |
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Introduction to Philosophy: Knowledge, World and Self
CSUS Catalog Description: Representative selection of philosophical problems will be explored in areas such as knowledge, reality, religion, science, politics, art and morals. Units: 3.0. General Education Area C3: Introduction to the Humanities and C1: World Civilizations.
Description for my section: If you are tempted to divide your college courses into those that are ‘useful’ and those that are ‘useless,’ beware! If you believe that the useful courses are only those that describe how the world works (including how you work)—economics, chemistry, marketing, biology, business, engineering—consider this: Thinking about why the world is the way it is could be a big advantage in understanding how the world works the way it does. Some might even say that describing how without exploring why is no real knowledge at all—or even more severely, in the words of Socrates, that “…an unexamined life is not worth living.”
In this course, we will examine some of the why questions that lie at the very heart of all the useful courses: What does it all matter? Is it all matter? Is mind matter? If it’s all matter, including me, why am I free and conscious and a computer isn’t? Could one ever be? What kind of being am I? Am I a body, or do I have a body? What does it mean to know something correctly? How do we know a ‘fact of knowledge’ is really knowledge of a fact? Does reason have rules? What is the good life? Can there be good without evil? Would the useful courses even exist today without the useless ones taught ages and ages ago?
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| requirements |
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Our work will primarily be lecture and discussion, so both careful attention to the readings and class participation will be crucial for a lively course. Please bring your text to class.
There will be two examinations--one take-home mid-term paper and one in-class final--as well as several unannounced short answer quizzes on the readings. All written work must comply with Philosophy Department guidelines, which can be found here. The departmental grading policy for written work can be found here. |
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| required texts |
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D. Kolak & R. Martin, The Experience of Philosophy (6th Ed.) Oxford University Press (2006): ISBN: 9780195177688
J. Gaarder, Sophie’s World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy. Berkley (1996): ISBN: 0425152251
These are available at the university bookstore. Other readings will be made available for viewing or download here. |
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| grading |
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| Class
participation: |
15% |
(2 unexcused absences results in 0%) |
| Quizzes:
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25% |
(These are written pop quizzes on the reading assignments) |
| Mid-term
exam: |
25% |
(4-6 page take-home exam/paper) |
| Final
exam: |
35% |
(In-class final exam) |
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| lecture schedule |
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Week 1
1/28 |
General introduction and background
Questions about knowledge (epistemology)
Plato’s "Simile of the Line" and "Allegory of the Cave," EP, 208-211 |
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Week 2
2/04 |
Epistemology (continued):
Readings from Plato's "Theaetetus," EP, 211-223 |
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Week 3
2/11 |
Scientific vs. ‘Philosophical’ knowledge: Hume, on Empiricism and Skepticism, EP, 356-360; Kant on Knowledge from Reason and Experience, EP, 422-433. |
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Week 4
2/18 |
“Natural philosophy” and philosophy as “natural”
Sophie’s World, 1-71; Daniel Kolak: “Quantum Cosmology, the Anthropic Principle, and Why Is There Something Rather Than Nothing?” EP, 372-395 |
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Week 5
2/25 |
Deduction of nature and induction from nature; Plato, Aristotle, and Hellenic Philosophy
Sophie’s World, 72-148; Derek Parfit, “The Puzzle of Reality: Why Does the Universe Exist?” EP, 396-404 |
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Week 6
3/03 |
First principles and other necessary presuppositions: Matters of Belief (‘faith’?) in philosophy and science
The Ontological Argument: Anselm and Gaunilo, EP, 262-265; Aquinas’ Five Proofs for God’s Existence, EP, 265-268; Sophie’s World, 149-187 |
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Week 7
3/10 |
Fides et Ratio (faith and reason)--Philosophy, Theology, and Science (continued):
Aquinas, "The Five Ways and the Doctrine of Analogy," EP 265-267; Pascal, "The Wager," EP 268-270; Sophie’s World, 188-215
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Week 8
3/17 |
The Metaphysical Implications of Good and Evil:
Hume, "God and Evil," EP 283-289; "Must God Create The Best?" EP 290-297; Sophie’s World, 216-256
MIDTERM EXAM DISTRIBUTED FRIDAY 3/21 |
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Week 9
3/24 |
The Fact of Experience and The Experience of Fact: How do we know what’s real, including us?: Hobbes on sense and imagination, EP, 406-409; Locke on experience and understanding, EP, 409-419; Hume on the senses, EP, 419-422; Sophie’s World, 257-286
MIDTERM EXAM COLLECTED FRIDAY 3/28 |
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SPRING
BREAK |
3/31 - 4/06 |
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Week 10
4/07 |
Sophie’s World, 287-321 |
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Week 11
4/14 |
Sophie’s World, 322-341 |
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Week 12
4/21 |
Sophie’s World, 342-403 |
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Week 13
4/28 |
The Question of Free Will and Determinism:
Augustine, "Freedom of the Will," EP 148-151; Richard Taylor, "Freedom and Determinism," EP 183-193; Sophie's World, 404-446 |
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Week 14
5/05 |
Then what is it all and what are we all? What is the point of it and of us? Perhaps one clue is that we can even ask these questions… Sophie’s World, 447-513 (the end.) |
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Week 15
4/12 |
Review |
Additional Information
Satisfies Area C1: World Civilizations
Learning Objectives:
- Investigate major philosophical problems by a careful study of some good, representative philosophical texts.
- Encourage you to question and examine your own presuppositions and deep-rooted prejudices.
- To defend your own position on a philosophical issue by careful argument.
Satisfies Area C3: Intro to the Humanities
Learning Objectives:
- Develops a comprehensive understanding and appreciation of the cultural heritage in the humanities.
- Focuses on ideas and values of various cultures and traditions as expressed in their philosophies.
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