UMass Course Catalog: Philosophy Courses

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Philosophy Courses
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(All courses carry 3 credits unless otherwise noted.)

100 Introduction to Philosophy (AL) (both sem)

Content varies somewhat depending on instructor; students are encouraged to read the detailed descriptions published each semester in the Course Description Guide. The following are typical. 1) Introduction to philosophical thinking, focusing primarily on the thought of Plato and Descartes, contemporary treatment of some of the problems they raised. 2) Introduction to argument analysis and interpretation of philosophical texts, focusing on the issues of skepticism, God, mind and body, free will, causation, and induction, with readings from Gournay, Descartes, Berkeley, and Hume. 3) Introduction to philosophical thinking, stressing the formulation and evaluation of logical arguments, with readings from Plato and Descartes, and recent works on mind and free will.

110 Introduction to Logic (R2) (both sem)

Introduction to symbolic logic. Two systems examined: 1) Sentential Logic, 2) Predicate Logic. Work divided between translating English sentences into symbolic notation and constructing formal derivations.

160 Introduction to Ethics (AT) (both sem)

Consideration of some of the most important theories about right and wrong, good and evil, and virtue and vice. One focus on clear and accurate formulation of the theories, another on understanding and evaluating classic objections to them. Readings from Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Kant, Bentham, Mill, and Moore.

161 Problems in Social Thought (SB)

Introduction to social and political issues through readings by key thinkers in the Western tradition, including Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Mill, and Marx, as well as 20th-century authors. Topics include liberty, authority, equality, democracy, justice, property, and the ideal society.

163 Business Ethics (AT)

Survey of basic concepts and theories of ethics. Consideration of specific ethical problems that businesses and business people are apt to face.

164 Medical Ethics (AT) (both sem)

An introduction to ethics through issues of medicine and health care. Topics include abortion, euthanasia, truth-telling, medical experimentation, and the allocation of scarce medical resources.

165 Engineering Ethics (AT)

Consideration of several ethical theories which then guide discussions on such top-ics as whistleblowing, acceptable risk, privacy, intellectual property rights, professional responsibility, and professional liability. Emphasis on writing assignments.

192R Reason and Evidence (2nd sem)

Aims at imparting some of the critical reasoning skills needed to be a successful juror. Topics include: deductive and probabilistic reasoning; sophisms and fallacies committed by trial lawyers; how to weigh and evaluate scientific evidence, eyewitness testimony, and conspiracy theories; the concept of reasonable doubt; and jury nullification. Recent trials used for illustration.

310 Intermediate Logic (2nd sem)

Continuation of PHIL 110. Three new logical systems examined: 1) Function Logic, 2) Identity Logic, 3) Description Logic. Work divided between translating English sentences into symbolic notation and constructing formal derivations. Prerequisite: PHIL 110 or consent of instructor.

320 History of Ancient Philosophy (HS) (1st sem)

Reading and discussion of three or four of Plato's dialogues and of representative selections from an anthology of the writings of Aristotle. Fulfills the Junior Year Writing requirement for philosophy majors.

321 History of Modern Philosophy (HS) (2nd sem)

Study of the major metaphysical and epistemological contributions of some of the leading European philosophers of the 17th and 18th centuries, including Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke,and Hume. Fulfills the Junior Year Writing requirement for Philosophy majors.

329 Medieval Philosophy (2nd sem)

Medieval conceptions of God and the cosmos, and of the nature and destiny of man, as expressed in the writings of Augustine, Aquinas, and Dante.

330 Continental Rationalism (1st sem)

Critical study of selected works in metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophical theology by leading 17th-century rationalists: Descartes, Spinoza, Malebranche, and Leibniz.

331 British Empiricism (2nd sem)

Critical study of the major works of Locke, Berkeley, and Hume. Emphasis on philosophical issues of current interest.

332 Kant (HS) (1st sem)

The thought of Immanuel Kant, with emphasis on the Critique of Pure Reason.

334 American Philosophy

Consideration of the thought of Jonathan Edwards and Ralph Waldo Emerson, followed by substantial study of pragmatism, covering both the great classical figures (Peirce, James, and Dewey) and contemporary pragmatists such as W.V. Quine.

335 Analytic Philosophy (1st sem)

Consideration of British philosophy in roughly the first half of the 20th century. Includes such topics as philosophical analysis, logical atomism, logical positism, and linguistic philosophy. Readings include essays by Moore, Russell, Ayer, Wittgenstein, Ryle, and Austin.

336 Existential Philosophy (AL) (2nd sem)

An introduction to the main themes of Existentialism through seminal writing by Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Sartre.

361 Philosophy of Art (AT) (1st sem)

Philosophical questions about art and literature in general and questions arising from particular works of visual and literary art.

362 Approaches to Politics and Society (1st sem)

Critical study of several classics of modern political theory, including works by Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Mill.

381 Philosophy of Women (SBD) (2nd sem)

Philosophical discussions of women's intellectual and moral capacities, and their appropriate social roles. Readings include works by modern and contemporary authors. Prerequisite: one previous course in philosophy.

382 Philosophical Approaches to Science

Introduction to the logic and methodology of science, and to scientific thinking. How to think scientifically, how to distinguish science from pseudo-science, and how to recognize and avoid common fallacies in everyday reasoning.

383 Philosophical Approaches to Religion

Critical survey of some of the traditional philosophical problems of Western religion, e.g., the existence of God, reason and faith, and the problem of evil. Contemporary criticisms of, and responses to, religious belief.

391S Space and Time

Critical consideration of philosophical and scientific conceptions of space and time. Emphasis on class discussion. Prerequisite: two courses in philosophy or consent of instructor. Some knowledge of physics helpful, but not essential.

392M The Mind-Body Problem

An intensive introduction to the philosophy of mind with emphasis on the mind-body problem. Prerequisite: two previous philosophy courses or consent of instructor.

393D Death

A philosophical study of the nature and value of death. Readings from classical and contemporary sources.

395M Seminar for Majors (2nd sem)

Seminar divided into two-week segments, each devoted to a different topic of current interest, each led by a different member of the faculty. Considerable reading and writing expected. Restricted to Junior and Senior Philosophy majors.

511 Modal Logic (2nd sem)

Propositional and quantified modal logic, syntax, and semantics. With these as a base, a study of philosophically interesting extensions into intensional logic. Subjects may include: subjunctive conditionals, presupposition and truth-value gaps, tense logic, counter-part theory, Hintikka style logics of knowledge and belief, contingent identity systems, actualist interpretations of modal logic.

512 Philosophy and Logic (1st sem)

Topics in philosophical logic, selected from alethic modal logic, tense logic, deontic logic, epistemic logic, propositional attitudes, supervaluations, plurals, questions, type theory, and higher-order logic. Prerequisite: PHIL 310 or consent of instructor.

513 Mathematical Logic I

Elementary metamathematics. The completeness and Lowenheim-Skolem theorems. Elementary number theory. Godel's incompleteness theorems.

514 Mathematical Logic II (1st sem)

A mathematically rigorous introduction to set theory, focusing on topics of philosophical relevance. Prerequisite: some formal logic or consent of instructor.

550 Epistemology

Basic topics in the theory of knowledge such as the distinction between a priori and a posteriori knowledge, our knowledge of the external world, and the nature of experimental inference.

551 Metaphysics

Standard issues in metaphysics such as identity, existence, causality, and truth.

562 History of Ethics

Reading and discussion of classic texts, selected from Hobbes, Hume, Kant, Mill, Moore, and Ross.

563 Ethical Theory (1st sem)

Focus is on the formulation and evaluation of the most important theories in normative ethics, metaethics, and axiology. Topics include: act utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism; naturalism, emotivism, and non-naturalism; hedonism and pluralism. Prerequisite: PHIL 160 or consent of instructor.

582 Philosophy of Science

Critical study of issues in confirmation theory. For advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Prerequisites: two courses in philosophy or consent of instructor.

584 Philosophy of Language

Selected topics in contemporary philosophy of language. Prerequisite: consent of instructor for undergraduate students.

591A Aristotle

Careful consideration of selected topics in the philosophy of Aristotle, including the categories, essentialism, future contingents, weakness of will, and happiness.

591K Kant

The critical philosophy of Immanuel Kant, with emphasis on the Critique of Pure Reason. For advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Prerequisites: two courses in philosophy or consent of instructor.

591W Early Modern Women Philosophers (1st sem)

Survey of women's contributions to 17th- and 18th-century metaphysics, epistemology, and social philosophy. Authors include Gournay, Schurman, Princess Elisabeth, Cavendish, Sor Juana, Astell, Scudery, Queen Christina, Macaulay, and Gouges. Prerequisite: one previous course in philosophy.

592H Hobbes (2nd sem)

Careful reading of Hobbes's Leviathan, with selected references to some of his other works and to secondary material. Focus on Hobbes's ethics and his social and political philosophy.

592P Plato (2nd sem)

Close reading of several early dialogues, with special attention to topics of current scholarly and philosophical interest.

592R Renaissance Philosophy

Careful study of selected works by leading Italian and Northern European humanist philosophers of the 15th and 16th centuries, including Valla, Ficino, Pico, Machiavelli, Erasmus, More, Montaigne, Lipsius, and Bruno.

592W Wittgenstein

Topics include logical atomism, meaning and understanding, intentionality, thinking, the will, the inner and the outer, necessity, skepticism and certainty, the possibility of a "private language," and following a rule. Emphasis on the later Wittgenstein.

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