Philosophy courses (3600)

Course search

To see which classes are offered for a specific semester, follow the instructions below:

  1. Go to the course list
  2. Above the table, select which Term you are searching (ie: fall, summer, spring)
  3. Find the column labeled Course #
  4. Type in "3600" to see only the philosophy classes
sample philosophy course search

Philosophy course list

101 INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
Introduction to the methods of philosophy, important leading thinkers, and topics such as free will, consciousness, goodness, truth, and beauty.

120 INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS 3 credits
Introduction to problems of moral conduct through readings from the tradition and class discussions; nature of “good,” “right,” “ought” and “freedom.”

125 THEORY AND EVIDENCE 3 credits
An investigation of the concept of evidence and the criteria for the evaluation of theories in various areas of study, including natural sciences, social sciences, and philosophy. The role of scientific information in the formation and justification of value judgments.

150 CRITICAL THINKING 3 credits
Examination of good and bad reasoning patterns. Topics may include rational and persuasive arguments, deductive and inductive inference, causal and basic statistical inference, logical fallacies, and moral arguments.

170 INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC 3 credits
Introduction to logic and critical thinking. Includes such topics as meaning, informal fallacies, propositional logic, predicate and syllogistic logic and nature of induction.

200 PHILOSOPHY OF WORLD RELIGIONS 3 credits
A philosophical examination of the major religious traditions of the world including Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, tribal religions, and others.

207 FOOD ETHICS 3 credits
Considers ethical questions about food choices and policies, what individuals eat, and what actions society ought to take regarding food growth, processing, marketing, selling, and consumption.

210 LOGIC FOR LAWYERS 3 credits
An introduction to applied deductive and inductive logic reasoning skills, concentrating on applications to reasoning in legal contexts, e.g., courtroom argumentation and jury deliberations.

211 HISTORY OF ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
History and development of ancient Greek philosophy including Pre-Socrates, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Hellenistic philosophers. Readings of primary sources in translation.

312 HISTORY OF MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
History of Western philosophy from end of Roman Empire to Renaissance. Major philosophers studied include St. Augustine, St. Anselm, Peter Abelard, St. Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus and William of Ockham. Readings from primary sources.

313 HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
Analysis of major philosophical issues of 17th and 18th centuries from Descartes through Kant. Readings of primary sources in translation.

323 ADVANCED TOPICS IN ETHICS 3 credits
(May be repeated with change of topic for a total of nine credits) An examination of selected topics in applied ethics and ethical theory, such as the ethics of cloning, evolutionary ethics, history of ethics and ethical issues from the Human Genome Project. Specific topics will be announced in the course schedule.

324 SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
An examination of the normative justification of social, political institutions and practices. Analysis of concepts such as rights, justice, equality, political obligation from historical as well as contemporary points of view. Application to particular social issues covered.

327 LAW AND MORALITY 3 credits
Nature of law examined from the perspective of the law’s alleged obligation to be ethical and promote justice.

329 PHILOSOPHY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW 3 credits
Inquiry into the theories of utility of international law and the philosophical controversies surround them, e.g., international legal norms vs. international relations.

331 PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION 3 credits
Discussion, analysis of problems of theology, nature of religious experience; God’s nature, existence; immortality, sin, faith, reason; holy revelation and redemption.

333 PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND RELIGION 3 credits
Survey of conflict, independence, and integration models of science and religion. Topics include: origin and nature of the universe, life, mind, value, meaning, science, religion.

340 EASTERN PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
Examination and evaluation of philosophical traditions from India, China and Japan, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism.

350 PHILOSOPHY OF ART 3 credits
An examination of theories of the nature of art and the grounds of aesthetic evaluation. Analysis of such concepts as representation, form, content, expression, institution, convention, meaning and truth as they apply in the context of the arts.

361 BIOMEDICAL ETHICS 3 credits
The identification, analysis and evaluation of ethical issues arising most critically in the biomedical setting, e.g., abortion, termination of treatment, definition of death, IVF, AIDS.

362 BUSINESS ETHICS 3 credits
Basic moral theories, moral principles and the decision-making process, applied to issues in business.

363 POLICE ETHICS 3 credits
Basic moral concepts and their application to the criminal justice system. Concerned with such issues as punishment, the use of force and conflict resolution.

364 DIGITAL ETHICS 3 credits
A critical examination of ethical issues arising in connection with digital technology, e.g., data privacy and use, artificial intelligence, censorship, and social media.

365 ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS 3 credits
Examination of the moral relationships among human beings, other species, and their shared environment. Ethical aspects of agriculture, global warming, extinction, and wilderness.

366 ENGINEERING ETHICS 3 credits
Addresses the specific ethical issues and problems that arise in the practice and study of engineering as a discipline.

371 PHILOSOPHY OF MIND 3 credits
Nature of mind and the relationship between mind and body. Specific topics such as the limits of human reason, personal identity, the role of human thought in action and whether machines can think are also considered.

374 SYMBOLIC LOGIC 3 credits
Systematic study of various forms of deduction. Techniques and topics include truth-functional analysis and quantification.

392 INTERNSHIP IN PHILOSOPHY 1-3 credits
(May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credits) Prerequisite: 2.7 GPA and permission of instructor. Placement in appropriate public or private sector organization. Written assignments required.

411/511 PLATO 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Detailed study of the origin and development of Plato’s theory of forms and the related theories of knowledge, ethics and politics.

414/514 AQUINAS 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. An in-depth examination of the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas covering his contributions in metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political theory, and philosophical theology.

415/515 AUGUSTINE 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. An in-depth examination of the philosophy of St. Augustine covering his contributions in metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political theory, and philosophical theology.

418/518 20TH CENTURY ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Study of ideal and ordinary language movements in 20th century British and American philosophy. Deals with such figures as Russell, Carnap, Ayer, Moore, Wittgenstein, Ryle and Austen.

421/521 PHILOSOPHY OF LAW 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Identification and critical evaluation of classic and contemporary theories and assumptions of law, including legal reasoning, justice, natural law, punishment, etc.

424/524 EXISTENTIALISM 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. In-depth inquiry into the thought of Kierkegaard, Jaspers, Heidegger, Sartre, Tillich and other existentialists with their concern for the human condition.

426/526 PHENOMENOLOGY 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Inquiry into methodology of Husserl and Heidegger and their influence upon Western European and American thought.

432/532 ARISTOTLE 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Detailed study of Aristotle’s metaphysics, philosophy of nature, philosophy of mankind and ethics.

434/534 KANT 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Study of Kantian system of thought and its relation to history of philosophy. Includes thorough investigation of one or more of Kant’s philosophic works.

455/555 PHILOSOPHY OF FEMINISM 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in Philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Introduction to feminist critiques of, and alternatives to, traditional western philosophy, including topics in ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, and religion.

461/561 NEUROETHICS 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Discussion and evaluation of contemporary theories of moral agency arising from developments in neuroscience.

462/562 THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Examination of nature of knowledge; theories of perception, conception and truth, problem of induction and relation of language to knowledge.

464/564 PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Nature of scientific inquiry, types of explanation, laws and causality, theoretical concepts and reality. Also considers critics of hypothetical-deductive view of science, e.g., Hanson and Kuhn.

471/571 METAPHYSICS 3 credits
Prerequisite: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Theories about ultimate nature and ultimate explanation of reality. Uses readings from classical and contemporary sources.

480/580 SEMINAR IN PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
(May be repeated for additional credit with change of topic) Prerequisite: one course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Varying philosophical topics not covered in regular course offerings.

481/581 PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE 3 credits
Prerequisites: One course in philosophy with a grade of C or higher. Contemporary philosophies about nature of language and its relation to reality and human thinking. Includes discussion of views of linguists such as Chomsky.

490 SENIOR HONORS PROJECT IN PHILOSOPHY 3 credits
(May be repeated for 1-3 credits for a total of 6 credits) Prerequisite: Senior standing in Honors College or senior honors standing as philosophy major and permission of Philosophy Department Honors preceptor. Research leading to completion of senior honors thesis involving original work under faculty supervision.

497 INDIVIDUAL STUDY IN PHILOSOPHY 1-3 credits
(May be repeated for a total of 6 credits) Prerequisite: completion of required courses of philosophy major or permission of instructor and department head. Directed independent study of philosopher, philosophy or philosophical problem under guidance of selected faculty member. Subject matter determined by selected faculty member in consultation with student. Graduate credit requires significant additional work which may include additional research paper.

665 ETHICS OF SCIENCE 3 credits
Examination of the foundational issues surrounding ethics and science as well as consideration of applied ethical issues of scientists, science, new technologies, and society.