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Syllabus contents: Assignments and Grading
Policy Class Schedule and
Required Readings |
PHIL 100 Introduction
to Philosophy |
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Syllabus Instructor:
Prof. Michael Rosenthal Class
Meeting Times and Location: Sections: AA TTh 10:30-11:20 WFS 105
(M. McClain) AB TTh 10:30-11:20 MLR
411 (C.
Schimke) AC TTh 11:30-12:20 CHL
105 (M. McClain) AD TTh 11:30-12:20 CMU 120 (B. Schwartz) AE TTh 11:30-12:20 DEN
314 (E.
Springfield) AF TTh 11:30-12:20
LOW
114 (C. Schimke) AG TTh 12:30-1:20 SAV 168 (B. Schwartz) AH TTh 12:30-1:20
SAV 155 (E. Springfield) TA E-mail
Addresses: Chris Schimke: schimke@uw.edu Ben Schwartz: bhs3@uw.edu Eric Springfield: espringf@uw.edu
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Course Description The purpose of this course is to acquaint students with several of the major themes in classical Western philosophical thought and to provide an overview of their historical development. What is real? What can we know? What is the basis of a good life and a just society? We will examine these questions and various answers to them through reading excerpts from the works of some of the great philosophers in chronological order, from the ancient to the modern period. We will also pay particular attention to the different styles and methods of philosophical argument. Students will be encouraged not only to master the material itself but also to develop their own critical and philosophical skills. The format of this course will be a mixture of lecture and discussion. Assignments and Grading Policy Participation: There are several basic skills involved in philosophy, including reading critically, writing argumentatively, listening carefully, and talking constructively about ideas. If you do not attend class and section regularly you will not be able to participate and develop some of these skills, especially listening and talking. Lack of participation may affect your final grade in a variety of ways. All assignments will be given out in class. I will not send you assignments via e-mail. If you miss class you will have less time to prepare your assignments. You will be less prepared to write your papers and take the final exam. You may well miss the section quizzes and so receive a lower score on this assignment as well. It is in your interest both in terms of your grade and your education to participate regularly in class. 1) Papers: You will be required to write two short papers (5 pages each). For each paper you will be able to choose between two or three assigned topics. The first paper will be due at the beginning of your section on Thursday, October 18th. The second paper will be due at the beginning of your section on Tuesday, November 13th. No papers will be accepted via e-mail or fax. More detailed instructions will be provided with the paper topics approximately two weeks before the due date of each paper. Each paper will be worth 100 points, i.e., 25% of your final grade. Together, both papers will be worth a total of 200 points, or 50% of your final grade. To pass this assignment you will need 106 points total for your two papers. 2) Skills Assignments: Most weeks I will present a basic philosophical technique or concept and you will be given a relatively simple assignment to test your understanding of it. Each assignment will be given out in class on Friday and due at the beginning of your section on Thursday. The due dates for these assignments are noted in the schedule below. No assignments will be accepted via e-mail or fax. Late assignments will not count for your total. Each assignment is worth 10 points for a total of 50 points, i.e., 12.5% of your final grade. You have the option of completing all six assignments. If they are all satisfactory, then you will receive an additional 10 points in extra credit. To pass this assignment you need a minimum of 30 points. 3) Section Quizzes: Every week in your section, sometimes on Tuesday, sometimes on Thursday, there will be a brief quiz, consisting of two questions concerning the text being discussed that day. There will be no make-up quizzes except under the following circumstances: (1) illness supported by doctor’s note; (2) death in the family. Each quiz question will be worth 2.5 points for a total of 50 points possible over the quarter, i.e., 12.5% of your final grade. To pass this assignment you need a minimum of 26.5 points. 4) Final Exam:
On Wednesday,
December 12, 2012, 2:30-4:20 pm This class is a “W” designated course. If you successfully complete these assignments
and if you are taking this course for a grade (and not
satisfactory/non-satisfactory
S/NS), then you will satisfy the requirements for the University
Writing
Requirement. For more information on
this requirement, see: http://www.washington.edu/uaa/advising/degreeplanning/writreqs.php.
Important Notes: 1) Passing and
Failing. In order to pass this
class, you must achieve the following minimal standards:
(a) you must have a minimum total of 215.5
points; and (b) you must pass three of the four categories of
assignments. The minimum required to pass
each assignment
is noted above. Please note that the
mere completion of the assignments does not guarantee that you will
pass the
course. They have to meet the minimum
standard of quality set by the instructors. If
you have enough total points to pass but do not pass
three of the
four categories of assignments, you will fail the course, i.e., receive
a grade
below 0.7, which is the minimum required to receive credit. In addition, as noted below, if you are found
to have cheated on any assignment, you will be given 0 points for that
assignment
and also fail the course. Absolutely no
exceptions will be made to this policy. 3) Classroom
Behavior:
Disabled Student
Services. If you would like to request academic
accommodations due to a disability, please contact Disabled Student
Services,
448 Schmitz, (206) 543-8924 (V/TTY). If
you have a letter from Disabled Student Services indicating you have a
disability that requires academic accommodations, please present the
letter to
me within the first week of the course so we can discuss the
accommodations you
might need for the class. Required text available in the University
Bookstore: -Classics of Western Philosophy, 7th edition, ed. Steven M. Cahn, Hackett Publishing Co., 2002 (ISBN: 0-87220-859-1).
Class Schedule and Required Readings Note: (1) Please remember that although I have tried to be as specific as possible this schedule is only a guide. (2) I reserve the right to get behind or go more quickly through the readings or even change them. (3) Please read the whole week’s assignment before the first class of each week and then re-read each assignment before each class. (4) All page numbers refer to the required text. (5) Bold text reminds you of due dates for assignments. Week 1 – The Life & Death of Socrates 9/24 What
is
Philosophy? 9/26 NO
CLASS 9/28 Plato,
Apology (29-41) Week 2 – The Life & Death of Socrates 10/1 Plato,
Apology (29-41) & Plato, Crito
(42-48) 10/3 Plato,
Crito (42-48) & Plato, Phaedo
(49-81) 10/4
[Skills
Assignment #1 – Argument – due in section] 10/5 Plato,
Phaedo (49-81) Week 3 – Aristotle and the Idea of Virtue 10/8 Nicomachean Ethics, Book I, (260-269) 10/10 Nicomachean Ethics, Book II- 10/11 [Skills
Assignment #2 – Definition & Analysis– due in section] 10/12 Nicomachean Ethics, Books X (303-312) Week 4 – Medieval Arguments for the Existence of God 10/15 Anselm,
Proslogion, Gaunilo’s Reply, and
Anselm’s Reply (413-433) 10/17 Thomas
Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Question II
(450-453); Question XIII, XIX, & XII (454-461) 10/18
[First Paper due in section] 10/19 Meditation Preface & I (484-492) Week 5 – Descartes’ Meditations 10/22 NO
CLASS 10/24 Meditation II (492-496) 10/25 [Skills
Assignment #3 – Dilemma – due in section] 10/26 Meditation Week 6 – Descartes’ Meditations 10/29 Meditation IV (503-506) 10/31 Meditation V (506-509) 11/2 Meditation VI (509-516) Week 7 - Hume 11/5 An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding,
Sections I-IV (763-776) 11/7 An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding,
Sections V- 11/8
[Skills
Assignment #4 – Counterexample – due in section] 11/9 An Enquiry…, Sections VIII, X, XII (792-802,
804-815, 822-828) Week 8 – Kant’s Moral Philosophy 11/12 NO
CLASS – VETERANS’
DAY 11/13
[Second Paper due in Section] 11/14 Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals,
Preface and Section I (981-991) 11/16 Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals,
Section II (991-1011) Week 9 – Mill’s Utilitarianism 11/19 Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals,
Section II (991-1011) 11/20 [Skills
Assignment #5 – Reductio – due in section] 11/21 Utilitarianism, Chapters I-II (1058-1071) 11/23 NO
CLASS -
THANKSGIVING Week 10 – Nietzsche’s Critique 11/26 Utilitarianism, Chapters 11/28 Utilitarianism, Chapter V (1078-1090) 11/30 Twilight of the Idols (1100-1114) Week 11 – Conclusion and Review 12/3
Twilight
of the Idols (1100-1114) 12/4
[Skills
Assignment #6 – Irony – due in section] 12/5 Twilight of the Idols (1100-1114) 12/7 Review
Session <>
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Last Updated: |
Contact the instructor at: rosentha@u.washington.edu
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