HOME Syllabus contents: Course Description Assignments and Grading Policy Books Class Schedule and Required Readings	PHIL100., Winter Quarter 2004 Introduction to Philosophy
	Syllabus Instructor: Prof. Michael Rosenthal Office: Savery M252 Office Hours: Tuesdays11am-12pm; Wednesdays 3pm-4pm; and by appointment. e-mail: rosentha@u.washington.edu Phones: (206) 685-1374 Class Meeting Times and Location: MWF 1:30-2:20pm (Hitchcock 132) Sections: AA TTh 12:30-1:20 PAR 108 Hasan AB TTh 12:30-1:20 DEN 304 Hannah AC TTh  1:30-2:20 DEN 312 Hannah AD TTh  1:30-2:20 BLD 286 Aufrecht AE TTh  1:30-2:20 LOW 216 Hasan AF TTh  2:30-3:20 PAR 313 Aufrecht
	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.    <-- RETURN TO TOP 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.  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.    Papers:  You will be required to write two short papers (3 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 Tuesday, January 27th.  The second paper will be due at the beginning of your section on Tuesday, February 24th.  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 30% of your final grade. 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.  There will be six assignments and you must complete five of them.  Each assignment will be given out in class on Friday and due at the beginning of your section on Thursday.  No assignments will be accepted via e-mail or fax.  Late assignments will not count for your total.  If you do not adequately complete at least five of the assignments your final grade will automatically be reduced by 0.25 points (e.g., from 3.1 to 2.85).  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.  These quizzes will be graded in class.  There will be no make-up quizzes except under the following circumstances:  (1) illness supported by doctor’s note; (2) death in the family.  These quizzes will add up to 20% of your final grade. Final Exam:  On Monday, March 15, 2:30-4:20pm in Hitchcock 132, there will be a required final exam.  The exam will cover all material in the course, though it will be weighted with questions concerning texts and lectures during the last several weeks of the course, and will be based on lectures and assigned readings.  The exam will consist mostly of multiple-choice type questions, though you may also find some short-answer type questions as well.  The exam will count for 20% of your final grade. <-- RETURN TO TOP Books Required text available in the University Bookstore: Classics of Western Philosophy, 6th edition, ed. Steven M. Cahn, Hackett Publishing Co., 2002 (ISBN:  0-87220-637-8). <-- RETURN TO TOP 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 1/5       What is Philosophy? 1/7       Plato, Apology (29-41) 1/9       Plato, Apology (29-41)   Week 2 – The Life & Death of Socrates 1/12     Plato, Crito (42-48) 1/14     Plato, Phaedo (49-81) 1/15     [Skills Assignment #1 – Argument – due in section] 1/16     Plato, Phaedo (49-91)   Week 3 – Aristotle and the Idea of Virtue 1/19     Martin Luther King Day (NO CLASS) 1/21     Nicomachean Ethics, Book I, (240-250) 1/22     Skills Assignment #2 – Definition & Analysis– due in section] 1/23     Nicomachean Ethics, Books II-III (250-262)   Week 4 – Medieval Arguments for the Existence of God 1/26     Anselm, Proslogion, Gaunilo’s Reply, and Anselm’s Reply (377-399) 1/27     [First Paper due in section] 1/28     Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Question II (417-420) 1/30     Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Question XIII, XIX, & XII (421-428)   Week 5 – Descartes’ Meditations 2/2       Meditation I (452-462) 2/4       Meditation II (462-466) 2/5       [Skills Assignment #3 – Dilemma – due in section] 2/6       Meditation III (466-473)   Week 6 – Descartes’ Meditations 2/9       Meditation IV (473-476) 2/11     Meditation V (476-479) 2/13     Meditation VI (476-486)   Week 7 - Hume 2/16 – President’s Day (NO CLASS) 2/18     An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Sections I-VI (732-757) 2/19     [Skills Assignment #4 – Counterexample – due in section] 2/20     An Enquiry…, Sections VI-VII, XII (732-757, 795-802)   Week 8 – Kant’s Moral Philosophy 2/23     Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, Preface and Section I (954-964) 2/24     [Second Paper due in Section] 2/25     Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, Section II (964-984) 2/26     [Skills Assignment #5 – Reductio – due in section] 2/27     Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, Section II (964-984)   Week 9 – Mill’s Utilitarianism 3/1       Utilitarianism, Chapters I-II (1015-1030) 3/3       Utilitarianism, Chapters III-IV (1030-1037) 3/5       Utilitarianism, Chapter V (1037-1049)   Week 10 – Nietzsche’s Critique 3/8       Twilight of the Idols (1080-1094) 3/10     Twilight of the Idols (1080-1094) 3/11     [Skills Assignment #6 – Irony – due in section] 3/12     Twilight of the Idols (1080-1094)   FINAL EXAM:  Monday, March 15, 2:30-4:20pm in Hitchcock 132.     <-- RETURN TO TOP
BACK TO TOP  Last Updated: 01/05/04	Contact the instructor at: rosentha@u.washington.edu