PHL 107: Critical & Historical Introduction to
Philosophy
Sec. J (Tu-Th
HC7A
Fall Semester 2003
Professor
Office: HC 111
Office
Hours: T-Th
Office Phone (voicemail): 280-2645
Email: mbr@creighton.edu
Home Phone (emergency only): 393-7083
Dept.
of PHL (
Course Objectives
· to gain a first exposure to the academic discipline of philosophy
· to do so through careful reading of original texts in the history of Western (or Anglo-European) philosophy
· to consider at least one way of doing philosophy critical of the standard manner in which that history is understood
· to acquire basic, working knowledge of informal logic
· to practice, in the appropriate introductory sense, doing philosophy
Course
Description
Please note that PHL 107 satisfies a CCAS core curriculum requirement, and that
consequently much of this section of PHL 107 is determined by a Master Syllabus
1. Perhaps the standard way to understand the history of philosophy is to
understand it as a series of responses to the work of Plato (b. 427 BCE),
which is itself a response to the life and character of Socrates (d. 399 BCE).
2. Accordingly, we will read what has been perhaps Plato’s most influential work,
the Republic. That reading will emphasize the following questions:
· What is justice?
· What is a Platonic form?
· What is knowledge?
· As regards the pursuit of truth, which is better: poetry, religion, science, or philosophy?
· If the soul is the principle of life, is it physical or non-physical?
· In what sense if any are humans free?
· To what degree if any was Socrates worthy of emulation?
3. We will also read a number of much shorter texts by other, subsequent philosophers, each of whom responds to the manner in which Plato answers one or two of the above questions.
4. Additionally, when it comes to the criticism of understanding the history of philosophy as a series of responses to the works of Plato, we will read philosophers who answer the following two questions in a non-Platonic way:
Are humans both free and determined?
Is the indirect communication found in literature better than argument as
a means for getting at the truth?
5. A treatment of informal logic will be incorporated throughout the course, one that stresses the skills necessary for arguing well. (Some such treatment is mandated by the Master Syllabus for PHL 107).
Required
Texts (Available in the University Bookstore)
Ø McHenry & Yagisawa, Reflections on Philosophy (Second Edition) → (MY)
Ø Nickolas Pappas, Plato and the ‘Republic’ → (PA)
Ø Plato, Republic → (PL)
Required
Texts (Distributed in Class)
·
Aristophanes, selection from Clouds
· Aquinas, selections from Summa Theologiae
· Boethius, selection from The Consolation of Philosophy
· Raymond Smullyan, “Is God a Taoist?”
· Descartes, selections from Meditations and The World
· La Mettrie, selections from “Man a Machine”
· Kierkegaard, “Bang, the Earth is Round,” from Unscientific Postscript
· Nietzsche, “The Problem of Socrates,” from Twilight of the Idols
Course
Requirements
1. Daily reading and preparation for lecture or class discussion
2. Class participation
3. Quizzes (approx. 8) over assigned readings
4. Two examinations
5. One 1200-1800 word paper
Grading
(as percentages of the final, course grade)
1. Class participation >> 10%
2. Average of quiz scores >> 20%
3. Average of exam scores >> 50%
4. Paper grade >> 20%
Mid-Term
Grade (as percentages of the mid-term grade)
1. Average of quiz scores >> 40%
2. Grade on the first exam >> 60%
Grading
Scales
90% and above > A A > 92%
87% to 89.9% > B+ B+ > 88%
80% to 86.9% > B B> 82%
77% to 79.9% > C+ C+ > 78%
70% to 76.9% > C C > 72%
60% to 69.9% > D D > 65%
59.9% and below > F F > 50%
The first scale will be used for the exams and for the calculation of mid-term and final course grades, and the second for class participation, quizzes, and the paper.
Class
Participation
This course will include lectures, in-class discussions, and a variety of other, less conventional activities, e.g., small-group, student-led discussions held outside the classroom (HC7A), and the idea of “class participation” should be understood accordingly. In the case of lectures, the assessment of class participation includes, but is not limited to, degree of attentiveness. For example, if one sleeps through or is otherwise inattentive to all or part of a lecture, this will be duly noted; and it will be reflected in the class participation grade. If one fails to participate actively in a class discussion, that will also be noted, though its impact on the class participation grade may not be negative: one can participate in such a discussion, and even do so fairly well, without saying anything publically. If one does participate actively and publically in such a discussion, but does so in a manner that indicates lack of familiarity with the assigned reading, insufficient seriousness, or some other factor that impedes the discussion, that will also have a negative impact on the participation grade. Class participation grades will be assigned approximately every three weeks, and if at the end of any three-week interval you wish to know what your grade is, please ask; otherwise you will not be told.
Attendance (and related matters)
Class attendance is not optional; you are expected to attend each and every class session. Regular and punctual class attendance is a necessary condition for any class participation grade higher than a D. Eight (8) or more class absences, whether or not they are excused, will result in a final, course grade of AF (failure due to excessive absence). Being tardy four (4) times counts as an absence. Each unexcused absence fewer than eight will lower the class participation grade. No excused absence fewer than eight will have any bearing on said grade.
It is your responsibility to find out what you missed, if you are absent. If you are absent on a day when a quiz is given, you may not make up that quiz even if your absence is excused. If it is excused, then your overall quiz score will be calculated on the basis of one fewer quiz score. Examinations may not be made up unless the relevant absence is excused.
Quizzes
The quizzes in this course are intended as an encouragement: the possibility of a quiz on any given class day will help motivate you to do the reading assigned for that day. In order to understand the lectures, participate well in class discussion, or make a positive contribution to one of the other course activities, you must do the assigned reading in a timely manner. These quizzes will be given without prior announcement, and they will typically consist of ten true-false questions. Occasionally, they will consist of two or three questions that are not true-false.
Examinations
Each of the two examinations will have roughly the same format: ten (10) true-false questions (2 pts. each), five (5) short answer, objective questions (3 pts. each), five (5) or (10) multiple-choice questions (3 pts. each and each of which may have more than one correct answer), and two or more essay questions (5 to 15 pts. each). These questions will cover the assigned readings, and both the lectures and the class discussions.
Date for the first exam: 16 Oct., Thursday
Date for the final,
second exam: 15 Dec., Monday,
Please note well
1. The second exam is cumulative, in this sense: in the essay portion, and only that portion, you will need to demonstrate your knowledge of all the material covered in the entire course.
2. The final exam will be given only at the time and date indicated, which is established by the University Registrar. No special accommodation will be provided for those who, due to travel plans or other non-academic or non-emergency considerations, cannot take the exam at the time and date already established.
Paper
The paper you will write in this course will be an argument construction and evaluation paper. In effect, writing it will help you develop your skills in informal logic, and it will also give you practice at one way of doing philosophy, namely, the way that emphasizes argument.
Writing the paper will take approximately one-half of the semester. It will be written gradually, as a series of installments: first, a prospectus of the paper; then a short exposition of the passage in Plato’s Republic on which it will be based and an account of your intended, main argument; a rough draft of the entire paper; and lastly, a final, fully polished, second draft.
Please note well
1. The paper will be formally assigned on 30 Sept.: on that date it will be described in detail. The due date for each installment is given below.
2. If you doubt that you presently able to write a clear, coherent and grammatically well-constructed paper, then you are advised to visit the Writing Center (Hitchcock Communication Arts Building, #306, phone 280-4707) before 30 Sept., to get the needed help.
Academic Integrity
If you cheat, plagiarize, or in any other way represent the work of others as your own, or if you in any other fashion act with less than full integrity during this course, the repercussions will be significant, not the least of which is that your professor will exercise his right to append to your official University transcript a note indicating how poorly you have comported yourself. See also the Creighton College of Arts & Sciences Academic Honesty Procedures.
Miscellanea
1. Be sure to bring to each class the text with which we will be working on that day. Do so because on any given day we may attend closely to the details of the reading that has been assigned.
2. If any problem arises that compromises or even threatens to compromise your standing in this course, contact your professor promptly and apprise him of the situation, without of course revealing details that may well be irrelevant from an academic point of view.
3. Near the end of the course you will be asked to pay a small fee of $2 or $3 to help defray the cost of the readings that will be distributed in class.
4. There is in this class no “extra credit,” though your professor may occasionally inform you of public lectures, symposia, etc., that might assist you in your introduction to philosophy.
5. This document is posted at the website of the Creighton University Philosophy Department, which can be accessed through the Creighton University homepage.
DATE ASSIGNMENT/TOPIC
2 Sept. (MY) 1-10, 37-38 “Introduction;” Aristophanes
4 Sept. (PA) Chap.1; (PL) viii-xiii, “Plato;” (MY) 11-35
9 Sept. (PA) Chaps. 2-3; (PL) Bk. 1
11 Sept. (MY) Chap.4
16 Sept. (MY) Chap.10; Boethius
18 Sept. (PL) Bks. 2-4; Chaps. 4-6.
23 Sept. (MY) Chap. 8
25 Sept. Aquinas; (PA) Chap. 10
30 Sept. (MY) “Appendix;” paper formally assigned
2 Oct. Smullyan
7 Oct. First small group discussion
9 Oct. Smullyan; paper prospectus due
14 Oct. Review
16 Oct. First Examination
21-27 Oct. FALL BREAK
28 Oct. (PL) Bks. 5-7
30 Oct. (PA) Chaps. 7&11
4 Nov. (MY) Chaps. 3
6 Nov. (MY) Chap. 5; exposition/main argument due
11 Nov. Descartes, selection from The World
13 Nov. Descartes, selection from Meditations
18 Nov. La Mettrie, “Man a Machine”
20 Nov. (MY) Chaps. 11&12; first draft of paper due
25 Nov. (PL) Bks. 8-9; (PA) Chap. 8
27 Nov. (PL) Bk. 10; (PA) Chaps. 9&12; (MY) Chap.9
2 Dec. Kierkegaard, “Bang, the earth is round”
4 Dec. Second small group discussion/ paper draft returned
9 Dec. Nietzsche, “The Problem of Socrates”
11 Dec. Review/course finale
15 Dec. Final
examination,
19 Dec. Final draft of paper due (