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| Philosophy | |
| PHIL 1000 | Introduction to Philosophy (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Introduces a broad spectrum of philosophical problems and approaches. Topics include basic questions concerning morality, skepticism and the foundations of knowledge, the mind and its relation to the body, and the existence of God. Readings are drawn from classics in the history of philosophy and/or contemporary sources. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/ Course was offered Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 1330 | Virtual Worlds and Philosophy (3) |
| This class explores the intersection of philosophy with issues concerning VR, computer simulation, AI, etc. Can traditional philosophical problems be seen through the lens of VR and AI- and do VR and AI raise new and distinctive philosophical issues? This will show how reflection on modern technologies can help with ancient philosophical questions and how philosophy can help in the development of new technologies and society's response to them. Course was offered Spring 2024 | |
| PHIL 1410 | Forms of Reasoning (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Analyzes the structure of informal arguments and fallacies that are commonly committed in everyday reasoning. The course will not cover symbolic logic in any detail. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Summer 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 1510 | Introductory Philosophy Seminars (3) |
| Discussion groups devoted to some philosophical writing or topic. Information on the specific topic can be obtained from the philosophy department at course enrollment time. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Summer 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Summer 2023, Summer 2022, Summer 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Summer 2020, Fall 2019, Summer 2019, Spring 2019, Summer 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Summer 2017, Summer 2016, Fall 2015, Summer 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Summer 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Summer 2013, Spring 2013, Summer 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Summer 2011, Fall 2010, Summer 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 1610 | Philosophy of Religion (3) |
| This course will read the work of present-day philosophers of religion. That means that in this course we will use contemporary philosophical methods to examine a number of different topics that have been of perennial interest to philosophers of religion and philosophical theologians. These topics include arguments for and against God's existence, the problem of evil, the relationship between human freedom and divine foreknowledge. Course was offered Summer 2012 | |
| PHIL 1710 | Human Nature (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Examines a wide variety of theories of human nature, with the aim of understanding how we can fulfill our nature and thereby live good, satisfying and meaningful lives. Focuses on the questions of whether it is in our nature to be rational, moral and/or social beings. Readings are taken from contemporary and historical sources. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 1730 | Introduction to Moral and Political Philosophy (3) |
| Examines some of the central problems of moral philosophy and their sources in human life and thought. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 1740 | Issues of Life and Death (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Studies the fundamental principles underlying contemporary and historical discussions of such issues as abortion, euthanasia, suicide, pacifism, and political terror. Examines Utilitarian and anti-Utilitarian modes of thought about human life and the significance of death. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 |
| PHIL 1750 | The Meaning of Life (3) |
| What is the meaning of life? Does a meaningful life presuppose the existence of a divine being, or can human beings somehow create meaning? Does the certainty of death rob life of meaning, or provide it? These and related questions will be pursued through contemporary and classic texts by such authors as Sartre, Nagel, Nietzsche, Bernard Williams, and Epicurus. | |
| PHIL 1800 | Philosophy of Art (3) |
| Art permeates our lives, yet it is hard to define what makes something a work of art, or what the purpose of art is. In tis course we will explore the philosophy of art. We will look at what some of the great philosophical figures of the past have thought about art, as well as looking at contemporary approaches. Course was offered Spring 2015 | |
| PHIL 2000 | Internship in Philosophy: Teaching Philosophy in High Schools (2) |
| Students will intern in area high schools to work with teachers in support of their teaching of philosophy. In preparation for this, students will learn about the aims of the teachers with whom they intern, as well as the challenges they face. Students will support teachers with the construction of lesson plans, reading material, discussion points, and paper topics. | |
| PHIL 2020 | Know Thyself (3) |
| Investigation of the nature and significance of our knowledge of ourselves, employing perspectives from Philosophy, Psychoanalysis, Experimental Psychology, Neurosciences, and Buddhism. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2013, Spring 2012 | |
| PHIL 2060 | Philosophical Problems in Law (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Examines and evaluates some basic practices and principles of Anglo-American law. Discusses the justification of punishment, the death penalty, legal liability, good samaritan laws, and the legal enforcement of morality. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2021, Spring 2019, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 |
| PHIL 2070 | Knowledge and Reality (3) |
| Knowledge and Reality. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2017 | |
| PHIL 2110 | History of Philosophy: Ancient and Medieval (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Survey of the history of philosophy from the Pre-Socratic period through the Middle Ages. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. |
| PHIL 2120 | History of Philosophy: Modern (3) |
| Surveys the history of modern philosophy, beginning with Descartes and extending up to the nineteenth century. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 2330 | Philosophy and Artificial Intelligence (3) |
| Do computers think? Can a persuasive case be made for the claim that the human mind is essentially a sophisticated computing device? These and related questions will be examined through readings in computer science, the philosophy of mind, logic, and linguistics. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2340 | The Computational Age (3) |
| This course will address the effects of rapid technological advances on a number of new & traditional philosophical topics (potential changes in our concept of personal identity as a result of biological & cognitive enhancements the loss of privacy changes in the status of scientific evidence & the diminution of the role of human scientists as a result of automated instrumentation, computationally based simulations, and computer proof methods). | |
| PHIL 2350 | Minds, Machines, and Persons (3) |
| This course surveys foundational issues in the philosophy of cognitive science. Part 1 asks, what is a mind? Are minds brains? Computers? Do minds extend into the body & environment? What it would take to make a machine with a mind? Part 2 turns to the problem of personal identity over time. Once you were a kid, now you're an adult, and one day you'll grow old. What (if anything) makes you the same person over your life. | |
| PHIL 2420 | Introduction to Symbolic Logic (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Introduces the concepts and techniques of modern formal logic, including both sentential and quantifier logic, as well as proof, interpretation, translation, and validity. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 2450 | Philosophy of Science (3) |
| Introduces the philosophy of science. Topics include experiment, casual inference, models, scientific explanation, theory structure, hypothesis testing, realism and anti-realism, the relations between science and technology, science versus non-science, and the philosophical assumptions of various sciences. Illustrations are drawn from the natural, biological, and social sciences, but no background in any particular science is presupposed. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Fall 2010 | |
| PHIL 2500 | Survey on a Philosophical Topic (3) |
| A lecture series on the various topics central to Philosophy. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Summer 2021, Spring 2021, January 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015 | |
| PHIL 2510 | Seminar in Philosophy (3) |
| Seminars aimed at showing how philosophical problems arise in connection with subjects of general interest. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2017, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2011, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 2520 | Seminar in Bioethics (3) |
| Topics vary annually. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2640 | Rational Choice and Happiness (3) |
| In this class, we will examine philosophical puzzles about our ability to make rational choices that affect or determine our own happiness. How can we rationally decide to undergo a significant experience - such as having a child or moving to a new country - when have no way of knowing what that experience will be like? How can we rationally choose to make decisions about our future? Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 2645 | The Good Life (3) |
| What does it takes to live a good life. Does your life go well for you if you accomplish good things but you aren't happy? Does your life go well for you if your desires are satisfied? How do we make rational choices about our future well-being when those very choices determine who we will become and what we will want? How do we evaluate the claims of people who value parts of their lives that many think bad? | |
| PHIL 2650 | Free Will and Responsibility (3) |
| Examines whether our actions and choices are free and whether or to what extent we can be held responsible for them. Includes the threat to freedom posed by the possibility of scientific explanations of our behavior and by psychoanalysis, the concept of compulsion, moral and legal responsibility, and the nature of human action. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2652 | Animal Minds and Animal Ethics (3) |
| Other species seem to represent objects in their environments, think about the thoughts of their conspecifics, and perhaps even use language. Some seem to have long-term memory, emotion, and self-awareness. Do they in fact do all of these things, and if so, how, and in what sense? We will engage philosophically with the best scientific evidence available to answer these and similar questions before considering their ethical implications. | |
| PHIL 2660 | Philosophy of Religion (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Considers the problems raised by arguments for and against the existence of God; discussion of such related topics as evil, evidence for miracles, and the relation between philosophy and theology. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 2670 | God (3) |
| A detailed examination of the philosophical concept of God and also of diverse arguments for and against His existence, including various ontological arguments, causal arguments, the arguments from design, and the argument from evil. Course was offered Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 2690 | Justice, Law, and Morality (3) |
| Examines contemporary liberal theories of justice and of communitarian, Marxist, libertarian, utilitarian, and feminist criticisms of these theories. Uses landmark Supreme Court decisions to illuminate central theoretical disputes. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2730 | Ethics and Film (3) |
| This course is designed both as an introduction to philosophy through moral issues, and as an exploration of film as a medium for ethical reflection. It focuses on the moving image and its potentila as a mode of philosophical thinking and examines the pertinence of ethical theories to particular issues, as these arise in contemporary films. | |
| PHIL 2740 | Ethics of Violence (3) |
| This course will study philosophical issues arising from the encounter and conflict between different cultures. Focusing on the Spanish conquest of the Americas will address the general question of whether there is a just war, relating this discussion to fundamental questions in contemporary ethics and political philosophy. Course was offered Fall 2014 | |
| PHIL 2750 | Democracy (3) |
| Examines competing conceptions of the democratic ideal, both in the work of historic figures such as Locke, Rousseau, Madison and Mill, and in the work of a variety of contemporary political philosophers. Focuses in particular on the relation to the democratic ideal of majoritarian voting, civic association, public deliberation and basic liberal rights. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2760 | Classics of Political Philosophy (3) |
| Considers some of the perennial questions in political philosophy through an examination of classical works in the field, including some or all of the following: Aristotle's Politics, Hobbes's Leviathan, Locke's Second Treatise of Government, and Rousseau's On the Social Contract. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2020 | |
| PHIL 2775 | Chinese & Greek Philosophy (3) |
| Almost simultaneously some 2500 years ago thinkers in Greece (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle) & China (Confucius, Mencius, Laozi, others) worked through what became the foundational philosophies of 2 great civilizations. Although at the time they enjoyed no contact whatsoever, the questions posed about the nature of the world & how human beings may best live within it are strikingly complementary and serve as something of a mirror for each other. Course was offered Spring 2019 | |
| PHIL 2780 | Ancient Political Thought (3) |
| A survey of the political ideas and theories of the ancient Greeks and Romans, including such works as Plato's REPUBLIC, Aristotle's POLITICS and Cicero's DE RE PUBLICA. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 2820 | Philosophy of Health and Health Care (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | In this class, we'll discuss philosophical theories of health and explore difficult issues in the measurement and treatment of health-related issues |
| PHIL 2850 | Finding the Way: Some Philosophical Projects (3) |
| Examines pressing issues of the examined life, especially those ethical (How should I live?), epistemological (how and what can I know?) & overlapping both. Authors include Plato, Mencius, Marcus Aurelius, Gautama, & Laozi. Topics include testimony; virtue; skepticism; the value of knowledge, society & systematic world views; moral progress; and epistemic injustice. Combines classics with contemporary work. Argumentative essays & creative writing. Course was offered Spring 2018, Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 3010 | Darwin and Philosophy (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | This course investigates the history and the scientific and philosophical implications of Darwin's revolutionary idea that the wholly unguided process of natural selection could explain the magnificent variety and adaptedness of living things and their descent from a common ancestor. One of the philosophical topics we will explore is how scientific theories are supported by evidence and how science yields knowledge Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2018, Fall 2016 |
| PHIL 3110 | Plato (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Introduces the philosophy of Plato through careful examination of selected Platonic dialogues. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. |
| PHIL 3120 | Aristotle (3) |
| An introduction to the philosophy of Aristotle, covering his major works in ethics, political philosophy, metaphysics, theory of knowledge, and literary theory. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 3140 | History of Medieval Philosophy (3) |
| Examines the continued development of philosophy from after Aristotle to the end of the Middle Ages. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 3150 | 17th Century Philosophy (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Studies the central philosophers in the rationalist tradition. |
| PHIL 3160 | 18th Century Philosophy (3) |
| Studies the central philosophers in the empiricist tradition. Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2020, Fall 2018, Fall 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 3170 | Kant (3) |
| Primarily a study of Kant's metaphysics and epistemology, followed by a brief look at the views of some of Idealist successors. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Fall 2011, Fall 2010 | |
| PHIL 3180 | Nietzsche (3) |
| A comprehensive study of the philosophy of Nietzsche, with an examination of his views on life, truth, philosophy, art, morality, nihilism, values and their creation, will to power, eternal recurrence, and more. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: instructor permission (previous course in philosophy preferred) Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2015, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2011 | |
| PHIL 3310 | Metaphysics (3) |
| Examines central metaphysical issues such as time, the existence of God, causality and determinism, universals, possibility and necessity, identity, and the nature of metaphysics. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2021, Fall 2019, Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 3320 | Epistemology (3) |
| Studies problems concerned with the foundations of knowledge, perception, and rational belief. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2023, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 3330 | Philosophy of Mind (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Studies some basic problems of philosophical psychology. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 3337 | Philosophy of Memory (3) |
| We will explore the nature and philosophical import of memory. Part 1: What is Memory examines experiential and causal theories of memory and asks whether memory extends past our bodies and is distinct from imagination. Part 2: Memory and Knowledge asks whether we should dogmatically accept our memories as true, even if they are reconstructive. Part 3: Memory and Personhood asks whether memory is required to remain the same person over time. | |
| PHIL 3400 | Introduction to Non-Classical Logic (3) |
| An introduction to systems of non-classical logic, including both extensions and revisions to classical logic. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 3500 | Seminar in Philosophy (3) |
| Topics change from semester to semester and year to year. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Fall 2010 | |
| PHIL 3520 | Topics in Contemporary Philosophy (3) |
| Studies some recent contemporary philosophical movement, writing, or topic. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 3559 | New Course: PHIL (1 - 4) |
| This course provides the opportunity to offer a new topic in the subject area of philosophy. | |
| PHIL 3610 | Aesthetics (3) |
| Critically investigates central philosophical issues raised by artistic activity: To count as an artwork must a thing have a modicum of aesthetic value, or is it enough that it be deemed art by the community? Is aesthetic value entirely in the eye of the beholder or is there such a thing as being wrong in one's judgment concerning an artwork? including Wittgenstein, Sartre, and Pears. Course was offered Spring 2014, Fall 2011 | |
| PHIL 3620 | Science Fiction & Philosophy (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Science fiction is a distinctively philosophical genre. Science fiction stories can cause us to question the bounds of what is possible, explore ethical questions that arise in alien circumstances, explore the nature of the self and the very nature of reality, and so on. This course will investigate philosophical questions via science fiction literature, and use philosophy to explore the nature of science fiction. Course was offered Fall 2022, Spring 2021 |
| PHIL 3640 | Political Philosophy (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | This course will consider three central questions in political philosophy: Why do political societies exist? What kind of political society is best? And, what is the proper role of the state in the social and economic affairs of its citizens? Rather than a comprehensive overview of the subject, this course will offer a chance to carefully examine some of the most influential attempts to answer to these core questions. |
| PHIL 3650 | Justice and Health Care (3) |
| Philosophical account of health care practices and institutions viewed against the backdrop of leading theories of justice (e.g., utilitarianism, Rawlsian contractarianism, communitarianism, libertarianism). Topics include the nature, justifications, and limits of a right to health care; the value conflicts posed by cost containment, implicit and explicit rationing, and reform of the health care system; the physician-patient relationship in an era of managed care; and the procurement and allocation of scarce life-saving resources, such as expensive drugs and transplantable organs. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: course in ethics of political philosophy from any department, such as RELG 2650, PHIL 1740, PLPT 3010, etc. | |
| PHIL 3651 | Genes, Nature and Justice (3) |
| What is a normal human being? What is the natural course for the human species? What does justice have to do with our genes? The emergence of technology allowing the manipulation of the human genome raises a number of ethical social, and political problems. This class will explore these challenges through philosophical argument. In particular, we will attempt to wrestle with notions such as natural, human being, perfection, enhancement and cure. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 3652 | Animals and Ethics (3) |
| This course will examine the moral status of non-human animals and what the major ethical theories imply for our treatment of animals, including in scientific research and food. In an effort to examine their moral status, we will explore the questions of whether and to what extent animals experience pain and emotions. | |
| PHIL 3710 | Ethics (3) |
| History of modern ethical theory (Hobbes to Mill) with especial emphasis on the texts of Hume (Treatise, Book III) and Kant, (Grundlegung), which will be studied carefully and critically. Among the topics to be considered: Is morality based on reason? Is it necessarily irrational not to act morally? Are moral standards objective? Are they conventional? Is it a matter of luck whether we are morally virtuous? Is the morally responsible will a free will? Are all reasons for acting dependent on desires? For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2011, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 3720 | Contemporary Ethics (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Studies Anglo-American ethics since 1900. While there are selected readings from G. E. Moore, W. D. Ross, A. J. Ayer, C. L. Stevenson and R. M. Hare, emphasis is on more recent work. Among the topics to be considered: Are there moral facts? Are moral values relative? Are moral judgments universalizable? Are they prescriptive? Are they cognitive? What is to be said for utilitarianism as a moral theory? What against it? And what are the alternatives? For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 3730 | Ancient Ethical Theory (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 3780 | Reproductive Ethics (3) |
| The focus of the course will be the exploration of various moral, legal and policy issues posed by efforts to curtail or enhance fertility through contraception, abortion, and recent advances in reproductive technology. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: One prior course in ethics from any department. | |
| PHIL 3790 | Research Ethics (3) |
| Canvasses the history of research scandals (e.g., Nuremberg, Tuskegee) resulting in federal regulation of human subjects research. Critically assesses the randomized clinical trial (including informed consent, risk/benefit ratio, randomization, placebos). Examines the ethics of research with special populations, such as the cognitively impaired, prisoners, children, embryos and fetuses, and animals. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: One course in ethics or bioethics, or instructor permission. | |
| PHIL 3800 | Feminist Philosophy (3) |
| In this class, we'll first examine the question 'What is gender?' Then we'll look at ways in which gender can interact with traditional philosophical topics, including epistemology, philosophy of language, political philosophy, etc. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 3810 | Sex, Sexuality, and Gender (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | In this class, we'll be talking about philosophical issues at the intersection of sexuality, sexual experience, and gender experience. What is sexual consent? What is the relationship between sexual consent and sexual morality? What is sexual orientation, and what is its relationship to sex and gender? Is there such a thing as biological sex? Is there a difference between sex and gender? |
| PHIL 3830 | Philosophy of Mental Health (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | This class explores philosophical issues in the nature of mental health and mental illness. Topics may include: What is the difference between a mental illness and a physical illness? How do we understand the difference between mental difference and mental dysfunction? Does our current approach to understanding mental health overly pathologize or medicalize people? What is a social contagion? What does it mean to be mentally healthy? |
| PHIL 3999 | Philosophical Perspectives on Liberty (3) |
| Examination of the nature and function of liberty in social theorists such as Adam Smith, JJ Rousseau, Ayn Rand, John Rawls, Robert Nozick. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 4010 | Seminar for Majors (3) |
| Topic changes from year to year. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: Philosophy majors. | |
| PHIL 4020 | Seminar for Majors (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2022, Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 4500 | Special Topics in Philosophy (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 4990 | Honors Program (1 - 15) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: Enrollment in the departmental honors program. Course was offered Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 4993 | Directed Reading and Research (1 - 3) |
| Independent study under the direction of a faculty member. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 4995 | Directed Reading and Research (1 - 3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Independent study under the direction of a faculty member. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Fall 2013, Fall 2012, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 4999 | Senior Thesis (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Spring 2013, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010 |
| PHIL 5420 | Advanced Logic (3) |
| Examines various results in metalogic, including completeness, compactness, and undecidability. Effective computability, theories of truth, and identity may also be covered. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: PHIL 2420 or equivalent. | |
| PHIL 5450 | Language and Logic (3) |
| This course will examine, in light of classical readings and with the aid of the techniques of formal semantics and formal pragmatics, topics that have been given the most intense treatment: distinction between sense and reference, nature of meaning, relation between thought and language, etc. Course was offered Spring 2011 | |
| PHIL 5460 | Philosophy of Science (3) |
| Logical analysis of the structure of theories, probability, causality, and testing of theories. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 5470 | Philosophy of Mathematics (3) |
| Comparison of various schools in the philosophy of mathematics (including logicism, formalism, and conceptualism) and their answers to such questions as 'Do numbers exist?' and 'How is mathematical knowledge possible?' For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: Some familiarity with quantifier logic or instructor permission. | |
| PHIL 5480 | Philosophy of the Social Sciences (3) |
| Problems studied include explanation in the social sciences; the place of theory; objectivity; the relation between social science and natural science, philosophy, and literature. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Prerequisite: Six credits of philosophy or instructor permission. | |
| PHIL 5510 | Seminar on an Ancient History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the political ideas and theories of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2019, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 5520 | Seminar on a Medieval History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the most important philosophers of the Middle Ages. | |
| PHIL 5530 | Seminar on a Modern History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | A survey of the most important philosophers of the Modern Age. |
| PHIL 5540 | Seminar on an Ethics Topic (3) |
| Seminar on an Ethics Topic Course was offered Spring 2022, Fall 2020 | |
| PHIL 5550 | Seminar on a Philosophy of Bioethics Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the ethical implications of biomedical research. Course was offered Fall 2018 | |
| PHIL 5560 | Seminar on a Political Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A seminar on political theory and how the topics of rights and freedoms are incorporated. | |
| PHIL 5570 | Seminar on a Metaphysics Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the nature of being and the world Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2019 | |
| PHIL 5580 | Seminar on a Epistemology Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the nature and scope of knowledge. | |
| PHIL 5590 | Seminar on a Logic Topic (3) |
| A seminar on logic features and reasoning. | |
| PHIL 5760 | Global Justice, Health & Human Rights (3) |
| This seminar attempts to expand the horizons of bioethics to include a set of important issues impacting global health. The focus is on current work in political phil bearing on the rationale and limits of political toleration; assistance to the 'distant needy'; nationalism vs. cosmopolitanism; the objectives and measures of human development;and the proposed role of human rights as a transcultural lingua franca for international ethics. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2013, Fall 2010 | |
| PHIL 7110 | Plato (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 7120 | Aristotle (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 7330 | Metaphysics (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2014 | |
| PHIL 7341 | Mental Content (3) |
| Examines a variety of issues concerning the nature of mental content, including one or more of the following. (1) The ontological status of mental content: Does mental content relate us to abstract objects? What are the prospects for naturalizing intentionality? (2) The relationship between intentional content and phenomenal character: Are these distinct features of mental states, or is one of these properties reducible to the other? Course was offered Fall 2012 | |
| PHIL 7450 | Topics in the Philosophy of Language (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2012 | |
| PHIL 7500 | First Year Seminar (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | Seminar for First Yr graduate students. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. |
| PHIL 7501 | Tutorial Instruction (3) |
| Tutorial instruction. The student will attend lectures and cover the subjects of an undergraduate course, but will do additional reading and/or written work to strengthen their understanding of that philosophical area. Course was offered Spring 2016, Fall 2014 | |
| PHIL 7502 | Readings in Philosophy (3) |
| With the permission of the instructor, a student may arrange to take an undergraduate course for graduate credit under this designation. The student will attend lectures and cover the subjects of the undergraduate course, but will do additional reading and/or written work; the student's work in the course will be graded on a scale appropriate for graduate course work. Course was offered Spring 2019 | |
| PHIL 7510 | Seminar on an Ancient History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the political ideas and theories of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Course was offered Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2015, Fall 2011, Fall 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 7520 | Seminar on a Medieval History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the most important philosophers of the Middle Ages. Course was offered Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Spring 2011, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 7530 | Seminar on a Modern History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the most important philosophers of the Modern Age. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Fall 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2017, Spring 2016, Fall 2013 | |
| PHIL 7540 | Seminar on a Philosophy of Ethics Topic (3) |
| A survey of ethical theory and moral status. Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Spring 2016 | |
| PHIL 7550 | Seminar on a Philosophy of Bioethics Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the ethical implications of biomedical research. | |
| PHIL 7560 | Seminar on a Political Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A seminar on political theory and how the topics of rights and freedoms are incorporated. Course was offered Spring 2019 | |
| PHIL 7570 | Seminar on a Metaphysics Topic (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | A seminar on the nature of being and the world |
| PHIL 7575 | Seminar on the Philosophy of Science Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the various topics with in the Philosophy of Science. | |
| PHIL 7580 | Seminar on a Epistemology Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the nature and scope of knowledge. | |
| PHIL 7590 | Seminar on a Logic Topic (3) |
| A seminar on logic features and reasoning. Course was offered Spring 2019, Fall 2016 | |
| PHIL 7631 | Rights (3) |
| This seminar will examine the nature of and possible justifications for claims of right. Readings will be from both classical and contemporary sources. The works we read will be authored principally by philosophers, with a few pieces by political and legal theorists. | |
| PHIL 7632 | Rescue, Charity and Justice (3) |
| This course examines arguments for and against moral and legal "positive" duties (to assist others). We consider possible duties to give emergency aid (rescue), to improve the condition of the needy (charity), and to impose more equitable distributions of goods within and between nations (justice). | |
| PHIL 7634 | The Duty to Obey the Law (3) |
| This seminar will examine philosophical debates concerning the duty to obey the law (or political obligation) and the grounds for various kinds of legal disobedience. Readings will be from contemporary sources in political philosophy and legal theory. | |
| PHIL 7640 | Philosophy of History (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 7710 | Ethics (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 7720 | Contemporary Ethics (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 7770 | Political Philosophy (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Fall 2017, Spring 2016, Spring 2013, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 7995 | Supervised Research (1 - 12) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 8161 | Hume and Kant on Ethics (3) |
| In the seminar we will examine the moral theories of David Hume and Immanuel Kant, in that order. The main texts are Hume's Treatise and Kant's Groundwork, but considerable attention will be given as well to Hume's second Enquiry and to Kant's Critique of Practical Reason and Metaphysics of Morals. Course was offered Fall 2012 | |
| PHIL 8320 | Contemporary Epistemology (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2021, Spring 2019, Spring 2017, Spring 2014, Spring 2012, Spring 2010 | |
| PHIL 8340 | Philosophy of Mind (3) |
| Philosophy of Mind. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Fall 2014, Spring 2013 | |
| PHIL 8360 | Experience (3) |
| The course addresses recent literature on the following questions: (1) what is the ontological nature of experience? (sense-data theories vs. state theories vs. disjunctivism); (2) is the phenomenal character of experience exhausted by its representational content? (representationalism vs. qualia realism); (3) does experience contain any nonconceptual representational content? (4) are the intrinsic features of experience introspectible? | |
| PHIL 8370 | Possible Worlds (3) |
| This seminar focuses on the metaphysics of possibility and necessity, along with other related topics. It's central texts are Alvin Plantinga's "The Nature of Necessity" and David Lewis's "On the Plurality of Worlds". | |
| PHIL 8420 | Advanced Logic and Foundations of Mathematics (3) |
| Advanced Logic and Foundations of Mathematics. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2018 | |
| PHIL 8460 | Philosophy of Science (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 8510 | Seminar on an Ancient History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the political ideas and theories of the ancient Greeks and Romans. | |
| PHIL 8520 | Seminar on a Medieval History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the most important philoosphers of the Middle Ages. | |
| PHIL 8530 | Seminar on a Modern History of Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A survey of the most important philosophers of the Modern Age. | |
| PHIL 8540 | Seminar on a Philosophy of Ethics Topic (3) |
| A survey of ethical theory and moral status. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2022, Spring 2020, Fall 2018, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015 | |
| PHIL 8550 | Seminar on a Philosophy of Bioethics Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the ethical implications of biomedical research. | |
| PHIL 8560 | Seminar on a Political Philosophy Topic (3) |
| A seminar on political theory and how the topics of rights and freedoms are incorporated. | |
| PHIL 8570 | Seminar on a Metaphysics Topic (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | A seminar on the nature of being and the world Course was offered Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Spring 2018, Spring 2017, Fall 2015 |
| PHIL 8580 | Seminar on a Epistemology Topic (3) |
| A seminar on the nature and scope of knowledge. Course was offered Spring 2018 | |
| PHIL 8590 | Seminar on a Logic Topic (3) |
| A seminar on logic features and reasoning. | |
| PHIL 8640 | Law and Morality (3) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. | |
| PHIL 8995 | Supervised Research (3) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 8998 | Non-Topical Research, Preparation for Research (1 - 12) |
| For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/.For master's research, taken before a thesis director has been selected. Course was offered Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 8999 | Non-Topical Research (1 - 12) |
| For master's thesis, taken under the supervision of a thesis director. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2015, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 | |
| PHIL 9700 | Dissertation Seminar (3) |
| This course is designed for graduate students in their third or fourth year. It focuses on dissertation writing and the various skills relevant to professional development. Course was offered Spring 2024, Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2021, Spring 2020, Spring 2019, Spring 2018, Spring 2017 | |
| PHIL 9998 | Non-Topical Research, Preparation for Doctoral Research (1 - 12) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | For doctoral research, taken before a dissertation director has been selected. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |
| PHIL 9999 | Non-Topical Research (1 - 12) |
| Offered Fall 2024 | For doctoral dissertation, taken under the supervision of a dissertation director. For more details on this class, please visit the department website at http://www.virginia.edu/philosophy/. Course was offered Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Summer 2020, Spring 2020, Fall 2019, Summer 2019, Spring 2019, Fall 2018, Summer 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Summer 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016, Summer 2016, Spring 2016, Fall 2015, Summer 2015, Spring 2015, Fall 2014, Summer 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013, Summer 2013, Spring 2013, Fall 2012, Summer 2012, Spring 2012, Fall 2011, Summer 2011, Spring 2011, Fall 2010, Spring 2010, Fall 2009 |