Philosophy Department
Ethics
and Society
TR
3:30-4:45 PM
Albert
Piacente
Examines grounds for moral judgment and action in various
social contexts. Typical topics: public versus private good and duties;
individualism and cooperation; inequalities and justice; utilitarianism and
rights; regulation of sexual conduct, abortion, and family life; poverty and
wealth; racism and sexism; and war and capital punishment.
V83.0010-001
Central
Problems in Philosophy
MW
2:00-3:15 PM
Thomas
Nagel
An intensive introduction to the main problems of philosophy, through historical and contemporary writings. Topics will include knowledge and skepticism, the mind-body problem, moral objectivity, and free will. Four short papers and a final exam.
V83.0015-001
Minds
and Machines
TR
2:00-3:15
Ned
Block
Minds and Machines examines the conflict between
computational and biological approaches to the mind. Topics covered include
whether a machine could think, whether thinking could be symbol crunching,
whether a computational description is entirely observer-relative, the Turing
Test, mental representation, the reduction of the mind to the brain, neural
nets, mental imagery, and whether consciousness can be explained
computationally or biologically.
V83.0021-001
History
of Modern Philosophy
MW
11:00-12:15 AM
Gary
Ostertag
This
is a survey of 17th and 18th century European metaphysics and
epistemology. We will read Descartes,
Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant.
V83.0040-001
Ethics
TR
9:30-10:45 AM
We will begin the course by discussing some ethical problems that we encounter as citizens and human beings. Then we will consider philosophical approaches to ethical problems. We will discuss and evaluate deontological theories, utilitarianism, existentialism, and pragmatism. Readings will include Plato, Mill, Rawls, Dewey, Sartre, and Foucault. Course work will include two midterm exams, a term paper, and a final exam.
V83.0050-001
Medical
Ethics
MW
6:20-7:35
James
Dwyer
In the first part of the course, we will consider a
number of ethical issues that arise in the practice of medicine. We will discuss confidentiality,
truthfulness, informed consent, competence, refusal of treatment, assisted
suicide, decisions for children, and professional obligations. In the second part of the course, we will
consider ethical issues that are related to health care systems, public
policies, and social institutions. We
will discuss the allocation of scarce resources, social justice, social
responsibility, and international duties.
Throughout the course, we will reflect on different philosophical
approaches to ethical issues. We will
discuss ethical theories, the role of principles, case-based reasoning, moral
virtues, and pragmatism. Course work
will include two midterm exams, a term paper, and a final exam.
V83.0070-001
Logic
MW
3:30-4:45 PM
Scott
Walden
Introduces the techniques, results, and philosophical import of 20th century formal logic. Principal concepts include those of sentence, set, interpretation, validity, consistency, consequence, tautology, derivation, and completeness.
V83.0074-001
Modal
Logic
TR
11:00-12:15 PM
Rohit
Parikh
Modal Logic is the logic of necessity and possibility and other such notions. In recent times, the framework of possible worlds has provided a valuable tool for investigating the formal properties of these notions, and the subject has found application in a variety of fields - including philosophy, linguistics and computer science. This course will provide an introduction to the basic concepts, methods and results of modal logic, with an emphasis on its application to some of these other fields.
V83.0076-001
Belief,
Truth & Knowledge
MW
9:30-10:45 AM
Roger
White
This
course is an inquiry into the nature of inquiry. We often seek answers to
questions—e.g., Who was responsible for the Sept 11 attacks? Will the Knicks
win tonight? 837+655=?—and take ourselves to know the answers, or have rational
opinions, or to have good evidence
for our views. Rather than answer these questions, we will step back and ask,
What is the nature of evidence? and What it is to know something or to be
rational? In answering these questions, we will examine versions of, and
responses to Skepticism: that there is very little we can know or have reason
to believe.
V83.0090-001
Philosophy
of Science
TR
2:00-3:15 PM
Gordon
Belot
We will consider a
range of question about the nature and objectivity of scientific knowledge.
What is the difference between scientific explanations and other ones? What is
the role of observation and experiment in scientific knowledge? How and why
does scientific knowledge change over time? Can we have knowledge of what is in
principle unobservable? Is scientific knowledge more objective than other forms
of knowledge? We will read some classic contributions to the philosophy of
science from the last fifty years.
V83.0101-001
Topics
in the History of Philosophy
TR
11:00-12:15PM
Cian
Dorr
We
will spend most of the course reading our way through one of the greatest books
in philosophy, Hume’s Treatise of Human Nature. Additional readings may include: excerpts
from the works of Hume’s precursors (including Locke and Berkeley); excerpts
from some of Hume’s other works; contemporary and recent commentary on Hume;
and articles by twentieth-century philosophers engaged in projects related to
Hume’s.
V83.0102-001
Topics
in Ethics and Political Philosophy
TR
2:00-3:15 PM
Peter
Unger
The
course will revolve around two central questions in basic ethics, with related
discussion of several topics in applied ethics. The first central
question is, what is it that determines the moral status of a particular
being? If we can save one human baby or else two elephants, in a world
with plenty of each, what is it about the human baby that determines it's she
alone that we should save, rather than both elephants, each (suppose)
mentally more advanced than she? And, here's the second central question: Is there a morally significant distinction, even anywhere in the neighborhood of the (probably insignificant) distinction between causing and letting happen - between killing and letting die, for instance, and, for another instance, between inflicting pain and letting pain happen?
On the second question, I'll unconfidently argue that there really isn't any important distinction. And, so, it's terribly wrong to for us to allow distant little children, in the poorest regions, to suffer and die young. But, now turning back to the first question, there's this: If we can't find good reason to accord the human babies enormously higher moral status than almost all other mammals, will we then be required, on pain of behaving very badly, to provide them also, all over the world, with whatever aid they need to flourish? For many centuries, that may be enormously costly. So, there'll be important interplay between our two central questions.
Our
discussion of these questions will have implications for issues of
discrimination, abortion, infanticide, euthanasia, and other "hot
topics" in applied ethics.
Far
from being a series of lectures, the course should consist mainly of lively
discussion with, and among, its students, where the students think hard about
ethical issues. Since there won't be an attempt to impart a "body of
ethical knowledge," there won't be any exams. But, students must
write two lucid short papers, or possibly three, each on a different issue
discussed in class.
V83.0201-001
Honors
Seminar
TBA
Peter
Unger
MAIN
BUILDING, 100 WASHINGTON SQUARE EAST, ROOM 503, NEW YORK, NY 10003-6688. (212)
998-8320. FAX: (212) 995-4179.
CHAIR
OF THE DEPARTMENT: Professor Boghossian
DIRECTOR
OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES: Professor Richardson
DIRECTOR
OF GRADUATE STUDIES: Ned Block
ADMINISTRATIVE
STAFF:
Debbie Bula, Anupum Mehrotra, Michael Balla
Philosophy
poses general questions about reality, knowledge, reasoning, language, and
conduct. The four main branches are metaphysics (What is the ultimate nature of
reality? What really exists and what is mere appearance?); epistemology (What,
if anything, can be known and how?); logic (What are the principles of correct
reasoning?); and ethics (What is moral value? And what moral values should we
adopt?). Other, more specific, branches of philosophy address questions
concerning the nature of art, law, medicine, politics, religion, and the
sciences.
Everyone
tends to have or assume answers to these questions. The aim of the department
is to enable students to identify, clarify, and assess these answers, both
ancient and modern. Philosophy prepares students for a more reflective life,
for advanced studies in the subject, as well as for professions that emphasize
analytic thinking and argumentation, such as law, business, and programming.
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
Major
A
major in philosophy requires nine 4-point V-level or G-level courses in the
department. These must include (1) Logic, V83.0070; (2) History of Ancient
Philosophy, V83.0020; or Advanced Greek Philosophy, V83.0023; (3) History of
Modern Philosophy, V83.0021; (4) Ethics, V83.0040; or Nature of Values,
V83.0041; or Political Philosophy, V83.0045; (5) Belief, Truth, and Knowledge,
V83.0076; or Metaphysics, V83.0078; (6) Minds and Machines, V83.0015; or
Philosophy of Mind, V83.0080; or Philosophy of Language, V83.0085; and (7)
Topics in the History of Philosophy, V83.0101; or Topics in Ethics and
Political Philosophy, V83.0102; or Topics in Metaphysics and Epistemology,
V83.0103; or Topics in Language and Mind, V83.0104. No credit toward the major
is awarded for a course with a grade lower than C.
Students
considering a major in philosophy are encouraged to begin with one of the
Intensive Introductory Courses, or with one of the following: History of
Ancient Philosophy, V83.0020; History of Modern Philosophy, V83.0021; Ethics,
V83.0040; or Belief, Truth, and Knowledge, V83.0076. Logic, V83.0070, should be
taken as soon as possible.
JOINT MAJOR in Language and Mind
This
major, intended as an introduction to cognitive science, is administered by the
Departments of Linguistics, Philosophy, and Psychology. Eleven courses are
required (four in linguistics, one in philosophy, five in psychology, and one
additional course) to be constituted as follows. The linguistics component
consists of Language, V61.0001; Grammatical Analysis, V61.0013; Introduction to
Cognitive Science, V61.0028; and one more course chosen from Computational
Models of Sentence Construction, V61.0024; Phonological Analysis, V61.0012; and
Introduction to Semantics, V61.0004. The philosophy component consists of one
course, chosen from Minds and Machines, V83.0015; Philosophy of Language,
V83.0085; and Logic, V83.0070. The psychology component consists of four
required courses: Introduction to Psychology, A89.0001; Statistics for the
Behavioral Sciences, V89.0010; The Psychology of Language, V89.0056; and
Cognition, V89.0029; in addition, one course, chosen from Seminar in Thinking,
V89.0026; Language Acquisition and Cognitive Development, V89.0300; and
Laboratory in Human Cognition, V89.0028. The eleventh course will be one of the
above-listed courses that has not already been chosen to satisfy the
departmental components.
MINOR
A
minor in philosophy requires four 4-point courses, at least three beyond the
A-level Introductory Courses. One course must be History of Ancient Philosophy,
V83.0020, or History of Modern Philosophy, V83.0021; one course each must come
from Group 2 (Ethics, Value, and Society) and Group 3 (Metaphysics,
Epistemology, Mind, Language, and Logic). No credit toward the minor is awarded
for a course with a grade lower than C.
INDEPENDENT STUDY
A
student may sign up for an independent study course if he or she obtains the
consent of a faculty member who approves the study project and agrees to serve
as adviser. The student must also obtain the approval of either the department
chair or the director of undergraduate studies. The student may take no more
than one such course in any given semester and no more than two such courses in
total, unless granted special permission by either the department chair or the
director of undergraduate studies.
HONORS PROGRAM
Honors
in philosophy will be awarded to majors who (1) have an overall grade point
average of 3.5 and an average in V- and G-level philosophy courses of 3.5, and
(2) successfully complete the honors program. This program, which is taken for
2 points in each of the student's last two semesters, is intended to provide an
intensive and rewarding culmination to the philosophy major. It involves
participation in an honors seminar and the writing of a senior thesis under the
supervision of a faculty adviser. Entry to the honors program requires a 3.0
average overall and a 3.5 average in at least five V- or G-level philosophy
courses (at least one in each of the three Groups, plus one Topics course). The
thesis must be approved by the adviser and by a second faculty reader for
honors to be awarded.
Majors
interested in admission to the program should consult the director of
undergraduate studies toward the end of their junior year.
COURSE PREREQUISITES
The
department treats its course prerequisites seriously. Students not satisfying a
course's prerequisites are strongly advised to seek the permission of the
instructor beforehand.
WHY STUDY PHILOSOPHY?
Philosophy has a reputation for being otherworldly and impractical – some say, “philosophy butters no bread”, but it doesn’t really deserve this label. The purpose of philosophy is controversial, but at least one this it involves is the construction and evaluation of arguments. The study of philosophy is a training of expressing thoughts clearly and precisely, in defending one’s ideas and evaluating the positions of others. Quite simply, philosophy gives a training in thinking. And this is a skill valuable in any professional field.
Philosophy
has a special affinity with the legal profession in which arguments, and the
application of general rules to cases, play central roles. Many law schools recognize this connection
and are especially receptive to philosophy majors. But philosophical skills are valuable elsewhere as well. In business, you must formulate and clarify
problems, to analyze potential solutions, and to defend your approach in a
clear and rational way. All these
abilities are improved by exercising in philosophical argument. And finally, medical schools and
professionals place increasing importance on the ability to reflect in the
ethical issues that arise in their practice – and these are of course problems
treated in moral philosophy.
Some
of these practical beliefs seem reflected the exceptional performance by
philosophy majors on graduate admissions exams. They show that philosophy majors scored higer than any other
group on the verbal section of the GRE, and much higher than any other
humanities majors on the quantitative section.
Philosophy majors are second only to math majors on the GMAT, and
third only to math and economics majors on the LSAT. Of course, majors training in philosophy may
not be wholly responsible for these results – it may also be that brighter
students are entering the field to begin with.
But in either case, the report suggests you’re not stupid if you join
them.
But this still doesn’t touch on what surely remains the most reasons for studying philosophy. College years shouldn’t just be a professional training. They are a best chance to think about basic human questions – about personal and social values, about the nature of reality and yourselves. Studying philosophy can bring into view questions of lifelong relevance and interest. It can acquaint you with the issues in debates that will always recur, and can help you toward argued positions on such issues. In a very rare case, it might even help determine your direction through life.