Undergraduate Courses



PHIL 1010 - CRITICAL THINKING
Development of practical, logical, and problem-solving skills important to all disciplines, with emphasis on the composition of argumentative essays. Definitions, types of meanings, fallacious and deceptive arguments, deductive and inductive reasoning. Introduction to major forms of scientific and logical reasoning used across humanities, sciences and social sciences, including deductive, hypothetico-deductive, and inductive arguments such as statistical, causal, and analogical. This course may be used as one of the courses required in Area B, Institutional Options, and is designed to prepare students for courses in Areas C, D, and E. 2 Credit Hours

PHIL 2010 - GREAT QUESTIONS OF PHILOSOPHY
This course is an introduction to philosophy. We will explore some fascinating questions about human existence and discuss various answers offered by philosophers—questions such as: Does God exist? How should I live my life? What is justice? What is human nature? Do we have free will? What is the meaning of life? 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 2050 - PHILOSOPHICAL THINKING
Philosophical methods, concepts, skills, and principles. For example: sentential logic, regress and reductio arguments, paradigm-case arguments, types of supervenience, Leibniz's Law, necessity versus apriority. Applications to important philosophical texts. (Required for philosophy majors in Area F.) 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3000 - MORTAL QUESTIONS: SEARCH FOR MEANING
Examination of topics central to living a meaningful life, such as life-goals, death, work, spirituality, money and ownership, emotions, friendship, and love. Readings from selected philosophers. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3010 - HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY I: ANCIENT & MEDIEVAL
(Same as RelS 3010.) Development of European philosophy from the early Greeks to the Renaissance. Typically included are Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, St. Augustine, and St. Thomas Aquinas. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3020 - HISTORY OF WESTERN PHILOSOPHY II: MODERN
(Same as RelsS 3020.) Development of European philosophy from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment. Typically included are Hobbes, Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3030 - HISTORY OF WESTERN PHIL III: 19-20TH CENTRY
(Same as RelS 3030.) Development of European and American philosophy from the Enlightenment to the mid-twentieth century. Philosophers and schools may include Hegel, Marx, Mill, Nietzsche, Russell, James, Dewey, Sartre, Whitehead, and Wittgenstein, and idealism, pragmatism, process thought, existentialism, and analytic philosophy. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3050 - ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY
Introduction to analytic philosophy through some of the most important works by leading figures, such as Russell, Ayer, Quine, Austin, Ryle, and Putnam. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3060 - EXISTENTIALISM
Introduction to existentialism through selected literary and philosophical writings of Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Camus, de Beauvoir, Sartre, and others. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3080 - ISSUES IN AFRICAN-AMERICAN PHIL
(Same as AAS 3080 and WSt 3080.) Examination of historical and contemporary figures and issues in African-American philosophy. Historical figures such as Douglass, DuBois, Delaney, and Garvey as well as historical topics such as emigration and assimilation. Contemporary figures may include M. L. King, Cornel West, and Angela Davis. Contemporary issues such as civil rights/ civil disobedience, Black feminist thought, integration, and Black self-respect. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3230 - PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
(Same as RelS 3230.) Issues such as the nature of religion, arguments for the existence of God, the problem of evil, faith and reason, religious experience, immortality, myth and symbol, and alternative religious philosophies. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3690 - HONORS READINGS
Prerequisite: consent of the instructor and Honors Program director. Discussion and readings on selected topics. 1 to 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3720 - CONTEMPORARY MORAL PROBLEMS
Selected moral issues, such as abortion, euthanasia, environmentalism, genetic engineering, feminism, animal rights, gay and lesbian rights, and political violence. Brief coverage of ethical theories as they relate to the issues at hand. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3730 - BUSINESS ETHICS
Moral issues in business, such as social responsibility, employee obligations and rights, ethics and the professions, marketing and advertising practices, and the environment. Issues in both domestic and international areas may be discussed. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3740 - BIOMEDICAL ETHICS
An introductory survey of major moral problems in bioethics. Topics such as abortion, death and euthanasia, treatment of the mentally ill, experimentation with human subjects, and genetic research will be covered. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3855 - TOPICS IN POLITICAL THEORY
Introductory survey of the great writings in political thought. Examines the contributions these works made to Western conceptions such as democracy, equality, human nature, citizenship, and liberty, as well as their continuing relevance for understanding contemporary moral and political dilemmas. May be repeated if topic varies. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 3900 - STUDIES IN PHILOSOPHY
Studies in Philosophy. Examination of selected philosopher(s) or topic(s). May be repeated if topic varies. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4010 - PLATO
Prerequisite: one course in philosophy, or consent of instructor. Advanced introduction to the major areas of Plato's philosophy, which may include the relationship between virtue and knowledge, the theory of recollection, the theory of forms, the nature of sensible objects, and the relationship between the individual and the state. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4020 - ARISTOTLE
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Advanced introduction to the major areas of Aristotle's philosophy, which may include early and later theories of substance, methodology, the study of nature, the soul, and ethics. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4030 - TOPICS IN ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Investigation of a specific theme, philosopher, or text, such as Aristotle's ethics, the philosophy of Socrates, Plato's Republic, Stoicism, Hellenistic ethics, or Aristotle's philosophy of mind. May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4040 - AUGUSTINE & AQUINAS
(Same as RelS 4040. Formerly Phil 4120.) Selected works of the major religious philosophers of the Middle Ages with emphasis on their views on topics such as God, sin, human nature, free will, faith, and politics. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4050 - TOPICS IN MODERN PHILOSOPHY
(Formerly Phil 4150.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Intensive study of major works of at least two of the following rationalist or empiricist philosophers: Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Malbranche, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, or Reid. May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4055 - HUME
Prerequisite: one 2000 or 3000-level course in philosophy or consent of instructor. Advanced introduction to the major areas of Hume's philosophy. Topics may include the relation between his theoretical and moral philosophy, skepticism, causation, necessity, the foundations of human knowledge, self- consciousness, personal identity, reason, will, sentiment, naturalism, and normativity. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4060 - KANT
(Formerly Phil 4160.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Selected works of Kant, such as The Critique of Pure Reason or The Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4070 - MARXISM
(Formerly Phil 4790.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Origin and development of central themes in the philosophy of Karl Marx, such as alienation, exploitation, and dialectal materialism, with limited reference to contemporary trends in Marxist thought. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4075 - TOPICS IN 19th CENTURY PHILOSOPHY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. This course may focus on the ideas of a single 19th century European or Anglo-American thinker (such as Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Mill, or James) or a school of thought; on the relationships between various schools of thought (like German Romanticism and Idealism as reactions to Kant’s Critiques); on the influence of cultural and scientific revolutions (like the reception of Darwinism) on the development of philosophy; or even on the forerunners of important later developments (like critical theory, the “linguistic turn” in analytic philosophy, or the emergence of philosophy in America). May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4080 - WITTGENSTEIN
(Formerly Phil 4170.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Intensive study of selected works, including the Tractacus Logico-Philosophicus, Philosophical Investigations, On Certainty, and others. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4085 - TOPICS IN HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Investigation of a specific theme, philosopher, or text, such as Skepticism in Ancient and Modern Philosophy, Anselm, or the Summa Contra Gentiles. May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4090 - TOPICS IN CONTINENTAL PHILOSPHY
(Formerly Phil 4190.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Study of works of such authors as Husserl, Scheler, Heidegger, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, and Ricoeur. May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4095 - SPECIAL TOPICS IN ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY
Study of works of such authors as Russell, Moore, Carnap, Putnam, Lewis, Feinberg, Hart, and Rawls. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4100 - EPISTEMOLOGY
(Formerly Phil 4190.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Problems in the concept of knowledge, such as the definition of propositional knowledge, the problem of induction, the a priori, and theories of truth. May also include theories such as coherentism, reliabilism, and foundationalism. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4130 - PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
(Formerly Phil 4430.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Varieties of scientific explanation; hypothesis formation and confirmation; paradigms, laws, and theories; the status of unobservable entities; holism and reductionism; science and values; nature and scope of scientific progress; limits of scientific explanation. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4150 - TOPICS IN EPISTEMOLOGY
Prerequisite: one 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Investigation of selected contemporary or classical topics in epistemology, May be repeated if topic varies. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4300 - METAPHYSICS
(Same as RelS 4300, Formerly Phil 4600.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. (Same as RelS 4300. Formerly Phil 4600.) Topics may include personal identity and human nature; space, time, matter, and causality; freedom and determinism; teleology; conceptions of divinity; and world views and paradigm shifts. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4330 - PHILOSOPHY OF MIND
(Formerly Phil 4440.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Topics such as theories of mind; the connection between mental and physical states; the relation between mind, language, and the world; and artificial intelligence. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4350 - TOPICS IN METAPHYSICS
Study of specific issues in metaphysics, such as free will, causation, time, personal identity, possible worlds, existence of God, realism, etc. May be repeated if topic varies. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4520 - SYMBOLIC LOGIC
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent on instructor. Fundamentals of propositional and predicate logic, with selected topics in such areas as the logic of identity and relations. Emphasis placed on construction of proofs in formal systems. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4530 - PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE
(Formerly Phil 4400.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Efforts in twentieth-century philosophy to account for the unique capacities of language to represent the world and to communicate our beliefs about it. Topics may include the nature of language, theories of meaning and reference, semantic paradoxes, private language, speech acts, and non-human language. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4610 - HINDUISM
(Same as RelS 4610.) Introduction to Hindu religion and philosophy, with some consideration of Indian Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Islam, and contemporary thought. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4615 - BUDDHISM
(Same as RelS 4615.) Historical introduction to the Buddhist tradition, tracing its developments in India, Southeast Asia, Tibet, China, Japan, and the West. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4620 - CONFUCIANISM AND TAOISM
(Same as RelS 4620.) Historical introduction to Chinese religion and philosophy, tracing developments in Confucianism and Taoism. Some consideration given to Chinese Buddhism and popular religion. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4625 - ZEN AND SHINTO
(Same as RelS 4625.) Historical introduction to Japanese religion and philosophy, tracing its developments in Shinto, folk religion, and various Buddhist schools. Special consideration given to Zen Buddhism. 3 Credit Hours
PHIL 4650 - RELIGION AND ETHICS
(Same as RelS 4650.) Study of the relation between religion and morality, including both Eastern and Western religious perspectives. Topics may include such issues as warfare, social justice, sexual ethics, and issues in modern medicine. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4670 - CHURCH AND STATE
(Same RelS 4670.) Philosophical and theological perspectives on the relationship between church and state. Issues such as conscientious objection, school prayer, the free exercise of religion, and Islamic attitudes toward the state. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4680 - WAR, PEACE, AND RELIGION
(Same as RelS 4680.) Comparative study of attitudes toward war and violence in major religious traditions. Topics may include the Christian just-war tradition; Islamic notions of jihad; Buddhist renunciation and pacifism; the writings of Gandhi; nuclear arms and the status on noncombatants; civil disobedience and conscientious objection; and religious motivated terrorism. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4690 - TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
Prerequisite: one 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. An advanced introduction to the philosophy of religion. May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4700 - ETHICS
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Major Western theories, such as relativism, egoism, emotivism, utilitarianism, deontology, naturalism, intuitionism, virtue ethics, existential ethics, and feminist ethics. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4720 - ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
Prerequisite: one 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. A consideration of the challenges environmental problems pose for ethical theory. Topics covered may include: the moral status of nonhuman animals, environmental preservation and restoration, environmental sustainability, development, human population growth, ethics as it bears on issues in nonbiological environmental sciences, and other related issues. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4740 - ADVANCED BIOMEDICAL ETHICS
Prerequisite: one 2000 or 3000level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Major moral problems in science and medicine, including abortion, death and euthanasia, treatment of the mentally ill, experimentation with human subjects, and genetic research. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4750 - TOPICS IN ETHICS
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Study of the works of major authors or views in normative ethics and/or metaethics. The focus will be on contemporary ethics but the course may include some study of historical figures. May be repeated if topic varies. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4800 - SOCIAL & POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
(Formerly Phil 4760.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Issues such as the definition and justification of human rights, justice, social welfare, and forms of political participation, and the debate between ideologies. Readings from classical and contemporary sources, for example, Plato, Locke, Mill, Marx, and Rawls. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4820 - PHILOSOPHY OF LAW
(Formerly Phil 4720.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Topics such as theories of law, feminist legal theory, the nature of legal reasoning, legal obligation, law and justice, law and morality. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4822 - TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY OF LAW
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. May be repeated if topic varies. This course is designed to teach selected topics in the philosophy of law. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4830 - PHILOSOPHY OF ART
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Historical and contemporary accounts of the nature of art, aesthetic experience, creative activity, imagination, expression, interpretation, and aesthetic evaluation. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4850 - AFRICAN-AMERICAN ETHICAL/LEGAL ISSUES
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. (Same as AAS 4750. Formerly Phil 4750.) Application of ethical and legal theories to selected issues, such as affirmative action, the legality of slavery, civil disobedience, punishment, and reparations. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4855 - ADV TOPICS POLITICAL THEORY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Advanced survey of the great writings in political thought. Examines the contributions these works made to Western conceptions such as democracy, equality, human nature, citizenship, and liberty, as well as their continuing relevance for understanding contemporary moral and political dilemmas. May be repeated if topic varies. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4860 - PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON WOMEN
(Same as WSt 4360, Formerly Phil 4770.) Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Classical and contemporary issues concerning women, such as discrimination on the basis of gender, class, race, or sexuality, whether gender is natural or constructed, and historical roots of feminist and anti- feminist perspectives. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4870 - HONORS THESIS: RESEARCH
Prerequisites: consent of the instructor and Honors Program director. (Same as WSt 4360. Formerly Phil 4770.) Readings or research preparatory to honors thesis or project. 1 to 6 Credit Hours

PHIL 4880 - HONORS THESIS: WRITING
Prerequisites: Phil 4870, consent of the instructor and Honors Program driector. Writing or production of honors thesis or project. 1 to 6 Credit Hours

PHIL 4890 - TOPICS IN SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Study of issues in social/political philosophy. The focus will be on contemporary topics but the course may include some study of historical figures. May be repeated if topic varies. A maximum of six credit hours may be applied toward the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4900 - ISSUES IN PHILOSOPHY
Prerequisite: One 2000 or 3000-level philosophy course, or consent of instructor. Examination of selected philosopher(s) or topic(s). May be repeated if topic varies, but only six credit hours may be applied to the major. 3 Credit Hours

PHIL 4950 - INDEPENDENT RESEARCH
Prerequisite: consent of instructor. Designed to provide students with the opportunity to do more advanced work in an area in which they have already had regular course work. Not to be used as a substitute for regular upper-level courses. 1 to 3 Credit Hours