Philosophy

offered in engLISH and french

Course descriptions

Courses coded (10) are also available by correspondence

PHIL 1115 E - Introduction to Philosophy
Provides an introduction to philosophy by helping students formulate ultimate questions whose answers guide our lives, such as: What is the meaning of life? What is truth? How should I behave? What is beauty? Who am I? Students have the opportunity to think reflectively about such questions by exploring and evaluating critically the writings of influential philosophers of the past and of our own day. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2126 E - Philosophy of Sexuality
The students are directed to a variety of philosophical perspectives to examine critically such issues as: love, desire, sexual orientation, perversion, rape, prostitution, loyalty, friendship, instincts, repression, and privacy. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2215 E - Environmental Ethics
This interdisciplinary course explores our problematic relation to nature in applied science and technology. Can we defend an environmental ethic that extends our moral obligations beyond members of the human species, to include individual animals and plants, species and whole ecosystems? If so, what limits will this set to industrial culture’s use of the environment? A case-study approach is taken to look at specific environmental problems such as waste disposal, acid rain, global warming, ozone depletion, and pesticide use. The relation of such problems to each other, and to human population growth, are examined. A focus of the course is on students developing their own skills in moral decision-making and policy-formation. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2256 E - Philosophy of Education
Students critically examine central values, theories and concepts pertaining to education, such as intelligence, indoctrination, authority, student interests and rights, aesthetic and moral education. The philosophical investigation has important practical consequences because the interpretation of such concepts, theories and values influences the selection of educational approaches and of teaching materials. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2266 E - Philosophy in the Secondary Schools
Designed for students intending to teach at the secondary school level. Examines different approaches to philosophical inquiry and provides an overview of the different areas of philosophy (philosophy of human nature: ethics; social and political philosophy; epistemology; logic and the philosophy of science; aesthetics; metaphysics). The course also explores different activities and exercises to assist in evaluating philosophical work. Issues in the philosophy of education are addressed as well. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2305 E - Origins of Western Philosophy
The philosophers of ancient Greece developed many of the themes that have dominated ethical, political, metaphysical, and psychological debates down to modern times. The course examines these and other major trends in Greek thought, with special emphasis on the work of Plato and Aristotle, in order to consider them as philosophical arguments in their own right, and to address the legacy of Greek thought in shaping contemporary culture. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2325 E - Reason and Experience in Early Modern Philosophy

In the 17th and 18th centuries, European thought was transformed by revolutions in scientific discovery and method, and by the withering of religious authority in the political and moral spheres. In response to this, philosophy began to rethink its own pivotal questions: What can be known? What is it to be human? What actions are morally justified? This course examines representative works of this period, emphasizing three distinct but related approaches to answering these questions: that knowledge is confined to what is given us immediately in our perceptual experience, or empiricism; that knowledge is concerned only with what conforms to the laws of reason, or rationalism; and the claim, made by Immanuel Kant, that the two together make up what can be known and what must be done. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2345 E(10) - Bioethics: Human Life Issues
Examines current controversies about the benefits and dangers to human life arising from recent developments in the biomedical sciences. Special attention is given to issues in the reproductive technologies, genetics, the care of the terminally ill, AIDS, research with human subjects, and to questions of abortion and euthanasia. Comprehensive understanding of the issues at stake and ability to evaluate the positions taken in these controversies define the aims of the course. Students may not retain credit for both PHIL 2345 & RLST 2345. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2405 E - Development of Political Thought
An introductory survey of some of the main concepts and problems in the development of political philosophy, focusing upon the thought of such major figures as Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and Marx. PREREQ: POLI 1005 or PHIL 1115, or instructor’s permission. Students may not retain credit for both PHIL 2405 & POLI 2405.
(lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2505 E - Critical Thinking and Argumentation
The central goal of this course is to help students develop interpretive and evaluative skills, and dispositions that will be useful to them in their courses and in their personal lives. Various aspects of language and logic are studied to evaluate correctly arguments and explanations from a variety of disciplines and contexts. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2525 E(10) - Contemporary Moral Issues
This course engages students in philosophical reflection on a selected number of current moral problems, such as: censorship and pornography, love and the family, sexual harassment, hate crimes, racism, the legitimacy of violence, civil disobedience, capital punishment, suicide, gun control, and resource allocation. Investigation of these issues provides the opportunity to examine the viability of comprehensive moral frameworks. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2536 E - Ethical Issues in Contemporary Sport
An introduction to critical ethical thinking in relation to current moral issues in sport such as violence, cheating, drug abuse, discrimination and commercialization. Assesses what ends in sport are intrinsic as opposed to extrinsic. Some attention is also given to the moral codes adopted by various sport professionals. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2575 E - Philosophy of Law
The Canadian charter of rights and freedom established a constitutional protection for civil liberty. The course explores the important philosophical issues surrounding such guarantees. The fundamental liberty freedom of expression provides the framework within which the inquiry is executed. Historical and conceptual issues to be explored include three key concepts: the tension between liberty and community; the question of the legal enforcement of morality; and the uniqueness of Canadian constitutional democracy. Leading Supreme Court of Canada decisions are utilized but no prior knowledge of the lawis required.
Students may not retain credit for both PHIL 2575 & POLI 2575. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 2626 E - Philosophy and the Social Sciences
Topics include: social sciences compared with natural sciences; objectivity in social science; what it means to study human behaviour impersonally; facts and values; the individual and the institution; structures and change in society; individualism and the social self; the sociological critique of philosophy and the philosophical critique of sociology. PREREQ: one course in social science (may be taken concurrently), or dept.'s permission. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2726 E - Media Ethics
Examines whether today’s mass communications media serve the democratic ideal of free communication. Topics include: freedom of information in a modern democracy, media definition of the news and influence on public opinion, sensationalism, balance, accuracy and bias in the media, media monopolies, the right to privacy and media ethics codes. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2746 E - Communications Media and Values
A philosophical exploration of the ethical and cultural implications of the rapid growth and proliferation of diverse new communication media, such as computers and electronic networks. Topics may include: virtual reality, virtual community and multiple identities on electronic networks; artificial intelligence; comparing information and knowledge; programming codes and language; ethical issues surrounding privacy, data quality, database security, and intellectual property; electronic communications, the global village, and changes in the nature of civilization. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2747 E - Technology, Freedom and Values
A philosophical exploration of the social and ethical implications of technological change, and their relation to the sciences. Topics may include: theories of a technological imperative and determinism; implications for our
understanding of freedom, rationality, and ourselves; the social control of innovation;
technology and the mastery of nature, e.g., in biotechnology and artificial life; the diverse forms and types of technologies; and technological visions of the future.
(lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 2876 E - Business Ethics
Explores ethical issues which arise in the management of a modern corporation, such as the goals and functions of the firm, corporate social responsibility, conflicts between personnel, organizational and societal values, international and environmental issues, and the firm’s duties to workers, consumers and other stakeholders. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3026 E - Feminist Philosophy
Examines a number of issues in feminist philosophy, which may include some of the following: issues of gender, feminist ethics and ethics of care, feminism and language, feminist critiques of science, feminist political philosophy. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3306 E - Topics in Ancient Philosophy
An advanced course on the philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3316 E - Medieval Philosophy
Beginning with early Western European philosophers and continuing up to the Renaissance, the course traces, in the writings of some of the more important Medieval authors, the assimilation and transformation of several important ideas of Greek philosophy. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3326 E - Topics in Early Modern Philosophy
An advanced course on the philosophical issues stemming from the rise of scientific thinking in the 17th and 18th centuries. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3335 E - History of Modern Philosophy II: The Continental Tradition
In the wake of attempts to create a kind of antagonism between rational thought and bodily experience, philosophers in Europe in the latter part of the 18th century, and throughout the 19th century, argued for a set of radical affinities between the rational and the empirical, between the way we think and the way we live. As a result, the philosophical project that has come to be called transcendental philosophy identifies as areas of philosophical concern a wide range of social, political and historical themes. These themes include the nature of time, the relationship between politics and history, the essence of community, and the impact of one’s historical situation on the way one thinks. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 3346 E - Bioethics: Case Studies
The advancements of science, technology and medicine challenge our beliefs about what is to be human and how we ought to relate to one another. This course seeks to make sense of this challenge through a dual approach that combines the study of ethical theory with the analysis of case studies. The case studies considered include both those created to facilitate the discussion of bioethical issues, as well as significant Canadian cases which are helping to shape our understanding of the
philosophical, ethical, religious, and legal issues raised by these advancements. Students learn to reason carefully about the nature of ethical dilemmas, and are provided with the tools necessary to reach a decision about what should be done. PREREQ: PHIL or RLST 2345. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3476 E - Existentialism
Existentialism is one of the most important philosophical currents of our time. Its origin is traced through the thought of Kiekegaard and Nietzsche and through the contribution of Heidegger. Other authors are also discussed. Principal themes studied are existence, freedom, absurdity and search for meaning. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3486 E - Marx, Marxism and Socialism
A study of the foundations of Karl Marx’s wide ranging critique of modern society, stressing its philosophical roots and implications, both in substance and in method, and the subsequent diversity of interpretations in socialism from the 19th century to the present day, with special emphasis on Canadian socialist theory and theory of the labour movement. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3496 E - Phenomenology
Examines the classical texts in the phenomenological movement, which studies the interactive relationship between human consciousness and its objects. Among theauthors to be studied are Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre and Merleau-Ponty. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3497 E - Hermeneutics
Hermeneutics is the study of the factors involved in the interpretation of texts, cultures, and the historical or cultural distance that separates the interpreter from what is to be interpreted. Among the authors to be studied are Hans-Georg Gadamer and Martin Heidegger. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 3545 E - Moral Philosophy
A study of major themes and theories in moral philosophy. Themes include: freedom and responsibility, the relation of morality and religion, the enforcement of morals, moral education, coercion, self-interest and pleasure. Theories may include those of Plato, Aristotle, Hume, Mill, Kant and a number of 20th-century theories amongst others. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 3635 E - Philosophy of Religion
A systematic inquiry into the meaning of religious language. Current tools of philosophical analysis are used to interpret classical and modern texts which deal with religious truth, structures of pain and alienation, death, and other selected topics. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 3876 E - Philosophy and Psychology
Examines some main philosophical problems concerned with everyday explanations of human behaviour, and explanations found within experimental and clinical psychology. How do methods of verification, types of concepts, prediction, etc., differ from one case to the other? What bearing do questions in philosophy of mind have on explanations in psychology of human behaviour? A representative variety of psychological theories and techniques are discussed. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 4006 E - Honours Seminars
Each seminar is devoted to a special topic reflecting current research of the faculty member who offers the course. Specific
descriptions are made available each March for the following year. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 4007 E - Honours Seminars
Same description as PHIL 4006. (lec 3) cr 3

PHIL 4405 E - 20th-Century Moral, Political, Social and Legal Theory
Examines 20th-century philosophical discussion of the nature of legal, moral, social and political values. The theories of morality, relativism, pluralism, utilitarianism and social contract are among the topics discussed. PREREQ: PHIL 3545 or 2575. (lec 3) cr 6

PHIL 4805 E - Independent Studies
Provides an opportunity for qualified students to do special studies in a field of philosophy beyond or outside the regular department offerings. A member of the department supervises the student’s program. Written work and discussion are required as agreed by the student and the faculty member. (sem/tut 3) cr 6