About the course:
This course introduces some fundamental problems, positions and theories of 20th and 21st century theoretical philosophy. Both epistemological issues (questions concerning knowledge) and metaphysical issues (questions concerning the nature of existence) are discussed, but two other themes are always implicitly or explicitly present: the nature of language and meaning, and the relevance (and status) of contemporary science. Although we cannot cover all work of relevance, I hope to sketch a useful picture of some key developments.
Lecture plan:
1) Pragmatism (11/9/2018)
2) From inductivism to falsificationism (18/9/2018)
3) Platonic forms revisited (2/10/2018 - NOTE! ONE WEEK GAP!)
4) Paradigm and Revolution (5/10/2018 - NOTE! SAME WEEK!)
5) Knowledge and Power (9/10/2018)
6) Justified True Belief (16/10/2018)
7) Mind and Metaphysics (23/10/2018)
8) Ontology and Social Construction (30/10/2018)
9) Causality, Science Fiction and Extro-Science Fiction (6/11/2018)
10) Back to the Future (13/11/2018)
2) From inductivism to falsificationism (18/9/2018)
3) Platonic forms revisited (2/10/2018 - NOTE! ONE WEEK GAP!)
4) Paradigm and Revolution (5/10/2018 - NOTE! SAME WEEK!)
5) Knowledge and Power (9/10/2018)
6) Justified True Belief (16/10/2018)
7) Mind and Metaphysics (23/10/2018)
8) Ontology and Social Construction (30/10/2018)
9) Causality, Science Fiction and Extro-Science Fiction (6/11/2018)
10) Back to the Future (13/11/2018)
Core reading:
The core readings for the course includes texts by William James, Karl Popper, Bertrand Russell, Thomas Kuhn, Michel Foucault, Linda Zagzebski, David Chalmers, Quentin Meillassoux, Sally Haslanger and David Lewis. This course is text-oriented, and you are expected to read the relevant texts before each week’s lecture. The lectures will be used to examine the underlying issues, and to provide critical and historical perspective.
To help with pre-lecture preparation, most weeks you will be emailed a number of questions to think about while reading the texts. Some of these questions will be used for group discussion.
To help with pre-lecture preparation, most weeks you will be emailed a number of questions to think about while reading the texts. Some of these questions will be used for group discussion.
Other books and resources:
Two other valuable resources are the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy and the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Most articles in both sources are written by philosophers who have made (or are still making) contributions to the topics discussed. Many articles are themselves substantial contributions to the philosophical literature.
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