Philosophy 310:
Philosophical Problems
California State University, Northridge
Department of Philosophy
Summer Session 3, 2011
Syllabus
Course Description
Aimed at upper-division students, this course serves as a
critical introduction to both historical and contemporary approaches to the
central topics of philosophy, including epistemology, metaphysics, and
philosophy of mind. Our
investigation will include treatments of the concept of knowledge, the problem
of skepticism, the problem of the mind and body, and finally, issues concerning
consciousness.
Catalogue
Description
Prerequisites: Completion of the lower division writing
requirement; 3 units of philosophy. Introduction for upper division students to
such central philosophic problems as knowledge, truth, reality and mind.
Regular written assignments will be required. Not open to students who have
completed PHIL 150. (Available for General Education, Arts and Humanities)
Course Information for Class Number 10719
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Meeting Times................................ |
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:00 to 9:15 PM |
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Meeting Location............................ |
Jerome Richfield Hall, Room 221 (JR221) |
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Website............................................ |
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Reading and Assignment Schedule. |
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Instructor......................................... |
Christopher Lay, PhD |
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Contact............................................ |
christopher.lay@csun.edu (clay@csun.edu) |
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Office Location............................... |
Sierra Tower, Room 532 (ST 532) |
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Office Hours................................... |
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:30 to 5:30PM, and by appointment |
Role
in the General Education Program
This course satisfies the Lifelong Learning section of General Education, which has the following goal: Students will develop cognitive, physical and affective skills which will allow them to become more integrated and well-rounded individuals within various physical, social, cultural and technological environments and communities.
Texts
Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and
Contemporary Readings (Fifth
Edition), Edited by J. Perry, M. Bratman and J.M. Fischer.
Published by Oxford University Press (2009). ISBN13: 9780195390360
Course Grade and Assignments
Participation: 10%
In-Class Quizzes: 30%
Midterm Take-Home Essay: 20%
Final Take-Home Essay: 40%
Participation
Participation in philosophy is essential. You are expected to do the readings on
schedule (i.e. before the class period indicated) and come to class prepared to
discuss them. Class participation
will decide borderline grades, either up or down, and in rare cases,
extraordinary class participation can boost your final grade up a third (e.g.,
from 'B' to "B+"). Class
participation will mainly be evaluated by the contribution the student makes
toward the learning experience of the class as a whole. Note that discussing the substantive
issues of the course in office hours and via email will also count as class
participation.
Take-Home Essays
You will be given a prompt for all take-home essays, and
approximately a week to write them.
The essays for this class must be philosophical. In line with the Course Goals and
Objectives (detailed above), you will have to represent some thesis from a text,
and then critically engage with it.
As such, your own essay must have a thesis and support for that
thesis. To succeed in writing an
essay in this philosophy course, you will need to constantly and clearly
differentiate the point of view expressed in the text in question from your own
point of view. And once you have
shown that you can critically engage with the philosophical insights found in
the texts in question, which requires you to represent the point of view in
question, you will be encouraged to express your own philosophical
insights. Other, specific expectations
for take-home essays will be spelled out in detail in the respective essay
prompts. For all essays you will be
expected to correct errors in mechanics, usage, grammar, and spelling.
In-Class Quizzes
There will be two, in-class short essay quizzes.
Make-up Quizzes and Late Paper Policy, and Extensions
You will only be able to make up in-class assignments if you
have a credible excuse (e.g., doctor's note, jury summons, obituary notice,
etc.). Likewise, late take-home
assignments will be accepted if you can provide a credible excuse. Extensions for take-home assignments
will be given only when 1) a compelling reason is given and 2) permission is
sought at least three days before the normal deadline.
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism, cheating, or any other form of academic
dishonesty will not be tolerated.
It is your responsibility as a student to know CSUN's academic
dishonesty policy, as spelled out in the "Student Conduct" appendix to CSUN's
catalogue. Any assignment produced
in an academically dishonesty way will receive an "F" grade, and the
student submitting it will be reported to the Dean of Student Affairs. Students who engage in academic
dishonesty in more than one assignment will receive an "F" grade for
the course. There are no exceptions
to this policy: "I didn't know that what I turned in constituted
plagiarism," "I forgot the quotation marks and citation,"
"It was only one sentence," or "It was an accident, it'll never
happen again" are not valid excuses.
Please, if you don't
understand what plagiarism or academic integrity is, ask me.
Students with Disabilities
This course will accommodate any disability if you have registered
with CSUN's Disability Resources and Educational Services.
Schedule
of Readings and Assignments
(with embedded links to Lecture Notes)
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Week One |
Getting
Started / The Concept of Knowledge |
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Thursday, July 14th |
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WEEK TWO |
The Problem of Skepticism |
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Tuesday, July 19th |
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Thursday, July 21st |
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WEEK THREE |
The Problem of Skepticism / The Mind Body Problem
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Tuesday, July 26th |
Grau, Bad
Dreams, Evil Demons, and the Experience Machine: Philosophy and the Matrix |
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Thursday, July 28th |
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WEEK FOUR |
The Mind Body Problem |
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Tuesday, August 2nd |
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Wednesday, August 3rd |
Midterm
Essay Due |
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Thursday, August 4th |
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WEEK FIVE |
The Mind Body Problem / Consciousness |
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Tuesday, August 9th |
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Thursday, August 11th |
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WEEK SIX |
Consciousness |
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Tuesday, August 16th |
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Thursday, August 18th |
Jackson, What Mary Didn't Know Lewis, Knowing What It's Like |
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FINALS WEEK |
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Tuesday, August 23rd |
Final
Essay Due |