Philosophy (PHIL)

PHIL 101B. Introduction to Philosophy. 1 Unit.

An investigation into the effect of the impact of modern science in shaping our beliefs about the mind, freedom, morality, God and meaning. The effects of the intellectual hegemony of scientific naturalism are explored by way of a comparison between modern and pre-modern cultures and beliefs. Themes may include, “Concepts of Personal Existence,” "Video Games and Philosophy," “The Matrix, Metaphysics, and Morality,” and “Plato’s Republic”, as identified by the instructor. Offered each semester.

PHIL 104Q. Introduction to Logic. 1 Unit.

An introduction to the informal and formal principles, techniques, and skills that are necessary for distinguishing correct from incorrect reasoning. Offered each semester. Cross-listed as MATH 104Q.

PHIL 190. Special Topics in Philosophy. 0.5 or 1 Units.

PHIL 250H. History of Ancient Philosophy. 1 Unit.

A survey of the philosophy of the Pre-Socratics, Plato and Aristotle. PHIL 250H or PHIL 260H offered at least once a year. Writing enhanced course.

PHIL 260H. History of Modern Philosophy. 1 Unit.

A survey of and engagement with the great works of the western philosophical tradition from Descartes and the Rationalists, through Hume and the Empiricists, and ending with Kant. PHIL 250H or PHIL 260H offered at least once a year. Writing enhanced course.

PHIL 270H. History of Philosophy: 19th and 20th Century. 1 Unit.

A survey of major philosophical movements over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The course may include German idealism, phenomenology, pragmatism, logical positivism, critical theory, existentialism, and ordinary language philosophy.

PHIL 284. Philosophy of Law. 1 Unit.

An examination of philosophical issues involved in understanding the nature of law. Topics of discussion include the problem of how to define the concept law, the differences between positive and natural law, and the relationship between moral and legal obligations. The class will also examine salient differences among the various areas (regulatory, civil, criminal, constitutional, etc.), sources (legislation, decree, common, etc.) and justifications (utilitarian and deontological) of law.

PHIL 290. Special Topics in Philosophy. 1 Unit.

PHIL 305. Philosophy of Mind. 1 Unit.

An examination of the nature of consciousness. Topics may include contemporary theories of behaviorism, functionalism, artificial intelligence, and cognitive science.

PHIL 306. Philosophy of Language. 1 Unit.

An examination of the role of language in shaping, limiting and expressing thought. The connection between philosophy and language and the nature of language itself will be explored through the work of contemporary philosophers.

PHIL 307V. Social and Political Philosophy. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Social Justice Value. An examination of contemporary social and political issues in the light of classical and contemporary works of philosophy. Topics may include justice, freedom, property, equality, and democracy.

PHIL 308V. Existentialism. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Ethical or Spiritual Inquiry Value. An examination of issues concerning the meaning of human existence. Sample topics may include: freedom and responsibility, anxiety and death, authenticity and alienation, the individual and society, emotions and reason, faith and God.

PHIL 309V. Feminist Philosophy. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Social Justice Value. An examination of national and global feminist philosophers’ efforts to develop a perspective of their own. Discussions will focus on feminist analyses of the family, pornography, reproductive rights, violence against women, the intersection of gender, race, and class, women’s oppression, the causes of that oppression, and ways of fighting it. The course will include a service learning component.

PHIL 310. Contemporary Continental Philosophy. 1 Unit.

A close reading is given to key figures in contemporary continental philosophy, including, for example, Derrida, Foucault, and Lacan. Its signature philosophical methods such as deconstruction, post-structuralism, and psychoanalysis are discussed. Philosophical influences such as existentialism, neo-Marxism, and phenomenology are considered and contrasts with Anglo American analytic philosophy are explored.

PHIL 311V. Philosophy of Race. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Social Justice Value. This course critically investigates the historical evolution of the concepts of race and racism from the past to the present and considers the role that these concepts have had, and continue to have, in shaping a just society.

PHIL 313V. Philosophy of Religion. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Ethical or Spiritual Inquiry Value. An examination of some of the major issues in classical and contemporary philosophy of religion, including the nature and significance of religious language, the existence and nature of God, the problem of evil, religious experience, miracles, and alternatives to theism.

PHIL 315V. Contemporary Moral Dilemmas. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Ethical or Spiritual Inquiry Value. This seminar is a course in normative ethical inquiry. As such it focuses on real-life moral dilemmas rather than on philosophical ethical theory. In this respect this course is an applied ethics course. Arguments on both sides of ethical dilemmas are considered. Such issues may include but are not limited to the following: abortion, euthanasia, human rights, racism, sexism, and animal rights. Junior Seminar. PHIL 315V, PHIL 316V, or PHIL 317V offered at least once a year.

PHIL 316V. Bio-Medical Ethics. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Ethical or Spiritual Inquiry Value. An intensive study of one area within applied ethics. In this course, the role of medicine in human life and medical advances are explored from philosophical perspectives, including phenomenology, deconstruction, feminism, and disability theory. Topics considered include medicine as professional practice and advances in bio-technologies challenging how we view personhood. Students will learn how to critically examine connected conceptual issues, including identity, authenticity, and autonomy. PHIL 315V, PHIL 316V, or PHIL 317V offered at least once a year.

PHIL 317V. Environmental Ethics. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Environmental Responsibility Value. An intensive study of one area within applied ethics. This course explores a variety of ethical frameworks for understanding human impacts on the environment. Sample topics include animal rights, sustainability, deep ecology, feminist ecology, third world critiques of global capital, consumption, population, and world hunger. PHIL 315V, PHIL 316V, or PHIL 317V offered at least once a year.

PHIL 350V. Ethics. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Ethical or Spiritual Inquiry Value. This course approaches ethics from a theoretical, rather than an applied, point of view, and will consider a variety of frameworks of use for considering ethical and moral problems. The major Western traditions of deontology, virtue ethics, utilitarianism, feminist ethics of care, and postmodern ethics will be considered and compared. Eastern traditions, including Confucianism and Buddhism, will also be considered. Offered at least once a year.

PHIL 351. Epistemology. 1 Unit.

An examination of human knowledge with attention to recent developments and classical theories. Topics include skepticism, the justification of beliefs, rationality and truth. PHIL 351 or PHIL 352 offered at least once a year.

PHIL 352. Metaphysics. 1 Unit.

An examination of the classic philosophical problems concerning the nature of reality. Topics may include the nature of consciousness, causation, freedom and determinism, the nature of persons, questions of the objectivity and/or subjectivity of reality. PHIL 351 or PHIL 352 offered at least once a year.

PHIL 353A. Aesthetics. 1 Unit.

An examination of the arts and their relation to philosophy. Topics may include theories of art and beauty; language and music; philosophy and the dramatic arts; philosophy and film; philosophy and literature.

PHIL 360H. Buddhist Philosophy. 1 Unit.

This class explores foundational doctrines of Indian Buddhist philosophy. While we survey several schools of Buddhist philosophy, each of these schools is founded on the conviction that the fundamental problem of life is the problem of suffering and that this problem’s resolution consists in the realization of the related doctrines of dependent origination and no-self. This class may also explore more specific themes connected to Buddhism, including Buddhist ethics, meditation practices, and contemporary scientific investigations into the nature and effects of those practices.

PHIL 390. Special Topics in Philosophy. 1 Unit.

Topics studied will vary and may include philosophical movements (such as pragmatism), historical periods (such as Roman and Hellenistic philosophy), and philosophical areas (such as the philosophy of law). Can be repeated up to a total of 2 units.

PHIL 391V. Arendt and King: Ethical Reasoning. 1 Unit.

This course focuses on Stetson's Social Justice Value. This course looks at a classic text by Hannah Arendt and some key writings and speeches by Martin Luther King, Jr. Both authors provide challenging examples of robust ethical reasoning that brought insight to the most challenging and fraught issues of the twentieth century surrounding the holocaust, segregation and the civil rights movement. The overlapping themes of their works address some of the most difficult and profound ethical questions without losing touch with the concrete circumstances they commented on. Junior Seminar.

PHIL 395. Teaching Apprenticeship. 0.5 Units.

Pass/Fail only. A teaching apprenticeship provides an opportunity for a student with an especially strong interest and ability in philosophy to work directly with a philosophy faculty member in the design and implementation of a course. The apprenticeship is arranged by mutual agreement between the faculty member and the student. Such an experience is especially beneficial for students who are considering university teaching as a profession. Prerequisite: permission of instructor. May be repeated once.

PHIL 396. Research Apprenticeship. 0.5 or 1 Units.

PHIL 397. Internship in Philosophy. 0.5 or 1 Units.

Opportunities are offered for real world experience, including editorial experience with a philosophy journal and experience in the practical application of ethics in the workplace. Full-unit internships require 140 hours for the semester; half-unit internships require 70 hours for the semester in the field and is supervised by a Philosophy faculty member. Students and the supervising faculty member are responsible for making the arrangements for this work-related experience. May be repeated for credit for up to 1 unit. Enrollment in an internship course requires students to attend an orientation prior to beginning work at their internship site. For more information regarding internship orientations, please contact Career & Professional Development at career@stetson.edu or 386-822-7315.

PHIL 399. Research in Philosophy. 1 Unit.

A writing intensive seminar designed to prepare students for the senior project. Prerequisite: Completion of at least two Philosophy courses. Writing enhanced course. Offered every spring semester; should be taken in the junior year.

PHIL 400. Department Seminar. 1 Unit.

Selected topics in philosophy are discussed in a seminar format. One member of the Department directs the seminar, but other members of the philosophy faculty participate. This course is required for all philosophy majors and may be repeated for credit. Department approval required. May be repeated up to a total of 2 units. Offered every spring semester.

PHIL 453. Advanced Logic. 1 Unit.

A study of second order predicate calculus, mathematical logic, and on occasion, modal logic. Prerequisite: PHIL 104Q.

PHIL 485. Independent Study. 0.5 or 1 Units.

May be repeated up to a total of 2 units.

PHIL 490. Special Topics in Philosophy. 1 Unit.

PHIL 498. Directed Reading - Senior Project. 0.5 Units.

An optional independent reading course designed for majors who are preparing for their Senior Project.

PHIL 499. Senior Project. 1 Unit.

Departmental approval required. Offered every fall semester. Completion of PHIL 399 strongly recommended.