Intro to philosophy, fall 2009

All readings for the class are linked in the calendar below.  Links to paper and debate assignments will be posted as soon as they are announced.  Please bring either hard or electronic copies of each day's assigned readings with you to class.  

Course code

IPFA09

Where and when

TTh 5:00p-6:15p DeBartolo 207

Grades

Your grade is based on an unweighted average of your scores on the following seven items:  two exams, two papers, participation in one of three debates, periodic short argument summaries (to be announced), and class participation.  

Extra credit

Students who participate in one of the Center for Social Concerns' Fall Break immersion seminars and write a short (approximately 300 words) paper relating their experience to one of the topics of this class will be eligible for up to 3 extra credit points.  These points will be used to raise the one lowest of the four exam and paper grades at the end of the course.  These papers will be due the last day of class (12-10).  The list of CSC seminars can be found here; the Appalachia, Cultural Diversity, Gospel of Life, and Sustainable Development seminars may be especially relevant.  

What

All linked readings are PDF files.  Use your ND netID for access.  Access is restricted to current students in this class ONLY!  

Week

Date

Topic

Reading

Conceptions of the good life

18-25Course logistics; Conceptions of the good lifeThe Buddha, `The four noble truths' and Rahula, `The fourth noble truth'



Chihung, `Introduction' to Analects

8-27Conceptions of the good lifePlato, from Symposium



Day, `Day after Day'
29-1Conceptions of the good lifeMill, On liberty, ch. 3



MacIntyre, After virtue, ch. 10

9-3Informal logicFischer, The logic of real arguments, ch. 1
39-8RelativismWong, `Relativism'

9-10RelativismNussbaum, `Non-relative virtues'
49-15RelativismMacIntyre, `Moral pluralism without moral relativism'

9-17Writing philosophy papersThe giant philosophy papers packet

Justice and injustice

59-22Social contract game

9-24Liberalism:  Justice as fairnessRawls, A theory of justice, sec. 1-4 and 11
69-29Liberalism:  Libertarianism
Nozick, Anarchy, state, and utopia, ch. 7

10-1CommunitarianismTaylor, `Atomism'


PAPER 1 DUE
710-6Capitalism game

10-8MarxismMarx, `Wage labor and capital'
810-13MIDTERM

10-15DEBATE 1


FALL BREAK

Scientific knowledge

910-27InductionHume, `Sceptical doubts concerning the operations of the understanding'

10-29FalsificationPopper, `Conjectural knowledge'
1011-3FalsificationSalmon, `Rational predictions'

11-5CausationHume, `Of the idea of necessary connexion'
1111-10CausationCartwright, `Do the laws of physics lie?'

11-12DEBATE 2
1211-17UnderdeterminationDuhem, `Physical theory and experiment'

Science and values


11-19Underdetermination in climate changePetersen, `Philosophy of climate science'



Petersen, `The practice of climate simulation and its social and political context'
1311-24Class cancelled


PAPER 2 DUE
1412-1Science and values
Longino, `Cognitive and non-cognitive values in science'

12-3Science and values
Kitcher, `The ideal of objectivity'
1512-8Science and religionAppiah, `Old gods, new worlds'

12-10DEBATE 3