Course Calendar

PHILOS 1 Schedule FALL 2006

(Tu) Aug. 29

Introductions: Course, Instructor, Students

 

(Th) Aug. 31

Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”   

Read: Plato’s Republic (514a-517)

http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/greek/philosopher/myth_allegory_cave_plato.html

Assignment # 1 [See Assignment Instructions in syllabus packet.]

(Tu) Sept. 5

Socrates on the Examined Life

Read: Plato’s “The Apology” (17a-42a) http://socrates.clarke.edu/aplg0100.htm

Assignment # 2

(Th) Sept. 7

Sophists vs. Socrates

Read: Palmer (3rd, 44-54; 4th, 48-58)

QUIZ # 1

(Tu) Sept. 12

REFLECTION:  Who is in the cave today?

Read: Addicted to War (cartoon book)

VIDEO clip from

Assignment # 3

(Th) Sept. 14

DEBATE: Is Addicted to War a Gadfly or Sophist Viewpoint on the causes of 9-11?

Position # 1

(Tu) Sept. 19

Plato

Read: Palmer, (3rd, 55-67; 4th, 59-71)

QUIZ # 2

(Th) Sept. 21

Aristotle

Read: Palmer (3rd, 68-83; 4th, 72-87)

QUIZ # 3

(Tu) Sept. 26

REFLECTION: How do the models of the examined life offered by Plato and Aristotle differ?

Assignment # 4

(Th) Sept. 28

Epicureanism & Stoicicm & Neoplatonism

Read: Palmer (3rd,87-98 ; 4th, 91-102)

QUIZ # 4

(Tu) Oct. 3

DEBATE: Examined vs. Unexamined Life

Position # 2

(Th) Oct. 5

FILMS: “The Cosmological Argument” and “The God Who Wasn’t There”

Last day for late assignments to date.

(Tu) Oct. 10

Medieval Philosophy

Read: Palmer (3rd:100-142; 4th: 104-146)

QUIZ # 5

(Th) Oct. 12

DEBATE: Believers vs. Nonbelievers

Does God exist? How do you know?

Position # 3

(Tu) Oct. 17

Renaissance Philosophy

FILM: “Mindwalk” (excerpt)

Read: Palmer (3rd:142-148; 4th: 146-152)

Assignment # 5

(Th) Oct. 19

Rationalism: Descartes

Read: Palmer (3rd:150-168; 4th: 154-172)

QUIZ # 6

(Tu) Oct. 24

Empiricism: Hobbes & Locke

Read: Palmer (3rd:169-173 & 184-191; 4th: 173-177 & 188-195)

QUIZ # 7

(Th) Oct. 26

DEBATE: What is the foundation of knowledge? Rationalism vs. Empiricism

Position # 4

(Tu) Oct. 31

Schopenhauer

Read: Palmer section on Schopenhauer

QUIZ # 8

(Th) Nov. 2

Evolutionary Psychology: A Primer

Read: Leda Cosmides & John Tooby http://www.psych.ucsb.edu/research/cep/primer.html

Assignment # 6

(Tu) Nov. 7

Marx

Read: Palmer section on Marx

QUIZ # 9

(Th) Nov. 9

DEBATE: On Determinism

Which form of determinism?

To what extent is human reality determined?

Position # 5

(Tu) Nov. 14

Kierkegaard

Read: Palmer

QUIZ # 10

Last day for late assignments to date.

(Th) Nov. 16

Nietzsche

Read: Palmer

QUIZ # 11

(Tu) Nov. 21

Heidegger & Sartre

Read: Palmer on both sections

QUIZ # 12

(Th) Nov. 28

DEBATE: On Existentialism

Which form of existentialism?

To what extent do humans have free will?

Position # 6

(Tu) Nov. 30

Sartre’s “No Exit”

Read: Use the book or online at http://www.nyu.edu/classes/keefer/hell/sart.html

Assignment # 7

(Th) Dec. 5

Existentialist Dialogues

Dialogue Due

(Tu) Dec. 7

WORKSHOP for Oral Presentation

NO LATE assignments accepted after this class.

Written Final Due  

FINAL EXAM (see schedule)

What’s your philosophy?

Final In-class Oral Presentation

 

Course

Syllabus

Course Calendar

Lecture Notes

Study Guide

Virtual Office Hours

Instructor's Homepage

Research Links

BEACH

Student Assignment Samples

Course Updates

MIDTERM

Take Home Final

 

Last Update:  August 11, 2006