Fall Course Descriptions
PHIL 305 Seminar in Aesthetics .
A survey of some important classical and contemporary works in philosophical aesthetics, focusing on beauty and the arts..
PHIL 335 The Individual, the State and Justice.
Students in this course will investigate some of the fundamental questions of social and political philosophy, focusing on the nature of justice and the relationship between the individual and the state. We will study influential work in the history of western social and political philosophy—-including Plato’s Republic, Aristotle’s Politics and the treatises of the modern social contract theorists--in addition to contemporary work on distributive justice and the intersection of gender, race and justice. Our discussions will range across such issues as the justification of the state, civic obligation, civil disobedience, labor exploitation and the scope of individual liberty..
Phil 340 Ancient Greek Philosophy.
This course traces philosophical problelms, raised by the pre-Socratics, Parmenides, Heraclitus,Pythagoras and the sophists, through their treatment by Plato and Aristotle. Emphasis is placed on selected writings of Plato and Aristotle. Prerequisites: GPHIL 101 and junior standing, or permission of the instructor. etc.
PHIL 377 Hermeneutics
The purpose of this course is twofold: (1) to introduce you to the foundations of interpretation theory, and (2) to expose you to one of the most important traditions in contemporary European philosophy. Thus, this course will examine the main features of hermeneutics with particular emphasis on its contemporary perspectives. Discussion will focus on such themes as human understanding and human finitude, the nature of history and tradition, linguisticality and textuality of experience. Readings will address the works of two central European thinkers of the twentieth century, Hans-Georg Gadamer and Paul Ricoeur. Upon the successful completion of this course, you: (1) will be in the position to identify the main features of one of the most significant European philosophical traditions;
(2) will be familiar with the foundations of interpretation theory;
(3) will have a more refined and sophisticated understanding of philosophical texts;
(4) will have developed your critical and exegetical skills in virtue of presenting arguments in oral and written form.
Phil 385 Buddhist Thought
This course is an introductory survey of Buddhism from its beginnings to today. Units include: Early Buddhism and the Theravada school (life of the Buddha and his teachings); Mahayana Buddhism in India and Tibet (emphasis on Mahayana philosophy, the bodhisattva ideal and distinctive Tibetan practices); East Asia (emphasis on Taoism and Zen); Engaged Buddhism (contemporary Buddhist engagement with poverty, war, etc; includes issues of the status of women, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh).
PHIL 394 Self and Identity .
What are we? This is the fundamental question that we will ask throughout the semester–-and if things go well, perhaps throughout our lives. We’ll begin by exploring a few classical treatments of the soul, and then we’ll focus on the metaphysical background of the problem of personal identity. Once these issues have been considered, we will examine how our notions of self accord with current discussions of free will and morality.
PHIL 466 Kant
An examination of the theory of knowledge and the critique of traditional metaphysics set forth in Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason, and of the ethical theory and the moral metaphysics defended in his Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals and Critique of Practical Reason. The course may also more briefly explore some related topics, such as Kant’s views on aesthetics and teleology, or the key ideas of important post-Kantian philosophers like Fichte, Schelling, or Hegel. Prerequisite: PHIL 341 or permission of instructor.
PHIL 490 Special Topics: Philosophy of Physics
Quantum mechanics is often understood as offering us a strange picture of the nature of reality. Schrödinger's cat paradox, non-locality, the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) paradox, and the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics are just a taste of the radical features associated with quantum mechanics. Since quantum mechanics is one of our most successful physical theories and is able to make accurate predictions about the most basic physical objects such as electrons and photons, understanding its implications for the nature of reality becomes even more pressing. This course will give an elementary introduction to these and other foundational problems in quantum mechanics. The material will be accessible to anyone with high school mathematics. It will involve some very basic linear algebra, which is not hard at all. If time permits, we will discuss quantum field theory and the new puzzles that it raises.
REL 300 New Religious Movements
Why have so many New Religious Movements had their start in America? How has American culture shaped their development? What sort of reaction have they provoked from “mainstream” society and religion, and what does this tell us about the underlying dynamics of religion in America? This course will consider these kinds of issues as it traces the history, beliefs, and practices of representative new religions in America, including Mormonism, Scientology, and the Nation of Islam.
REL 300 An Introduction to Islamic Law
This course will introduce students to the study of Islamic jurisprudence, the all embracing sacred law of Islam. Among the world's various legal systems, Islamic law may be the most widely misunderstood, even misrepresented; certainly, misconceptions about it abound. Islamic law, is, however, the amazing product of a rich, fascinating, and diverse cultural and intellectual tradition. In this course we will consider various facets of the historical, doctrinal, institutional, and social complexity of Islamic law. The first half of the course will focus on classical Islamic law; specific topics covered include the beginnings of legal thought in Islam, areas of positive (substantive) law, public and private legal institutions, and Islamic legal theory. The second half of the course will delve into the development and application of Islamic law in the modern period.
REL 300: Apocalypticism, Terror and Peace .
This course examines the phenomenon of apocalypticism from antiquity to the present day, including various global terrorist movements, mainstream groups, and popular culture. COURSE OBJECTIVES:
* To understand the origins of apocalyptic thought and practice by familiarizing ourselves with forms, themes and motifs of Jewish and Christian apocalyptic texts from antiquity.
* To examine contemporary transformations and articulations of apocalyptic themes in social movements and modern media, especially internet and film.
* To make an effort to understand and to articulate the enduring appeal of apocalyptic thinking in both peaceful and violent expressions.
* To explore the complex relationships between apocalyptic thinking and violence / terrorism.
* To articulate the factors making up a “religion.”
* To evaluate the effectiveness of current criteria for intelligence collection and analysis of terrorist groups and to make suggestions for revision in light of the academic study of religion. REQUIRED TEXTS (in order of use):
• George W.E. Nickelsburg and James C. VanderKam, eds. 1 Enoch: A New Translation. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004. ISBN: 9780800636944.
• Access to an NRSV or RSV Bible (available online), including Daniel and the Book of Revelation.
• Norman Cohn. The Pursuit of the Millennium. Rev and Expanded Ed. New York: Oxford, 1970. ISBN: 0195004566.
• Mark Juergensmeyer. Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence. Rev. Ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2003. ISBN13: 9780520240117.
• Bruce Hoffman. Inside Terrorism. Rev and Expanded Ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2006. ISBN: 9780231126991.
• Raymond Ibrahim, ed. and trans. The Al Qaeda Reader. New York: Broadway Books, 2007. ISBN: 9780767922623.
• Robert Jay Lifton. Destroying the World to Save It. New York: Holt, 2000. ISBN13: 9780805065114.
• Access to assorted websites.
• Rental or purchase of Josh Wheedon’s Serenity.
• You will also need crayons or colored pencils (you actually will). .
REL 310. Hindu Traditions .
This course introduces Hindu traditions and practices. We look at the ways ancient Hindu thinkers understood the nature of reality and human beings’ place within it. We examine the notions of world, community, and self as experienced and interpreted by Hindus. What are the basic assumptions underlying the Hindu worldview or world image? How do these assumptions interrelate with the various dimensions of Hindu physical, psychological, and cultural experience? How are they expressed in myth, ritual, and social structures and institutions? What practical and spiritual concerns do they reflect, and what ideals and values do they create? And what tensions do we find between the ideal and the real? In short, how do Hindus experience life religiously? While we spoke above of “the Hindu worldview or world image” as though this were a single entity, we shall find, in fact, that there are many Hindu worldviews and images: popular and elite, sacrificial and devotional, ascetic and social-affirming, traditional and modernizing, male and female. How do these differing perspectives with their various views/images interrelate? What are the tensions between them, and in what ways, if at all, are they integrated, transcended, or simply accepted or even ignored? Our strategy is to move between cosmological, theological, and philosophical understandings, and the ways these motivate ordinary and extraordinary human lives. Throughout the course we remain interested in contemporary Indian society where Hinduism’s many streams of thought have ongoing significance.
REL 330. African and African-American Religion: Religions in Africa and the African Diaspora.(cross-listed as Anthropology 495 and Sociology 495)
An introduction to the major religious traditions of Africa and their transmission (and transformation) in the Afro-Atlantic world. This course provides a survey of African traditional religion, Christianity and Islam in Africa, and examines their mutual influences and interactions both in Africa and the African Diaspora (limited here to Brazil, the Caribbean, and the USA). While some historical context is essential, the focus is upon the worldviews or cosmologies, beliefs and rituals of these religions in differing contexts. This focus in turn raises the major theoretical issues that the course addresses, namely, those of “syncretism,” religious change, the role of ritual, dance and music in religion, the role of anthropology and the social sciences, religion and politics, religion and gender, and the question of “African survivals” in Afro-Atlantic religions.
The principal approach will be individual reading of primary and secondary texts, lectures, class discussion, and video presentations. In the process of acquiring such knowledge, questions of method in religious studies, of definition, and of the interactions of religions in the social and political spheres will be raised.
REL 385: Buddhist Thought.
This course is an introductory survey of Buddhism from its beginnings to today. Units include: Early Buddhism and the Theravada school (life of the Buddha and his teachings); Mahayana Buddhism in India and Tibet (emphasis on Mahayana philosophy, the bodhisattva ideal and distinctive Tibetan practices); East Asia (emphasis on Taoism and Zen); Engaged Buddhism (contemporary Buddhist engagement with poverty, war, etc; includes issues of the status of women, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh).
REL 460: Topics in Ancient Jewish and Early Christian Literature: Topic: Gospel of John
An intensive study of the tradition-history, text, and religious/cultural context of the Gospel of John. This is a limited-enrollment research seminar. Prerequisite is REL 202 and permission of instructor. Majors may use this as their capstone or as an elective.