Course
Outline
Instructor: Dr. Lowell
Kleiman Course Title:
Issues in Philosophy
Department: Philosophy Catalog No.: Pl 11
kleimal@sunysuffolk.edu
http://www.sunysuffolk.edu/Web/Selden/Philosophy
Objectives:
Upon successful completion of Issues in
Philosophy (Pl 11), the student will be able to,
(1) identify traditional and current issues in epistemology and metaphysics;
(2) distinguish between and critically assess major approaches in epistemology, such as Empiricism, Rationalism and Skepticism;
(3) distinguish and critically assess competing metaphysical approaches, for example, in Mind-Body, Personal Identity, and/or Freewill; and
(4) demonstrate skills of information management (basic on-line and/or library
research).
(a)
lectures; (b) class discussion; (c) student reports.
Student Requirements for Completion of Course:
(a) 50% of your final grade will be determined by a set of four of five short
answer in-class examinations. Examinations are cumulative and are kept on file
by the instructor. No make-ups.
(b) You are expected to hand in answers to
certain questions assigned in each part of the text. (See assignments.) Your
responses are worth 50% of final grade. (Please keep a copy.) See attached
description for more details. If you submit the assignment on or before the exam
(on the same subject) you may revise and resubmit your paper for a better grade.
Papers submitted the last meeting of the class, of course, cannot be revised or
resubmitted.
(c) You may submit a term paper (approx. 2500 words) for extra
credit. Papers should be typed and should include appropriate bibliography and
footnotes. Articles from the text may be cited, although the use of the
Philosophers Index, a research tool available on-line through our
library, is strongly recommended. Click here
for useful research sites. See me for help. The grade on the paper may be
substituted for one quiz grade.
(d) Class participation will be considered
especially in the case of borderline grades. Unless otherwise informed, I will
assume that any student with three absences has dropped the course. Lateness or
leaving the class before the end of the hour will count as partial absence. Let
me know in advance if you must leave early, or you will receive a full absence.
Text:
Philosophy: An Introduction
Through Literature by
Weekly Assignments (All pages refer to the above text.)
1-4 Introduction xiii. Metaphysics: Ontology; Cosmogony; Cosmology.
Epistemology: Authoritarianism; Empiricism; Rationalism; Skepticism.
(Start reading the literary selections along with Lewis'introductions listed below. Each selection is indicated by an asterisk.)
5-7 Theory of Knowledge Lewis 3-5; *James Joyce 6-9; Kleiman 10-17; Rene
Descartes 27-62. (Copernicus
and Ptolemy.)
Questions page 79: 1, 5, 7, 10.
8-10 The Nature of Truth Lewis 83-84; *Ryunosuke Akutagawa 85-90; Kleiman
91-96; Aristotle 100; Blanshard 110-115.
Questions
page 138: 1, 2, 4, 5.
11-12 Essence of a Person Lewis 143-146; *Franz Kafka 147-173; Kleiman
175-180; Plato 181-185; John Locke 193-196.
Questions page 241: 1, 2, 3,
7.
13-14 Freewill and Determinism Lewis 519-520; *Sophocles 521-551; Kleiman
553-560; Richard Taylor 574-579; Baron d'Holbach
580-581; Campbell 597-604; J. L. Austin 615.
Questions page 615: 4, 6, 8,
10.
PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT
DR.
Suggestions for Writing Assignments
1. Answer the questions in the weekly assignments. (Show me that you understand the basic issue, especially in light of our classroom discussion.)
2. Support your main point with a follow-up discussion.
3. Key quotations from the text should be cited.
4. A good example (either your own or one drawn from the text) must be used to illustrate each generalization in the commentary.
5. The ideas must follow a logical order. (A brief outline helps to insure this.)
6. The paper should be properly edited for grammar and spelling, etc. (If you
are unsure of your written English, see me or visit the
7. The paper should be neat, typed, with a finished and professional
appearance.