Formal logic and informal logic. The study of abstract logic together with the construction and deconstruction of everyday arguments. Logical symbolism and operations, deduction and induction, consistency and inconsistency, paradoxes and puzzles. Examples drawn from law, philosophy, politics, literary criticism, computer science, history, commercials, mathematics, economics and the popular press. Enrollment limited to 30.

Formal logic and informal logic. The study of abstract logic together with the construction and deconstruction of everyday arguments. Logical symbolism and operations, deduction and induction, consistency and inconsistency, paradoxes and puzzles. Examples drawn from law, philosophy, politics, literary criticism, computer science, history, commercials, mathematics, economics and the popular press. Enrollment limited to 15.

Formal logic and informal logic. The study of abstract logic together with the construction and deconstruction of everyday arguments. Logical symbolism and operations, deduction and induction, consistency and inconsistency, paradoxes and puzzles. Examples drawn from law, philosophy, politics, literary criticism, computer science, history, commercials, mathematics, economics and the popular press. Enrollment limited to 15.

A study of Western philosophy from the early Greeks to the end of the Middle Ages, with emphasis on the pre-Socratics, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics and Epicureans, and some of the scholastic philosophers.

Beyond the vague idea that scientific, claims, methods and results should not be "influenced" by particular perspectives, the notion of objectivity in the sciences has proven difficult to characterize. How should scientific objectivity be defined? Is it desirable? To what extent can scientists achieve it? What are the consequences for society of different conceptions of scientific objectivity? This course explores
these and other questions through examination of past and current scientific practice. Enrollment limited to 40.

This course provides a survey of major figures and developments in continental philosophy. Topics to be addressed include human nature and the nature of morality; conceptions of human history; the character and basis of societal hierarchies; and human beings’ relationship to technology. Readings from Hegel, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Marx, Heidegger, Sartre, Beauvoir and others. Prerequisite: one course in philosophy.

This course focuses on two overlapping clusters of philosophical questions. The course considers aesthetic problems like: What is beauty? How does one experience it, and where—in nature, in art, in ordinary objects and activities? Are there objective standards for aesthetic judgments? In philosophy of art, the course considers problems like: What makes something a work of art? What is art for? Do artists have moral responsibilities, and can art cultivate our moral sensibilities? Readings are from worldwide philosophical traditions. Assignments involve extensive use of the resources of the Smith College Museum of Art.

This course surveys different accounts of human rights and theoretical concerns in the critical theory of human needs. In the first part of the course, the class focuses on the most important historical and philosophical theories of human rights to get a general sense of how the tradition of western philosophy has articulated this concept. Students also look at some decolonial and critical theories of this western tradition. In the second part, the class examines the tension between human rights and human needs. Students pay attention to the literature about the problem of “needs” as they feature in the critique of capitalist society.

Close examination of the different but converging ways in which moral, political and legal contexts shape the analysis of an issue. For example: questions about the status of a right to privacy; the history of disgust as a ground for laws governing human behavior.

Over the past few decades there has been an explosion of research on animal consciousness. This class examines three interrelated issues: (i) questions of animal consciousness, (ii) issues related to the study of animal consciousness, and (iii) how current understandings of animal consciousness should impact our treatment of animals. Discussions include: whether animals have beliefs and desires, whether animals have a conception of the self and others, problems of researching animal consciousness, which animals are sentient, the ethics of animal experimentation and captivity, and whether there is evidence of cognition in plants. (E)

This course examines philosophical conceptions of sex, gender, and sexuality in the context of contemporary ethical questions. In what ways are our conceptions of gender created and reinforced through cultural and social norms? How do assumptions about sex, gender, and sexuality shape and potentially limit research in natural and social sciences? In what ways are feminist and multiculturalist goals potentially at odds? Is sex and sexuality the public’s business? How do gender identities intersect with other identities? We will consider applications of these questions to a variety of contemporary debates concerning parenting, pornography, sex education, marriage, sexual harassment laws, and sexual or gender assignment or reassignment.

An investigation of ethical questions that arise in the world of business, including the business of the academy; and scrutiny of the moral principles that may enable people to cope successfully with these questions. Discussions include the responsibilities of businesses and the academy toward their various stakeholders, including society at large and the environment; the ethics of investment, including endowments; product liability; advertisement and the principle of caveat emptor; sexual harassment; employee rights; spirituality and the workplace; and special privileges of the academy (academic freedom, tenure, etc.). The case-study method is used. Enrollment limited to 40.

This course is an introduction to central topics and debates in classic and contemporary philosophy of language. What is the relation between thought, language and reality? What kinds of things are accomplished with words? Is there anything significant about the definite article "the"? How does meaning accrue to proper names? Is speaker meaning the same as the public, conventional (semantic) meaning of words? Is there a distinction between metaphorical and literal language? This course also considers contemporary topics such as silencing speech, slurs, and misleading speech. Prerequisite: PHI 101 or PHI 102, or equivalent.

An examination of the conceptual and moral underpinnings of sustainability. Questions to be discussed include: What exactly is sustainability? On what conceptions of the world (as resource, as machine, as something with functional integrity, etc.) does sustainability rely, and are these conceptions justifiable? How is sustainability related to future people? What values are affirmed by sustainability, and how can those values be endorsed? How does sustainability compare with environmental objectives of longer standing such as conservation? Preference given to majors in either philosophy or environmental science and policy. Restrictions: Juniors and seniors only. Enrollment limited to 12. Instructor permission required.

Permission Required/Registration by Waitlist. During Add/Drop, Waiver Required.

For senior majors, by arrangement with the department.

Freedom and angst, affirmation and despair, life and decadence, authenticity and meaninglessness—these and related dimensions of the human condition are explored in this course through philosophical texts across the globe from antiquity to the contemporary world. Through this exploration, students engage European, African and Asian precursors to existential thought, turn to the European development of existentialism, and conclude with the postcolonial global response to existentialism and the specter of nihilism. On this journey, students closely examine texts and, through writing, engage with questions that address the search for meaning within the human condition. Restrictions: First years only; students are limited to one first-year seminar. Enrollment limited to 16. (E)