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Philosophy Overview THE PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT MAJOR BOOKLET Revised 3/23/2020 Updated 03/23/2020 1 UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM CONTACTS Elisabeth Camp Undergraduate Director ROOM 514, 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: (848) 932-0404 EMAIL: [email protected] Alexander Skiles Assistant Undergraduate Director ROOM 546, 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: N/A EMAIL: [email protected] Jessica Koza Undergraduate Program Coordinator ROOM 518, 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: (848) 932-6800 EMAIL: [email protected] Mercedes Diaz Advisor for the RU Philosophy Club and Phi Sigma Tau Honor Society ROOM 519, 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: (848) 932-9862 EMAIL: [email protected] Justin Kalef Director of Teaching Innovation ROOM 547, 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: (848) 932-0439 EMAIL: [email protected] Edward “Trip” McCrossin Director of Areté, the RU undergraduate journal in philosophy ROOM 107, MILLER HALL, COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS OFFICE PHONE: (848) 932-9861 EMAIL: [email protected] Lauren Richardson and Julius Solatorio Undergraduate Advisors EMAIL: [email protected] and [email protected] OFFICE HOURS: By appointment Updated 03/23/2020 2 FACULTY DIRECTORY FACULTY MEMBER SPECIALTY Karen Bennett Metaphysics, Philosophy of Mind Professor [email protected] Martha Brandt Bolton Early Modern Philosophy Professor [email protected] Robert Bolton Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Language, Professor Metaphysics [email protected] Elisabeth Camp Undergraduate Director Professor Philosophy of Mind and Language, Aesthetics [email protected] Derrick Darby Social and Political Philosophy Henry Rutgers Professor of Philosophy [email protected] Andy Egan Philosophy of Language, Philosophy of Mind, Professor Metaphysics, and Ethics [email protected] Frances Egan Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy of Psychology, Professor Foundations of Cognitive Science [email protected] Richard Fry Early Modern Philosophy, Philosophy of Science Assistant Teaching Professor [email protected] Anthony Gillies Philosophy of Language, Epistemology Professor [email protected] Updated 03/23/2020 3 Michael Glanzberg Philosophy of Language, Philosophical Logic, Professor Mathematical Logic [email protected] Alex Guerrero Director of Graduate Admissions Associate Professor Moral Philosophy, Legal and Political Philosophy, [email protected] Epistemology Douglas Husak Philosophy of Law Distinguished Professor [email protected] Justin Kalef Director of Teaching Innovation Assistant Teaching Professor Meta-ethics, Philosophy of Religion [email protected] Frances Kamm Normative Ethical Theory, Practical Ethics Distinguished Professor [email protected] Jeffrey King Philosophy of Language, Philosophical Logic Distinguished Professor [email protected] Brian Leftow Medieval Philosophy, Metaphysics, Philosophy of William P. Alston Chair for the Religion Philosophy of Religion [email protected] Ernest Lepore Philosophy of Language, Philosophy of Logic, Distinguished Professor of Metaphysics, Philosophy of Mind Philosophy and Cognitive Science [email protected] Martin Lin Early Modern Philosophy Associate Professor [email protected] Barry Loewer Philosophy of Science, Philosophy of Physics, Distinguished Professor Philosophy of Mind, Metaphysics, Philosophy of [email protected] Logic Updated 03/23/2020 4 Edward “Trip” McCrossin Advisor to Areté, the RU undergrad philosophy Assistant Teaching Professor journal [email protected] Early Modern Philosophy Matt McGrath Epistemology, Metaphysics, Philosophy of Distinguished Professor Perception [email protected] Brian McLaughlin Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy of Psychology, Distinguished Professor of Metaphysics, Philosophical Logic Philosophy and Cognitive Science [email protected] Jill North Philosophy of Physics Associate Professor [email protected] Paul Pietroski Philosophy of Language, Philosophy of Mind, Distinguished Professor of Cognitive Science Philosophy and Cognitive Science [email protected] Jonathan Schaffer Director of Graduate Placement Distinguished Professor Metaphysics, Epistemology, Language [email protected] Susanna Schellenberg Graduate Director Professor Philosophy of Mind, Epistemology, Philosophy of [email protected] Language Ted Sider Metaphysics, Philosophy of Language Distinguished Professor and Andrew W. Mellon Chair [email protected] Alexander Skiles Metaphysics, Philosophy of Science Assistant Teaching Professor [email protected] Ernest Sosa Epistemology, Metaphysics, Moral Epistemology, Distinguished Professor Philosophy of Mind [email protected] Updated 03/23/2020 5 Stephen Stich Philosophy of Mind, Cognitive Science, Philosophy Distinguished Professor of of Language, Epistemology Philosophy and Cognitive Science [email protected] Larry Temkin Normative Ethics, Meta-ethics, Social and Political Distinguished Professor Philosophy [email protected] Alex Walen Philosophy of Law, Criminal Justice Professor [email protected] Dean Zimmerman Department Chair Professor and Director of the Metaphysics, Philosophy of Religion Rutgers Center for the Philosophy of Religion [email protected] Adjuncts and Lecturers FACULTY MEMBER SPECIALTY Anthony Baldino Ethics, History of Philosophy [email protected] Max Bialek Philosophy of Science [email protected] Janelle Derstine Ethics, Metaphysics [email protected] Sidney Felder Critical Thinking, Logic, History of Philosophy [email protected] David Goldman Ethics, Philosophy of Action, Political Philosophy [email protected] James Grayot Cognitive Science, Philosophical Psychology [email protected] Updated 03/23/2020 6 Rory Harder Epistemology, Philosophy of Language, Philosophy [email protected] of Mind Benjamin Hutchens Continental Philosophy [email protected] Evan Kalkus Logic [email protected] Steven Kang Ethics, Political Philosophy [email protected] Yoonhee Kang Philosophy of Mind, Epistemology, Moral [email protected] Psychology Zee Perry Metaphysics, Philosophy of Physics [email protected] Jerry Piven Existentialism, Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy [email protected] of Psychology, Metaphysics Aaron Rabinowitz Ethics, Meta-ethics, Philosophy of AI [email protected] Hannah Read Moral Philosophy, Moral Psychology, Ethcis, [email protected] Feminist Philosophy Amir Saemi Epistemology, Normative Ethics, Philosophy of [email protected] Action, Moral Psychology, Islamic Philosophy Gregory Salmieri Ancient Philosophy, Epistemology, Ethics [email protected] Wes Skolits Epistemology, Metaphysics [email protected] David Sorenson Epistemology, Normative Ethics, Philosophy of [email protected] Cognitive Science, Philosophy of Science Updated 03/23/2020 7 Recurring Visiting Faculty FACULTY MEMBER SPECIALTY Robert Merrihew Adams Philosophy of Religion, Metaphysics, Ethics, Distinguished Professor of History of Modern Philosophy Philosophy, Princeton University [email protected] David Albert Philosophy of Physics, Philosophy of Science Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy, Columbia University [email protected] Howard Robinson Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy of Religion Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Central European University [email protected] Updated 03/23/2020 8 THE PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT MAJOR AND APPROVED COURSE LIST 2009-2020 RUTGERS UNIVERSITY PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT 106 SOMERSET ST., 5TH FLOOR COLLEGE AVENUE CAMPUS NEW BRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY 08901-4800 848-932-6800 for Undergraduate Administrator http://philosophy.rutgers.edu/ Updated 03/23/2020 9 TABLE OF CONTENTS THE PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT MAJOR BOOKLET What is Philosophy? 11 The Sub-fields of Philosophy 11 - 12 Special Fields of Philosophy 12 - 14 General Uses of Philosophy 14 - 15 The Uses of Philosophy in Educational Pursuits 15 The Uses of Philosophy in Non-Academic Careers 15 - 16 The Double Major 16 The Philosophy Major at Rutgers 16 - 17 The Philosophy Minor 17 Minor in Philosophy, Political Science, and Economics (PPE) 17 - 18 Departmental Honors 18 Senior Honors Thesis & Independent Study 18 Prizes for Majors 19 Study Abroad 19 RU Undergraduate Philosophy Club 20 Phi Sigma Tau, International Philosophy Honors Society 20 - 21 Philosophy Undergraduate Journal 21 - 22 Preparing for Careers 22 - 24 Conferences and Events 25 Preparing for Graduate School 25 Philosophy Major Requirements & Approved Course List 26 - 27 Updated 03/23/2020 10 WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY? THE FIELD OF PHILOSOPHY1 Philosophy is quite unlike any other field. It is unique both in its methods and in the nature and breadth of its subject matter. Philosophy pursues questions in every dimension of human life, and its techniques apply to problems in any field of study or endeavor. No brief definition expresses the richness and variety of philosophy. It may be described in many ways. It is a reasoned pursuit of fundamental truths, a quest for understanding, and a study of principles of conduct. It seeks to establish standards of evidence, to provide rational methods of resolving conflicts, and to create techniques for evaluating ideas and arguments. Philosophy develops the capacity to see the world from the perspective of other individuals and other cultures; it enhances one’s ability to perceive the relationships among the various fields of study; and it deepens one’s sense
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