Course Descriptions

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Course Descriptions

Spring 2020

Updated: 11/4/19 2:01 PM

Undergraduate Courses

CAS PH 100 A1 Introduction to Philosophy Professor Derek Anderson Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM Introduces the nature of philosophical activity through careful study of major philosophical topics. Topics may include the nature of reality, knowledge, God's existence, and the significance of human life. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. In the 2018- 19 Academic Year this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Critical Thinking and Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meaning. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 100 B6 Introduction to Philosophy Professor Derek Anderson Tuesday, Thursday 12:30PM-1:45PM Introduces the nature of philosophical activity through careful study of major philosophical topics. Topics may include the nature of reality, knowledge, God's existence, and the significance of human life. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. In the 2018- 19 Academic Year this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Critical Thinking and Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meaning. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 110 A1 Great Philosophers Professor Benjamin Crowe Monday, Wednesday, Friday 1:25PM-2:15PM An introduction to philosophy through a reading of great figures in western thought. The list may include Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Roussesau, Nietzsche, Russell. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 150 A1 Introduction to Ethics Professor James Kinkaid Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM Many of us want to lead meaningful lives. But what is it for a life to be meaningful? What makes some lives better or more meaningful than others? Can life as a whole have some significance or meaning? Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 150 B1 Introduction to Ethics Professor Daniel Star Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9:05AM-9:55AM What is morality? What does morality require of us in our daily lives? We look both at theories that specify what morality requires of us and at specific moral issues to which these theories apply. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 150 C1 Introduction to Ethics Professor Samia Hesni Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:35PM-4:25PM Many of us want to lead meaningful lives. But what is it for a life to be meaningful? What makes some lives better or more meaningful than others? Can life as a whole have some significance or meaning? Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 155 A1 Politics and Philosophy Professor Susanne Sreedhar Tuesday, Thursday 3:30PM-4:45PM What is the nature, origin, and scope of political authority? What are the foundations for rights, liberty, justice, and equality? When can citizens rightfully resist their governments?

This course is an introduction to major themes and questions in political philosophy. It consists primarily, but not exclusively, in the study of texts from the history of political thought e.g., Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, and Mill. This course carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life’s Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 159 A1 Philosophy and Film Professor Aaron Garrett Tuesday, Thursday 3:30PM-4:45PM

This class provides an introduction philosophical and aesthetic issues connected with film. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 160 A1 Reason and Argumentation Professor Alisa Bokulich Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM

Knowing how to think, reason, and argue well is essential for success in all disciplines and in everyday life. The aim of this course is to strengthen and develop your critical thinking skills; you will learn how to make good arguments and how to critically evaluate the arguments of others. This course will emphasize both real everyday examples, such as those drawn from newspaper articles, and examples of scientific reasoning drawn from various science journals. Textbook: Merilee Salmon's Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking, 6th edition.

CAS PH 160 B1 Reason and Argumentation Professor Judson Webb Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM

A systematic study of the principles of both deductive and informal reasoning, calculated to enhance students' actual reasoning skills, with an emphasis on reasoning and argumentation in ordinary discourse. We will emphasize argumentation and criticism in ordinary life and also present formal models of reasoning designed to elicit underlying patterns and structures of reasoning and argumentation that are widely applicable. Simultaneous training in skills of argument analysis, argument pattern recognition, argument construction, and argument interpretation and creation. This course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area(s): Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 247 A1 Introduction to Chinese Philosophy Professor Benjamin Crowe Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:35PM-4:25PM The classical period in China’s ancient philosophical tradition is sometimes known as the baijia, or “Hundred Schools” era, a name that vividly conveys the richness, vitality, and plurality of the philosophical scene. In this course, we will explore some of the principal texts and figures of the time, including Kongzi (Confucius) (c. 551-479 BCE), Mozi (c. 480- 390 BCE), Mengzi (Mencius) (4th century BCE), Zhuangzi (late 4th century BCE), and Xunzi (late 4th-early 3rd century BCE). Ancient Chinese thinkers engaged in profound investigations and lively debates centered on the “Way” (dao), i.e., the pattern of a life well lived. Topics discussed will range across the nature of moral virtues, political and social order, music, religious ritual, moral education, the ethics of war, and the fundamental character of human nature itself. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 248 A1 Existentialism Professor James Kinkaid Tuesday, Thursday 3:30PM-4:45PM This course examines how existentialist thinkers grappled with some of the most problematic aspects of the human condition. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 251 A1 Medical Ethics Professor Ian Dunkle Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM

This course introduces students to the received ethical-decision-theory for medical ethics—Principlism. We will begin by considering (1) what Principlism is. Then we will take each of the four core ethical principles—namely, Beneficence, Non-Maleficence, Respect for Patient Autonomy, and Justice—considering both (2) the philosophical support for its principles and (3) the conceptual and practical issues that emerge in applying these principles to medical theory and practice. Issues we will consider include:

What is it to be happy? What is it to be healthy? What is the relation of disability to health and wellbeing?

When does rationing health care bring undue harm to individual patients?

What is death? Is death bad for the one who dies? Why is it wrong to kill someone? Is there a moral difference between killing and letting die?

Why is it important to respect personal autonomy even at the expense of personal wellbeing? What is informed consent? How do policies of informed consent affect trans teens?

Is it just to ban blood donations from men who have sex with men? What does justice demand of society regarding reproduction in same-sex couples? Are the categories of race and sex in medical practice justified? Do they lead to unjust practices?

CAS PH 251 B1 Medical Ethics Professor Ian Dunkle Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:35PM-4:25PM This course introduces students to the received ethical-decision-theory for medical ethics—Principlism. We will begin by considering (1) what Principlism is. Then we will take each of the four core ethical principles—namely, Beneficence, Non-Maleficence, Respect for Patient Autonomy, and Justice—considering both (2) the philosophical support for its principles and (3) the conceptual and practical issues that emerge in applying these principles to medical theory and practice. Issues we will consider include:

What is it to be happy? What is it to be healthy? What is the relation of disability to health and wellbeing?

When does rationing health care bring undue harm to individual patients?

What is death? Is death bad for the one who dies? Why is it wrong to kill someone? Is there a moral difference between killing and letting die?

Why is it important to respect personal autonomy even at the expense of personal wellbeing? What is informed consent? How do policies of informed consent affect trans teens?

CAS PH 255 A1 Law, Philosophy, and Society Professor Hugh Baxter Tuesday, Thursday 2:00PM-3:15PM Examination of issues concerning law and its place in society, such as law's relation to democracy, the nature of constitutional rights, and legal (especially constitutional) interpretation. Readings include social theory and judicial opinions as well as more narrowly philosophical sources. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 256 A1 Philosophy of Gender and Sexuality Professor Derek Anderson Tuesday, Thursday 2:00PM-3:15PM This course explores philosophical questions that arise about gender and sexuality. What is sexism? What is oppression? What is the relationship between sexism and other forms of oppression? What is the correct response to sexism and oppression? How many sexes are there? How many genders? What is sexual orientation? What is sexual perversion? What are sexual ethics, including questions about the value and status of monogamy, polyamory, promiscuity, and adultery? What is the moral status of practices such as sex work and pornography? Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, The Individual in Community, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 265 A1 Minds and Machines Professor Judson Webb Tuesday, Thursday 12:30PM-1:45PM Examines efforts of artificial intelligence to model the human mind and explain human thought. Explores the historical and mathematical origins of such efforts, and the psychological and philosophical assumptions on which they depend. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS.

CAS PH 266 A1 Mind, Brain, and Self Professor Walter Hopp Monday, Wednesday, Friday 4:40PM-5:30PM This is an introductory course on various aspects of the mind-body problem, especially on those aspects about cognition, consciousness and self (personal identity). Leading schools of thought on these issues, such as dualism, behaviorism, identity theory, functionalism, artificial intelligence, eliminativism, reductionism, and the memory theory of personal identity and its critics, will be introduced and carefully analyzed.

CAS PH 300 A1 History of Ancient Philosophy Professor Marc Gasser-Wingate Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM A survey of ancient Greek philosophy, with an emphasis on Plato and Aristotle. Topics will include: the fundamental nature of reality, how we know anything about it, wisdom, virtue, and human happiness.

CAS PH 300 B1 History of Ancient Philosophy Professor David Roochnik Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM An overview of Ancient Greek Philosophy: the pre-Socratics, the Sophists, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle.

CAS PH 310 A1 History of Modern Philosophy Professor Charles Griswold Monday, Wednesday, Friday 12:20PM-1:10PM This course offers an examination of several topics in seventeenth- and eighteenth-- century philosophy, with emphasis on the nature and extent of knowledge (including our knowledge of the existence of the external world), the relation of mind to body, the nature of personal identity, the problem of free will, and the theological problem of evil. The relation between science, religion, and philosophy will also draw our attention. Readings will likely include selections from Astell, Bacon, Conway, Descartes, Princess Elisabeth, Hume, Leibniz, and Locke, among others. Time permitting, we will also read some contemporary articles that pick up on themes that we have discussed.

CAS PH 310 B1 History of Modern Philosophy Professor Tanner Hammond Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM An examination of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century philosophy from Descartes to Kant, with emphasis on the nature and extent of knowledge. Readings include Descartes, Locke, Spinoza, Berkley, Hume, and Kant.

CAS PH 340 A1 Metaphysics and Epistemology Professor Walter Hopp Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM This course is about metaphysics (the study of what there is, and how it all relates) and epistemology (the study of knowledge, and how we can know things about the world) and their intersection. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 350 A1 History of Ethics Professor Tanner Hammond Monday, Wednesday, Friday 3:35PM-4:25PM Are there fundamental principles for determining the right way to act ethically? How do different eras answer this question? What is the significance of these differences? This course addresses these questions by examining classical ethical texts from different historical traditions. This course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.

CAS PH 403 A1 (Cross PH 603) Plato I Professor Marc Gasser-Wingate Tuesday, Thursday 12:30PM-1:45PM A close reading of Plato's Philebus, with a focus on its treatment of pleasure, wisdom, and the human good, and how the dialogue's discussions of ontology, dialectic, and cosmic nous might bear on these topics. Prerequisite: PH 300.

CAS PH 409 A1 (Cross PH 609) Maimonides Professor Michael Zank Monday 6:30PM-9:15PM A study of major aspects of the thought of Maimonides. Primary focus on the Guide of the Perplexed, with attention to its modern reception in works by Baruch Spinoza, Hermann Cohen, Leo Strauss, and others. Also offered as CAS RN420. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Oral and/or Signed Communication.

CAS PH 412 A1 (Cross PH 612) Enlightenment and Its Critics Professor James Schmidt Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM-10:45AM Explores how eighteenth-century criticisms of the Enlightenment have been taken up by twentieth-century thinkers such as Heidegger, Horkheimer, Adorno, Gadamer, and Foucault; discusses recent defenses of Enlightenment ideals of reason, critique and autonomy by Habermas and others. Also offered as CAS PO 592 and CAS HI 514.

CAS PH 415 A1 (Cross PH 615) Nineteenth-Century Philosophy Professor Sally Sedgwick Wednesday 6:30PM-9:15PM Constructing and Deconstructing Autonomy

What is practical agency? To what extent is a practical agent free or autonomous? In this course, we examine a variety of answers to these questions, relying on classic texts of the 19th century continental tradition. We begin with an introduction to Kant’s grounding of moral philosophy in pure reason. Kant defends the view that, thanks to our faculty of pure reason, we have the capacity to transcend the determinations of nature and act from self-law or laws of freedom. He thus defends a strong conception of human autonomy. This conception of autonomy is called into question by those who reject Kant’s conception of the distinction between reason and nature. We will read criticisms of Kant by Schiller, Hegel, and the twentieth century philosopher Bernard Williams. We will then consider philosophical systems that reject the very assumption of strong autonomy and suggest instead that human nature (including human choice) is to a significant extent determined by social conditions. First, we will look at Hegel’s “absolute” idealism and philosophy of history. We will then consider reactions to Hegel’s idealism by Feuerbach and Marx. This will prepare the way for the final section of the course in which we examine: (i) Marx’s historical materialism (his account of the social construction of power and the social conditions of freedom) and his theory of alienation; (ii) Nietzsche’s genealogy of morals (his effort to trace the origins of our ideas of freedom and of the good back the will to power); and (iii) Freud’s critique of religion.

CAS PH 418 A1 (Cross PH 618) Marx and Marxism Professor Tian Yu Cao Friday 11:15AM-2:00PM In this introductory course, Marxism will be treated mainly as a conceptual framework for understanding history and society (including economy, politics and culture), and also as a critique of capitalism and a program of transforming the capitalist society for human emancipation, with an analysis of both its philosophical and ethical presuppositions and its conceptions of a post-capitalist society. The evolution of its theoretical bases, through its three stages (classical Marxism of Marx and Engels; the Soviet orthodoxy and its critics; and contemporary Marxisms) will be critically examined, and its practical (political, economic and cultural) impacts on the historical course since its inception briefly outlined.

CAS PH 419 A1 (Cross PH 619) Nietzsche Professor Paul Katsafanas Tuesday 12:30PM-3:15PM An intensive study of Nietzsche’s philosophical thought. Topics to be addressed include Nietzsche’s claim that modern morality is “the danger of dangers”; that the death of God brings with it the possibility of the “last man”; that modern culture exhibits or fosters nihilism; that we have lost “higher values”; that all organisms manifest a “will to power”; that the will to truth is an expression of the ascetic ideal; that we need a “revaluation of all values”; that we must affirm the eternal recurrence of our lives; and that we have a superficial understanding of the nature of happiness. Readings will include a combination of primary and secondary sources.

Prerequisite: two philosophy courses

CAS PH 426 A1 (Cross PH 626) Phenomenology Professor Walter Hopp Tuesday 3:30PM-6:15PM Rigorous examination of foundations of philosophical phenomenology in Husserl and Heidegger.

CAS PH 454 A1 Community, Liberty, and Morality Professor Charles Griswold Monday, Wednesday 2:30PM-3:45PM Does a free community require shared values? Must those values, and hence political liberty, in turn be sustained by a communal religious outlook—and if so, which one? If diverse religious views are permitted in a free society, how is a regime of mutual toleration to be established and how is religious liberty to be defined and defended? Is the cause of civic virtue and liberty better served by a sort of free market of religious and moral views or by state-enforced commitments and values? How can rival religious and secular claims about the foundations of political authority be reconciled in a free community? What are some of the arguments for and against freedom of speech and inquiry? This seminar will focus on questions concerning the complex relation between value, civic unity, religion, and liberty. In effect, we will reflect on the meaning of “E pluribus unum” in the context of a free society. Readings will be drawn from a variety of classical and contemporary thinkers.

The seminar emphasizes class discussion and participation.

CAS PH 458 A1 (Cross PO 497) Crime and Punishment: Philosophical Perspectives Professor Susanne Sreedhar Tuesday 6:30PM-9:15PM Study of fundamental issues in criminal law, including the theory and definition of crime; economic, utilitarian, and retributivist justifications of punishment; exculpating circumstances; the death penalty; and the relationship between law and politics. Also offered as CAS PO 497.

Instructor’s Permission is Required. Please email [email protected] if you are interested in taking this course.

CAS PH 459 A1 (Cross PH 659) Political and Legal Philosophy Professor Samia Hesni Monday 6:30PM-9:15PM This course will examine feminist legal and philosophical debates around pornography. Topics include: What is the tension between free speech and hate speech? Can speech harm? Should pornography be restricted by law? Does pornography silence women, and if so how? Prerequisites: either one course in philosophy, one course in WGS, or permission from the instructor.

CAS PH 462 A1 (Cross PH 662) Foundations of Mathematics Professor Timothy Kohl Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM Axiomatic set theory as a foundation for, and field of, mathematics: Axiom of Choice, the Continuum Hypothesis, and consistency results. Also offered as CAS MA 532.

CAS PH 482 A1 (Cross PH 682) Topics in Modern and Contemporary Philosophy Professor James Schmidt Tuesday 12:30PM-3:15PM May be repeated for credit as topics vary. Topic for Spring 2020: History, Memory, Meaning. Examines central issues in the philosophy of history, from Hegel and Nietzsche to Collingwood, Gadamer, Foucault, Nora, and Danto. Topics include: tensions between history and memory, structure of historical narratives, contrast between interpretation and understanding, does history have a meaning? Also offered as CAS HI 400.

CAS PH 488 A1 (Cross PH 688) Contemporary Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Photography Professor Daniel Star Friday 11:15AM-2:00PM In the first half of this course, we will focus on recent philosophical work in aesthetics, with an emphasis on metanormative discussions (concerning, for example, parallels between aesthetic realism and moral realism, similarities and differences between practical and aesthetic reasons and goods, art criticism approached as being game-like, aesthetic activities as constitutive of wellbeing). In the second half of the course, we will focus on recent work in the philosophy of photography. Here we will consider the general question of what makes some photography art, as well as the ethics of photography.

Graduate Courses

CAS PH 603 A1 (Cross PH 403) Plato I Professor Marc Gasser-Wingate Tuesday, Thursday 12:30PM-1:45PM A close reading of Plato's Philebus, with a focus on its treatment of pleasure, wisdom, and the human good, and how the dialogue's discussions of ontology, dialectic, and cosmic nous might bear on these topics. Prerequisite: PH 300.

CAS PH 609 A1 (Cross PH 409) Maimonides Professor Michael Zank Monday 6:30PM-9:15PM A study of major aspects of the thought of Maimonides. Primary focus on the Guide of the Perplexed, with attention to its modern reception in works by Baruch Spinoza, Hermann Cohen, Leo Strauss, and others. Also offered as CAS RN420. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Philosophical Inquiry and Life's Meanings, Oral and/or Signed Communication.

CAS PH 615 A1 (Cross PH 415) Nineteenth-Century Philosophy Professor Sally Sedgwick Wednesday 6:30PM-9:15PM Constructing and Deconstructing Autonomy

CAS PH 618 A1 (Cross PH 418) Marx and Marxism Professor Tian Yu Cao Friday 11:15AM-2:00PM In this introductory course, Marxism will be treated mainly as a conceptual framework for understanding history and society (including economy, politics and culture), and also as a critique of capitalism and a program of transforming the capitalist society for human emancipation, with an analysis of both its philosophical and ethical presuppositions and its conceptions of a post-capitalist society. The evolution of its theoretical bases, through its three stages (classical Marxism of Marx and Engels; the Soviet orthodoxy and its critics; and contemporary Marxisms) will be critically examined, and its practical (political, economic and cultural) impacts on the historical course since its inception briefly outlined.

CAS PH 619 A1 (Cross PH 419) Nietzsche Professor Paul Katsafanas Tuesday 12:30PM-3:15PM An intensive study of Nietzsche’s philosophical thought. Topics to be addressed include Nietzsche’s claim that modern morality is “the danger of dangers”; that the death of God brings with it the possibility of the “last man”; that modern culture exhibits or fosters nihilism; that we have lost “higher values”; that all organisms manifest a “will to power”; that the will to truth is an expression of the ascetic ideal; that we need a “revaluation of all values”; that we must affirm the eternal recurrence of our lives; and that we have a superficial understanding of the nature of happiness. Readings will include a combination of primary and secondary sources.

Prerequisite: two philosophy courses

CAS PH 626 A1 (Cross PH 426) Phenomenology Professor Walter Hopp Tuesday 3:30PM-6:15PM Rigorous examination of foundations of philosophical phenomenology in Husserl and Heidegger.

CAS PH 659 A1 (Cross PH 459) Political and Legal Philosophy Professor Samia Hesni Monday 6:30PM-9:15PM This course will examine feminist legal and philosophical debates around pornography. Topics include: What is the tension between free speech and hate speech? Can speech harm? Should pornography be restricted by law? Does pornography silence women, and if so how? Prerequisites: either one course in philosophy, one course in WGS, or permission from the instructor.

CAS PH 662 A1 (Cross PH 462) Foundations of Mathematics Professor Timothy Kohl Tuesday, Thursday 11:00AM-12:15PM Axiomatic set theory as a foundation for, and field of, mathematics: Axiom of Choice, the Continuum Hypothesis, and consistency results. Also offered as CAS MA 532.

CAS PH 688 A1 (Cross PH 488) Contemporary Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Photography Professor Daniel Star Friday 11:15AM-2:00PM In the first half of this course, we will focus on recent philosophical work in aesthetics, with an emphasis on metanormative discussions (concerning, for example, parallels between aesthetic realism and moral realism, similarities and differences between practical and aesthetic reasons and goods, art criticism approached as being game-like, aesthetic activities as constitutive of wellbeing). In the second half of the course, we will focus on recent work in the philosophy of photography. Here we will consider the general question of what makes some photography art, as well as the ethics of photography.

GRS PH 850 A1 Ethics Professor Aaron Garrett Tuesday 6:30PM-9:15PM MODERN MORAL PHILOSOPHY

In “Modern Moral Philosophy” G. E. M. Anscombe accused moral philosophers from Butler and Hume through Moore and Hare of being incoherent and exclusionary. They were incoherent insofar as they derived notions of distinctively moral obligation from revealed religion but then proceeded to secularize moral philosophy. They were exclusionary insofar as they pushed approaches to ethics not focused on duty and obligation, such as virtue ethics, to the wayside.

In this seminar we will examine modern moral philosophy with a particular focus on Sidgwick’s Methods of Ethics and an eye to Anscombe's criticisms. We will consider whether later moral philosophers like Sidgwick, Moore, and Ross have the same basic framework as predecessors like Butler and Hume and whether they are part of a joint and unified philosophical project. As part of the seminar we will investigate some of the issues taken to be central by these philosophers such as sentiment vs. reason, the good vs. the right, moral normativity, the dualism of practical reason, hedonism, etc.

GRS PH 870 A1 Seminar in the Philosophy of Science Professor Alisa Bokulich Tuesday, Thursday 2:00PM-3:15PM Topic for Spring 2020: This philosophy of science seminar will explore epistemological and methodological issues arising in the historical sciences (such as archaeology, paleontology, and evolutionary biology) and the Earth sciences (such as geology and climate science). These sciences, which have largely been neglected by philosophers, involve a rich set of methodological problems and innovative strategies for gaining knowledge about the remote past and complex Earth systems. We will explore questions such as the following: What is the legacy of the catastrophism-uniformitarianism debate in geosciences today? Is there a special narrative form of explanation in the historical sciences? How do geoscientists deal with the problem of underdetermination in the context of inverse modeling and equifinality? What role do simulation models play in the historical and Earth sciences? How do proxy data work? Are there important asymmetries between unobservables in the microphysical versus in the remote past? How do geoscientists build knowledge in the face of scientific uncertainty? We will close with thinking about mass extinctions and paleoclimates as analog models for navigating our environmental future.

GRS PH 990 A1 Dissertation Workshop Professor Paul Katsafanas Tuesday 4:30PM-6:15PM Dissertation Workshop. Required for all Philosophy Ph.D. students in their fourth through sixth years

GRS PH 994 A1 Placement Proseminar II Professor Aaron Garrett Monday 2:30PM-5:15PM A workshop seminar offering advanced graduate students the opportunity to present and discuss work-in- progress (dissertation chapters, papers for job applications, journal submissions). A serious commitment to regular and continuing attendance is expected.