Philosophy 288
Modern Philosophy
Spring Semester 2014
Instructor: Maurice L. Wade
Office: McCook 318
Office hours: Fridays 2:00 – 5:00 and by appointment
Office phone number: 2417
Email: maurice.wade@trincoll.edu (Contacting me by email is far more likely to
work than by phone. I vastly prefer email to the phone. If I don’t respond to your
email in a timely fashion, email me again.
Administrative Assistant for Philosophy: Mrs. Marjorie Harter
Mrs. Harter’s Office: McCook 202
Mrs. Harter’s Office phone number: 2472
The description of this course that is currently in the Course Catalogue is not
accurate for this semester. Rather than focusing on thinkers from both the French
and German Enlightenment, the course will focus on a group of philosophers known
as the German Idealists, Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Johann Fichte (1762-1814),
F.W. Schelling (1775-1854), and G.W.F. Hegel (1770-1831). These were perhaps the
most significant philosophical participants in the German Enlightenment.
Influences of the German Idealists can be found in many of the schools of what is
referred to as Continental Philosophy and Analytic Philosophy developed as a
reaction to and alternative to British Idealism, a philosophical cousin and
descendant, so to speak, of German Idealism. So the German Idealist strand of the
German Enlightenment occupies a significant place in the history of modern
philosophy.
The writings, arguments, and ideas of the German Idealists are difficult to grasp fully
and clearly.
For this reason, many regard their philosophical works as
fundamentally obscurantist, particularly the works of the post-Kantian German
Idealists , Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel. I regard this judgment as too severe. Their
work is obscure but careful study can help us to recognize and appreciate the
philosophical projects these philosophers were undertaking, even if we ultimately
do not find their efforts to be fully convincing. So, be prepared to be challenged by
the texts that will be the basis of the course this semester.
The German Idealists conceived of philosophy as a foundational discipline, in that
the central task of philosophy ought to be to discover and articulate the bases for
knowledge as such, those premises upon which all forms of human knowledge
depend. They also conceived of philosophy as a systematic discipline, such that the
conclusions and analyses in any one subdivision of philosophy should be tightly
linked to the conclusions and analyses in all the branches of philosophy.
Required Text:
The College Bookstore has secured copies of German Idealism: An Anthology and
Guide, edited by Brian O’Connor and Georg Mohr. This text contains selections from
the writings of Kant, Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel and is organized thematically. This
should enable us to discern how these thinkers are similar and different in their
treatment of a particular branch of philosophy and how their analyses and
conclusions in that branch are or are not successfully connected to their analyses
and conclusions in the other subdivisions of the discipline. For example, this text
should enable us to compare and contrast the views of Kant, Fichte, Schelling, and
Hegel on the nature of knowledge, their epistemological views, and then to put those
views into play with their views in ethics, political philosophy, aesthetics,
philosophy of science, philosophy of religion and so on.
Ideally in a course of this nature, one would want to devote some attention to later
reactions against German Idealism and so devote some attention to the views of the
so-called Young or Left Hegelians as well as to the views of Kierkegaard, Nietzsche,
and Marx. Whether we will be able to do that this semester will depend upon how
quickly or slowly we are able to work our way through our course anthology of
German Idealism.
Course Requirements:
Attendance is required. As an upper-level course in the history of philosophy, this
course should involve a great deal of class participation. You should do the assigned
readings before class with an eye to engaging each other and the instructor in
discussion of those texts during class. That cannot happen successfully if you are
not present. So, excessive absences, as judged by the instructor, will have a large
and negative effect on your final course grade.
Genuine philosophical discussion, at least in the context of this course, does not
mean talk for the sake of talking. It means serious effort to engage the thinking of
the philosophers who are our focus this term and that requires doing the reading,
struggling to understand it, and being ready and willing to engage in dialogue with
each other and the instructor in class. So, come to class prepared.
This course is designated as one of the Philosophy department’s Writing Intensive
courses. In light of that, you will be required to submit 2 ten-page essays, one
around midterm and the other around the end of the semester. The first essay will
be due on March 10th and should be submitted as email attachment no later than
midnight. The second essay will be due on May 5th and should be submitted as an
email attachment no later than midnight. Topics for these essays must be discussed
with the instructor before the essays are submitted for grading. Failure to have this
consultation will have a negative effect on the grading of your essays. These two
essays will together determine 70% of your course grade.
The remaining 30% will be based upon short weekly writing assignments. Each
Tuesday, beginning of February 4th, each member of the course must submit a 1-2
page essay, that we will refer to as protocols, that reflects on the material covered in
class and in the readings from the prior week. At least two members of the course
will be asked to read their protocols to the class. (Being available to read your
protocols is another reason that attendance is important.) The other members of
the course will be expected to engage these readers, each other, and the instructor
in discussion of these protocols. Protocols will be collected at the end of class on
Tuesday and will not be accepted after class is over on Tuesdays. A late protocol
will be treated as a non-existent protocol. So finish your protocols before class on
Tuesdays and bring them with you to class with the expectation that you might be
called upon to read what you have written.
If you take these protocols seriously and make your best efforts in writing them,
they may be important to the quality of the two ten page essays that will determine
the bulk of your course grade. You might find that your protocols give you a solid
basis for writing these essays.