PHILOSOPHY 290: ORIENTATION AND METHODS
DR. PAUL NEWBERRY/Fall, 2011
“Those who are learning are not at play; learning is accompanied by pain.”—
Aristotle (Greek philosopher, died 323 BCE; student of Plato)
Office: Faculty Towers 104A, 654-3068. Dept. fax: 654-6904.
Office hours: 2-3pm MWF; and by appointment
E-mail: pnewberry@csub.edu
Runner Courses (Blackboard): This is a website available only to students registered in this
class. Homework assignments, practice problems, and class information will be available on
this page. To access, go to CSUB Homepage: from the list on the left side of the page, choose
Runner Courses (Blackboard). Follow the directions to log in.
Required Text: Steven M. Cahn. Exploring Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology, 3rd ed.
(Oxford U. P., 2009). ISBN: 978-0-19-537010-2
Recommended Text: A good, high-quality college dictionary.
Course Description: This course has two purposes: first, to orient new and prospective
philosophy majors and minors to the academic discipline of philosophy and, second, to
provide them with an opportunity for intense, sustained development of the principles of
good philosophical methodology. The course is therefore composed of two main parts. The
Orientation part of the course will provide basic information about the subject of philosophy,
about the philosophy major here at CSUB, and information about graduate study in
philosophy. The Methodology portion of the course will be devoted to developing the
individual reading, thinking, and writing skills necessary to do good philosophy, to be
successful in upper division philosophy courses, and to be prepared for life after graduation.
Course Goals: After successfully completing this class, the student will
 know the major areas of philosophy and the central questions investigated in each;
 appreciate the history of philosophy and its importance for the study of philosophical
topics;
 analytically and critically read and understand historical and contemporary
philosophical texts;
 recognize, analyze, and evaluate arguments in philosophical texts;
 write strong, precise, clear philosophical essays that are grammatically correct;
 understand the structure of the philosophy program at CSUB, know the members of
the philosophy faculty and their areas of expertise, and understand the requirements
and opportunities for post-baccalaureate careers and education.
Requirements: Your progress in this course will be assessed through the following
requirements. Assigned work is always due at the beginning of class. All work done outside of
class must be typed.
Daily assignments
15% of final grade
Essay 1 (Argumentative Essay)
10%
Essay 2 (first Analysis Essay)
10%
Essay 3 (second Analysis Essay)
15%
2
Essay 4 (Analysis and Evaluation Essay)
Seminar Presentation
Research Project
20%
10%
20%
100%
NOTE: In order to pass this course each student must turn in all four essays and all
parts of the research assignment, and participate in the seminar assignment.
Letter grades and their percentage equivalents:
87-89=B+
77-79=C+
67-69=D+
93-100=A
83-86=B
73-76=C
63-66=D
90-92=A80-82=B70-72=C60-62=D-
BELOW 60=F
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Part I: Orientation to the Nature, Value, and Study of Philosophy
1M
9/12 Introduction
2W
9/14 Read Beardsley and Beardsley, “What is Philosophy?” pp 3-12; Read
Russell, “The Value of Philosophy,” pp 491-4.
3F
9/16 A Little Logic; Read Salmon, “The Scope of Logic,” pp 43-50; Barker,
“Improving Your Thinking,” pp 50-55; Descartes, “Meditations on First
Philosophy,” pp 130-4.
4M
9/19 A Little Logic; Read Rachels, “The Challenge of Cultural Relativism,” pp 287-97
Last Day to ADD classes
5W
9/21
Read Plato, “Defence of Socrates,” pp 13-40
6F
9/23
Read Hume, “Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding,” pp 270-6.
7M
9/26
Philosophy as it is taught here; what to expect from graduate schools.
Reading TBA
8W
9/28
Visit from advanced students and graduates. No reading assignment.
9F
9/30 Faculty visit. Check department websites.
Last Day to WITHDRAW without a W on your transcript
Part II: Methodology —Critical Reading, Thinking, and Writing
10M 10/3 Read Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, pp 322-27.
11W
10/5
Philosophy article, TBA
12F
10/7
Workshop on Paraphrasing and Thesis Statements
13M
10/10 Essay 1: Begin Argumentative Essay
14W
10/12 Peer Review
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15F
10/14 No class: meet with instructor
16M
10/17 Essay 2: Begin First Analysis Essay
17W
10/19 Peer Review
18F
10/21 No class: meet with instructor
19M
10/24 Essay 3: Begin Second Analysis Essay
20W
10/26 Peer Review
21F
10/28 Read Mill, On Liberty pp 463-72.
Last Day to WITHDRAW for a Serious and Compelling Reason
22M
10/31 Essay 4: Begin Analysis and Evaluation Essay
23W
11/2
Peer Review; Begin Research Assignment
24F
11/4
No class: meet with instructor
Part 1 Research Assignment due
25M
11/7
Seminar Presentation, Group 1
26W
11/9
Research in the Library—meet at library
F
11/11HOLIDAY—Veteran’s Day—Campus Closed
27M
11/14 Seminar Presentation, Group 2
Part 2 Research Assignment due
28W
11/16 Seminar Presentation, Group 3
29F
11/18 Part 3 Research Assignment due; peer review in class
T
11/22 Final Research Paper Due no later than noon at my office
The Finer Points
Reading Assignments: You will be expected to read each entire assignment closely and
carefully prior to class. Most of the class time will be spent examining the day’s reading in
detail, so I will expect you to be familiar with the assigned material. The material may be
challenging, but if you read each selection carefully, critically, and attentively, you will be
able to understand and enjoy these influential writings. Do not expect last minute reading to
be an adequate substitute for keeping up with the class assignments. See “Suggestions for
Active Reading” at the end of this syllabus.
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Daily Assignments: Since the texts can be difficult to navigate, many class meetings will
include a short writing assignment or guided reading assignment to encourage and reward
consistent, thoughtful reading. All take-home written assignments must be typed. All
assignments will be worth 10 points. I will drop your two lowest grades, and the average of
the remaining assignments will be worth 15% of your final grade.
Essays: You will write five short essays in this class. Essays are typically assigned on
Monday with a decent draft due for peer review in class on Wednesday. The final version of
the essay must be emailed to me by that Thursday at noon. On Fridays of “paper weeks,”
class is canceled, and you will meet with me individually to discuss the strengths and
weaknesses of your paper. Active participation in the peer review on Wednesday accounts for
15% of the possible points on the paper.
Late Assignments: Daily Assignments cannot be made up or turned in late—if you have
completed an assignment but cannot come to class, email or fax your work to me before
class. Late essays will be reduced one full grade for each class meeting late.
Peer Review: You will bring a draft of each essay (and part 3 of the Research Assignment) to
class for peer review. The peer review process has two benefits. First, it will help you to polish
your essay before it is graded. Also, you will gain some insight into writing better essays, and
be a better judge of the value of your own efforts, if you can read the work of your colleagues.
For these reasons, we will have a peer review session for most of the essays. You must bring
two (2) copies of your paper to class for two reviewers to read, and turn in these reviews when
we meet on Friday. For each review session, I will need a student to volunteer to have his or
her paper reviewed by all of us together. The volunteer gains by having more feedback,
including that of the instructor. However, the volunteer’s paper needs to be delivered to me
before 9:30 on that Wednesday so I can make copies for the entire class.
Research Assignment: The final assignment in this course is a research assignment to learn
how to do research in philosophy. The assignment has four parts, each of which must be
turned in. The details will be handed out later.
Academic Integrity: “The principles of truth and integrity are recognized as fundamental to
a community of teachers and scholars. The University expects that both faculty and students
will honor these principles and in so doing will protect the integrity of all academic work and
student grades. Students are expected to do all work assigned to them without unauthorized
assistance and without giving unauthorized assistance.”—CSUB Catalog, 2011-13
I encourage you to work with your classmates whenever you can, but you must do
your own work. Turning in work that you did not do or cheating in any way constitutes
academic dishonesty. University policy dictates that anyone guilty of academic dishonesty
may receive a grade of “F” for the course. In addition, the instructor must notify the Office of
Student Rights and Responsibilities, and they may add additional sanctions.
Disability Accommodations: CSUB encourages qualified persons with disabilities to
participate in its programs and activities. According to the campus’ disability policy
statement, “CSUB is committed to providing an inclusive environment, which is responsive to
the needs of all students, faculty, staff, managers/administrators, and the public when they
are using University services. To ensure this inclusion, appropriate accommodations, as
required by law, are provided to individuals, who have verified disabilities and who require
these accommodations in order to enjoy access to University programs, services, or activities
for which the individuals are otherwise qualified.” To request academic accommodations due
to a disability, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as
5
soon as possible. Their office is located in SA 140, and they may be reached at 661-654-3360
(voice), or 661-654-6288 (TDD).
Class Attendance Policy: I strongly encourage you to attend each class meeting prepared to
learn. I take attendance, but class attendance is not part of the grading requirements (except
for peer review sessions).
Possible Interruptions: The Faculty union is in the midst of contract negotiations, and there
is a possibility of a work interruption. Updates on this situation will be provided throughout
the course.
Please turn off Cell phones and other electronic devices while you are in class.
REQUIREMENTS FOR WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
1. All assignments must be written in grammatically correct English without spelling errors.
This means you must proofread carefully—Spell check is not sufficient. If the assignment has
more than a couple of inadvertent minor errors, it will either be marked lower, receive no
credit or will be returned to you for rewriting. English tutors are available through OASIS to
assist you with your writing, and I will be happy to direct you to them. Writing is probably
the single most difficult, yet necessary, skill you will need to develop in your university
career. Writing well is a skill, not an ability you are born with (or without). If you work at it
diligently, you will see marked improvement.
2. Be aware of the verbs you use in philosophical writing. Writing a summary, a précis, or
analyzing an argument requires finding conclusions and their supporting reasons. Avoid
using this kind of phrase: “The author says . . .” or “The author then goes on to say . . .” or
“The author then mentions . . . .” because these phrases do not contribute to the analysis of
an argument. Instead, try something like this: “The author contends . . .” or “The author
argues that . . .” or “The conclusion is . . . “(all of which indicate a conclusion); to show
premises you can say things like, “As evidence the author gives . . .” or “The reason is . . .”
2. In all writing assignments you will need to paraphrase (use your own words, not those of
the author). You may directly use appropriate technical terms, but be sure that you define
those terms.
3. Uninterpreted direct quotations are never allowed.
4. Papers must have a thesis statement. This is where you tell what you are going to do in
the paper and why it is important. Papers without a thesis will be returned ungraded and
lowered at least one letter grade for the final product.
5. You should omit any personal opinions from the writing assignments, unless the
directions say otherwise. The one exception is in argument evaluation. Here your opinions
are relevant, as long as they are supported.
6. Identify authors by their last names, not by their first names. For example, call him Kant,
not Immanuel; call her de Beauvoir, not Simone.
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Thesis and thesis statement, from Little, Brown Handbook
Thesis: the single main idea the writer wants to communicate to readers. The thesis
encompasses the writer’s attitude toward the topic and purpose in writing.
A thesis statement should be placed in the introduction of the essay as a signal to your
readers. It serves two (sometimes three) functions:
1. It narrows the topic to a single idea that you want readers to gain from your essay.
2. It asserts something about the topic, conveying your purpose, your opinion, and your
attitude.
3. It may provide a concise preview of how you will arrange your ideas in the essay.
Requirements of the thesis sentence.
1. Does it make an assertion about your topic?
2. Does it convey your purpose, your opinion, and your attitude?
3. Is it limited to an assertion of only one idea?
4. Is the assertion specific?
5. Is the sentence unified in that the parts relate to each other?
SUGGESTIONS FOR ACTIVE READING
1. You will better comprehend what you read if you read in short stretches of time. It has
been repeatedly shown that it is more productive to read in several short segments than in
one long one. For example, it is more productive to have three 20 minute sessions than one
hour-long session.
2. Make a note of important concepts, themes, and vocabulary.
3. Use your dictionary to define words you don’t know. If you don’t know the meaning, you
are just reading words.
4. Most people do better if they quickly read the entire assignment looking just at the main
ideas and then read it a second time slowly and actively. On the second reading write down
questions, find the main arguments, and make a list of problems, questions, or issues to
raise in class.