Level Three Module Outlines 2014-15
SEMESTER ONE
Anarchy, Law & the State PHIL 30230
This module will consider a central topic in political philosophy - the nature, function and justification of the State - from a
libertarian perspective. A considerable amount of reading material will be made available to students via Blackboard and this
material will contextualise the discussions. Murray Rothbard's The Ethics of Liberty (available on blackboard) is the core tex t
for the module. Also worth consideration is Harold Berman's Law and Revolution and Gerard Casey's Libertarian Anarchism
(published July 2012). If required, my book, Libertarian Anarchism, can be obtained from the Campus Bookshop or ordered
online.
Questions of God PHIL 30220
This module offers a critical examination of some representative philosophical positions concerning the quest ion of God. The
course will comprise two complementary series of twelve lectures. (1) One series will examine: epistemological and
metaphysical presuppositions for the affirmation of God; concepts of divinity in Greek philosophy; Aquinas' formulation of th e
'Five Ways'; the problem of naming God and Feuerbach's critique; and evolution versus creationism. (2) The other series of
lectures will examine selected issues in modern philosophy of religion. The questions for study may include any of the
following: Is the concept of God coherent? Can God's existence be proved by a priori argument? How should one treat a
person's claim to have had a 'religious experience', or to have witnessed a miracle? What is the relationship between religio n
and morality? Is faith irrational? Does the fact of pain and suffering constitute evidence that God does not exist? Can there be
life after death? Among the philosophers whose work may be considered in this series of lectures are Descartes, Pascal, Hume,
Kant, James, Mackie, Plantinga, and Swinburne.
Legal Ethics PHIL 30440
This module will explore some of the distinctive ethical problems faced by professionals and especially by lawyers in their
ordinary practice. Some of these problems have been anticipated by the Codes of Practice in use in various countries, but
such Codes cannot hope to cover all possible scenarios. For that reason we will also examine some of the ethical theory and
principles underlying the different positions that can be taken on such problems. Topics will i nclude: the limits of
confidentiality; the legitimate use of deception; defending bad people; conflicts of interest; as well as some larger systemi c
questions about the role of the legal profession in society; defining the public interest; and access to ju stice by the poor.
Level Three Module Outlines 2014-15
Heidegger & Levinas PHIL 30450
The advent of Husserlian phenomenology at the turn of the twentieth century redefined the fundamental scope, vision and
methodology of philosophy. In this course we will explore the manner in which phenomenology is transformed by two of its
earliest students: Martin Heidegger and Emanuel Levinas. In particular we will ask how phenomenology, as a descriptive
science of lived experience, accounts for the encounter with that which is beyond my own lived experience – namely the
other person. We will begin with a brief examination of Edmund Husserl’s account of the other in the Cartesian Mediations
before moving on to the work of Heidegger and Levinas. In particular our focus will be Being and Time by Heidegger and
Totality and Infinity by Levinas. These two works, which represent the early work of each thinker, are also their most
systematic texts. Having gained a broad overview of each text in its own right, we will read and compare particular division s
of these texts in more detail under specific themes: What is the role of language? Where is meaning located? How is the
account of temporality informed by the question of death? What is the role of the other person? How is the subject
described? How is ‘phenomenology’ transformed by each thinker?
The Philosophies of Wittgenstein PHIL 30430
Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889—1951) is one of the most significant and influential philosophers of recent times. Indeed,
Wittgenstein's unique philosophical approach and distinctive style of writing have made him a cult-like figure in wider
intellectual and artistic circles, beyond that of philosophy, and have been a source of inspiration for film-makers, painters
and composers alike. Wittgenstein is also unusual because of at least two, some would say three, radical changes in his
philosophical thinking and approach. The present course covers key aspects of both the early and later Wittgenstein. The
module is co-taught by several members of staff from the School of Philosophy with expertise in different aspects of
Wittgenstein's work. The first section focuses on the early Wittgenstein and his masterpiece the Tractatus Logico
Philosophicus. In the second section we look at his most significant work, the Philosophical Investigations. We complete the
course with an examination of Wittgenstein's last work, On Certainty.
Medieval Philosophy PHIL 30290
This course offers an historical and critical introduction to the late classical and medieval philosophical traditions in the West,
from the late Greek period through to the Renaissance. Selected classical texts influential on the medieval tradition, e.g.
works by Plato, Aristotle and post-Aristotelian philosophers, will be examined. The course will then focus on selected readings
from some of the following medieval philosophers (including Christian, Islamic and Jewish traditions): Augustine of Hippo,
Boethius, Johannes Scottus Eriugena, Anselm, Averroes, Avicenna, Maimonides, Aquinas, Meister Eckhart, Nicholas of Cusa.
Topics may include, among others: faith and reason, the existence of God, the nature of soul and intellect, the structure of
being, and the nature of the good.
Level Three Module Outlines 2014-15
SEMESTER TWO
Philosophy of Mind PHIL 30030
This course provides an introduction to the main topics in the philosophy of mind (mainly from the perspective of
contemporary analytic philosophy). The main questions in this field concern the nature of the mind, the relationship between
the mind and the body, the nature of consciousness, and the nature of intentionality ('aboutness'). The course will also cove r
questions concerning mental causation, perception, intentional action, social cognition ('mindreading'), and the role of
computation and representation.
Philosophy of Interpretation PHIL 30280
What philosophical issues are raised in expressing, translating and understanding? Can we even perceive things without
interpreting them? What are the best ways to understand the works of other cultures and epochs, and why? Is the interpreter
passive and neutral before the text, or is he or she always active and creative? How should we evaluate creative
interpretations? In this module such questions will be considered by way of an historical and critical i ntroduction to the
movements of hermeneutics and deconstruction. These collectively comprise the philosophy of interpretation in recent
European philosophy. We begin with the foundations of hermeneutics laid by Schleiermacher and Dilthey, proceed to its
development in the phenomenologies of Husserl and Heidegger, and conclude with its post-phenomenological variants in the
work of Gadamer, Derrida and Ricoeur.
Phenomenology and Existentialism PHIL 30010
This course offers a historical introduction to and critical assessment of some central texts of the phenomenological traditi on,
the most prominent European philosophical movement of the twentieth century; and the movement that inspired the
existentialism of Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and others. The course will trace the development of phenomenology
from the descriptive psychology of Franz Brentano through the descriptive and transcendental phenomenologies of Husserl
and Heidegger to the existential phenomenologies of Sartre and Merleau-Ponty. Students will read selected classical texts in
phenomenology and existentialism, based on the assigned textbook, The Phenomenology Reader, ed. Dermot Moran and Tim
Mooney (London: Routledge, 2002). Themes treated may include some or all of the following: intentionality, perception,
consciousness, the epoche and reduction, the life-world, the nature of human existence (Dasein), freedom, embodiment, the
relation to the other, empathy, intersubjectivity, the meaning of art, the challenge to human life in our technological age.
Level Three Module Outlines 2014-15
Philosophy of Law PHIL 30260
This module will examine the concepts of RESPONSIBILITY and EXCUSES in the criminal law. What does it mean for the court
to hold someone responsible for an offence? If the defendant admits to doing it, but believes that she was not (fully)
responsible, what sort of things can she say in her defence? Perhaps it was a mistake, perhaps she was ignorant, perhaps she
was provoked or forced to do it. However, being ignorant in itself might not be enough to exculpate her, for she might have
been reckless or negligent, and therefore responsible in a different way for the offence. This module will be taught by two
lecturers, one with a philosophy background and one with a law background: one of the aims of the module is to compare the
two disciplinary approaches. (Note, however, that we will not be discussing jurisprudence, i.e. the nature of law or of law making, even though this is sometimes called 'philosophy of law'.)Students do not require any knowledge of the law to take
this module, but they should have successfully completed at least four second-year philosophy modules.
Philosophy of Language PHIL 30070
This course focuses on some key debates in contemporary philosophy of language. The main theme to be covered is the role of
the external (physical) world and (cultural) context in determining the meaning of our utterances. Specific examples from
recent philosophical discussions of gender, race, pornography, and propaganda will be used to illustrate more abstract
discussions of meaning and reference and to demonstrate the impact of language on our moral and political attitudes.
Critical Theory PHIL 30300
This module examines the idea of a critical theory of society from Rousseau, Hegel and Marx, through Horkheimer, Adorno and
Marcuse, to Foucault, Habermas and beyond. It addresses questions concerning the point of such critical theorizing, the
assumptions about human flourishing motivating it, and, in particular, the conceptions of critique on which it relies. Key
concepts such as emancipation, domination and ideology will be discussed and interrogated. It will also consider the question
of the place of art (literature, music, the visual arts) in critical theorizing about society.
Philosophy & Mental Disorder
This module is a consideration of the many philosophical questions that are raised by the psychiatric notions of "mental
disorder." Among the questions considered will be:* does depression have a meaning or it is simply an organic illness?* are
paranoid experiences an effort to make sense of a broken reality?* what does it mean to describe some one's personality as
"disordered"?* why do we hold some criminals less responsible than others because of a psychiatric diagnosis?* can we describe
people as dangerous on the basis of a psychiatric diagnosis?A broader objective of the module is to find ways of elucidating
the conception of "normality" that underpins the very idea of “disorder.”
Level Three Module Outlines 2014-15
Single Major Research Project PHIL 30210
The Undergraduate Research Project requires third year Single Subject Major Philosophy students to produce a sustained in depth piece of work (7,500 word max.). Successful completion of the project will require a significant degree of selfdiscipline and self-motivation, as it demands much independent research and study. Students are free to pursue a
philosophical topic of their choice, on condition that the module co-ordinator considers the topic viable, and there is a
member of staff who is able and willing to act as supervisor. Students should therefore begin to think about and prepare thei r
proposals as soon as possible in the first semester. Students must also attend a series of seminars on research met hods in the
2nd term. The project is due at the end of the eighth week of the second semester.