Philosophy Syllabus
Mr. McGinnis
Thousand Oaks High School
The Philosophy course offered at Thousand Oaks is designed to familiarize students with
the great thinkers and trends in western philosophy as well as offering them the
opportunity to do philosophy and develop their own critical habits of mind. The course is
arranged chronologically, surveying the thoughts of the major philosophers from the PreSocratics to the Existentialists. The course takes the position that the Western
Intellectual Tradition is developmental – that philosophers do not exist in isolation, but
are influenced by the thinking of those who have come before them. Philosophy is
constantly criticizing and revising itself, building on the work of previous generations of
thinkers. Students, then, see philosophy as an unfolding process, moving forward from
its beginnings to now. They see that the way they think today is the result of this process.
The course is a mix of lecture on specific philosophers and philosophical positions and
discussion generated by the work of those philosophers. Students demonstrate their
understanding of the material through essay response tests which show both their
understanding of the basic positions of specific philosophers and the implications of those
ideas. Ultimately, as a final project, students craft their own philosophy.
Course Overview:
Section I: The Pre-Socratics
An introduction of concept of philosophy.
The questions which early philosophy attempted to answer.
The Philosophers and their thinking (Thales, Anaxaminder, Anaximenes, Parmenides,
Empodicles, Anaxagoras, Democritus)
Section II: The Sophists and Socrates
The situation in Greece at the time of the sophists.
The crisis of philosophy – the relativism, subjectivism, and nihilism of the sophists.
(Gorgias, Protagoras, Thrasymachus, Callicles, Critias)
The role of Socrates in responding to the sophists.
The development of ethics, politics, and the beginning of logic.
Section III: Plato and Aristotle
Overview of Plato’s philosophy.
Overview of Aristotle’s criticism of Plato.
Overview of Aristotle’s philosophy
Section IV: Hellenistic Philosophy
The social, political situation of the Western world at the end of the pagan era.
The role of Hellenistic philosophy in resolving the difficulties of the time period.
Epicureanism, Stoicism, Cynicism, Neo-Platonism.
Section V: The Emergence of Christianity
An understanding of the problems facing Christianity
The role of St. Paul, St. Augustine in shaping western thinking.
The development of theology.
The thinking of Anselm, Aquinas, Ockham
Section VI: The Rationalists, Empiricists, and Kant
The birth of modern philosophy
The Rationalists: Descartes, Spinoza, Leibnitz
The focus on innate ideas and the centrality of the reason in coming to absolutely certain
conclusions
Difficulties inherent in rationalist thinking
The Empiricists: Locke, Berkeley, Hume
Denial of innate ideas, idea that all knowledge comes through the senses.
Difficulties inherent in empiricist thinking
Kant’s synthetic resolution of the rationalist/empiricist
Section VII: The 19th Century
The ideas of: Hegel, Kirkegaard, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud, Bentham, Mill, James
Dialectical Idealism, Dialectical Materialism, Existentialism, Psychology, Utilitarianism,
Pragmatism
Section VIII: The 20th Century
The ideas of: Heidegger, Sartre, De Beauvoir, Lacan, Derrida, Foucault
Atheistic Existentialism, Feminism, Deconstructionism
Grading Scale
95-100 A
73-76 C
90-94 A70-72 C87-89 B+ 67-69 D+
83-86 B
63-66 D
80-82 B60-62 D77-79 C+ Below 60 F
Academic Integrity
See the Student Handbook for the statement regarding academic integrity.
Attendance and Preparedness
Since attendance and preparedness affect your ability to participate in class, coming to
class late or without materials will impact your class participation grade
Classroom Behavior
Students are expected to behave in a respectful manner at all times. Respect for yourself,
your fellow students, your teacher, and the subject matter is a prerequisite for this class.
Additionally, food and drink are not permitted in the classroom; cell phones and mp3
players are to be off and stored away.