The Philosophy and Psychology of Wisdom
PHIL 4900 / 6900: Issues in Philosophy
CRN 15921 / 15922
Classroom South 308
Fall 2010
Mon. & Wed. 1:30 - 2:45pm
Instructor:
Eddy Nahmias
34 Peachtree St. (corner of Peachtree and Marietta, 11th floor, room 1116)
404-413-6117
enahmias@gsu.edu
Office Hours: Mon. 10:00-11:30, Wed. 3:00-4:30, & by appointment
Course Description and Objectives:
Philosophy means ‘the love of wisdom’, yet philosophers rarely discuss wisdom anymore. In this
seminar, we will discuss different conceptions of wisdom and connections between wisdom,
happiness, and leading a good life. We will consider how wisdom is described by leading thinkers in
various traditions, from ancient Greece to China to Enlightenment Europe; we will read some
contemporary philosophers writing on wisdom, virtue, and meaning in life; and we will consider
recent work in psychology on wisdom. Ultimately, we will try to improve our ability to ask and
answer questions, such as: What is wisdom? What makes a person wise? How does one develop
wisdom? What are the best sources of wisdom? What is the connection between being wise and
being moral? between being wise and being happy (or living a good life)? What are the
psychological foundations of wisdom? And how can our reading about wisdom make us wiser? I
also hope that we will use this course as a collective experiment in wise teaching and learning, and
we may find ways to apply what we learn to our own lives.
By the end of the course you should:
 More fully comprehend these important philosophical questions.
 Develop your ability to analyze and criticize philosophical positions and psychological research.
 Improve your writing.
 Develop (I hope) a greater interest in understanding wisdom and how to be wiser.
Responsibilities and Assessment:

Attendance, Preparation, and Participation (20%): You are expected to come to every class
having read and thought about the assigned material. In general, you should plan on spending an
average of at least four hours per week outside of the classroom reading, preparing, and when
relevant, researching and writing for this class. This course will be run as a seminar with lots of
discussion. Your attendance and informed, active participation in class discussions are required
both for the course to succeed and for you to succeed in the course: 20% of your final grade will
be based on how constructive your participation in the class is (and your project presentation—
see below). As a rule, you should neither go more than two or three classes without offering your
informed questions and perspectives, nor should you dominate any class discussions. Missing
more than two classes without approved excuse will lower your participation grade.

Nuggets of Wisdom (40%): You will write 10 “Nuggets of Wisdom” (NoWs) about the sources
of wisdom we read. We will discuss the form and content of these writing assignments more
fully in class, because they may take various forms (e.g., one may be an interview, etc.). But in
general, they will involve 2-3 pages (about 400-700 words) indicating that you have engaged
carefully with the central reading assigned, either (1) by analyzing how the discussion of wisdom
in it can be applied to some concrete decision, action, or characteristic displayed in a work of
literature or film, or in your own life or the life of someone you know, and/or (2) by analyzing the
philosophical argument in the reading (e.g., offering a short critique of or counterexample to one
of the claims made about wisdom, wise persons, etc.). We will decide whether we want our
NoWs to be available on the course website or turned in just to me. Either way, they will target
one of the main readings assigned for a class and be due before that class. You will do one NoW
per week during weeks 2-13 (with one week off) for a total of 10 NoWs, the best 8 of which will
be counted for 40% of your final grade (but if you do some number X fewer than 10, you will get
F grades for X; e.g., if you do only 8, two F grades will count).

Wisdom Project (40%) and Presentation: You will do research on some “source(s)” of
wisdom not covered in class (from philosophy, religion, psychology, or even literature or some
other source), and create a paper and a presentation in which you explain and explore that source
of wisdom, using it in part to develop your own views about wisdom and living wisely (or
perhaps to develop an empirical study of wisdom). These projects may take various forms, and
we will discuss the possibilities more in class. You will turn in a proposal for your wisdom
project, including your source(s) no later than October 28. You will create a 7-10 minute
presentation of your project for the class during one of the last three classes (after
Thanksgiving)—these presentations may also take various forms, and they will count as a
significant part of your participation grade. Your written project will be—barring creative
diversions from this format which must be approved—an 8-10 page paper (10-15 pages for
graduate students) and will count 40% of your final grade. It must be turned in no later than the
last class (December 6).

Graduate Students Extra Sessions: Graduate students enrolled in PHIL 6900 will meet for an
additional 3-4 sessions (to be scheduled), for which they will read additional work (e.g., those
listed as “Suggested” on the schedule) and/or do extra assignments (to be discussed).
Course Policies:

Attendance and classroom courtesy: Attendance is essential for success in this course, and it
will be taken at each class. Given your careful reading and Nuggets of Wisdom, you should have
answers to questions I ask, as well as insightful questions and comments about the reading for
each class. You will also have disagreements with what I say and with what your classmates say,
and you should express these critiques when appropriate. But in disagreeing, do not be
disrespectful. Practice critiquing ideas without criticizing people. Please show respect as well
by: (1) Arriving to class on time and remaining seated until we complete the day’s discussion; (2)
Staying alert and focused on our discussion; (3) Refraining from conversations while others are
speaking; (4) Turning off cell phones before class and keeping them out of sight (no texting, etc.);
(5) Using computers only for class-related activity (and please ask permission to use computers).

Late work and excused absences: All assigned work will be due before or at the beginning of
class. Unless the student provides acceptable written documentation (e.g., medical provider’s
note), absences will not be excused, NoWs cannot be turned in late, and late projects will be
penalized (5 points per day). If you know you will miss a class, let me know ahead of time and
we can work something out (observation of religious holidays will be excused).

Academic Honesty: Students are expected to strictly uphold the Academic Honesty Policy of
Georgia State University. The instructor reserves the right to assess penalties for violations,
which may involve a failing grade for the assignment or for the entire course. Plagiarism includes
submitting written work which you have not composed yourself or using another person’s ideas
without proper citation. For instance, if I run your paper through a search site on the internet and
find any uncited sentences that match an outside source, I will consider it a plagiarized paper.

Students requiring accommodation: I am happy to accommodate students with disabilities or
other needs who require academic accommodation. Please speak to me in the first two weeks of
classes.

Teacher Support: I am happy to discuss questions or problems during scheduled office hours or
by appointment. Quick questions can be answered right after class.

Student Support: You should work with each other to discuss and better understand the issues,
get notes for missed classes, and discuss projects. I highly recommend you exchange contact
information with at least two classmates for these purposes.

Flexibility: This course syllabus provides a general plan for the course; deviations may be
necessary (e.g., assigned readings may change, and we will almost always have to finish
discussion of the previous class’ readings at the beginning of class).

Texts: There are no required books for this course, though you may want to purchase some of
the main texts. All assigned readings will be available primarily through the course website at
uLearn or as handouts or through email.
Department of Philosophy
General Syllabus Statement Fall 2010

This syllabus provides a general plan for the course. Deviations may be necessary.

The last day to withdraw from a course with the possibility of receiving a W is
Friday, October 8.

Students are responsible for confirming that they are attending the course section for which they are
registered. Failure to do so may result in an F for the course.

By University policy and to respect the confidentiality of all students, final grades may not be posted
or given out over the phone. To see your grades, check the web (student.gosolar.gsu.edu).

The customary penalty for a violation of the academic honesty rules is an "F" in the course. See the
University Policy on Academic Honesty at http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwfhb/sec409.html. Copying or
using material from the internet without citation is a violation of the academic honesty
rules.

A student may be awarded a grade of "W" no more than 6 times in their careers at Georgia State.
After 6 Ws, a withdrawal is recorded as a WF on the student's record. A WF counts as an F in a GPA.

Your constructive assessment of this course plays an indispensable role in shaping education at
Georgia State University. Upon completing the course, please take the time to fill out the online course
evaluation.

A+ grades are not parallel to grades of B+ and C+. They are reserved for outstanding work that merits
recommendation to a top-five philosophy Ph.D. program. This policy applies only to courses taught by
philosophy faculty.

Students who wish to request accommodation for a disability may do so by registering with the Office
of Disability Services in Suite 230 of the Student Center. Students may only be accommodated upon
issuance by the Office of Disability Services of a singed Accommodation Plan and are responsible for
providing a copy of that plan to instructors of all classes in which an accommodation is sought.
Subscribe to one of our department listservs for current information and events:
1. Philosophy Majors:
www2.gsu.edu/~wwwphi/5267.html
2. Philosophy Grad Students: www2.gsu.edu/~wwwphi/5265.html
Messages will go to the address from which you send the message, so you need to resubscribe
every time you change e-mail addresses.
For more information on the philosophy program visit:
www.gsu.edu/philosophy
Schedule of Readings and Assignments (subject to modifications):
Week 1:
M 8/23:
W 8/25:
Introductions
Introduction to wisdom, each other, syllabus
Concepts of wisdom, measuring wisdom
Bluck and Glück, “From the Inside Out: People’s Implicit Theories of Wisdom”
Week 2-3:
M 8/30:
Socrates, MLK, Plato, and Aristotle on Wisdom
Socrates, The Apology
Martin Luther King Jr., “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”
Plato, selections from The Republic
* NoW 1 due no later than this class*
W 9/1:
M 9/6:
W 9/8:
Suggested:
Labor Day, No Class
Aristotle, selections from Nichomachean Ethics and Metaphysics
Broadie, from Ethics with Aristotle
Hursthouse, “Practical Wisdom: A Mundane Account”
Week 4:
M 9/13:
W 9/15:
Stoic Wisdom
Epictetus, The Enchiridion (The Handbook)
Marcus Aurelius, selections from Meditations
Cicero, selections from On Moral Ends
Week 5:
M 9/20:
W 9/22:
Suggested:
Chinese Wisdom
Confucius, selections from Analects
Selections from Tao Te Ching and Zen Buddhism or Shantideva Way of the Bodhisattva
Kupperman, “Morality, Ethics, and Wisdom”
Week 6:
M 9/27:
Religion and Wisdom
Wisdom literature from The Old Testament
Jesus’ sermons from The New Testament
Pojman, “Religion Gives Meaning to Life”
Nozick, “Philosophy and the Meaning of Life”
Anderson, “If God is Dead, is Everything Permitted?”
Russell, from Why I am not a Christian
Nagel, “Secular Philosophy”
W 9/29:
Suggested:
Week 7:
M 10/4:
W 10/6:
Suggested:
Enlightenment Wisdom
Montaigne, selections from Essays
Rousseau, selections from Emile and Moral Letters
Adam Smith, selections from Theory of the Moral Sentiments
Robinson, “Wisdom through the Ages”
Selections from Shopenhauer and Nietzsche
Weeks 8-10:
M 10/11:
W 10/13:
Psychology on Wisdom and Self-knowledge
Sternberg, Introduction to Wisdom: Its Nature, Origin, and Development
Ardelt, Introduction to A Handbook of Wisdom: Psychological Perspectives
Implicit theory article (TBA)
Baltes and Staudinger, “Wisdom: A Metaheuristic (pragmatic) to Orchestrate Mind…”
Ardelt, “Empirical Assessment of a Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale”
M 10/18:
W 10/20:
Suggested:
Sternberg, “A Balance Theory of Wisdom”
Csikszentmihalyi and Nakamura, “The Role of Emotions in the Development of Wisdom”
Staudinger and Gluck, “Psychological Wisdom Research”
M 10/25:
W 10/28:
Haidt (TBA)
Wilson (TBA)
* Wisdom Project Proposal Due *
Weeks 11-13:
M 11/1:
W 11/3:
Suggested:
Recent Philosophy on Wisdom, Virtue, Meaning, and Happiness
Tiberius, “Wisdom and Happiness”
Tiberius and Swartwood, “Wisdom Revisited”
Taylor, “Dare to be Wise”
M 11/8:
Ryan, “Wisdom”
Garrett “Three Definitions of Wisdom”
Zagzebski, “The Admirable Life and the Desirable Life”
Kekes, “Wisdom”
W 11/10:
Suggested:
M 11/15:
W 11/17:
Nozick, selections from The Examined Life
Wolf, “Happiness and Meaning” or “Meaning in Life”
* 10 NoWs due no later than this class *
* Thanksgiving Break, No Classes *
Weeks 14-15: Wisdom Projects
M 11/29:
A wise piece of literature (TBA)
Presentations
W 12/1:
Presentations
M 12/6:
Presentations, Conclusions, Final Pieces of Wisdom (and of Pizza)
* Wisdom Project Due *