Introduction to Philosophy

10315 PHI1600.05G

9:00 – 9:50 AMMWF

Dr. Clancy Smithclancynsmith@adjuncts.belmont.edu

Philosophy is the pursuit of knowledge and love of wisdom in all its myriad forms. Stretching back over two-thousand years, the discipline has included some of the greatest minds in western civilization. From these illustrious men and women, the disciplines of physics, theology, psychology, cognitive science, semiotics, ethics, and logic were born, to name but a few of the innumerable contributions philosophy has made to the elevation of the human condition. They sought answers to life’s most pressing questions: How should we treat one another? What is the nature of God and the soul? How should we structure our societies? Do we have we free will? How do we form the beliefs we have about our world? What is the meaning of life itself?

This course will provide a general overview of a select handful of these illustrious thinkers, tracing their lineage down through the ages to demonstrate their contemporary relevance to our modern society and the power their ideas have had to change our world.

Required Texts:

(1) Plato, Five Dialogues, trans. Grube. Hackett Publishing Co.(2) St. Augustine, On Free Choice of the Will, trans. Williams. Hackett Publishing Co.(3) René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy. Hackett Publishing Co.

Further Reading Provided online:

(4) Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”(5) C.S. Peirce, “The Fixation of Belief”(6) John Dewey, “The Postulate of Immediate Empiricism”(7) Herbert Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man

I. Course Goals and Objectives

The goal of this course is to broaden intellectual perspectives and foster theoretical and social literacy through an introduction to the two-thousand-plus year old dialogue of philosophy and the encouragement of reflection and argumentation. These abilities are both skills and art forms that will better an individual regardless of his or her academic concentration and future career path. Philosophy majors have famously excelled in all standardized tests (GRE, MCAT, LSAT, etc.) precisely because they have honed the skills of creative analysis, logical deduction, and critical thinking; the skills this course will be focused upon in the main. These goals will be pursued in the following ways:

- Engagement in close textual analyses of the reading assignments in order to foster critical thinking skills, which ultimately develop one’s own thinking and writing abilities

- Attention directed to the lectures, which will provide the historical situation, theoretical background, and clarification of issues to frame and guide your own thinking

- Participation in class discussions that embrace academic freedom in order to practice formulating and expressing your questions, ideas, and interpretations of the issues at hand

- Creative reflection on the form and content of the course material by crafting oral responses, essays, and exam answers

II. Course Policies and Requirements

Attendance:

Attendance is strongly encouraged as it will be difficult for you to achieve the same academic progress as your classmates if you miss too many classes. The testable material comes from the lectures and the discussions in class and, thus, to miss class is to put yourself in an unenviable position. If a class is missed, one is still responsible for the material due and covered that day. Please notify me in the case of excusable absences. Each student is fully responsible for verifying and correcting, if necessary, his/her registration status.

Note: When the number of absences (other than those addressed in the Provost’s Excuse) exceeds three times the number of regularly scheduled class meetings per week (20% of class meetings), the student may receive the grade of “FN” (failure for non-attendance).

For a T/TH class meeting all semester, 20% of class time is 6 classes which is equivalent to 3 times the number of regularly scheduled class meetings per week. Upon the 7th absence, the student may receive the grade of “FN.”

Assignments:

(1) Paper: One paper due at the end of the semester.(2) Quizzes: Four short quizzes to recap the previous section’s information.(3) Midterm Exam: Covers the first half of the semester; format t.b.a.(4) Final Exam: Cumulative; format t.b.a.

Grade Distribution:

Attendance and Participation (5%)Paper (10%)Quizzes (35% combined)Midterm Exam (25%)Final Exam (25%)

Grade Scale:

All assignments will receive an alphabetic and/or numeric grade based upon their demonstrated quality of thought and effort: A (100 – 93); A- (92 – 90); B+ (89 – 87); B (86 – 83); B- (82 – 80); C+ (79 – 77); C (76 – 73); C- (72 – 70); D+ (69 – 67); D (66 – 60); F (59 – 0)

Evaluation Criteria:

Attendance and Participation will be evaluated by a broad definition of active engagement: attendance requiring both one’s mind and body, so that sleeping or texting, etc., in class will be considered nonattendance. Participation includes the active attention to lecture and discussion, respectful listening, peer and small group conversation, discussion, and email communication with me, and the incorporation of discussed ideas into your written work.

Note: pertaining to class decorum; a hostile class environment will not be tolerated. Healthy debate and disagreements are, of course, acceptable, but the creation of a hostile environment through threats, verbal abuse or physical assault will be met with immediate and dire consequences.

Note: don’t text in class.

Note: computers and tablets are permitted for note-taking but students must refrain from emailing or utilizing social networking websites during class (or any other non-class-related websites).

Papers will be evaluated by their quality of content (a coherent thesis and strong argumentative support) and quality of writing (spelling, grammar, etc.) as well their adherence to further requirements (such as the proper use of citations, paper length, etc.).

Quizzes will be evaluated by the accuracy of their answers

Exams will be evaluated by the accuracy of their answers

Electronic Supplements and Study Guides

Supplemental material (including readings, assignments, and study guides) will be available through our Blackboard site.

III. University Policies

Honor Code: the Belmont community values personal integrity and academic honesty as the foundation of university life and the cornerstone of a premiere educational experience. Our community believes trust among its members is essential for both scholarship and effective interactions and operations of the university. As members of the Belmont community, students, faculty, staff, and administrators are all responsible for ensuring that their experiences will be free of behaviors which compromise this value. In order to uphold academic integrity, the university has adopted an Honor System. Students and faculty will work together to establish optimal conditions of honorable academic work. The following is the Student Honor Pledge that guides academic behavior:

“I will not give or receive aid during examinations; I will not give or receive false or impermissible aid in course work, in the preparation of reports, or in any other type of work that is to be used by the instructor as the basis of my grade; I will not engage in any form of academic fraud. Furthermore, I will uphold my responsibility to see to it that others abide by the spirit and letter of this Honor Pledge.”

Note: Specific to this course: I have a zero-tolerance policy for academic dishonesty, especially plagiarism which includes, but is not limited to, the summary, paraphrase, or direct use of either published or unpublished work of another without full and clear citation. Further, there will be no “double-dipping” by handing in papers written by you for another course other than this one. Consequences for academic dishonesty will

result in a 0% for the assignment without the ability to redo said assignment and possible further repercussions in accordance with school policy. If you have any questions about plagiarism or academic honesty in general, please consult the school handbook, one’s academic advisor, or me.

IV. Accommodation of Disabilities

In compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, Belmont University will provide reasonable accommodation of all medically documented disabilities. If you have a disability and would like the university to provide reasonable accommodations of the disability during this course, please notify the Office of the Dean of Students located in Beaman Student Life Center, (615) 460 – 6407, as soon as possible.

V. Course Evaluations

The university urges and expects all students to participate in all course evaluations, providing honest feedback to the instructor and institution about the specific aspects and elements of the course. Outside of the official evaluations, I highly encourage you to provide me with feedback throughout the semester about the course and to collectively or privately discuss such matters to better everyone’s overall experience in the course.

Reading Schedule [Subject to Change]

Section I: Introduction to Philosophy

Wed. Aug. 24 Syllabus OverviewFri. Aug. 26 Overview of Philosophy (Terms and Themes) [No Readings]

Mon. Aug. 29 Overview of Philosophy (Part I – Ancient and Medieval) [No Readings]Wed. Aug. 31 Overview of Philosophy (Part II – Modern and Contemporary) [No Readings]

Section II: Ancient Philosophy

Fri. Sep. 2 Plato’s Euthyphro (Part I) [Read 1st half of dialogue]

Mon. Sep. 5 LABOR DAY – NO CLASSWed. Sep. 7 Plato’s Euthyphro (Part II) [Read 2nd half of dialogue]Fri. Sep. 9 Plato’s Apology (Part I) [Read 1st half of dialogue]

Mon. Sep. 12 Plato’s Apology (Part II) [Read 2nd half of dialogue]Wed. Sep. 14 Plato’s Crito [Read the entire dialogue]Fri. Sep. 16 Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” [Read Selections]

Mon. Sep. 19 CATCH-UP DAY/REVIEW DAY [No Readings]Wed. Sep. 21 QUIZ 1

Section III: Medieval Philosophy

Fri. Sep. 23 Introduction to St. Augustine [No Readings]

Mon. Sep. 26 On Free Choice: Book I (Part 1) [Read 1st third of Book I)Wed. Sep. 28 On Free Choice: Book I (Part 2) [Read 2nd third of Book I)Fri. Sep. 30 On Free Choice: Book I (Part 3) [Read 3rd third of Book I)

Mon. Oct. 3 On Free Choice: Book II [Read 1st few pages of Book II)Wed. Oct. 5 QUIZ 2Fri. Oct. 7 CATCH-UP DAY/REVIEW DAY [No Readings]

Mon. Oct. 10 SPRING BREAK – NO CLASSWed. Oct. 12 MIDTERM EXAM

Section IV: Modern Philosophy

Fri. Oct. 14 Introduction to Descartes [No Readings]

Mon. Oct. 17 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 1]Wed. Oct. 19 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 2]Fri. Oct. 21 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 3]

Mon. Oct. 24 Meditations on First Philosophy [Meditation 3 Cont.]Wed. Oct. 26 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 4]Fri. Oct. 28 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 5]

Mon. Oct. 31 Meditations on First Philosophy [Read Meditation 6]Wed. Nov. 2 CATCH-UP DAY/REVIEW DAY [No Readings]Fri. Nov. 4 QUIZ 3

Section V: Contemporary Philosophy

Mon. Nov. 7 Introduction to American Philosophy [No Readings]Wed. Nov. 9 Peirce, “Fixation of Belief” [Read 1st 3rd]Fri. Nov. 11 Peirce, “Fixation of Belief” [Read 2nd 3rd]

Mon. Nov. 14 Peirce, “Fixation of Belief” [Read 3nd 3rd]Wed. Nov. 16 Dewey, “Postulate of Immediate Empiricism” [Read 1st half]Fri. Nov. 18 Dewey, “Postulate of Immediate Empiricism” [Read 2nd half]

Mon. Nov. 21 QUIZ 4Wed. Nov. 23 THANKSGIVING BREAK – NO CLASSFri. Nov. 25 THANKSGIVING BREAK – NO CLASS

Mon. Nov. 28 Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man [Selections]Wed. Nov. 30 Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man [Selections]Fri. Dec. 2 Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man [Selections]

Mon. Dec. 5 CATCH-UP DAY/REVIEW DAY [No Readings]Wed. Dec. 7 ACADEMIC PREP DAY – NO CLASS [PAPER DUE]

FINAL EXAM: FRIDAY, DEC. 9, 8:00 – 10:00 AM