GISDepartment of Global and Interdisciplinary Studies

Over 2,000 years ago in ancient Greece, Socrates introduced a new mode of general and abstract inquiry, which he described as "the love of wisdom" or "philosophy." This course focuses on two areas of the history of philosophical inquiry in ancient Greece and early modern Europe: metaphysics and epistemology. Metaphysics deals with the first principles of being, causation, and identity. Metaphysical questions covered in this course include: What is most fundamental about reality? What does it mean for one thing to cause another thing to happen? What does it mean for something to be the same thing over time? Epistemology deals with the nature and possibility of knowledge. Questions surveyed include: What is knowledge? Do we know anything? If so, what do we know? Philosophers surveyed in this course include Plato, Aristotle, René Descartes, John Locke, David Hume, and Immanuel Kant.

This course has four primary learning goals. First, students will learn about various and diverging views throughout the history of philosophy with a focus on metaphysics and epistemology. Second, students will improve critical thinking skills when engaging with abstract philosophical reasoning. Third, students will improve their reading skills when confronting nuanced and challenging text. Finally, students will improve their writing skills to communicate complex ideas clearly and confidently.

Will be able to gain “DP 1”, “DP 2”, “DP 3”, and “DP 4”.

英語 / English

Roughly one hour of each meeting will consist of an interactive lecture with slides. Students will then write a short in-class reflective writing exercise. Finally, each class will conclude with an interactive debate or discussion. The mid-term and final exams will be a combination of short and long-form essay questions. These exams will be written in class during exam days. Students will receive feedback on their exams via the Learning Management System.

あり / Yes

なし / No

授業形態/methods of teaching：対面/face to face

※各回の授業形態は予定です。教員の指示に従ってください。

1[オンライン/online]：Introduction

Philosophy before Socrates

2[対面/face to face]：Ancient Greek Philosophy 1

Plato’s Euthyphro and excerpt from Meno

3[対面/face to face]：Ancient Greek Philosophy 2

Plato’s Apology

4[対面/face to face]：Ancient Greek Philosophy 3

Excerpts from Plato’s Phaedo and Republic

5[対面/face to face]：Ancient Greek Philosophy 4

Excerpts from Aristotle’s Metaphysics

6[対面/face to face]：Ancient Greek Philosophy 5

Excerpts from Aristotle’s Physics and De Anima

7[対面/face to face]：Midterm

Review and midterm exam

8[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 1

René Descartes’s Discourse on Method, Parts 1 & 2, and Mediations, Meditation 1

9[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 2

René Descartes’s Mediations, Meditations 2 & 3

10[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 3

Excerpt from John Locke’s an Essay Concerning Human Understanding

11[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 4

David Hume’s Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, §§1-7

12[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 5

Immanuel Kant’s Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics, Preface and Preamble

13[対面/face to face]：Early Modern European Philosophy 6

Excerpts from Immanuel Kant’s Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics

14[対面/face to face]：Final Exam

Review, wrap-up, and final exam

Students should complete weekly readings before coming to class. Students should also review their own notes and course slides after every class. Preparatory study and review time for this class are 2 hours each.

There are no required textbooks for this course. All readings will be provided by the instructor either in print or online.

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a great resource for delving further into any topics discussed in class: https://plato.stanford.edu

Participation 20%
Mid-term exam 35%
Final exam 45%

Not applicable

Please bring a computer for in-class surveys.

None