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Problems of Philosophy >> Content Detail



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Texts




Required


Amazon logo Feinberg, Joel, and Russ Shafer-Landau, eds. Reason and Responsibility. 12th ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2003. ISBN: 0534543510. (Abbreviated RR in the Readings by Session)



Recommended


Amazon logo Woodhouse, Mark B. A Preface to Philosophy. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2003. ISBN: 0534595448.

Note: Readings followed by (RR) are available in the course text (Reason and Responsibility) at the page number indicated.


ses #Topicsreadings
1Introduction
Reason To Believe: Does God Exist?
2Existence of God: Ontological ArgumentFeinberg, Joel, and Russ Shafer-Landau. "Part I: Introduction." (RR: 2)

Anselm, St. "The Ontological Argument." From Proslogium. (RR: 6)

Gaunilo of Marmoutiers. "On Behalf of the Fool." (RR: 8)

Rowe, Wm. "The Ontological Argument." (RR: 11)
3Problem of Evil IDostoevsky, Fyodor. "Rebellion." From The Brothers Karamazov. (RR: 79)

Johnson, B. C. "God and the Problem of Evil." (RR: 85)

Swinburne, Richard. "God and the Problem of Evil." (RR: 89)
4Problem of Evil IIRussell, Bruce. "The Problem of Evil: Too Much Suffering." In Introduction to Philosophy. Edited by Louis P. Pojman. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN: 0195171500.
5Pascal's WagerPascal, Blaise. "The Wager." (RR: 114)

Blackburn, Simon. "Miracles and Testimony." (RR: 118)
Rationality and Belief
6Ethics of Belief: Evidentialism v. PragmatismClifford, W. K. "The Ethics of Belief." (RR: 97)

James, William. "The Will to Believe." (RR: 101)
7Stereotypes and BeliefBlum, Lawrence. "Stereotypes and Stereotyping: A Moral Analysis." Philosophical Papers 33, no. 3 (November 2004): 251-289.

Recommended: Schmitt, Richard. "Ideology." In Introduction to Marx and Engels: A Critical Reconstruction. 2nd ed. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997. ISBN: 0813332834.
8Racism and BeliefMarx, Karl. Selections on Religion.

Appiah, Kwame Anthony. "Racisms." In Anatomy of Racism. Edited by David Theo Goldberg. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1990, pp. 3-17. ISBN: 0816618046.
9Scientific Reason or Scientific Faith?Hume, David. An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding. (Excerpt in RR: 199)

Recommended: Salmon, W. "An Encounter with David Hume." (RR: 224)
10More on Science and FaithKitcher, Philip. "Believing Where We Cannot Prove." (RR: 247)
Mind and Body
11The Mind-Body ProblemFeinberg, and Shafer-Landau. "Introduction to Part III." (RR: 257)

Swinburne, Richard. "A Defense of Substance Dualism." (RR: 263)
12Consciousness and Felt ExperienceJackson, Frank. "The Qualia Problem." (RR: 267)

Carruthers, Peter. "The Mind is the Brain." (RR: 276)
13Materialist OptionsChurchland, Paul. "Behaviorism, Materialism, and Functionalism." (RR: 285)
14Robots and FunctionalismSearle, John. "Minds, Brains, and Programs." (RR: 305)

Lycan, William. "Robots and Minds." (RR: 318)
Freewill, Determinism, and Responsibility
15Hard DeterminismFeinberg, and Shafer-Landau. "Part IV: Introduction." (RR: 385)

Holbach, Paul. "The Illusion of Free Will." (RR: 392)
16Compatibilism IAyer, A. J. "Freedom and Necessity." From Philosophical Essays. (RR: 408)

Stace, W. "The Problem of Freewill." From Religion and the Modern Mind. (RR: 413)
17Compatibilism IIFrankfurt, Harry. "Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person." Journal of Philosophy 68, no. 1 (January 1971): 5-20.

Recommended: Wolf, Susan. "Sanity and the Metaphysics of Responsibility." (RR: 457)
18LibertarianismChisholm, Roderick. "Human Freedom and the Self." (RR: 418)
Morality and Rightconduct
19Moral Variation Across CulturesMidgley, Mary. "Trying Out One's New Sword." (RR: 522)
20UtilitarianismMill, John Stuart. "Utilitarianism." Chapters 1-2. (RR: 594)
21Ethical EgoismNietzsche. "Master and Slave Morality." In Beyond Good and Evil. (A version of Beyond Good and Evil is available from Project Gutenberg.)

Rachels. "Ethical Egoism." From The Elements of Moral Philosophy. (RR)
22FamineSinger, Peter. "Famine, Affluence, and Morality." (RR: 631)
23KantianismKant, I. "The Good Will and the Categorical Imperative." (RR: 579)

Sayre-McCord, Geoff. "Kant's Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals: A Very Brief Selective Summary of Sections 1 and 2." (PDF)

Recommended: O'Neill, Onora. "Kantian Approaches to Some Famine Problems." (RR)
24Famine, Virtue and DutyAristotle. "The Nature of Virtue." (RR)

Blum. "Impartiality, Beneficence, and Friendship." In Morality in Practice. Edited by James P. Sterba. Sound Bend, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2001. ISBN: 0534521118.

Recommended: McIntyre, Alasdair. "The Virtues, the Unity of a Human Life, and the Concept of a Tradition." In After Virtue. London, UK: Duckworth, 1981. ISBN: 026800594X.
25Moral LuckThomas, Nagel. "Moral Luck." In Moral Luck. Edited by Daniel Statman. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1993, 57-71. ISBN: 0791415406.
26Just War TheoryNagel, Thomas. "War and Massacre." In Philosophy and Public Affairs 1, no. 2 (Winter 1972): 123-144.

Orend, Brian. "War."
27Final lecture

 








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