that we have a clear sense of what that involves? Is it possible to have systematic knowledge of subjective experience? In our attempts to make headway in answering such daunting questions, we investigate recent debates in critical theory concerning subjection and resistance, intersubjective recognition and redistribution, social pathologies and the idea of a political unconscious. Love it or hate it, you cannot ignore it. [more], The Williams College Mission statement says that "free inquiry requires open-mindedness, and commitment to community draws on concern for others". By repeated application of the same reasoning, it seems that even after she removes 99,997 grains of sand--I don't know what she wants with all this sand, but I'm starting to worry about that girl--there is still a heap of sand in my backyard. falsity of all our beliefs? Wilfrid Sellars regarded as uncontroversial the view that it is "an attempt to see how things, in the broadest possible sense of the term, hang together in the broadest possible sense of the term." What are some of the necessary conditions for democracy? We will then turn to a variety of more recent attempts to give a clear characterization of causation. Other questions are pressing and immediate: Artificial intelligence techniques are used today to help decide whether someone gets a bank loan, is eligible to be released on bail, or in need of particular medical treatment. We think that there is a difference between a linguistic object's being meaningful and its having a referent. We pursue this reflection by examining the views of James, Husserl, Sartre and Merleau-Ponty, particularly as they concern the methods for the study of the mind and the relation between consciousness, reflexivity and the body. It will be very helpful, though not absolutely necessary, for you to have some familiarity with logic and some experience in reading philosophy. We will ask, for example, what these theories tell us about the nature of space, time, probability and causality. Taking this as our starting point, in this course we will examine a number of conceptual and ethical issues in the use and development of technologies related to human reproduction, drawing out their implications for such core concepts as "motherhood" and "parenthood," family and genetic relatedness, exploitation and commodification, and reproductive rights and society's interests in reproductive activities. In this class, we'll work together to think through some ancient and contemporary paradoxes. Who should rule? metaphysics, epistemology, moral and political philosophy, philosophy of mind. In this tutorial, we will investigate the nature of skepticism and the varieties of relativism it encourages. What constitutes my knowledge of myself as a person, and does that knowledge differ in any significant respect from my knowledge of physical objects and of other people? How is it different from science? In this course, we will investigate dynamic communicative phenomena and discuss competing theoretical explanations about how they're interpreted. this tutorial, we'll read portions of Rawls' major works. We will continue with the contemporary inheritors of the tradition: Cornel West, Richard Rorty, and Hilary Putnam. [more], Freedom is widely held as one of our fundamental values. With few exceptions, thoroughgoing skepticism and relativism have not been the prevailing views of the greatest minds in the history of philosophy. The real question, then, seems to be whether, and how, free choice is possible amidst all of these influences. How have you already been taught the academic and civic virtues? [more], The status of economics as a predictive science has been most prominently brought into question, historically, by three unpredicted yet extremely important economic events: the Great Depression of the 1930s, stagflation of the 1970s, and bursting of the mortgage bubble in 2008. Do our beliefs have their meanings one-by-one? For example, we commonly attribute to Plato a theory of the Forms on the basis of his claims in the so-called "middle dialogues" (mainly Republic, Phaedo, and Symposium). Can science contribute to our understanding of these issues? To notify Williams of alumni deaths, please email, Experiential Learning & Community Engagement. What sorts of things can be true or false? The goals of this course are to improve the critical thinking of the students, to introduce them to sentential and predicate logic, to familiarize them with enough formal logic to enable them to read some of the great works of philosophy, which use formal logic (such as Wittgenstein's. If loyalty is a virtue, what are the proper limits of its cultivation and expression? "The only thing that is different with this is that he has a high profile. Each identified the limits, whether historical or innate, of our human capacity to know ourselves and our world, and to live harmoniously with others. Starting with early film theorists (such as Munsterberg, Arnheim, Bazin, and Soviet formalists), we will examine how their insights and disagreements influenced later developments in continental and analytic philosophy of film, and in film theory. Much of the moral philosophy produced in Greece and Rome remains as relevant today as when it was written. Does freedom require leading (or avoiding) a political life? For example, we commonly attribute to Plato a theory of the Forms on the basis of his claims in the so-called "middle dialogues" (mainly Republic, Phaedo, and Symposium). He hoped it would occasion a public debate between Locke and himself, and prompt the intellectual community to decide, once and for all, between Empiricism and Rationalism, Realism and Idealism, and on related issues concerning the mind, language, truth, God, natural kinds, causation, and freedom. [more], The core activity of this seminar is the careful reading and sustained discussion of selected works by Plato and Aristotle, but we will also engage such other thinkers as Epictetus and Augustine, and, from a political and theoretical point of view, selections from the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. PHIL 119 - 01 (S) SEM Justice, Democracy and Freedom Division II Writing Skills. We will then turn to contemporary controversies such as campus free speech. Our focus will be on recent influential work in this area. And on what grounds can we justify confidence in our provisional answers to such questions? Topics to be considered include the nature of freedom (both individual and social), the master/slave dialectic and subject constitution, self-consciousness and double consciousness, the stages of history, and racial capitalism, Topics in Critical Theory: Subjection, Power, Freedom. In a philosophy of logic class, we think about what we are doing when we do logic. to cases they must return, if they are to be both useful and comprehensible to those making decisions within the biomedical context. This tutorial will bring to life the debate between Locke and Leibniz, and enable students to reach their own conclusions about Empiricism vs. Rationalism, Realism vs. Idealism, and related issues. In this course we address the question: How is the present we find ourselves living today different from the one that the author Foucault wrote about in the 1960s, 70s and early 80s before his untimely death in 1984? How do you expect to learn? Although we will attempt to engage the readings on their own terms, we will also ask how the vast differences between the ancient world and our own undercut or enhance the texts' ability to illuminate the dilemmas of political life for us. Pascal's wager is a different approach: it argues that even though proof of the existence of God is unavailable, you will maximize your expected utility be believing. What are the purposes of liberal arts colleges in America? In this way the goal of the course is significantly different from that of Logic and Language (PHIL 203). We will look at relativism with respect to reason and truth in general as well as with respect to science, religion, and morality. What is the basis on which current psychiatric diagnostic manuals are organized? This tutorial will bring to life the debate between Locke and Leibniz, and enable students to reach their own conclusions about Empiricism vs. Rationalism, Realism vs. Idealism, and related issues. The first portion of the course will address the emergence of the "Ethics of Care," critically assessing its origins in feminist theory, its development within the context of the caring professions, and its potential as a general approach to bioethical reasoning. Some of the questions we will ask are: What is the nature of filmic representation? Always asking what practical difference would it make, our authors investigate the central questions and disputes of philosophy, from epistemology and metaphysics to ethics and religion. We will closely analyze classical arguments by Augustine, Avicenna, Aquinas, Anselm, Maimonides, Descartes, and others. Without challenging the centrality of such projects for philosophy, this tutorial will focus on a less emphasized, but equally essential aspect of our lives: emotions. He died on 30 September 2020. in a different order--check the stove, say "I didn't leave the stove on", then say "I might've left the stove on"--and something's gone quite wrong. [more], The aim of the course is to survey, analyze and discuss many varieties of relativism--semantic, epistemic, ontological and moral--from Plato's Theaetetus to contemporary social constructivism. In this tutorial we will read philosophical texts from a range of approaches in professional philosophy since the early 20th Century (Analytic, Pragmatist, Continental or European, and Public). WILLIAMS NEWS Covid-19 InformationCovid-19 is an ongoing concern in our region, including on campus . In the second part of the course, we will read On Certainty, and selections from other of Wittgenstein's posthumously published works: Zettel, Philosophical Grammar, Remarks on the Philosophy of Psychology, Culture and Value, Lectures and Conversations on Aesthetics, Psychology and Religious Belief, and The Big Typescript. Or do our laws somehow enhance or enable our freedom? How should moral equality be understood, and what is its foundation? But perform those exact same steps in a different order--check the stove, say "I didn't leave the stove on", then say "I might've left the stove on"--and something's gone quite wrong. We all examine the virtues and vices of good arguments in both informal and formal systems. While students will not regularly be required to read the latter, any who want to pursue this legacy will be supported in doing so.) We will begin the course by looking at Hume's and Kant's discussion of causation. those issues in and of themselves, and to consider the ways in which selected classical and contemporary moral theories characterize and address those moral dimensions. If so, freedom may seem impossible since we're all deeply influenced by factors ranging from the general laws of nature to specific features of our genetic endowment and social environment (including religion, political ideology, and advertising). We also examine the Yogacara school, which offers a process view of reality focusing on the analysis of experience. We'll attempt to answer this question by examining recent philosophical work on the nature of free will and responsibility. Walsh, 55, died from multiple stab wounds at the scene despite attempts by ambulance officers to revive him.His son was arrested after police were called to a domestic dispute at the home in Somerton Park at 2am ACST on Friday. We will read classic works (such as John Stuart Mill, On Liberty and H. L. A. Hart, The Concept of Law), contemporary articles, and United States Supreme Court cases. legitimate? The aim of this course is to explore and evaluate a number of rival conceptions of persons and personal identity over time. Topics will depend to some extent on student interest, but are likely to include concerns that fall under such headings as euthanasia, conscientious eating, abortion, the ethics of protest, and Covid-19. Student interest will be taken into consideration in deciding what additional topics to cover. [more], Philosophy is often described as thinking about thinking: variously conceived inquiries into the nature, scope and limits of human reasoning have always been at its heart. Our aim will be to identify and evaluate the strongest version of each argument. The course will, I hope, provide the students an opportunity and the tools to intellectually examine deeply emotional and contentious issues. Writer: Teamo Supremo. On the other hand, if logic is about how we should reason, what makes it the case that we should reason one way rather than another? How could proponents of each be claiming to follow in the footsteps of Socrates? Do our beliefs have their meanings one-by-one? S. Peirce, and John Dewey. Williams relatives. And right now there are autonomous vehicles deciding how to behave in traffic, and autonomous weapons capable of delivering lethal force. The issue of prediction was also raised by economist Donald McCloskey who, in 1988, asked his fellow economists, "If you're so smart, why ain't you rich?" How much inference goes into interpreting what's said? Conceptions of person are equally important in science (especially in psychology), law, and the arts. 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