Religion and Morality in Modern Philosophy

Catalog description

This course explores the relationship between religion and morality in the context of modern philosophy. This period, roughly the nineteenth century, spurred tremendous creativity in thinking about the relation between religion and morality – by defenders of religion as well as its critics – that continues to dominate philosophical reflection today. Through critical analysis of primary texts, students will explore key philosophical debates surrounding the foundation of moral values, the power and limits of human reason, the relation between reason and religion, the concept of the secular, the nature of transcendence, and the implications of God’s existence or non-existence on ethical systems and ideas about social progress. Considerable attention will also be given to the contemporary legacy of modern philosophical thinking on religion and morality. Readings include selections from Immanuel Kant, Hermann Cohen, G.W.F. Hegel, Soren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, William James, Emmanuel Levinas, Jacques Derrida, and Iris Murdoch. The course will be run as a seminar with heavy discussion and writing components.