Introduction to Philosophy-Honors

Catalog description

3 Lecture. Students will study philosophical writings on topics such as freedom of the will, personal identity, the mind/body problem, the nature of knowledge, and ethically relevant issues such as the nature of gender. Students will discuss and analyze the arguments contained in these writings verbally and in writing. This honors version is primarily intended for students who either want an academically enhanced experience or who intend to transfer to a university Honors College program. Students will be able to: differentiate the branches of philosophy such as ethics, logic, epistemology, and metaphysics, aesthetics and the philosophy of religion; distinguish different schools of thought and the philosophers associated with them; exhibit intellectual empathy and sound exegesis by accurately stating and interpreting the philosophical arguments and concepts of others; explain and use philosophical vocabulary in appropriate contexts verbally and in writing and be able to articulate philosophical arguments in an extended oral presentation; apply their knowledge of important concepts such as (e.g.) ‘gender’ and ‘person’ to important ethical and social issues; evaluate the arguments given in the texts and by their classmates by developing relevant counter-arguments or additional supporting arguments; trace the development of philosophical ideas historically beginning with the ancient Greeks, extending through the Middle Ages and Enlightenment and to the work of contemporary philosophers; use philosophical methodologies such as the Socratic method to refine concepts and to evaluate arguments. General Education: Arts and Humanities