Philosophy of Human Nature

Catalog description

Class Hours: 3 Lab/Discussion: 0 Credits: 3 Description: Examines philosophical theories of human nature, including how traditional philosophical debates about the mind, morality, persons, and freedom are informed by recent empirical work in the cognitive sciences. Topics covered may include philosophical and scientific debates about the innate content and structure of the human mind, moral judgment, the possibility of free will, the extent to which human beings are rational, and the nature of the self and self-knowledge. Connections between conceptions of human nature and political philosophy, as well as bioethical issues concerning enhancement and transhumanism, may also be discussed.