Philosophical Thinking

Catalog description

An introduction to philosophical thought with an emphasis on the enduring questions and problems of philosophy. We will explore such questions as: how do I know I am not dreaming? Is there an external world? What is truth? Is there a self? Is there a God? What is the relationship between the mind and the body? How can I tell right from wrong? What makes government legitimate? What is justice? What is the meaning of life? We will consider answers to these questions from diverse philosophical traditions, reading such philosophers as Plato, Descartes, Zhuangzi, Hume, Vasubandhu, Berkeley, Aquinas, Avicenna, Udayana, Kant, Mill, Russell, Camus, and Nishitani. This course counts towards the fulfillment of the Disciplinary Perspectives element of the CLAS general education curriculum.