The Examined Life: Philosophy as a Way of Life

Catalog description

This course combines exploration of ultimate questions about the nature of self, morality, rationality, and human meaning with practical questions about how to live and what makes for a good life. Because learning how to live is as much a practical as a theoretical endeavor, the course design includes a number of experiential or lived activities. In this way, students encounter philosophy not only as an academic discipline, but also as an art of living; one that involves, among other things, practicing contemplation and the focusing of attention, recognizing unhealthy attachments, moderating appetites, and cultivating virtue. (Offered Fall and Spring)