Philosophy 101 \u2013 Introduction to Philosophy: Reflections on the Human Condition (3 units; U; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 T 5:00pm \u2013 7:40 pm<\/p>\n Instructor: \u00a0TBA<\/p>\n LEC 402 MW 11:00am \u2013 11:50am Instructor: \u00c1g\u00fast Magn\u00fasson,\u00a0magnusso@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n May not be retaken for add\u2019l cr; may be repeated for higher grade. Prereq: none.<\/p>\n Enrollment in one of the large lectures (402 or 403) requires enrollment in a discussion section.<\/strong><\/p>\n This course will serve as an introduction to philosophy, both as an academic discipline and as a way of life. No background in philosophy is required to take the course. We will examine key texts from the history of Western philosophy, examine modern philosophical developments in areas such as existentialism and feminism, and examine non-Western philosophical traditions such as Confucianism. We will discuss numerous philosophical topics, including the nature of good and evil, the immortality of the soul, and how to achieve happiness.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 111 \u2013 Introduction to Logic \u2013 Critical Reasoning (HU; QLA and L&S Math Requirement)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 MW 10:00am\u201411:50am<\/p>\n LEC 002 MW 12:00pm\u201412:50pm Jointly offered with and counts as repeat of Math 111.<\/p>\n There\u2019s an ancient view, still widely held, that what makes human beings special\u2014what distinguishes us from the \u201cbeasts of the field\u201d\u2014is that we are rational. What does rationality consist in? That is a vexed question, but one possible response goes roughly like this: we manifest our rationality by engaging in certain activities, chief among them the activity of making claims and backing them up with reasons\u2014that is, constructing arguments. This reasoning activity can be done well and it can be done badly\u2014it can be done correctly or incorrectly. Logic is the discipline that aims to distinguish good reasoning from bad.<\/p>\n Since reasoning is central to all fields of study\u2014indeed, since it\u2019s arguably central to being human\u2014the tools developed in logic are universally applicable. Anyone can benefit from studying logic by becoming a more self-aware, skillful reasoner.<\/p>\n It is possible to approach the study of logic more or less formally. A more formal approach abstracts from natural language and develops sophisticated artificial symbol-languages within which it\u2019s possible precisely to identify the logically relevant features of arguments. This approach has many virtues, but it is only one among many, and it focuses on only one kind of argument (deductive). In this class, we explore a diverse collection of methods and principles for evaluating many different kinds of arguments. We take a very brief look at the formal techniques mentioned above, but spend most of our time studying arguments presented in natural language, as they occur in everyday reasoning.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Philosophy 204, Introduction to Asian Religions (3 units; U; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 401 MW 9:00am \u2013 9:50am<\/p>\n Enrollment in large lecture 401 also requires enrollment in a discussion section. Prereq: none.<\/p>\n Instructor: \u00c1g\u00fast Magn\u00fasson,\u00a0magnusso@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n The course will offer a philosophical examination of the primary religious traditions of Asia, with emphasis on Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism. The primary purpose of the course is to familiarize the student with the significant philosophical concepts of each religion and to engage with these traditions in a philosophical dialogue that enables us to understand their contributions to our understanding of the nature of the human self, the nature of reality, and the nature of the divine. Although we will examine differences between views and critique philosophical argumentation, there is no intention to disparage or endorse any particular belief system.<\/p>\n This is an introductory course and no previous experience in philosophy is required.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Philosophy 211, Elementary Logic (HU, QLB, L&S Formal Reasoning Requirement)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 T 5:00pm\u20147:40pm<\/p>\n Instructor: TBA<\/p>\n LEC 202 ONLINE WEB LEC 403 MW 10:00am \u2013 10:50am<\/p>\n LEC 404 MW 12:00pm \u2013 12:50pm Prereq: satisfaction of QL-A<\/p>\n Enrollment in one of the large lectures (403 or 404) requires enrollment in a discussion section.<\/strong><\/p>\n Humans are reasoning animals, and logic is the study of the rules and principles of correct reasoning, the science of what follows from what. Logic know-how is a skill, one of the most important skills you will ever develop, both for your college and later career and for your everyday life. It teaches you how to analyze concepts, ideas, arguments, and break them down into their simplest components. You are then in a position to recognize the relationships between those components, to see how they are connected together (or not), and thereby to understand how and why one thing follows from another. At the same time, it teaches you how to construct \u2018paths of reasoning\u2019, how to get from one idea to another, how, for example, to determine what is the best course of action in a particular situation.<\/p>\n Apart from its application in virtually every field of study, the study of logic will help you develop your analytical and quantitative skills, your writing skills, your communication skills, and your day to day reasoning. You\u2019ll become a better thinker and a better reasoner. You may not be aware that you are doing so, but you\u2019re using logic now, and you\u2019ll use it every day, for the rest of your life.<\/p>\n This is an introductory course in formal (symbolic) logic, covering sentence and predicate logic.\u00a0 It\u00a0does not presuppose previous work in formal logic.\u00a0 There will be 3 exams and weekly homework assignments. The course satisfies General Education Humanities and QLB requirements as well as Letters and Science\u00a0Formal Reasoning requirements for the B.S. degree.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 215, Belief, Knowledge, and Truth: An Introduction to the Theory of Knowledge (3 units; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 TR 2:00pm\u20143:15pm Prereq: none.<\/p>\n This course is an introduction to epistemology, the branch of philosophy that concerns itself with knowledge. We will examine the relationship between certainty, belief, and doubt; look at the boundaries of human knowledge; and consider the importance of skepticism and critical reasoning in human affairs. Some of the question we will examine are: What is the nature of truth and how does truth differ from mere opinion? Can human beings ever achieve absolute certainty? How do different philosophical traditions and cultures throughout the world differ in their views on certainty and truth?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 217 Introduction to Metaphysics (3 units; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 MW 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm Prereq: none.<\/p>\n Metaphysics is the philosophical study of the fundamental nature of reality. In this introduction, we\u2019ll focus on metaphysical questions related to the human nature\u202fand\u202fsociety: What is are we? Do we have free will? Do we\u202fhave a soul or are we merely material beings? Is our identity preserved over time? What is race and what is gender? What would God be like, if there were a God? Is there a God? And, broadly, what kind of impact do various answers to these questions have on our lives and society?<\/p>\n By the end of the course, students will be acquainted with concepts and methods of philosophical ethics that apply to issues related to professional engineering. Students will learn to critically assess alternative approaches to, and defenses of, a code of responsible professional engineers (i.e., an “engineering ethic”), and gain a repertory of resources and skills with which to confront moral dilemmas presented in their professional careers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 243, Moral Problems (1 units; U; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 201 ONLINE WEB: \u00a0Abortion Instructor: Miren Boehm, boehmm@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n May be retaken w\/chg in topic to 6 cr max. Prereq: none.<\/p>\n ABORTION<\/p>\n Is it morally right to abort a fetus? Does the answer to this question depend on whether or not the fetus is a person? What is a person anyway? Does a person have a right to life? And what rights does the mother have to determine her life? What does religion have to say about abortion? What does the law say? How is the question to be considered from a moral or ethical point of view? Does feminism have a particular point of view on the question of the morality of abortion? We will spend the next five weeks addressing these central questions.<\/p>\n ANIMAL ETHICS<\/p>\n We coexist on this planet with other animals, most of whom were here before we \u201carrived.\u201d Homo Sapiens has developed a system of moral and legal rights that, at least in principle, protects members of its species from certain harms. We believe that each member of the Homo Sapiens species has the right to \u201clife, liberty and the pursuit of happiness\u201d. What about other animals? May we do with them as we please? As a matter of fact, we do. We eat them; we trapped them in farms; we separate parents from their offspring; we experiment on them; we kill them for our entrainment. Do we owe non-human animals moral consideration? Should they enjoy any legal protections? Non-human animals are not rational; they are not able to act on reasons. But most of us believe that they do possess the capacity to suffer, and indeed, that human action causes them a great deal of suffering. Is the capacity to suffer enough to include non-human animals in the circle of moral consideration?<\/p>\n DRUGS AND ADDICTION<\/p>\n This five-week course is concerned with moral and legal issues related to recreational drug\/alcohol use. We discuss these questions:\u00a0 Is it morally wrong to use drugs for fun?\u00a0 Is it morally permissible to provide another person with drugs? Do individuals have the right to harm themselves? Should the state be able to determine what we do with our lives? Should drugs be legal?\u00a0 If not, what is the justification for prohibiting drug use? Would it be better if drugs were legal? Is there such a thing as addiction<\/em>? \u00a0What is our understanding of why people become \u201caddicts\u201d?\u00a0 Are people under the influence responsible for their behavior?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 244, Ethical Issues in Health Care: Contemporary Problems (3 units; U; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 R 5:00pm-7:40pm<\/p>\n Instructor: Kristen Tym,\u00a0tymk@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n Retakable w\/chg in topic to 6 cr max. Prereq: none<\/p>\n In this course, students will explore the critical ethical issues facing health care professionals, policy makers, advocates and patients as part of their encounters with the health care delivery system in the U.S. Students will engage in large and small group discussion and learning activities in order to understand the philosophical foundation of ethics and moral decision making and then apply ethical theory and principles to some of the most controversial and important issues in health care today. Issues students will consider include informed consent and confidentiality in health care; treatment decision making and futility; euthanasia and assisted suicide; assisted reproduction and stem cell research; genetic testing and screening; and, allocation of scarce health care resources. After completing this course, students will be well-equipped to look critically at a controversy in health care, analyze the complex ethical issues involved and identify practical solutions.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 244, Ethical Issues in Health Care: Biomedical Ethics\u00a0(3 units; U; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 202 ONLINE Retakable w\/chg in topic to 6 cr max. Prereq: none.<\/p>\n In this course we will begin by overviewing the ethical theories that shape our answers to serious ethical dilemmas. In this part of the course we will first introduce philosophical moral theories, and look more closely at theories that apply particularly in biomedical ethics, and finally introduce and develop an understanding of the concept of autonomy and how it relates to issues in biomedical ethics, paying particularly close attention to how different social and cultural factors effect health care interactions. In particular, we will pay close attention to the role systemic racism in medical research, diagnosis, and treatment. The course will be framed around issues of autonomy and especially on the autonomy of traditionally vulnerable populations. For the second half of the course we will apply these theories to particular moral dilemmas currently confronting health care providers, patients and their families, and society at large. These topics will include issues related to death and dying, pregnancy and birth, genetic testing and therapies, health care allocation, and research ethics. We will be particularly solicitous of issues that pertain to the health care issues of diverse populations and those that historically socially disadvantaged. Given the current pandemic, we will allow current events to frame our discussion and examples whenever possible.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 250, God, Faith and Reason (3 units; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001 MW 3:30 pm \u2013 4:45 pm<\/p>\n Instructor: Agust Magnusson<\/p>\n Prereq: none.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Is there a God? Is there life after death? What is the meaning of human existence? These are just some of the many questions we will tackle in our philosophical examination of some of the most pressing issues and concerns related to religion. We will examine various arguments for the existence of God, analyze questions related to morality and the existence of evil and suffering, and examine to what extent religious belief can be harmonized with human rationality. Course texts will include both classical and modern philosophical treatises as well as selections from literature and film.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 332, Philosophical Problems: Metaphysics of Science (3 units; HU)<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001, MW 11:00am \u2013 12:15pm Not open for cr to students w\/cr in Philos 381 w\/similar subtitle\/ May be retaken w\/chg in topic to 9 cr max. Prereq: jr st; 3 cr in philos<\/p>\n Metaphysics studies what exists, what existent things are like, and how they are related. The metaphysics of science investigates the metaphysical issues prompted by scientific theories. In this course, we will explore a variety of such issues. We will consider, for example, what scientific laws are, what biological species are, and how different sciences are related to one another. Along the way, we will discuss what explanation is as we try to understand what it means for a scientific theory to be explanatory<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Philosophy 337, Environmental Ethics<\/strong><\/p>\n LEC 001, TR 11:00 am \u2013 12:15 pm<\/p>\n Instructor: Elizabeth Silverstein,\u00a0silvers2@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n Prereq: jr st.<\/p>\n Have you ever asked yourself any of the following questions: Why should I care about the environment? What is my relationship to the natural world? What is my responsibility to the environment?<\/p>\n The course will cover major theories of environmental ethics and their practical applications. We will cover various theoretical approaches to environmental ethics including: Animal rights, the Land Ethic; deep ecology; social ecology; ecofeminism; and rethinking the good life. This will include discussions about the moral value of non-human life and nature; human responsibility to the environment; and various contemporary moral issues related to the environment including: wildlife conservation; poverty as an environmental problem; the ecology of property rights; cost-benefit analysis and environmental policy; and environmental activism. By the end of this course you will be acquainted with concepts and methods of philosophical ethics that apply to issues regarding humankind\u2019s dealings with the natural world; be able to critically assess alternative approaches to, and defenses of, a code of responsibility to nature; have a repertory of resources and skills with which to formulate your own environmental ethic; and be able to articulate and defend your own ideas with clarity, consistency and coherence.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\nLEC 403 MW 1:00pm \u2013 1:50pm<\/p>\n
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\nLEC 201 ONLINE WEB
\nInstructor: Matthew Knachel,\u00a0knachel@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nInstructor: Matthew Knachel,\u00a0knachel@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
\nInstructor: Michael Liston, mnliston@uwm.edu<\/p>\n
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\nInstructor: Elizabeth Silverstein, silvers2@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nInstructor: Joshua Spencer, spencer48@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nLEC 202 ONLINE WEB: \u00a0Animal Ethics
\nLEC 203 ONLINE WEB: \u00a0Drugs and Addiction<\/p>\n
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\nInstructor: Elizabeth Silverstein,\u00a0silvers2@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nInstructor: Peter van Elswyk, vanelswy@uwm.edu<\/a><\/p>\n
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