Philosophy Course Descriptions

Course offerings listed below may vary from year to year based on course availability. For the most up-to-date courses, course requirements and descriptions, always refer to the current University Catalog. View the current Catalog here.
 

PHL 101 - Introduction to Logic

3 Credits
An introduction to critical thinking, with an emphasis on the logical analysis of arguments and on the reasoning skills needed for standardized tests such as the GMAT, GRE, LSAT, and MCAT. 

Note: This course does not fulfill any part of the philosophy requirement in the core curriculum.


PHL 109 - Issues in Philosophy
3 Credits
An introductory course that examines the works of representative philosophers through the ages and their responses to some perennial issues. Includes topics such as faith and reason, theories of knowledge, and ethical behavior. 

Not open to students enrolled in or with Credit in PHL 110.


PHL 110 - Wisdom & the Web
3 Credits
An introductory course that examines periods in the history of philosophy, various philosophical movements, important philosophers, and key philosophical ideas in Western philosophy. All content for the course will be drawn from the Internet. 

Not open to students enrolled in or with Credit in PHL 109.


PHL 150 - Theories of Ethics
3 Credits
A general introduction to ethical theories focusing on major figures in the Western tradition, including Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, and Kant. 

Not open to student enrolled in or with Credit in PHL 109 or PHL 110.


PHL 170 - Philosophy of Good & Evil
3 Credits
An introductory course that examines how representative thinkers through the ages have defined the nature of good and evil, including both evil caused by humans and by natural forces. 


PHL 206 - Philosophy of the Person
3 Credits
An examination of traditional approaches to the study of human nature. Includes an analysis of major figures from the history of philosophy as well as an analysis of contemporary approaches present in Christian personalism.


PHL 224 - Philosophy of Religion
3 Credits
A critical examination of the fundamental questions of religion from the perspective of reason. May include topics such as arguments for the existence of God; the phenomena of religious experience and mysticism; the problem of evil; faith and revelation; death and immortality.


PHL 242 - Applied Ethics
3 Credits
An examination of ethical principles and their application to ethical issues. Specific areas of application announced when the course is offered. 

Prerequisites: For two-Credit sections, one prior PHL course other than PHL 101.


PHL 243 - Bioethics
3 Credits
An examination of ethical principles and their applications to ethical issues in medicine, health care, and biological sciences. 

Not open to students with Credit in PHL 348B.


PHL 245 - The Philosophy of Love & Friendship
3 Credits
A seminar for the review of philosophical literature dealing with the enduring themes of friendship and love.


PHL 270 - After Thomas Aquinas: Varieties of Thomism
3 Credits
An examination of the system of philosophy developed by Thomas Aquinas and with emphasis on its continued vitality in later figures of the Thomistic tradition.


PHL 278 - Opera Omnia
3 Credits
An audition into the wonderful world of opera. Stories of the operas will be presented with an emphasis on literary, artistic and philosophical themes. Literary sources such as Shakespeare, artistic trends such as Romanticism, and philosophical issues such as the nature of the passions and theories of tragedy, will be explored. Students will be introduced to some of the greatest music of Bellini, Donizetti, Puccini, Rossini, Verdi, Wagner, and many others.

Prerequisites: ENG 102 or ENG 111 and CORE 179 or transfer equivalent. Not open to students with Credit in PHL 348H.


PHL 279A - CORE: Ethical Issues of Sex & Marriage
3 Credits
An examination of ethical principles and their application to ethical issues of sex and marriage. Includes consideration of whether communities formed by sexual relationships and marriages promote the common good of larger communities. 

Prerequisite: CORE 179 or equivalent.


PHL 279B - CORE: Community of Living Things
3 Credits
An examination of the nature of living things and their interdependence. The course will include a discussion of the place of intelligent beings in the cosmos and the different orders of common good involved. 

Prerequisite: CORE 179 or appropriate transfer status. Pre- or Co-requisite: ENG 102 or ENG 111.


PHL 320 - Philosophy of Art
3 Credits
An examination of the nature of art and beauty. Includes a study of major works from Plato to the present. 

Prerequisites: ENG 102 or ENG 111 and CORE 179 or transfer equivalent. Not open to students with Credit in PHL 348C.


PHL 340 - Epistemology
3 Credits
An examination of the nature and foundations of human knowledge. Topics covered may include rationalist and empiricist theories; truth and falsity; evidence, justification, and belief. 

Prerequisites: ENG 102 or ENG 111 and CORE 179 or transfer equivalent, and one prior PHL course other than PHL 101.


PHL 346 - Principles of Business Ethics
3 Credits
An introduction to traditional ethical theories in preparation for more advanced study of problems in social philosophy and business. 


PHL 361 - History of Ancient Philosophy
3 Credits
A period course that examines developments in philosophy in antiquity, with special consideration given to the writings of Plato and Aristotle. 

Not open to students with Credit in PHL 250 or 261.


PHL 362 - History of Medieval Philosophy
3 Credits
A period course that examines developments in philosophy from the fifth century through the fourteenth century; with special consideration of the writings of Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas; and some Islamic and Jewish philosophers. 

Not open to students with Credit in PHL 251 or 262.


PHL 363 - History of Renaissance Philosophy
3 Credits
A period course that examines developments in philosophy from the fifteenth century until the time of Descartes. Thinkers covered may include Nicholas of Cusa, Pico della Mirandola, Machiavelli, More, Montaigne, Bacon, Hobbes, and Descartes. 

Not open to students with Credit in PHL 252 or 263.


PHL 364 - History of Modern Philosophy
3 Credits
A period course that examines the developments in philosophy from the seventeenth through the nineteenth century. Thinkers covered may include Descartes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, Berkeley, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. 

Not open to students with Credit for PHL 252 or 264.


PHL 365 - History of Contemporary Philosophy
3 Credits
A period course that examines developments in philosophy from the twentieth century to the present. 

Not open to students with Credit in PHL 253 or 265. 


PHL 379A - CORE: Principles of Justice
3 Credits
An examination of some fundamental questions about how people should live and how societies should allocate their resources. To answer these questions, students will study the basic tenets of different theories of justice and economic systems. The course will focus on justice in the allocation of a society’s resources, but it also will address how different forms of justice are related. 

Prerequisite: CORE 179 or appropriate transfer status; ENG 102 or ENG 111. Not open to students with Credit in PHL 230. This course partially fulfills the Philosophy requirement.


PHL 379B - CORE: Lives of the Philosophers
3 Credits
An examination of biographies and autobiographies of famous philosophers. These texts will be considered as documents that exhibit one of the traditional definitions of philosophy “as way of life.” The biographical and autobiographical writings will be supplemented with challenging primary texts from the philosophers that highlight issues of justice and morality. 

Prerequisite: CORE 179 or appropriate transfer status; ENG 102 or ENG 111.


PHL 379C - CORE: Medieval Moral Dilemmas & Moral Luck
3 Credits
This upper-level philosophy course will approach medieval conceptions of justice by examining philosophical texts that concern moral dilemmas and moral luck. Several medieval philosophers considered whether the existence of moral dilemmas or moral luck would be threats to justice. The course’s close reading of philosophical texts from a variety of medieval writers will be supplemented with contemporary literature on moral dilemmas and moral luck.

Prerequisite: CORE 179 or appropriate transfer status; ENG 102 or ENG 111.


PHL 479 - CORE: Metaphysics
3 Credits
An examination of the ultimate causes of things and of how the search for truth in philosophy complements the search for truth in other disciplines and in the core seminars. Open to majors and non-majors who have an interest in metaphysical issues, such as whether we can prove that God exists, what types of things are real, and how metaphysics is related to the natural sciences. 

Prerequisites: Completion of junior core seminar; one prior philosophy course other than PHL 101.


PHL 1/2/3/485 - Special Topics
3 Credits 
Study of topics of special interest in philosophy including semantics, hermeneutics, philosophy of law, philosophy of science, and philosophy of history. 

Prerequisite for 385 and 485: one prior philosophy course.


PHL 2/3/486 - Independent Study
3 Credits
Research in philosophy directed by a professor in the division. 

Prerequisites: prior coursework in philosophy; consent of instructor, academic advisor, division chairperson.