Philosophy

Department of Philosophy
Conklin Hall, Room 430
Phone:  973/353-5498
Fax:      973/353-5733
http://www.andromeda.rutgers.edu/%7Ephilos1

INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY (3 cr.)
21:730:103:T1:83832
DAY: 5/27-8/13
SATURDAY 9:00-1:00
JOHNSON     CONKLIN 424

Introduction, for beginners, to central philosophical problems, primarily in the Western tradition, including such topics as morality, truth, knowledge, mind, reality, and the existence of God.

CURRENT MORAL & SOCIAL ISSUES (3 cr.)
21:730:105:B1:83833
DAY: 5/27-7/3
MTWTh 8:15-10:00
BREYER          CONKLIN 402

62:730:105:H6:83829
EVE: 7/7-8/13
TTh 6:00-9:30
MCCROSSIN   CONKLIN 238

Examines such issues as sexual morality and abortion, capital punishment, sexism, racism and affirmative action, censorship, privacy, drug abuse and drug laws, economic distribution and justice, and consumption and scarcity of natural resources.

CRITICAL THINKING (3 cr.)
62:730:107:B6:81805
EVE: 5/27-7/3
MW 6:00-9:30
BUECHNER    CONKLIN 424

62:730:107:H6:83830
EVE: 7/7-8/13
TTh 6:00-9:30
KANG            CONKLIN 424

Develops and improves fundamental skills of clear, coherent, and critical thinking, speaking, and writing. Aims to foster confidence in the student's ability to solve problems by reasoning. Emphasizes rules of critical reasoning and techniques for applying them to real-world problems in science, management, law, aesthetics, and politics.

INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS (3 cr.)
62:730:112:B6:83831
EVE: 5/27-7/3
MW 6:00-9:30
MCCROSSIN    CONKLIN 447

Principal ethical theories, primarily in the Western philosophical tradition, advanced by theorists from Plato to 20th-century philosophers.

INTRODUCTION TO LOGIC (3 cr.)
21:730:201:B1:83823
DAY: 5/27-7/3
MTWTh 1:00-2:45
BUCKLAND    CONKLIN 424

62:730:201:B6:82098
EVE: 5/27-7/3
TTh 6:00-9:30
BUECHNER     CONKLIN 319

62:730:201:H6:81511
EVE: 7/7-8/13
MW 6:00-9:30
KANG              CONKLIN 424

Introduction to the concepts of valid reasoning and proof in modern logic. Approaches may include diagramming and pictorial representation.

PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE (3 cr.)
21:730:225:B1:83824
DAY: 5/27-7/3
MTWTh 10:15-12:00
BUCKLAND    CONKLIN 455

Classical problems of induction and interpretation. The idealized picture of scientific method as fallible but self-correcting, converging to truth in the long run, is examined in the light of elementary probability theory. The problem of interpretation is introduced in the context of the theoretician's dilemma and illustrated by the case of geometric theory. The realist and instrumentalist interpretations are contrasted in the light of elementary concepts of logical theory.

PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION (3 cr.)
21:730:227:H1:83825
DAY: 7/7-8/13
MTWTh 1:00-2:45
DE MARCO     CONKLIN 424

Major controversies over the nature of religious belief, the "logic" of religious language, and the justification of religious claims; contemporary and traditional positions considered, but primary emphasis given to those aspects of religion open to rational argument.

BUSINESS & PROFESSIONAL ETHICS (3 cr.)
21:730:251:H1:83826
DAY: 7/7-8/13
MTWTh 10:15-12:00
DE MARCO     CONKLIN 424

Ways of thinking about moral issues that arise in business and the professions: conflicts of interest and obligation, professional responsibility, whistle-blowing and loyalty, corporate social responsibility, dealing with local practices overseas, corporate culture, employees' rights, and the moral status of capitalism and other economic systems.

EASTERN PHILOSOPHY (3 cr.)
62:730:262:H6:83827
EVE: 7/7-8/13
MW 6:00-9:30
BREYER        CONKLIN 445

A comparative analysis of Eastern, mainly Indian, and Western perspectives on key issues, e.g., God, self, and universe; explores the role of reason vis à vis contemplation; studies philosophies, including Vedanta, Buddhism, Jainism, and others.

SOCIAL & POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY (3 cr.)
62:730:328:B6:83828
EVE: 5/27-7/3
TTh 6:00-9:30
SCHETTINO    CONKLIN 448

The interrelationship of the state, law, and morality; examination of the interdependence of ideology and political obligation; the equivocal meanings of liberty, rights, and justice; major approaches such as Social Contract Theory and Marxism.

INDIVIDUAL STUDY IN PHILOSOPHY (BA cr.)
21:730:441:T1:83083
5/27-8/13
MEETING TIME BY ARRANGEMENT

By permission only.