Philosophical analysis of legal theory and the relation of law to other basic social institutions.

Philosophical theories about reality, substance, causality, space, time, knowledge, thought, universals, and the mind body relation. This course is cross-listed as PSY 3030. Students will receive credit for either PHI 3030 or PSY 3030, not both. These courses may not substitute for each other in the F grade replacement policy.

This course is a philosophical examination of fundamental psychological concepts such as belief, desire, motive, and intention; and an analysis of psychological explanations, the nature of feelings and emotions, and the relation of folk psychology to the science of psychology. Theories and concepts, such as the unconscious, from the psychoanalytic or Freudian tradition will also be considered. This is the same course as PHI 3035. Students may receive credits for PSY 3035 or PHI 3035, not both.

Though a science, economics generates intense political, moral, and philosophical controversies. This course studies philosophical and moral questions raised by economic theories, including different accounts of rational choice, the major analyses of the concept of value, the relation between justice and market distributions, the concept of rights and the notion of property, and the moral claims of consumers, shareholders, and workers.

Due to radical developments occurring in healthcare and the biological sciences, Bioethics, which considers various ethical problems of life and death, is the fastest-expanding field of applied philosophy today. Its importance is revealed by the fact that many of the most divisive issues of our times (such as, for instance, universal healthcare, abortion, and genetic modification) pertain to Bioethics. This course will examine debates and policies regarding such issues from the perspective of ethical philosophy and the theory of value.PHI 3051 may be used as an elective within the philosophy major or minor, or as a general elective for the BA, BBA, or BS degrees. Prerequisite: any 1000-level course in philosophy.

This course uses the study of diverse theories of art to illuminate the aesthetic, social, and political debates surrounding art in the public sphere. Topics will include government funding for the arts, the role of art in public places, the role of arts education in public schools, and censorship and the media.

Essential writings of the medieval philosophers, including Augustine, Avicenna, Anselm, Maimonides, Aquinas, Scotus,and Ockham.

A study of major philosophers of the 19th century, such as Hegel, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Marx, Comte, Bentham,J.S. Mill, and Nietzsche.

Classical Buddhism explores the theory and practice of Buddhism as it originated in India and spread to Tibet and eastern Asia. In addition to examining the life and teachings of the historical Buddha, the course investigates Indian Buddhism after the turn of the Common Era, as well as the theories and practices of Tibetan and Zen Buddhism. This course was formerly cross-listed as HIS 3165. Students will receive credit for PHI 3165, AAS 3165, HIS 3165, or REL 3165. These courses may not substitute for each other in the F-grade replacement policy.

This course examines varieties of religious belief, traditional accounts of faith and reason, the existence of God, the relation of God to the world, religion as moral or aesthetic experience, and the basic moral codes or world religions.

This course focuses on the nature, justification, and conceptual analysis of crime, social responsibility, criminal responsibility and punishment; Topics may include theories of punishment, justification for limiting freedom, victimless crimes, morals offenses, guilt, insanity pleas, plea bargains, due process, white collar and cyber-crime, capital punishment.

We use digital technology in nearly all of our daily routines: work, school, relaxation, networking, navigation, etc. This dominance raises important ethical concerns regarding privacy, security, knowledge acquisition, democracy, criminal justice, social equality, intellectual property, personhood, and more. What’s more, our legal systems and social norms seem unable to keep pace with technological advances. This course will survey various ethical issues that arise in the fascinating but often troubling digital landscape. It will draw on both philosophical texts and interdisciplinary research at the intersection of technology, law, ethics, and public policy. (This course is cross-listed with CIS 3270. Students will receive credit for either PHI 3270 or CIS 3270. These courses may substitute for each other with the F-replacement policy.)