2024-2025 Catalog

PHIL 10005. Introduction to the Philosophy of Love. 100 Units.

Love is one of the most important, profound things in life; and yet, it is notoriously hard to articulate just what love is. In this course, we will inquire about the nature of love, addressing some of the central questions that have occupied philosophers of love. Why do we love what we love? Who can love, and who can be loved? What does love demand of us, and how can we love well? What is the relationship between love and morality? And what is love? We will seek an understanding of love that can account, in particular, for the central role that love plays in human life - the sense in which it is "what makes the world go 'round." We will discuss historical and contemporary philosophical texts, such as Plato's Symposium, bell hooks' all about love, and Harry Frankfurt's The Reasons of Love, as well as literature and film. In the course of our inquiry, we will consider the ways that philosophical reflection - with its focus on conceptual clarity, rational argumentation, and communicative precision - can be enriched by literature and film while, in turn, helping us to better understand literature, film, and life.

Terms Offered: Summer

PHIL 10250. The World of Greek Philosophy. 100 Units.

This course will serve as an introduction to ancient Greek philosophy and literature of the pre-Classical, Classical, and Hellenistic Greek world, and their conceptions that at once influence and differ from our own. In addition to discussing traditional Greek understandings of virtue, honor, and happiness, we will consider how intellectual life was believed to help people find meaning, purpose,and self-fulfillment and shape their ethics. We will recreate the experience of Greek intellectual culture in simulated marketplace disputations and (nonalcholic) symposia while reading and discussing works from Pre-Socratics, Plato, Aristotle, Sophocles, Euripides, Euclid, and the Stoics, in an effort to understand not just what but how they thought.

Terms Offered: Summer

PHIL 20002. Thomas Aquinas's Metaphysics of Morals: The Goodness and Badness of Human Actions. 100 Units.

Thomas Aquinas's account of the goodness and badness that are proper to human actions-moral goodness and badness-is fundamental for his entire ethical teaching. It provides the rationale for his way of dividing human actions into kinds; it sets the reference points for his theory of virtues and vices, which he takes to be nothing other than principles of good and bad actions; it explains the moral function that he ascribes to law; and so on. The aim of this course will be to understand and think about that account. Its fullest presentation is found in Aquinas's masterpiece, the Summa theologiae. However, the Summa's approach to ethics is heavily metaphysical, and nowhere is this more true than in its treatment of moral goodness and badness. We shall therefore need to consult background passages from other parts of that work and other works of his, on such metaphysical topics as good and bad in general, powers and their objects, the nature of circumstances, and the relation between intellect and will. We shall also want to consider to what extent the account depends on strictly theological notions.

Instructor(s): Stephen Brock     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Completion of the general education requirement in humanities is required.
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 21002

PHIL 20004. Aristotle's Physics with Aquinas's Commentary. 100 Units.

In the Physics, Aristotle lays out the general concepts and principles governing his teachings about the natural world. His approach is both philosophically sophisticated and quite different from that of modern science. We will work through substantial selections from Books I-III, with the help of Aquinas's glosses, which make them more digestible without diluting them. Topics include the subject and procedure of natural science, the relation of that science to metaphysics and mathematics, matter and form as principles of change, the concept of nature, causality, chance, teleology, the nature of motion, action and passion, and the categories of being. (B)

Instructor(s): Stephen Brock     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Students not majoring in Philosophy or Fundamentals need the consent of the instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 20004

PHIL 20007. The Metaphysics of Action. 100 Units.

A fundamental category through which we understand the world is the category of action. This course offers an intensive overview of the metaphysics of action. We will first cover some basics including the relationship between actions, agency, and agents, the range of action kinds, what kind of thing action is, the distinction between basic and nonbasic action, agent nihilism, and the possibility of mental action. Next, in hopes of coming to better understand the nature of action, we will look at how action relates to other phenomena such as reasons, causation, knowledge, control, and normative life. (B) (II)

Instructor(s): Mikayla Kelley     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): One prior philosophy course.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 30007

PHIL 20012. Accelerated Introduction to Logic. 100 Units.

This course provides an introduction to logic for students of philosophy. It is aimed at students who possess more mathematical training than can be expected of typical philosophy majors, but who wish to study logic not just as a branch of mathematics but as a method for philosophical analysis. (II)

Instructor(s): Anubav Vasudevan     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): While no specific mathematical knowledge will be presupposed, some familiarity with the methods of mathematical reasoning and some prior practice writing prose that is precise enough to support mathematical proof will be useful.
Note(s): Students may count either PHIL 20012 or PHIL 20100, but not both, toward the credits required for graduation.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 30012

PHIL 20100. Introduction to Logic. 100 Units.

An introduction to the concepts and principles of symbolic logic. We learn the syntax and semantics of truth-functional and first-order quantificational logic, and apply the resultant conceptual framework to the analysis of valid and invalid arguments, the structure of formal languages, and logical relations among sentences of ordinary discourse. Occasionally we will venture into topics in philosophy of language and philosophical logic, but our primary focus is on acquiring a facility with symbolic logic as such.

Instructor(s): 200/300: Ginger Schultheis (Autumn 2024) - Lecture and Discussion 200: Jacob McDowell (Winter 2025) - Lecture     Terms Offered: Autumn Winter
Note(s): Students may count either PHIL 20100 or PHIL 20012, but not both, toward the credits required for graduation.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 30000, CHSS 33500, HIPS 20700

PHIL 21000. Introduction To Ethics. 100 Units.

An exploration of some of the central questions in metaethics, moral theory, and applied ethics. These questions include the following: are there objective moral truths, as there are (as it seems) objective scientific truths? If so, how can we come to know these truths? Should we make the world as good as we can, or are there moral constraints on what we can do that are not a function of the consequences of our actions? Is the best life a maximally moral life? What distribution of goods in a society satisfies the demands of justice? Can beliefs and desires be immoral, or only actions? What is "moral luck"? What is courage? (A)

Instructor(s): Benjamin Callard     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): HIPS 21000, FNDL 23107

PHIL 21002. Human Rights: Philosophical Foundations. 100 Units.

In this class we explore the philosophical foundations of human rights, investigating theories of how our shared humanity in the context of an interdependent world gives rise to obligations of justice. Webegin by asking what rights are, how they are distinguished from other part of morality, and what role they play in our social and political life. But rights come in many varieties, and we are interested in human rights in particular. In later weeks, we will ask what makes something a human right, and how are human rights different from other kinds of rights. We will consider a number of contemporary philosophers (and one historian) who attempt to answer this question, including James Griffin, John Rawls, John Tasioulas, Samuel Moyn, Jiewuh Song, Pablo Gilabert, and Martha Nussbaum. Throughout we will be asking questions such as, "What makes something a human right?" "What role does human dignity play in grounding our human rights?" "Are human rights historical?" "What role does the nation and the individual play in our account of human rights?" "When can one nation legitimately intervene in the affairs of another nation?" "How can we respect the demands of justice while also respecting cultural difference?" "How do human rights relate to global inequality and markets?" (A)

Instructor(s): Ben Laurence, Pozen Center for Human Rights Instructional Professor     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): INRE 31602, HIST 39319, DEMS 21002, PHIL 31002, HMRT 31002, MAPH 42002, HMRT 21002, HIST 29319

PHIL 21004. Aristotelian Ethics. 100 Units.

In this course, we will engage with one of the fundamental texts of practical philosophy, Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics. In addition to reading the text closely, we will critically discuss secondary literature, as well as contemporary attempts to revive and enlist Aristotle, with the aim of familiarizing ourselves with the work's themes, understanding major fault lines in its interpretation, and appreciating its enduring significance. Topics to be considered include happiness and the good life, virtue, and practical reasoning. (A)

Instructor(s): Gregory Brown     Terms Offered: Autumn

PHIL 21011. Metaontology. 100 Units.

Ontology is, in Quine's phrase, the study of "what there is." Ontologists debate the existence and nature of numbers, properties, propositions, ordinary objects, possibilia, and so on. Metaontology asks about the status of this discourse and tries to characterize its goals and prospects. What does it mean to say that something exists? Are there criteria of 'ontological commitment'? How do the things ontologists debate relate to what ordinary people say? After an historical introduction, the first part of the course will survey a few first-order ontological debates. The remainder of the course will consider varieties of realism and of anti-realism in metaontology. We will read authors such as Rudolf Carnap, W. V. O. Quine, Peter van Inwagen, Ted Sider, Hilary Putnam, and Amie Thomasson. (A)

Instructor(s): Gregory Brown     Terms Offered: Winter

PHIL 21114. Philosophy of Logic. 100 Units.

Logic is, and always has been, a branch of philosophy. Why? What is logic? In this course we will explore the nature of logic, and how it relates to thought; to reasoning; to ordinary language; to mathematics; and to philosophy. We will read texts on the subject of logic by Aristotle, Kant, Hegel, Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Quine, Black, Prior, Gödel, Kripke, Dummett, Boolos, Putnam, Benacerraf, Harman, Williamson, Priest, and others. The course will be completely non-technical: we will be trying to make philosophical sense of logic. (B)

Instructor(s): Benjamin Callard     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 31114

PHIL 21203. Introduction to Philosophy of Law. 100 Units.

This course will be an introduction to the philosophy of law. The first third will cover some historical classics: Plato's Crito, and selections from Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, Kant's Doctrine of Right, Hegel's Outline of the Philosophy of Right, and Austin's The Province of Jurisprudence Determined. The second third of the course will cover some classics of postwar Anglo-American jurisprudence, including selections from H.L.A. Hart, Ronald Dworkin, Richard Posner, and Ernest Weinrib. The final third of the course will explore in a little further detail philosophical problems that arise in the following areas: the philosophy of tort law, theories of constitutional interpretation, and feminist jurisprudence. (A)

Instructor(s): Lisa Van Alstyne     Terms Offered: Winter

PHIL 21206. Philosophy of Race and Racism. 100 Units.

The idea that there exist different "races" of human beings is something that many-perhaps even most-people in the United States today take for granted. And yet modern notions of "race" and "racial difference" raise deep philosophical problems: What exactly is race? Is race a natural kind (like water) or a social kind (like citizenship)? If race is a social kind-i.e. something human beings have constructed-are there any good reasons to keep using it? According to many philosophers, these questions cannot be properly analyzed in abstraction from the history of modern racism and the liberation struggles racial oppression has given rise to. Together, we'll read classic and contemporary texts on these themes by authors such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Frantz Fanon, Angela Davis, Charles Mills, Naomi Zack, Chike Jeffers, Kwame Anthony Appiah, and Lucius Outlaw. (A)

Instructor(s): Tyler Zimmer     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): CRES 21206, PHIL 31206

PHIL 21207. Ecocentrism and Environmental Racism. 100 Units.

The aim of this course is to explore the tensions and convergences between two of the most profoundly important areas of environmental philosophy. "Ecocentrism" is the view that holistic systems such as ecosystems can be ethically considerable or "count" in a way somewhat comparable to human persons, and such a philosophical perspective has been shared by many prominent forms of environmentalism, from Aldo Leopold's Land Ethic to Deep Ecology to the worldviews of many Native American and Indigenous peoples. For some prominent environmental philosophers, a commitment to ecocentrism is the defining test of whether one is truly an environmental philosopher. "Environmental Racism" is one of the defining elements of environmental injustice, the way in which environmental crises and existential threats often reflect systemic discrimination, oppression, and domination in their disproportionate adverse impact on peoples of color, women, the global poor, LGBTQ populations, and Indigenous Peoples. Although historically, some have claimed that ecocentric organizations such as Greenpeace have neglected the problems of environmental injustice and racism in their quest to, e.g., "save the whales," a deeper analysis reveals a far more complicated picture, with many affinities and alliances between ecocentrists and activists seeking environmental justice. (A)

Instructor(s): Bart Schultz     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): ENST 21207, MAPH 31207, HMRT 21207, CRES 21207, PLSC 21207, CHST 21207

PHIL 21208. Conventionalism and the Philosophy of Law. 100 Units.

It is often claimed that a legal system is of necessity a conventional system of rules. What does it mean to claim this? If not any arbitrarily stipulated rule can count as a law, what guides or constrains which conventions can count as laws? What implications does conventionalism about the law have for the following enduring questions about the law: (1) What is law for? (2) Can there be such a thing as genuine progress in the evolution of a legal system? (3) What is the relation between legal and ethical norms? (A)

Instructor(s): Lisa Van Alstyne     Terms Offered: Spring

PHIL 21499. Philosophy and Philanthropy. 100 Units.

Perhaps it is better to give than to receive, but exactly how much giving ought one to engage in and to whom or what? Recent ethical and philosophical developments such as the effective altruism movement suggest that relatively affluent individuals are ethically bound to donate a very large percentage of their resources to worthy causes-for example, saving as many lives as they possibly can, wherever in the world those lives may be. And charitable giving or philanthropy is not only a matter of individual giving, but also of giving by foundations, corporations, non-profits, non-governmental and various governmental agencies, and other organizational entities that play a very significant role in the modern world. How, for example, does an institution like the University of Chicago engage in and justify its philanthropic activities? Can one generalize about the various rationales for philanthropy, whether individual or institutional? Why do individuals or organizations engage in philanthropy, and do they do so well or badly, for good reasons, bad reasons, or no coherent reasons? This course will afford a broad, critical philosophical and historical overview of philanthropy, examining its various contexts and justifications, and contrasting charitable giving with other ethical demands, particularly the demands of justice. How do charity and justice relate to each other? Would charity even be needed in a fully just world? (A)

Instructor(s): Bart Schultz     Terms Offered: Winter
Note(s): This course will feature a number of guest speakers and be developed in active conversation with the work of the UChicago Civic Knowledge Project and Office of Civic Engagement. Students will also be presented with some practical opportunities to engage reflectively in deciding whether, why and how to donate a certain limited amount of (course provided) funding.
Equivalent Course(s): HMRT 21499, MAPH 31499, PLSC 21499

PHIL 21505. Wonder, Magic, and Skepticism. 100 Units.

In the course of discussing how it is that a philosophical problem arises in the first place, Wittgenstein says, "The decisive movement in the conjuring trick has been made, and it was the very one that we thought quite innocent." This isn't the only place where Wittgenstein speaks as if being gripped by philosophical problems is a matter of succumbing to illusions--as if a philosophers are magicians who are taken in by their own tricks. In this course, we'll discuss philosophy and magical performance, with the aim of coming to a deeper understanding of what both are about. We'll be particularly concerned with Wittgenstein's picture of what philosophy is and does. Another focus of the course will be the passion of wonder. In the Theaetetus, Plato has Socrates say, "The sense of wonder is the mark of the philosopher. Philosophy indeed has no other origin." And when magicians write about their aesthetic aims, they almost always describe themselves as trying to instill wonder in others. Does magic end where philosophy begins? And what becomes of wonder after philosophy is done with it? (B) (IV)

Instructor(s): David Finkelstein     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of at least two prior courses from U of C’s Department of Philosophy (not Core courses).
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 31505

PHIL 21830. Moral Philosophy. 100 Units.

In this course we will read, write, talk, and think about good and bad, right and wrong, in human life and conduct. In doing so, we usually will be preoccupied with questions about the relation between morality and reason. Almost everyone agrees that doing what morality asks or requires (and refraining from doing what morality prohibits) usually means losing out on at least some opportunities to do as one likes. There is normally something one would rather do than, say, keep a promise. The most detailed accounts of reason in action, however, suggest that reason is meant to help us fare well. Faring well is often a matter of managing to do well for oneself, often by finding ways of doing as one likes. If morality works against the pursuit of self-interest, and reason helps to further pursuit of self-interest, it looks as though there is a fundamental conflict between reason and morality, between acting well and faring well. (A) (I)

Instructor(s): Candace Vogler     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 31830

PHIL 22000. Introduction to the Philosophy of Science. 100 Units.

We will begin by trying to explicate the manner in which science is a rational response to observational facts. This will involve a discussion of inductivism, Popper's deductivism, Lakatos and Kuhn. After this, we will briefly survey some other important topics in the philosophy of science, including underdetermination, theories of evidence, Bayesianism, the problem of induction, explanation, and laws of nature. (B) (II)

Instructor(s): Kevin Davey     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): HIPS 22000, HIST 25109

PHIL 22209. Philosophies of Environmentalism and Sustainability. 100 Units.

Many of the toughest ethical and political challenges confronting the world today are related to environmental issues: for example, climate change, loss of biodiversity, the unsustainable use of natural resources, pollution and toxic waste, and other threats to the well-being of both present and future generations. Using both classic and contemporary works, this course will highlight some of the fundamental and unavoidable philosophical questions presented by such environmental issues. Does the environmental crisis demand radically new forms of ethical and political philosophizing and practice? Must an environmental ethic reject anthropocentrism? If so, what are the most plausible non-anthropocentric alternatives? What counts as the proper ethical treatment of non-human animals, living organisms, or ecosystems? What do the terms "nature" and "wilderness" even mean, and should "natural" environments as such have ethical and/or legal standing? What fundamental ethical and political perspectives inform such approaches as the "Land Ethic," ecofeminism, and deep ecology? Is there a plausible account of environmental justice applicable to both present and future generations? Are we now in the Anthropocene, and if so, is "adaptation" the best strategy at this historical juncture? How can the wild, the rural, and the urban all contribute to a better future for Planet Earth? (A)

Instructor(s): Bart Schultz     Terms Offered: Spring
Note(s): Field trips, guest speakers, and special projects will help us philosophize about the fate of the earth by connecting the local and the global. Please be patient with the flexible course organization! Some rescheduling may be necessary in order to accommodate guest speakers and the weather!
Equivalent Course(s): ENST 22209, HMRT 22201, PLSC 22202, MAPH 32209

PHIL 22212. Essential Concepts of Psychoanalysis. 100 Units.

This seminar will introduce some of the central concepts of psychoanalysis: Mourning and Melancholia, Repetition and Remembering, Transference, Neurosis, the Unconscious, Identification, Psychodynamic, Eros, Envy, Gratitude, Splitting, Death. The central theme will be how these concepts shed light on human flourishing and the characteristic ways we fail to flourish. Readings from Plato, Aristotle, Freud, Loewald, Lacan, Melanie Klein, Betty Joseph, Hanna Segal and others.

Instructor(s): Jonathan Lear; Dr. Alfred Margulies     Terms Offered: Spring. Seminar scheduled to be taught Spring 2025
Prerequisite(s): Consent required.
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 55512, PHIL 51413, SCTH 22212

PHIL 22602. The Fate of Autonomy. 100 Units.

The autonomous life: proponents of this ideal portray it as central to living well, while detractors consider it one of modernity's more dangerous delusions. But what is autonomy, and why is it capable of inspiring such controversy? This class considers the twists and turns of autonomy's fate within and beyond the German Idealist tradition. We will start by considering autonomy and freedom in the work of Kant and Hegel, as well as more contemporary philosophers such as Korsgaard who are in dialogue with them. We will then consider how their theories of autonomy are complicated and expanded by Douglass and Fanon, before moving on to autonomy's contemporary critics from 'postmodern' and communitarian and religious perspectives. Themes examined will include putative links between autonomy and authenticity, between autonomy and secularity, and between autonomy and individualism. This course takes its title from Karl Ameriks' Kant and the Fate of Autonomy. (A)

Instructor(s): Maya Krishnan     Terms Offered: Winter

PHIL 23000. Introduction to Metaphysics and Epistemology. 100 Units.

In this course we will explore some of the central questions in epistemology and metaphysics. In epistemology, these questions will include: What is knowledge? What facts or states justify a belief? How can the threat of skepticism be adequately answered? How do we know what we (seem to) know about mathematics and morality? In metaphysics, these questions will include: What is time? What is the best account of personal identity across time? Do we have free will? We will also discuss how the construction of a theory of knowledge ought to relate to the construction of a metaphysical theory-roughly speaking, what comes first, epistemology or metaphysics? (B)

Instructor(s): Benjamin Callard     Terms Offered: Winter

PHIL 23451. Perception and Self-Consciousness. 100 Units.

In the first part of the course, we'll be discussing an argument to the effect that: in order for radical skepticism about empirical knowledge not to be intellectually obligatory, we must understand ourselves as enjoying a very particular kind of self-consciousness. In the remainder of the course, we'll be trying to get into view what an adequate account of that sort of self-consciousness might look like. (B) (II)

Instructor(s): David Finkelstein     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of at least two prior courses from U of C’s Department of Philosophy (not Core courses).
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 33451

PHIL 23502. Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to issues and questions that have defined scholarship in the philosophy of mind as well as to prominent theories in the field. Starting from Descartes and the articulation of a general "mind-body problem," we will go on to investigate particular mental phenomena (such as beliefs, emotions, sensations, and intentions) by considering what philosophers have said about them, drawing primarily from the 20th century and the analytic tradition. We will read works in Dualism, Identity-Theory, Functionalism, and Eliminativism. Besides offering a brief survey of the field, this course equips students with the resources for evaluating whether some particular view provides an adequate account of human mindedness. (B)

Instructor(s): Ermioni Prokopaki     Terms Offered: Autumn

PHIL 24096. Philosophy of Economics. 100 Units.

This course introduces students to philosophical debates about the foundations and methodology of economics as a field of study. Together we'll examine questions such as the following: What exactly is economics and what are its aims? Is the field defined by its subject matter or its methodology? Should positive economics be regarded as a value-neutral enterprise? Or does it inevitably need to make value-laden assumptions-about, for instance, rationality, well-being, distributive justice, etc.-that stand in need of justification? Should there be limits to what can be bought and sold on markets-and, if so, what should those limits be? Readings will include works by philosophers and economists. (A)

Instructor(s): Tyler Zimmer     Terms Offered: Autumn

PHIL 24098. Character and Commerce: Practical Wisdom in Economic Life. 100 Units.

Most of us seek to be reasonably good people leading what we take to be successful and satisfying lives. There is a mountain of evidence suggesting that most of us fail to live up to our own standards. Worse, we often fail to mark our own failures in ways that could help us improve ourselves. The context in which we try to live good lives is shaped by the vicissitudes of the global economy. The global economy is obviously of interest to those of us studying economics or planning on careers in business. Aspiring entrepreneurs or corporate leaders have clear stakes in understanding practical wisdom in the economic sphere. But anyone who relies upon her pay - or someone else's - to cover her living expenses has some interest in economic life. In this course, we will bring work in neo-Aristotelian ethics and neo-classical economics into conversation with empirical work from behavioral economics and behavioral ethics, to read, write, talk, and think about cultivating wisdom in our economic dealings. While our focus will be on business, the kinds of problems we will consider, and the ways of addressing these, occur in ordinary life more generally - at home, in academic settings, and in our efforts to participate in the daily production and reproduction of sound modes of social interaction. (A)

Instructor(s): Candace Vogler     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): ECON 12300

PHIL 24503. Locke and Leibniz. 100 Units.

This course will consist of a close study of Locke's Essay Concerning Human Understanding alongside Leibniz's chapter-by-chapter response to Locke in his New Essays on Human Understanding. Locke's Essay is the great manifesto and development of empiricism, and Leibniz's New Essays is a detailed, sustained rebuttal of Locke's book. As such, it is both a fascinating work by one of the giants of rationalism and a text that provides an opportunity to take seriously the idea that philosophy develops through dialogue. Topics to be discussed include innate ideas, necessary truths, reason, experience, substance, essence, personal identity, the nature of mind and body, and freedom, among others. We will also ask larger questions about the nature of the rationalist and empiricist traditions to which these philosophers belong - e.g., the extent to which empiricism is indebted to the experimental sciences, and whether rationalism is best understood as a doctrine concerning the sources of human knowledge or as a metaphysical claim about the intelligibility of being. (B)

Instructor(s): Andrew Pitel     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Open to undergraduate and MA students, and all others with consent.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 44503, MAPH 44503

PHIL 24804. Foucault. 100 Units.

At the time of Michel Foucault's death in 1984, both his fame and his capacity to inspire controversy were at their height. Foucault's views on power, knowledge, and genealogy were widely influential during his lifetime. Thirty years after Foucault's death, interest in Foucault is once more on the rise. The purpose of this class is to provide a philosophical introduction to Foucault's ideas. Topics to be discussed include madness and social construction, the historical preconditions of knowledge, genealogical critique, reform's perilous potential, and the "technologies of the self". Particular attention will be given throughout to how Foucault engages with Kant, Nietzsche, and Heidegger. We will end by examining Foucault's reception in the work of Judith Butler, as well as contemporary criticisms of Foucault. (A)

Instructor(s): Maya Krishnan     Terms Offered: Autumn

PHIL 25000. History of Philosophy I: Ancient Philosophy. 100 Units.

An examination of ancient Greek philosophical texts that are foundational for Western philosophy, especially the work of Plato and Aristotle. Topics will include: the nature and possibility of knowledge and its role in human life; the nature of the soul; virtue; happiness and the human good.

Instructor(s): Arnold Brooks     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Completion of the general education requirement in humanities.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 22700

PHIL 25103. Human Ability. 100 Units.

TBA

Instructor(s): Ginger Schultheis     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 35103

PHIL 25122. Modern Philosophy of Religion: A Historical Perspective. 100 Units.

The course will start by looking at the intellectual connections of several major figures in 18th and 19th century philosophy of religion. We will examine David Hume's "Essay on Miracles" and Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion, Søren Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling, John Stuart Mill's "The Utility of Religion," Friedrich Nietzsche's On the Genealogy of Morality, and selections from William James's The Varieties of Religious Experience. In the last third of the course we will examine more recent writers such as Ludwig Wittgenstein and Emmanuel Levinas. The goal of the course is to present and to assess different ways in which philosophers have conceived of and argued for or against religious belief. (IV)

Instructor(s): Dan Brudney     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): DVPR 35122, RLST 25122, PHIL 35122

PHIL 25500. The Republic of Plato. 100 Units.

In this seminar, we read Plato's Republic closely and in its entirety. We will attend equally to the epistemological and political aspirations of the text and we will examine its engagement with issues in the fields of psychology, aesthetics, metaphysics, and education. While this course will primarily focus on Plato's text, the students will have the opportunity to read works from the secondary literature. (B)

Instructor(s): Ermioni Prokopaki     Terms Offered: Spring

PHIL 25714. An Introduction to Wittgenstein's Tractatus. 100 Units.

This will be an introductory course on Wittgenstein's Tractatus. The seminar will be organized around the following proposal: the book is meant to reveal the sort of understanding that is at stake whenever a philosophical problem arises. It teaches that such understanding is not a form of knowledge - and in particular not scientific knowledge- of whether or why something is the case. Its clarification of the sort of understanding at issue here allows for a reading according to which the Tractatus, contrary to what most commentators assume, seeks to affirm rather than to cancel philosophy. It affirms it as a fundamental concern with understanding distinct from science or from reason.

Instructor(s): Irad Kimhi     Terms Offered: Autumn. Autumn 2024
Prerequisite(s): Background in philosophy for Undergrads.
Note(s): Undergrads require the Instructor's consent to register.
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 35714, PHIL 35714, FNDL 25714, SCTH 25714

PHIL 25715. Aristotle: Action, Embodied Agents and Value in Acting. 100 Units.

The aim of the course is to understand and assess central aspects of Aristotle's account of actions and agency. We will locate his views within the context of his discussion of (a) the relation between psychological and physical states, processes, and activities and (b) the value of acting well. The course is aimed at graduates and advanced undergraduates (seniors and juniors) in Philosophy or Classics.

Instructor(s): David Charles     Terms Offered: Autumn. Autumn 2024
Prerequisite(s): Knowledge of Greek is not required.
Note(s): Only senior Undergraduates with the instructor's consent can register. No consent is required for Graduate Students. Auditors are allowed subject to enrollment and with the instructor's permission. Auditors will be expected to attend all classes, complete all reading assignments, and participate in class discussions, but not to complete writing assignments.
Equivalent Course(s): CLCV 25924, CLAS 35924, SCTH 25715, FNDL 25715, SCTH 35715, PHIL 35715

PHIL 25798. Substance in Medieval, Modern, and Contemporary Metaphysics. 100 Units.

The notion of substance has long been at the center of metaphysical theorizing. Substances are said to be fundamental and independent things, capable of existing on their own, which are the bearers of properties. An account of substance has also been thought central to metaphysics in that the primary sense of 'being' is the sense in which substances are beings. But there has been a great deal of controversy over how to give an account of the nature or being of substance, what sorts of things we should count as substances, what we can know of substance, and even whether the notion of substance is intelligible. In this course we will examine a number of influential accounts of substance in medieval, early modern, and contemporary metaphysics. Historical figures we will likely read include Aquinas, Scotus, Ockham, Suárez, Descartes, Spinoza, and Locke. Contemporary readings may include texts by Justin Broackes, Kit Fine, Robert Pasnau, Kathrin Koslicki, Michael Della Rocca, and Shamik Dasgupta. (B)

Instructor(s): Andrew Pitel     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Open to undergraduate and MA students, and all others with consent.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 45798, MAPH 45798

PHIL 25908. Aristotle on Knowledge and Understanding. 100 Units.

This course will consist of a focused reading of Aristotle's Prior and Posterior Analytics. Our aim will be to understand Aristotle's theory of knowledge, the significance of experience, and the nature of reasoning. Readings will include some of the Platonic antecedents of Aristotle's work, including the Theaetetus and Sophist. (B)

Instructor(s): Arnold Brooks     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 35908

PHIL 26000. History of Philosophy II: Medieval and Early Modern Philosophy. 100 Units.

A survey of the thought of some of the most important figures of the period from the fall of Rome to the Scottish Enlightenment. The course will begin with an examination of the medieval hylomorphism of Aquinas and Ockham and then consider its rejection and transformation in the early modern period. Three distinct early modern approaches to philosophy will be discussed in relation to their medieval antecedents: the method of doubt, the principle of sufficient reason, and empiricism. Figures covered may include Ockham, Aquinas, Descartes, Avicenna, Princess Elizabeth, Émilie du Châtelet, Spinoza, Leibniz, Abelard, Berkeley, Hume, and al-Ghazali.

Instructor(s): Thomas Pendlebury     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Completion of the general education requirement in humanities required; PHIL 25000 recommended.
Equivalent Course(s): MDVL 26000, HIPS 26000

PHIL 26101. Interpretation and Philosophy. 100 Units.

We discuss the nature and philosophical implications of the practice of interpretation, focusing especially on the interpretation of philosophy. We will address questions such as: what is interpretation, and at what does it aim? What counts as success or failure? Is the interpretation of philosophy itself a form of philosophy? What is the ethical significance of interpretation? This course will involve a practical element. In addition to reading texts on the theory of interpretation, we will spend time in and out of class developing interpretations of selected philosophical texts. (B)

Instructor(s): Arnold Brooks     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 36101

PHIL 26208. Philosophy of Sex. 100 Units.

What is good sex? Is sexual objectification harmful? Do we have a right to sex? What is sexual consent? This course invites students to engage with these questions and many others within the literature on the philosophy of sex. The centrality of sex and sexuality in human life makes it an apt, albeit complex object of philosophical inquiry. And, whereas many thinkers advance that our sexual lives hold a major influence on most other domains on our existence, we spend little time with intellectual inquiry about sex. In this course, we will engage with some classic texts alongside some of the most exciting recent writings in the philosophy of sex. We will explore such themes and topics as the erotic, sexual desire, perversion, consent, sexual orientation, pornography, prostitution, and sex equality. We will explore these themes through various perspectives, including metaphysics, ethics, and politics. Some of the authors we will read include Andrea Dworkin, Catharine MacKinnon, Michel Foucault, Sigmund Freud, Martha Nussbaum, Timo Airaksinen, Jean-Luc Marion, Raja Halwani, Amia Srinivasan and Manon Garcia among others. This course is discussion based and is open to undergraduate students of all levels. (A)

Instructor(s): Kévin Irakóze     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): This course is discussion based and is open to undergraduate students of all levels.
Equivalent Course(s): GNSE 23176

PHIL 26425. Reading Marx's Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. 100 Units.

Karl Marx's account of "those societies in which the capitalist mode of production prevails" remains one of the most influential yet contentious theories ever committed to paper. Often invoked in times of turmoil, his name has come to mean different things to different people. Yet it is not always clear in fact just what his theory is, doubtless in part because his writings are quite challenging to read. In this course, students will engage fundamentally with Marx's writings to gain a clear idea of his theory for themselves. We will do so by reading volume 1 of Marx's Capital as well as selections from volumes 2 and 3 and Theories of Surplus Value. We will approach Marx own his own terms, considering context and comparison with other highlights from the history of political economy only where they are relevant. Topics which we will address include Marx's view of "alienation", "commodity fetishism", and "class struggle", but also labor, employment, money, capital, profit, and crisis. We will be reading Paul Reiter's new translation of Capital: Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1 (Princeton 2024), which students must bring to every class. The course will be held in English and there are no prerequisites. But students should read Marx's short essay, "Wage Labor and Capital", to prepare in advance of our first meeting.

Instructor(s): Daniel Burnfin     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): GRMN 36425, MAPS 31529, GRMN 26425, PHIL 36425

PHIL 26520. Mind, Brain and Meaning. 100 Units.

What is the relationship between physical processes in the brain and body and the processes of thought and consciousness that constitute our mental life? Philosophers and others have puzzled over this question for millennia. Many have concluded it to be intractable. In recent decades, the field of cognitive science--encompassing philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, computer science, linguistics, and other disciplines--has proposed a new form of answer. The driving idea is that the interaction of the mental and the physical may be understood via a third level of analysis: that of the computational. This course offers a critical introduction to the elements of this approach, and surveys some of the alternative models and theories that fall within it. Readings are drawn from a range of historical and contemporary sources in philosophy, psychology, linguistics, and computer science. (B) (II)

Instructor(s): Jason Bridges; Leslie Kay; Chris Kennedy     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): NSCI 22520, LING 36520, LING 26520, PSYC 26520, COGS 20001, PSYC 36520, PHIL 36520

PHIL 26710. First Philosophy. 100 Units.

Aristotle said that "first philosophy" is the branch of knowledge that is both most general-having to do with everything-and the most foundational. In this course we will explore various attempts in the history of philosophy to describe and produce such a science, beginning with Plato and Aristotle's attempts to describe being and ending with Wittgenstein's skepticism about such a project. We will try to produce a generalization about what first philosophy is and about its possibility and limitations. (B)

Instructor(s): Arnold Brooks     Terms Offered: Winter
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 36710

PHIL 27000. History of Philosophy III: Kant and the 19th Century. 100 Units.

The philosophical ideas and methods of Immanuel Kant's "critical" philosophy set off a revolution that reverberated through 19th-century philosophy. We will trace the effects of this revolution and the responses to it, focusing specifically on the influence of Kant's contribution to moral philosophy and its lasting influence on discussions of ethics and political philosophy. We will begin with a consideration of Kant's famous Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, in which he announces his project of grounding all ethical obligation in the very idea of a free will. We will then consider Hegel's radicalization of this project in his Philosophy of Right, which seeks to derive from the idea of freedom, not just formal constraints on right action, but a determinate, positive conception of what Hegel calls "ethical life". We will conclude with an examination of some important challenges to the Kantian/Hegelian project in ethical and political theory: Karl Marx's re-interpretation of the idea of freedom in the economic sphere; Mary Wollstonecraft and John Stuart Mill's radicalizations of the ideas of political liberty and equality; and the appropriation and critique of the Enlightenment rhetoric of freedom by writers on racial oppression including Frederick Douglass, W. E. B. DuBois, and Angela Davis.

Instructor(s): Matthew Boyle     Terms Offered: Spring

PHIL 27500. Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. 100 Units.

This will be a careful reading of what is widely regarded as the greatest work of modern philosophy, Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. Our principal aims will be to understand the problems Kant seeks to address and the significance of his famous doctrine of "transcendental idealism". Topics will include: the role of mind in the constitution of experience; the nature of space and time; the relation between self-knowledge and knowledge of objects; how causal claims can be justified by experience; whether free will is possible; the relation between appearance and reality; the possibility of metaphysics. (B) (IV)

Instructor(s): Thomas Pendlebury     Terms Offered: Autumn
Equivalent Course(s): FNDL 27800, HIPS 25001, CHSS 37901, PHIL 37500

PHIL 27523. Reading Kierkegaard. 100 Units.

This will be a discussion-centered seminar that facilitates close readings some of Kierkegaard texts: The Present Age, Fear and Trembling, Sickness Unto Death, and The Lily of the Field and the Bird of the Air. Topics to be considered will include: living in clichés and self-satisfaction, despair, absolute requirements, the demands of ethical life, and becoming a human being. We shall also consider Kierkegaard's forms of writing and manners of persuasion. Students will be expected to write comments each week and to read the comments of others. Our reading each week will be determined by the pace of the group. (IV)

Instructor(s): Jonathan Lear     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): This seminar is intended for undergraduate majors in Philosophy and Fundamentals and for graduate students in Social Thought and Philosophy. Permission of Instructor required.
Equivalent Course(s): SCTH 27523, PHIL 37523, FNDL 27523, SCTH 37523

PHIL 27543. Black and/or Human: On Humanism and Racialized Being. 100 Units.

What is it to be human and why does it matter? This course invites students to engage the question within the relation between theories of humanism and the histories of dehumanization as pertains to the racialization of Black people. Specific theories of the human have served as foundations of practices of dehumanization, and yet experiences of dehumanization have led to the development of new forms of humanism. In light of histories of enslavement and colonization and the related hierarchies of the human, what is the conceptual basis of the hierarchization within or exclusion from the category of the human? What does it feel like to be dehumanized and how does one adequately respond to such an experience? Some thinkers reject the concept while others reclaim it to inspire new existential outlooks on the world or political struggles. This course will explore the wide literature on these questions, supplementing written texts with other media such as film and music. We will focus on the implications of theories of humanism for the particularly human form of being, the pursuit of the good, and the organization of social life. Engagement in this course will be based on discussion, personal reflection, and the relation of course material to contemporary issues.

Instructor(s): Kevin Irakoze     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Prior coursework on Critical Race Theory or consent of instructor.
Equivalent Course(s): RDIN 27543

PHIL 27544. African Philosophy. 100 Units.

This course is a general survey of African philosophy. We will read a selection of writings from African philosophers, spanning geographical space and historical periods. The tendency for the study of African philosophy is to focus solely on post-colonial writings with texts originally written in French or English. Against this tendency, the course will introduce students to a wider chronology of African philosophy that traverses various historical eras and with an attention to the diversity of the original languages of primary texts (including Ge'ez, Arabic, German, and Latin). In addition to often-studied figures such as Paulin Hountondji and Kwame Gyekye, we will engage with such thinkers as Ahmad Bābā al-Timbukti, Augustine of Hippo, Zara Yaqob, James Africanus Beale Horton, and Anton Wilhelm Amo. Instruction will emphasize the close reading of primary texts within relevant historical contexts. Students will be encouraged to engage African philosophy on its own terms and in conversation with other philosophical traditions.

Instructor(s): Kévin Irakóze     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): This course is introductory and does not require any prior coursework in philosophy.
Equivalent Course(s): RDIN 27544

PHIL 28009. Language and Large Language Models. 100 Units.

An investigation into what philosophy and linguistics can teach us about LLMs and vice versa. (B)

Instructor(s): Malte Willer     Terms Offered: Winter

PHIL 28010. Introduction to Philosophy of Language. 100 Units.

An introduction to philosophical thought about the nature of language. The questions we will address include: What is meaning? What is truth? How does language relate to thought? How do languages relate to each other? What is metaphor? What is fiction? The focus will be on classic work in the analytic tradition (Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Carnap, Tarski, Quine, Austin, Grice, Davidson, Donnellan, Putnam, Searle, Kaplan, Kripke) but we will also read, and relate to this modern work, some current work in the philosophical literature and some seminal discussions of language in the writings of Plato and Aristotle. (B)

Instructor(s): Benjamin Callard     Terms Offered: Autumn

PHIL 28108. The Works of Edith Stein. 100 Units.

This will be a course on works by the philosopher Edith Stein. We will read excerpts from Alasdair Macintyre's Edith Stein: A Philosophical Prologue, as well as Stein's work on our knowledge of other minds and studies toward a philosophy of being. (B)

Instructor(s): Melina Garibovic     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): At least one prior philosophy course is strongly recommended.

PHIL 28505. Existentialists and Mystics. 100 Units.

This will be a course on philosopher and novelist Iris Murdoch's Existentialists and Mystics. We will read excerpts from Murdoch's text alongside key figures with whom she engages: Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone Weil, and Plato. (B)

Instructor(s): Melina Garibovic     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): At least one prior philosophy course is strongly recommended.

PHIL 29200. Junior Tutorial. 100 Units.

Junior/Senior Tutorial. For topic and other information, please visit https://philosophy.uchicago.edu/courses.

Instructor(s): Autumn 2024 Ben Conroy (Topic: Personhood and Moral Status) Winter 2025 Harmonie Loritz (Topic: Hegel and Marx: Philosophies of History) Spring 2025 Kristen De Man (Topic: The Human Being in Moral Imagination) Quarter TBD Adam Katwan (Topic: TBA)     Terms Offered: Autumn Spring Winter
Prerequisite(s): Open only to intensive-track and philosophy majors.
Note(s): Junior and Senior sections meet together. No more than two Tutorials may be used to meet program requirements.

PHIL 29300. Senior Tutorial. 100 Units.

Junior/Senior Tutorial. For topic and other information, please visit https://philosophy.uchicago.edu/courses.

Instructor(s): Autumn 2024 Ben Conroy (Topic: Personhood and Moral Status) Winter 2025 Harmonie Loritz (Topic: Hegel and Marx: Philosophies of History) Spring 2025 Kristen De Man (Topic: The Human Being in Moral Imagination) Quarter TBD Adam Katwan (Topic: TBA)     Terms Offered: Autumn Spring Winter
Prerequisite(s): Open only to intensive-track and philosophy majors.
Note(s): Junior and Senior sections meet together. No more than two Tutorials may be used to meet program requirements.

PHIL 29425. Logic for Philosophy. 100 Units.

Key contemporary debates in the philosophical literature often rely on formal tools and techniques that go beyond the material taught in an introductory logic class. A robust understanding of these debates---and, accordingly, the ability to meaningfully engage with a good deal of contemporary philosophy---requires a basic grasp of extensions of standard logic such as modal logic, multi-valued logic, and supervaluations, as well as an appreciation of the key philosophical virtues and vices of these extensions. The goal of this course is to provide students with the required logic literacy. While some basic metalogical results will come into view as the quarter proceeds, the course will primarily focus on the scope (and, perhaps, the limits) of logic as an important tool for philosophical theorizing. (B)

Instructor(s): Malte Willer     Terms Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Introduction to Logic (PHIL 20100/30000) or its equivalent.
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 39425

PHIL 29601. Intensive Track Seminar. 100 Units.

In this seminar we engage in an in-depth examination of a focused philosophical topic-in a manner akin to that of a graduate seminar. Readings are challenging, but there is no presumption of prior expertise in the course topic.

Instructor(s): Jason Bridges     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Open only to third-year students who have been admitted to the intensive track program.

PHIL 29700. Reading and Research. 100 Units.

Reading and Research.

Terms Offered: Autumn Spring Winter
Prerequisite(s): Consent of Instructor & Director of Undergraduate Studies. Students are required to submit the college reading and research course form.

PHIL 29901. Senior Seminar I. 100 Units.

Students writing senior essays register once for PHIL 29901, in the Autumn Quarter, and once for PHIL 29902, in the Winter Quarter. The Senior Seminar meets for two quarters, and students writing essays are required to attend throughout.

Instructor(s): Agnes Callard; Tyler Zimmer     Terms Offered: Autumn
Prerequisite(s): Consent of Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Note(s): Required and only open to fourth-year students who have been accepted into the BA essay program.

PHIL 29902. Senior Seminar II. 100 Units.

Students writing senior essays register once for PHIL 29901, in the Autumn Quarter, and once for PHIL 29902, in the Winter Quarter. The Senior Seminar meets for two quarters, and students writing essays are required to attend throughout.

Instructor(s): Agnes Callard; Tyler Zimmer     Terms Offered: Winter
Prerequisite(s): Consent of Director of Undergraduate Studies.
Note(s): Required and only open to fourth-year students who have been accepted into the BA essay program.

PHIL 29903. The Philosophy of AI: Induction in the age of Big Data. 100 Units.

(B) (II)

Instructor(s): Anubav Vasudevan     Terms Offered: Spring
Equivalent Course(s): PHIL 39903