Courses
![Fall 2008
Philosophy 120: Introduction to Symbolic Logic [Syllabus]
In this course, we will learn how to determine, of any proposed argument that may be represented in first-order predicate logic, whether or not it is deductively valid. To this end, we will learn how to symbolize arguments formulated in English by learning how to symbolize the English sentences that constitute the premises and conclusions of these arguments; we will learn the rules of a natural deduction system and learn how to apply those rules to determine the logical status of any argument symbolized in accordance with those rules; and we will also learn semantic methods for determining validity and invalidity. Those who acquire the knowledge and skills taught in this course will be able to distinguish between good and bad reasoning in the most rigorous way possible. [Note: If you are a philosophy major, PHIL 10 is a prerequisite for this course. If you are not a philosophy major and you have not taken PHIL 10, then you need to obtain my consent in order to enroll.]
Philosophy 100: Socrates and Plato [COURSE WEBPAGE]
The course examines and evaluates the main philosophical positions advocated and defended by Socrates and Plato, as they appear in Plato’s dialogues. Topics to be covered include: Socrates’ theory of definition; Socrates’ acceptance, and Plato’s denial, of (i) hedonism [the thesis that the good is pleasure], (ii) the impossibility of weakness-of-will, and (iii) moral intellectualism [the thesis that virtue is a kind of knowledge]; Socrates’ and Plato’s (rather different) defenses of the claim that virtue (justice in particular) is sufficient for happiness; the paradox of inquiry, the doctrine of recollection, and Plato’s arguments for the immortality of the soul; and Plato’s theory of forms, his theory of knowledge, and (if there is time) the emendations to those theories forced upon him by considerations raised in the Parmenides and Theaetetus. Prerequisites: Upper-division status; at least one UCSD philosophy course recommended.
Spring 2008
Philosophy 27/Political Science 27: Ethics and Society [SYLLABUS] [MID-TERM STUDY QUESTIONS] [PAPER] [FINAL STUDY QUESTIONS]
In this course we will explore several pressing ethical issues, all of which involve decisions that can make the difference between life and death: euthanasia, abortion, war, and aid to the needy. We will consider whether death can ever be good for a human being, whether killing a human being for her own good is ever morally permissible, whether there is a morally significant difference between killing and letting die (and, more generally, between doing harm and allowing it to occur), whether human fetuses are moral persons, whether abortion is never, sometimes, or always morally permissible, whether killing noncombatants in a just war is ever morally permissible, whether there is a morally significant difference between intending harm and merely foreseeing harm, and whether each of us has a moral obligation to help those in desperate need. The immediate aim of the course is to help you understand and evaluate arguments for and against various answers that might be provided to these questions. The ultimate aim of the course is to help you arrive at your own reasoned, justified, and well-informed position on the relevant issues.
Philosophy 120: Introduction to Symbolic Logic
Winter 2007
Philosophy 201A: Berkeley’s Metaphysics [SYLLABUS]
This seminar for graduate students focuses on the main components of George Berkeley’s metaphysics. Berkeley is famous for having argued for idealism, i.e., the thesis that physical objects and their physical properties (such as color and shape) are nothing but mind-dependent ideas or collections thereof. We will consider and evaluate various interpretations of Berkeley’s argument for idealism, including those provided by Winkler, Muehlmann, Bolton, Atherton, and Pappas. We will discuss the nature of abstract ideas and the reasons for Berkeley’s hostility thereto, as well as the complex relationship between Berkeley’s anti-abstractionism and his idealism. We will reconstruct and evaluate the so-called “Master Argument” and its relation to Berkeley’s idealism. We will then consider various objections to idealism, and reconstruct and evaluate Berkeley’s replies to these objections. The main texts to be considered are A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (1713).
Dimensions of Culture 2: Justice
The course examines the history of the Bill of Rights and the function of the federal judiciary under the United States Constitution, and then discusses the proper interpretation and application of the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. We will consider famous Equal Protection cases concerning racial discrimination (Plessy, Brown, Korematsu), affirmative action (Bakke, Grutter, Gratz), sex discrimination (Bradwell, Muller, Reed, Frontiero, Craig, and United States v. Virginia), discrimination on the basis of wealth (Rodriguez), and discrimination on grounds of alienage (Plyler). We will also consider famous Due Process cases concerning contraception (Griswold, Eisenstadt), abortion (Roe, Casey), homosexual conduct (Bowers, Lawrence), gay marriage (Goodridge), the right to refuse unwanted medical treatment (Cruzan), and the right to die (Glucksberg).
Lecture Notes
Lecture 1: Introduction
Lecture 2: Federalist #10
Lecture 3: Federalist #78
Lecture 4: The Bill of Rights
Lecture 5: Constitutional Interpretation I
Lecture 6: Constitutional Interpretation II
Lecture 7: Plessy
Lecture 8: Brown
Lecture 9: Lochner
Lecture 10: Palko and Carolene Products, fn.4
Lecture 11: Korematsu
Lecture 12: Bakke
Lecture 13: Grutter
Lecture 14: Gratz
Lecture 15: Bradwell and Muller
Lecture 16: Frontiero and Craig
Lecture 17: United States v. Virginia (VMI Case)
Lecture 18: Griswold
Lecture 19: Roe
Lecture 20: Casey
Lecture 21: Bowers
Lecture 22: Lawrence
Lecture 23: Goodridge
Lecture 24: Cruzan
Lecture 25: Glucksberg
Lecture 26: Rodriguez
Lecture 27: Plyler
Lecture 28: Conclusion
STUDY QUESTIONS FOR DOC2 FINAL](Courses_files/shapeimage_2.png)
