Introductory course in philosophy. Philosophy is an activity rather than a set of beliefs. It is thinking critically, systematically, and creatively about fundamental and important questions about knowledge, values, and reality that include the following and more: What do I know, and how do I know it? What is justice? Does God exist? Do I have free will? What is the nature of the mind and self?

This course is an introduction to symbolic logic. Symbolic logic is the formal study of good and bad reasoning. Central to this study is the concept of and criteria for validity. Sentential and predicate logic symbolization, semantics, syntax, and proof methods will be examined. NOTE: This course is required for nearly all philosophy majors and is excellent preparation for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT).

This is an introductory course in ethics. To study ethics is to think critically about morality, and address questions like: What is justice? Are there universal, absolute, or objective moral rules? Is human nature inherently good or evil? What’s the relationship between moral responsibility and free will? This course examines several competing, historically important, and still prominent theoretical approaches to ethics, including Kant’s deontology, Mill’s utilitarianism, and Aristotle’s virtue ethics. These theories will be applied to contemporary moral problems, including those stemming from wealth inequality, artificial intelligence, the treatment of animals, and the limits of free speech.

This class explores and critically analyzes fundamental questions about knowledge. Key questions include: What is knowledge? How is knowledge acquired? How do I know that I am not living in a computer simulation? Theories about knowledge, truth, and justification will be explored, including: rationalism, empiricism, pragmatism, and skepticism. This class traces the history of epistemological ideas from Plato, Aristotle, and the Buddha, to Descartes, Locke, Hume, Kant, and Gettier.

This social and political philosophy class explores and critically analyzes fundamental questions related to society, politics, and ethics. Essential to this course is the study of government and its citizenry. Key questions include: What makes a government legitimate? What rights and liberties should be protected? Is there an ideal size and form of government? Political ideologies like liberalism, conservatism, and socialism will be explored and applied to contemporary issues including: free speech, privacy, and welfare. This class traces the history of social and political ideas from Plato, Aristotle, Confucius, and Lao Tzu to Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Marx, Arendt, Rawls, and more.