Program Overview
The philosophy curriculum consists of courses in the history of philosophy as well as such traditional areas as ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, logic, the philosophy of language, and aesthetics. In addition, each year there are several seminars devoted to the work of one major philosopher – for example, Plato, Aristotle, Hume, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, James, Heidegger, Sartre, and Wittgenstein.
Requirements
o Lower College
Students moderating in philosophy are expected to have taken three courses in the department while in the Lower College. Although no specific courses are required prior to Moderation, students intending to concentrate in philosophy generally take one of the Introduction to Philosophy courses, which provide an orientation to philosophic methodologies, styles of inquiry, and common themes of philosophic concern in texts ranging from Platonic dialogues to contemporary works.
o Upper College
A concentration in philosophy requires seven courses offered by members of the department, of which at least four are in the Upper College. Juniors are required to take the seminar on Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason, as well as the writing-intensive Philosophy Research Seminar (see below). Students intending to apply to graduate school in philosophy are strongly encouraged to take symbolic logic, at least one course in ancient philosophy, at least two courses in modern philosophy (17th through 19th centuries), at least two courses in 20th-century philosophy, and at least one course in ethics.
Several courses of a philosophical nature are taught in other programs of the College – for example, in History, Human Rights, Literature, Physics, Political Science, and Religion. Historically, the discipline of philosophy has been expansive in the scope of its interests, exploring issues across the fields of natural science, social science, literature, and the arts. In this spirit, students concentrating in philosophy are encouraged to enrich their study of philosophy by making connections with other disciplines.
o Writing-intensive Philosophy Research Seminar
Beginning with the class of 2010-11, all philosophy majors are required to take the writing-intensive Philosophy Research seminar in their junior year. The seminar centers on a problem in contemporary philosophy; students research the literature and write an article addressing the problem, going through numerous revisions as a result of class responses, faculty guidance, and further research; the article is formally presented to the seminar, followed by discussion and debate; and the article in its completed form is submitted to an undergraduate or professional journal of philosophy or to an undergraduate conference in philosophy. The seminar integrates the teaching and practice of writing into the study of the subject matter of the seminar. Emphasis will be placed on the art of research; the development, composition, organization, and revision of analytical prose; the use of evidence to support an argument; strategies of interpretation and analysis of texts; and the mechanics and art of style and documentation. Enrollment in these courses is limited to 14.
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BoardsModeration and senior project boards are determined by the department, although we try our best to accommodate student requests. Similarly, the senior project adviser is selected by the department, so as to distribute the number of project advisees relatively evenly among the members of the department. Majors will be asked in their Junior-II semester for a prioritized list of their choices for an adviser, and can generally be assured of getting one of their two top choices.
o Moderation
Students submit the two short papers described in the Student Handbook as well as a philosophy paper of five to ten pages (usually a paper written for a course that has been revised for the board.)o Senior project midway boards
Towards the end of the first semester of senior project work, there is a midway board with three members of the department (or occasionally a member from another department, if appropriate). Students should submit the following materials: 1. an abstract of the project – a general description of the topic and the basic argument; if the project is not yet that well focused, explain what is relatively fixed and what is still fluid in your plans; be succinct: keep this to a page or two; 2. an outline of the project; 3. a current bibliography, indicating what you have read thus far and what you think you need to read in order to complete the project as envisioned; 4. approximately twenty pages of part of the final project; while this is only a draft, it should be well written and scrupulous in terms of citation. Students should make three copies of all midway materials to give to the project adviser at least one week before the meeting of the board.
o Senior project
Three copies of the final project are due to the adviser by the date specified in the college calendar (approximately three weeks before the end of the semester). The minimum length of the project is sixty pages. Projects must be grammatically clean and include exactly proper citations and Works Cited (MLA style is preferred). Poorly written projects, whatever their philosophic merit, will suffer the loss of up to a full grade.
