Is it possible to have systematic knowledge of subjective experience? Its central question--What is film?--has been approached and framed in many different ways; naturally, the answers to that question, and the theoretical assumptions that underlie the answers, differ as well. How does film generate meaning? Does free inquiry clash with concern for others, or do they (or can they) work together? How can we ensure that AI's will act morally? Topics include sentience, animal cognition, language in non-human animals, empathy and evolution, the history of domestication, animal rights, cross-cultural views on animals, arguments against and for vegetarianism and veganism, the morality of zoos, hunting and fishing, and pets and happiness. On 3 July 2015, Walsh was found dead in his Somerton Park home. We will begin the course by looking at Hume's and Kant's discussion of causation. For that matter, what are logical theorems even about? The debate never transpired - indeed, Leibniz suppressed his New Essays - because of Locke's death in 1705. Some maintain that these issues are solely the provinces of philosophy, using traditional a priori methods. We will also read more recent work by Foucault inspired scholars on topics such as the biopolitics of gender, the genealogy of terrorism, the informational person (how we become our data), and neoliberal subjects. We will prepare for the Republic by reading two Socratic dialogues: the Euthyphro and the Meno. (ii) You are reading. How much inference goes into interpreting what's said? In this course we address the question: How is the present we find ourselves living today different from the one that the author Foucault wrote about in the 1960s, 70s and early 80s before his untimely death in 1984? In this course, relying on works by economists and philosophers, we examine the status of economics as an academic discipline, focusing on its assumptions, methods, and results. To properly address a number of interrelated questions concerning philosophy in literature and film, and philosophical problems of meaning, interpretation and evaluation of narrative fiction, we will discuss both narrative works of art and theoretical approaches to their analysis. Student interest will be taken into consideration in deciding what additional topics to cover. These affect not only our particular choices but also, more fundamentally, who we are and what we value. Attention to the writing process and developing an authorial voice will be a recurrent focus of our work inside and outside the classroom. Black Marxism: Political Theory and Anti-Colonialism, What Philosophy Is: It's Methods, Aims and Values. The College Mission Statement says that "Williams seeks to provide the finest possible liberal arts education by nurturing in students the academic and civic virtues, and their related traits of character." We use language to communicate meanings in order to accomplish a variety of goals: to convey information, make requests, establish rules, utilize power, issue protests, and much more. [more], Much like the construction of medical knowledge itself, it is from specific cases that general principles of biomedical ethics arise and are systematized into a theoretical framework, and it is to cases they must return, if they are to be both useful and comprehensible to those making decisions within the biomedical context. Unfortunately, the relevance of Hume's ideas and arguments for particular philosophical disciplines has too often led to a piece-meal reading of his work: the three books of Treatise ("Of the Understanding," "Of the Passions" and "Of Morals") are typically considered in isolation from one another. On the other hand, there is a heap of sand in my backyard. Do particular case histories offer good explanations of psychopathology? [more], The touchstone of our course will be Plato's Republic: the first and perhaps greatest utopia as well as perhaps the greatest work in political philosophy. [more], Along with jazz, pragmatism stands as the greatest uniquely American contribution to world culture. In this course we take up questions such as the following: What sorts of subjects do we find in modern Western societies? Dean's Office. We will begin by examining the general concepts of health and disease, and then apply them to human psychology. How does film generate meaning? [more], In this course we will examine traditional philosophical approaches to understanding death and related concepts, with a special focus on the ethical concerns surrounding death and care for the dying. The second, longer part of the seminar will try to isolate and follow some of the pragmatist currents which run through epistemology and philosophy of science in the 20th and 21st centuries. Readings will include work by Plato, Hobbes, Kant, Mill, Nietzsche, and contemporary authors. Success in fulfilling desires? What are the purposes of liberal arts colleges in America? Mental Health and Illness: Philosophical Considerations. We will read some representative works from each of these schools of thought to see how each approaches Socrates. [more], Philosophy of film is a relatively young, but very rich and rapidly growing field. Police believe Cy argued with his father around 2am on Friday at their beachside suburban Adelaide home. Near the end of the semester, we'll also examine some evolutionary explanations of religious belief. Do our beliefs have their meanings one-by-one? In this tutorial we'll closely examine a series of contemporary and historical cases of human experimentation (roughly, one case per week) with an eye toward elucidating the moral norms that ought to govern human subjects research. Is democratic rule always best? Taking this as our starting point, in this course we will examine a number of conceptual and ethical issues in the use and development of technologies related to human reproduction, drawing out their implications for such core concepts as "motherhood" and "parenthood," family and genetic relatedness, exploitation and commodification, and reproductive rights and society's interests in reproductive activities. Finally, we will consider how the concept of freedom is applied in contemporary social contexts, such as speech, religion, voting, and sexuality and gender. Furthermore, they share the conviction that the most important components of a successful life are within the control of the individual human being. Associate Dean for Sophomore Year Students and Director of Transfer and Non-Traditional Students Services. Against the first, people often don't seem to reason very well. We will pay special attention to the first amendment and questions concerning free speech and hate speech. What should be the goals of Williams College? Among the questions that we will address: What is justice? Always asking what practical difference would it make, our authors investigate the central questions and disputes of philosophy, from epistemology and metaphysics to ethics and religion. Some of them explicitly engage meta-philosophical debates; others exemplify particular philosophical styles and methods. Later Wittgenstein is a controversial, polarizing figure; but serious reading of his work is invariably intellectually enriching and fertile. In this course we take up questions such as the following: What sorts of subjects do we find in modern Western societies? and keto reduced-sugar products has been linked to blood clotting, stroke, heart attack and death, according to a new study. In addition to examining general accounts of causation, we will examine particular problems that come up in thinking about mental causation and causation in indeterministic contexts. New York: McGraw Hill, 2005. pp 307-323. One possible answer which we will examine is that, while many philosophers recognize that there are intimate connections between what we believe, feel and do, philosophical argumentation by its very nature appeals to belief alone; narrative art, by contrast, can simultaneously engage our reason, emotions, imagination and will, thus resulting not only in deepening our understanding, but also in transformation of the self. Political parties. We will see how a focus on language affects our understanding of many traditional philosophical questions, ranging from epistemology and metaphysics to aesthetics and ethics. Phil Walsh!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)? Most sessions will pair readings about key concepts with specific cases that raise complex ethical issues, including the concept of moral standing and, e.g., people who do not yet exist, non-human individuals, species, and complex living systems; the concept of moral responsibility and complicity in environmentally damaging practices; the legitimacy of cost-benefit analysis as an environmental policy tool; and the valuation of human lives. More particularly, it concerns itself with the difference between good and bad reasoning, between strong and weak arguments. A number of things follow from this happy assumption. Our aim is to enrich our understanding of the discipline in order to evaluate its value and limitations. What is the mind? Are we justified in believing in God? The first portion of the course will be devoted to developing and understanding four moral principles which have come to be accepted as canonical: respect for autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice. scientific theories. Existentialists investigate deeply irrational phenomena of human life, including anxiety, boredom, tragedy, despair, death, faith, sexuality, love, hate, sadism, masochism, and authenticity. We will concentrate both on making precise the philosophical problem of consciousness and on understanding the role of the relevant neuroscientific and cognitive research. Is film a creation of a single artist - the director, the author - or is it a result of a loosely synchronized and not quite coherent collaboration of many different people, each guided by her or his particular vision? Later Wittgenstein is a controversial, polarizing figure; but serious reading of his work is invariably intellectually enriching and fertile. In this way, we develop a rich array of analytical tools and observational practices to further our understanding of the mind. In the first part of the course, we will read Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations, one of the greatest books ever written. By the early 20th century, in the works of Freud, we encounter the idea of the intra-psychic features of subjects and the importance of understanding and regulating psychic forces both within and between subjects in order to adapt to the demands of living at any given time, born as we are both dependent upon and vulnerable to others. of thinking, categorizing, and knowing, we can easily imagine that he might now be questioning different aspects of our contemporary "present" than the ones standardly associated with his name, namely, panopticons and surveillance, discipline, criminalization, the biopolitics of health, the normal and the abnormal, etc. We will try to determine what is the scope and nature of an adequate theory of emotions, what are the desiderata for such a theory, and what should count as evidence in its favor. to that question, and the theoretical assumptions that underlie the answers, differ as well. This course is an advanced seminar devoted to a comprehensive examination of Fanon's political thought. In this way the goal of the course is significantly different from that of Logic and Language (PHIL 203). To what extent do these myriad force relations limit, enable, or deform our participation as political citizens, and our capacity to transform and improve them? More than this, Existentialists emphasize the subjective relation we bear to our belief systems, moral codes, and personal identities. What if they are biased, unbeknownst to us? How do logic and language relate? [more], This course begins with a brief introduction to some of Foucault's early writings but focuses on a close reading of a selection of middle and late texts that have become central to debates about the significance and value of his work such as: Discipline and Punish, The History of Sexuality (vols. 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