skip to main content
UTRGV

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Main Menu
Donate Now Directory myUTRGV

You are here:

Undergraduate Resources Catalog Course Descriptions 2020 Fall

Department of Philosophy College of Liberal Arts

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Undergraduate Resources
    • Majors and Minors
    • Catalog Course Descriptions
    • Semesterly Course Schedules
  • Faculty
  • Events and Initiatives
    • Ethics Bowl
    • Philosophy Club
    • Philosophy Across the Americas Conference

Related Links

  • 2022 Fall
  • 2022 Spring
  • 2021 Fall
  • 2021 Spring
  • 2020 Fall
  • 2020 Summer II
  • 2020 Summer I
  • 2020 Spring
  • 2019 Fall
  • 2019 Summer II
  • 2019 Summer I
  • 2019 Spring
  • 2018 Fall
  • 2018 Summer II
  • 2018 Summer I
  • 2018 Spring
  • 2017 Fall
  • 2017 Summer II
  • 2017 Summer I
  • 2017 Spring
  • 2016 Fall
  • 2016 Summer ll
  • 2016 Summer l
  • 2016 Spring
  • 2015 Fall

Contact Us

Dr. Gregory Gilson
Professor, Chair of Philosophy
Department of Philosophy
ELABS 342
Email: gregory.gilson@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 665-3562

Quick Links

Department of Philosophy Climate and Culture Department of Philosophy Bylaws and Policies Why Major in Philosophy Philosophy Courses Philosophy Club Ethics Bowl The AnzaldĂșa Speaker Series in Philosophy Facebook page

Fall 2020

Fall 2020 Philosophy Courses:


PHIL 1300 Critical Thinking

This class will investigate what it is to think critically. Strong emphasis will be placed on the following: reading critically, analyzing texts, identifying and systematically representing arguments, recognizing formal and informal fallacies, and rationally evaluating what is heard and read.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1301 Introduction to Philosophy

An introduction to some of the major philosophical questions that have intrigued humankind over the centuries. This will be done through an examination of the thought of some of the most important figures in the history of philosophy from the early Greeks to modern times. Credit may be received in only one of PHIL 1301 or PHIL 1302.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1305 Introduction to Latin American Philosophy

An examination of some of the most important and influential contributions to Latin American thought. Material to be studied will be drawn from both past and contemporary sources. Topics may include Mayan and Aztec Philosophy, Iberian Scholasticism, Social and Political Philosophy, Latin American Positivism, Liberation Theology and/or Philosophy, Latin American Feminism, and Hispanic/Latino/a Identity.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1306 Introduction to Asian Philosophy

An analysis of the major movements in Eastern philosophy and religion and their relationship to basic philosophical developments in the West. This course will examine systems of thought and culture such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Shinto.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1310 Ethics, Happiness, and the Good Life

This course will be concerned with human values: our own and those of other people. It will ask where these values come from, how we can know them, and how they relate to human happiness. It will also examine several related questions such as personal freedom and the meaningfulness of human life.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1312 Introduction to Social and Political Philosophy

A critical introduction to the current and historical relationships that define contemporary society and politics. Topics may include democracy, capitalism, communism, anarchism, political authority, norms, justices, pluralism, and rights.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1340 - Introduction to Logic

This class is an introduction to the formal techniques available for evaluating the correctness or incorrectness of arguments. Techniques likely to be discussed include: symbolization in propositional logic, parsing trees, truth tables or truth trees, natural deduction in propositional logic, Venn diagrams, and the probability calculus.

PHIL 1362 - Race, Sexuality, & Class

This course will analyze the role that race, sexuality, and economic class play in constructing
people’s self-identity, interpersonal relationships, social roles, and political power. Emphasis will be given to traditionally marginalized perspectives. Topics may include whiteness, Hispanic/Latino identity, ethnicity, biological sex, gender identity, queerness, labor, capital, inequality, and their intersections.

This Course Satisfies the Social and Behavior Sciences Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 1366 Philosophy and History of Science and Technology

This course is designed to use history and philosophy in the service of science and engineering education. It does this by examining a selection of notable episodes in the history of science and Techno-Science. Episodes examined may include the mathematical sciences in Antiquity, Archimedes’ inventions and principle of hydrostatics, Roman techno-science, Medieval medicine, alchemy, Kepler’s laws of planetary motion, Galileo's conflict with the Catholic Church, Isaac Newton's formulation of the laws of motion, Dalton’s atomic theory, Louis Pasteur’s public trial of the anthrax vaccine, Charles Darwin's proposal of the theory of evolution by natural selection, the development of the atomic bomb, and the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 2322 - Ethics, Health, and Culture

This course will address the application of moral theories, ethical principles, and professional codes to ethical dilemmas faced by professionals in healthcare or research. Topics covered may include, but are not limited to, euthanasia, conflicts of interest, physicians as researchers, distribution of scarce resources, and the impact of theories like moral relativism and psychological egoism on the application of ethical theory.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core

PHIL 2326 - Ethics, Technology, & Society

This course investigates the ways in which technology influences culture and our individual lives, and the ways in which advances in technology create new ethical challenges that require creative solutions. These challenges face all of us; not only experts working at the cutting edge of technological progress, but also members of the public who must interact with new technologies as part of their daily lives. The course emphasizes the need for responsibility at both the personal and societal levels to better understand technology in order to create and implement ethical responses to technological change. We will also discuss the ways in which technological advances may help us meet these challenges and the ways in which experts and the public do and should interact around technological advances. We look to thinkers from various cultures for help in developing strategies that students can apply in their personal and professional lives to recognize and respond to the challenges posed by technologies in a responsible manner, both as individuals and as members of communities.

This Course Satisfies the Language Philosophy and Culture Section of the Undergraduate Core and is required by all Engineering and Computer Science Majors

PHIL 3301 Ancient Philosophy

This course will discuss the development of Western philosophy (primarily in Ancient Greece) from the pre-Socratics through to Aristotle. Emphasis is likely to be placed on Plato and Aristotle.

PHIL 3303 Modern Philosophy (1600-1800)

A study of the history of philosophy from the Renaissance through the 18th century, with particular emphasis on Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Hobbes, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant.

PHIL 3304 19th Century Philosophy

This course will address major trends and figures in the development of philosophy in the nineteenth century. Topics likely to be discussed are German Idealism, Romanticism, Dialectical Materialism, Existentialism, and Pragmatism as manifest in the thought of Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Marx, Peirce, and James. Enrollment cap: 25 students.

PHIL 3312 Continental Philosophy

This course addresses topics in post-Heideggerian continental philosophy. Some potential movements and thinkers include deconstruction (Derrida), genealogy (Foucault), postmodernism (Lyotard, Agamben, Ranciere, Balibar), hermeneutics (Gadamer), and Critical Theory and contemporary Marxism (Benjamin, Adorno, Bourdieu, Hardt, Negri, Laclau, Mouffe).

PHIL 3314 Analytic Philosophy

This class is a study of the development of analytic philosophy during the Twentieth century. Authors whose work might be discussed include: Frege, Russell, Carnap, Quine, Putnam, Davidson, Strawson, Grice, Dummett, Lewis, Kripke, Moore, Chisholm, Rawls, Williams, Austin, and Sellars.

PHIL 3317 Perspectives on Science and Mathematics

This course examines a selection of notable episodes in the history of science and mathematics. Episodes examined may include mathematics and science in Antiquity, Medieval medicine, alchemy, Galileo's conflict with the Catholic Church, Isaac Newton's formulation of the laws of motion, Charles Darwin's proposal of the theory of evolution by natural selection, the development of the atomic bomb, the development of modern logic, the development of non- Euclidian geometry, and the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA. This is a required UTeach content course. Enrollment cap: 25 students. Prerequisites: UTCH 1101, UTCH 1102.

PHIL 3360 Feminist Philosophy

This course is designed to examine the variety of existing feminist theories and their roots in diverse modes of philosophical analysis. It will explore how various feminist theories are consonant with or diverge from their base theories and from each other and whether such theories are still cogent. Methodology will incorporate both feminist pedagogy and traditional philosophical analysis, including feminist critique of the tradition.

PHIL 3370 Philosophy of Law

Examination of the institution of law, legal concepts, legal reasoning, and the legal process. Topics may include the nature of law; the moral limits of the criminal law; legal rights; liberty, justice, and equality; punishment; responsibility; the private law (property, contract, and tort); constitutional law; and feminist jurisprudence.

PHIL 4305 Special Topics in Latin American Philosophy

This course will study different issues, themes, or figures in the field of Latin American Philosophy. Content will vary according to instructor expertise and student interest. May be repeated for up to 9 hours credit as content changes.

PHIL 4310 Epistemology

This class will consider questions about the nature, criteria and sources of (epistemic) justification and knowledge. For example, under what circumstances do perception, memory, consciousness, reason and testimony endow us with justified beliefs? How is context relevant to justification and knowledge? Is there such a thing as religious knowledge? Is skepticism about the external world a serious threat? Does knowledge have a foundation?

PHIL 4318 - Philosophy of Food

An examination of the philosophical issues raised around food. This course will engage a variety of philosophical areas and how they pertain to food, including aesthetics, ethics, epistemology, and metaphysics.

PHIL 4322 Social and Political Philosophy

A critical examination of the current and historical relationships that define contemporary society and politics. Topics may include democracy, capitalism, communism, anarchism, political authority, rights, justice, power, pluralism, and tyranny.

PHIL 4398 - Directed Research

This course is designed for students seeking credit through directed research. The directed research must take place in areas in which the student will be directly applying the reflective and transferable skills specific to philosophy; the student must be under direct academic supervision and must complete written assignments to be evaluated by the supervising teaching. The course may be counted as an elective toward fulfillment of the requirements for a major in Philosophy.

PHIL 4399 – Internship

This course is designed for students seeking credit through an internship. The internship must take place in a professional or research areas in which the student will be directly applying the reflective and transferable skills specific to philosophy; the student must be under direct academic supervision and must complete written assignments to be evaluated by the supervising teaching. The course may be counted as an elective toward fulfillment of the requirements for a major in Philosophy.

Jump to Top

UTRGV

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • CARES, CRRSAA and ARP Reporting
  • Site Policies
  • Contact UTRGV
  • Required Links
  • Fraud Reporting
  • Senate Bill 18 Reporting
  • UTRGV Careers
  • Clery Act Reports
  • Web Accessibility
  • Mental Health Resources
  • Sexual Misconduct Policy
  • Reporting Sexual Misconduct