PHIL 106 - Philosophy and Contemporary Issues

Semester Offered: Fall and Spring
1 unit(s)

Topic for 2015/16a: Just War Theory. This course will explore the contemporary philosophical literature on Just War Theory. The past decade has seen an explosion of philosophical work on war, with important consequences for our thinking about both the ethics and law of armed conflict. We will examine classical formulations of the just war doctrine, as well as the challenge posed by revisionist just war theorists. Readings will include Michael Walzer’s Just and Unjust Wars and Jeff McMahan’s Killing in War. Mr. Kelly.

Open only to freshmen; satisfies the college requirement for a Freshman Writing Seminar.

Topic for 2015/16a: Democracy. This course explores democracy in the 21st Century as a philosophical question. We consider recent movements like the idignados in Spain, public spaces like Tahrir Square in Eygpt, and hashtags like #iranelection and #Jan25 against the backdrop of the invention of democracy in ancient Athens. We then think about democracy more philosophically as a desire to act and speak in public space, and we question whether modern representative governments allow for a sufficient sense of equal political participation. Finally, we reflect on what it means to be unable to participate in politics or, in more dire cases, to be excluded from any form of political life. Readings include works from Hannah Arendt, Jacques Derrida, Jacques Rancière, Miguel Abensour, Étienne Balibar, Giorgio Agamben, and Ta-Nehisi Coates, among others. Mr. Holloway.

Topic for 2015/16b: This course introduces students to the philosophical study of moral issues, focusing upon topics such as war, terrorism, our food choices, abortion, and euthanasia. Emphasis throughout will be placed upon argumentative rigor, clarity, and precision. Mr. Kelly.

Two 75-minute periods.