The Department of Philosophy and Humanities

305 Carlisle Hall • Box 19527 • 817-272-2764 • www.uta.edu/philosphy

A major in philosophy is built on the central texts in the history of Western thought. Philosophy focuses on the perennial problems raised by the encounter of human beings with their history, culture, and the world. It emphasizes methods of analysis and clarity of argumentation. Students who major in philosophy have the broadest possible preparation in the liberal arts.

Students who complete a major in philosophy are prepared to enter either graduate programs or the world of work. In addition to providing vocational skills and a solid foundation for graduate work in the discipline, a major in philosophy constitutes appropriate and strong preparation for graduate work in other academic disciplines as well as in professional programs in a broad variety of fields. The Department of Philosophy and Humanities is prepared to work with students who are interested in postgraduate professional education to assure that their preparation meets disciplinary and/or professional criteria and expectations in areas including law, business administration, and theology. The faculty of the Department of Philosophy and Humanities also work with advisors in the Health Professions Advising Office of the College of Science to ensure that philosophy majors pursuing a pre-medical curriculum are kept abreast of required and recommended courses outside the major.

Requirements for Admission to a Major in Philosophy

Students may be admitted to the major in philosophy upon satisfaction of the following requirements:

•An overall 2.0 GPA, including at least 6 hours of the math and science requirement taken in residence or 12 hours or math and science overall.

•A minimum GPA of 2.5 for all philosophy courses at the time of admission to the major.

•A minimum of 6 hours of philosophy taken at UTA.

•A writing sample approved by the Philosophy Department. (See the Undergraduate Advisor for specific conditions on the writing sample and its grading.)

The undergraduate advisor must certify that these requirements have been satisfied. Admission to the philosophy major may take place at any time that the requirements have been satisfied consistent with the requirements of the Academic Foundations Program.

Requirements for a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Philosophy

English

Six hours of composition.

Literature

Three hours of English or foreign language literature or other approved substitute.

Liberal Arts Elective

Three hours above the freshman level of literature, or social and cultural studies designated as taught in the College of Liberal Arts, or fine arts or philosophy, or technical writing.

History

1311, 1312, 2301, 2302.

Political Science

2311, 2312.

Foreign Language

1441, 1442, 2313, and 2314, or equivalent.

Mathematics

Six hours (level of college algebra or higher).

Science

11 hours (eight hours in a single lab natural science). The natural science core requirement was changed just prior to publication of the catalog, and there was not sufficient time for all departments to make corresponding revisions in their degree requirements. Students should refer to the core curriculum requirement on page 38 of this catalog and also consult with their academic advisor.

Fine Arts and Philosophy

Three hours from architecture, art, dance, music, philosophy, or theatre arts.

Social/Cultural Studies

Three hours of designated courses in archaeology, classical studies, communication, economics, history, humanities, linguistics, political science, social or cultural anthropology, social/political/cultural geography, social psychology, sociology or women's studies.

Electives

Sufficient to give the total number of hours required for a degree.

Major

30 hours of philosophy including 2311 and six additional hours at the freshman or sophomore level (to include no more than one freshman-level course); 3301, 3302, 3303, 3304; and nine other advanced hours with at least six hours at the 4000 level.

Minor

18 hours, at least six of which must be 3000/4000 level.

Total

128 hours, at least 36 of which must be 3000/4000 level, plus exercise and sport activities (EXSA) or ROTC or marching band as required.

Undergraduate Advising

All philosophy majors are directed in their program by a designated undergraduate advisor. In addition, the following special advisors are available:

Graduate Work in Philosophy: Majors who are interested in graduate work in philosophy should consult the departmental graduate advisor during their junior year.

Pre-Law: Majors who intend to apply to law school will find courses in logic, philosophy of law, political philosophy, and ethics particularly useful. Interested students should consult the Philosophy/Pre-law faculty advisor for assistance in course selection and application procedures.

Philosophy/Business Administration Minor: It is possible to combine the philosophy major with a business administration minor in preparation for admission to the U.T. Arlington MBA program. (See Liberal Arts Major/Business Administration Minor section in the introduction of the College of Liberal Arts.) The Philosophy/Business Administration faculty advisor will assist students in coordinating their program and meeting admissions requirements either at U.T. Arlington or other schools.

Pre-Theological: Majors who plan to enter a school of theology should consider a minor in classics and foreign language preparation in Greek and/or Latin. Electives in ethics and philosophy of religion are particularly recommended. Interested students should consult the Philosophy/Pre-ministerial faculty advisor for additional assistance.

Pre-Medical: A departmental faculty advisor is available to assist majors who intend to apply to medical school. The major program will be coordinated with the Health Professions Advising Office of the College of Science.

Oral and Computer Competency

Philosophy and Classics majors are expected to develop oral communication skills which allow them to engage in their respective discipline's tradition of argumentation. Such argumentation is always regarded as formal, regardless of the speaker's style of delivery, and depends more upon logic than rhetoric. Students may meet the oral competency requirement in any of the following ways:

1. Successful completion of a Greek or Latin language course offered by the department.

2. Written certification from a faculty member in the department that the student, while enrolled in a class taught by the faculty member, demonstrated the oral communication skills required by the University for graduation.

3. Satisfying any of the requirements approved by the Undergraduate Assembly as a demonstration of oral communications competency.

4. Completion of a course outside the department approved by the undergraduate advisor as satisfying the requirement.

5. Passing an examination approved by the undergraduate advisor as satisfying the requirement.

Philosophy and Classics majors may satisfy the computer competency requirement in any of the following ways:

1. Written certification from a faculty member in the department that the student, while enrolled in a class taught by the faculty member, demonstrated the computer skills required by the University for graduation.

2. Completion of a course outside the department approved by the undergraduate advisor as satisfying the requirement.

3. Passing an examination approved by the undergraduate advisor as satisfying the requirement.

Department of Philosophy and Humanities Faculty

Acting Chair

Associate Professors

Assistant Professor

Philosophy (PHIL)

Prefix and number in parentheses following the U.T. Arlington course number and title is the Common Course Number designation.

I. INTRODUCTIONS TO PHILOSOPHY: Any of the following courses may be taken as an introduction to Philosophy. No sequence or difference in difficulty is implied by the numbers. Any of the courses will satisfy degree requirements in philosophy, art, or music set by many departments for their majors.

1300. INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit (PHIL 1301). The examination of one or more basic problems of lasting interest to philosophers. Typical problems may include human nature and limits of knowledge. Students intending to satisfy the philosophy/fine arts core requirement should consider PHIL 1310 as an alternative. Credit may not be received for both 1300 and either 1302 or 1303 (no longer offered).

1301. CRITICAL THINKING (3-0) 3 hours credit (PHIL 2303). The analysis of arguments and rhetorical forms. Deals with common forms of valid and fallacious reasoning and includes exercises and drill in practical reasoning.

1304. CONTEMPORARY MORAL PROBLEMS (3-0) 3 hours credit (PHIL 2306). Examination of ethical problems and theories which have a bearing on contemporary life. Texts may include both classical and contemporary ethical writings and deal with problems such as the conditions under which life may be taken (abortion, capital punishment, medical ethics), business ethics, social justice, and individual rights.

PHIL 1310. PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES (3-0) 3 hours credit. Approaches philosophy through a broad application of philosophical perspectives to humanistic disciplines, including history, literature, and the arts. Recommended for students satisfying the philosophy/fine arts core requirement.

HUMA 2301. HUMANITIES I (3-0) 3 hours credit. An interdisciplinary study of the basic cultural patterns and traditions that inform our thinking. Provides a cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary introduction to the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Credit may not be received for both PHIL 2301 (the predecessor course) and HUMA 2301.

II. INTERMEDIATE AND ADVANCED COURSES IN PHILOSOPHY: These courses are designed for students with specific interests in some philosophical area or with a background in philosophy or a related discipline. Unless specified, the courses do not have explicit prerequisites.

2311. LOGIC (3-0) 3 hours credit. The development of formal and symbolic systems for the analysis of arguments. The scope of the course will be basically modern logic: truth-functional analysis, propositional calculus, and some predicate calculus.

2312. ETHICS (3-0) 3 hours credit. An inquiry into the basic principles of the moral life through a critical examination of traditional and current theories of value, right and wrong, good and evil, happiness, duty, and freedom.

2313. PHILOSOPHY OF THE ARTS (3-0) 3 hours credit. Problems in the philosophy of art and art criticism; the history of aesthetic theory.

3301. HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY: ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit. The beginning and the early developments of the western philosophic tradition. Ancient Greek philosophy, basically the Pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.

3302. HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY: ROMAN AND MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit. Post-Aristotelians (e.g., the later Stoics, the Epicureans, Neo-Platonists); philosophy of the early Church Fathers through Aquinas and later Scholastics.

3303. HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY: RENAISSANCE AND EARLY MODERN EUROPEAN PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit. The philosophical views of Galileo, Newton, Bacon, and Hobbes, the Continental Rationalists and British Empiricists, and a brief introduction to the philosophy of Immanuel Kant.

3304. HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY: NINETEENTH AND EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit. Major philosophers from Kant to the early 20th Century.

3315. ORIENTAL PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION (3-0) 3 hours credit. Some of the major Eastern traditions including Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. The ancient roots and developments of these traditions and some of their modern and contemporary manifestations.

3316. PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION (3-0) 3 hours credit. Problems that engage philosophy of religion (e.g., the existence of God, theodicy, religious language) and the way these problems have been treated by some outstanding Western thinkers.

3317. INTERMEDIATE LOGIC (3-0) 3 hours credit. Begins with predicate calculus and includes such topics as soundness and completeness theorems, definite descriptions, identity, modal logic, and others. Prerequisite: PHIL 2311 or equivalent.

3318. THE PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY(3-0) 3 hours credit. The method and goals of scientific scholars and inquiry. The distinction between formal and empirical sciences, laws and theories, measurement, the role of observation and experiment, and probability. Formerly listed as 4315. Credit cannot be received for both 4315 and 3318.

3319. BIOMEDICAL ETHICS (3-0) 3 hours credit. Major ethical problems which arise in modern medicine and in medical/biological research (euthanasia, abortion, patient-physician relations, allocations of medical resources, genetic research, etc.).

3320. PHILOSOPHY OF LAW (3-0) 3 hours credit. 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.

3321. PHILOSOPHY OF LANGUAGE (3-0) 3 hours credit. Topics to be investigated include the nature of language and communication; the distinction between natural and artificial language; the traditional division of the field into syntax, semantics, and pragmatics; and such specialized subtopics as meaning, reference, truth, and speech acts. Completion of PHIL 2311 is recommended, but not required.

3390. HONORS COLLOQUIUM (3-0) 3 hours credit. An interdisciplinary course designed to meet the needs of advanced undergraduates in the Honors College. Prerequisite: participation in the Honors College and/or permission of instructor.

4318. PHILOSOPHY AND LITERATURE (3-0) 3 hours credit. The role of ideas in literature and an analysis of the actual contacts between philosophy and the dominant world views of the great writers of literature.

4385. THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE (3-0) 3 hours credit. Problems which arise from attempts to give an account of human knowledge. Skepticism, perception, induction, or the nature of truth.

4386. METAPHYSICS (3-0) 3 hours credit. Problems which arise from attempts to give an account of reality and its manifestations. Possibility and necessity, causality, the nature of events, mind-body, and universals.

4388. TOPICS IN THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY (3-0) 3 hours credit. In-depth treatment of a single important philosophical writer, a related group of writers, or an extended tradition. May be repeated for credit with permission of the department.

4389. TOPICS IN PHILOSOPHY AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (3-0) 3 hours credit. In-depth treatment of one or more of the social sciences from a philosophical perspective: may include the philosophy of history, social philosophy, political philosophy, philosophy of the social sciences, or any specific subject therein. Credit may not be granted for 4311 or 4317 (no longer offered) and 4389. May be repeated for credit with permission of the department.

4391. UNDERGRADUATE CONFERENCE COURSE (3-0) 3 hours credit. Topics assigned on an individual basis covering research of individual students or study in designated areas. May be repeated for credit.

4394. HONORS THESIS/SENIOR PROJECT (3-0) 3 hours credit. Required of all students in the University Honors College. During the senior year, the student must complete a thesis or a project under the direction of a faculty member in the major department.

Humanities (HUMA)

2301. HUMANITIES I (3-0) 3 hours credit. An interdisciplinary study of the basic cultural patterns and traditions that inform our thinking. Provides a cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary introduction to the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Credit may not be received for both PHIL 2301 (the predecessor course) and HUMA 2301.

3301. INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH METHODS (3-0) 3 hours credit. Research methods required for reading and writing across disciplinary lines in the humanities. Background information and reading in authors (for example, A.O. Lovejoy, Josiah Royce, LeRoy Ladurie, and Kenneth Burke) who have taken a wide cultural perspective; bibliographical and research methods; and techniques for writing major term papers and undergraduate theses involving more than one discipline.

4301. CULTURE AND IDEAS (3-0) 3 hours credit. The way basic ideas of culture have been analyzed and applied in the humanities, recognizing that cultural analysis is not limited to a single discipline or perspective. Authors from the Classical and Renaissance periods who have sought to understand the interrelation of cultural development, the production of cultural artifacts (the fine arts, literary and dramatic arts, history), and philosophy. The work of major cultural analysts in a critical and historical context.

4302. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL THEORY (3-0) 3 hours credit. Examination of the major social and political theories that have shaped Western thought. Topics may include the concept of the social, the role of the individual, the public/private distinction, and gender relations. Focus on particular theorists as well as issues.