Course Schedule
Philosophy 302—Mind and Knowledge: Descartes to Kant
Spring 2019

(revised 13 January 2019)

I. Descartes

Jan. 15

Come having read Francis Bacon’s paragraphs 30-46 (A&W, pp. 18-20) of the New Organon.

Jan. 17

Descartes’ dedication, preface, synopsis, and Meditation I  (A&W, pp. 35-43)

Jan. 22

Meditation II

Jan. 24

Meditation III

Jan. 29

Meditation IV

Jan. 31

Meditation V

Feb. 5

Meditation VI & Correspondence with Princess Elisabeth of Bohemia [handout]

Feb. 7

“Third Set of Objections with the Author’s Replies,” “Fourth Set of Objections,” & “Reply to the Fourth Set of Objections” (A&W, pp.76-92)

Feb. 12

Borges’ “The Circular Ruins,” Dennett’s “Where Am I?,” Peterson’s “Is It Good for Them Too? Ethical Concerns for the Sexbots,” & more on mind/brain dualism [handouts]

Feb. 14

Mopping up

Feb. 19

Paper due emailed to me by 2:00 p.m.  No class, due to tutorials.

 

 

II. Early British Empiricism and Post-Cartesian Continental Rationalism

Feb. 21

Pascal’s Wager, from Pensées (A&W, pp.106-109); Hobbes, from Leviathan, Part I, chs.1‑5, but skipping ch. 4 “Of Speech” (A&W, pp.114-129)

Feb. 26

Spinoza’s The Ethics, Part I  (Merely skim Propositions 21, 33, and skip the “Appendix.”)

Feb. 28

The Ethics, Part II: Propositions 1-7, 10-12, 19-35, 45-48; Part V

Mar. 5

Leibniz’s Monadology   

Mar. 7

Examination

 

 Spring Recess

 

III. 18th Century British Empiricism

 

Mar. 19

Locke’s An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Book II:

·        ch. I (1‑6) [= A&W, pp.322-4];

·        ch. II (1-3) [= A&W, pp.328-9];

·        ch. VII [=A&W, pp.331-2];

·        ch. VIII [= A&W, pp.332-7]

·        ch. XXIII (1‑7, 30‑37) [= A&W, pp. 359-361, 365-7]

Book IV, ch. xi (1-14) [= A&W, pp.411-5]

Mar. 21

Berkeley’s A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, “Introduction” (§§1-25) & “Part I” (§§1-33)

Mar. 26

No class; all-day advising

Mar. 28

Berkeley’s Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, preface & dialogues 1 & 2; Borges’ “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius”  [handout]

Apr. 2

dialogue 3

Apr. 4

Paper due at start of class; set-up for Hume, so no new reading.

Apr. 9

Hume’s Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, §§I-V

Apr. 11

Enquiry, §VII; §X (part i and final 2 paras. of part ii); §XII, appendix from Treatise, about personal identity  [handout]

 

 

IV. Kant

 

Apr. 16

Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason, "Prefaces" & "Introduction"  [A&W, pp.717‑729] 

Apr. 18

“Transcendental Aesthetic” [A&W, pp.729‑737]

Apr. 23

“Analytic of Concepts” [A&W, pp.738‑742]

“Second Analogy” [A&W, pp.772-9]

“Refutation of Idealism” [A&W, pp.781-3]

Apr. 25

“The Antinomy of Pure Reason” and Kant’s solution [A&W, pp.792-819]

“On the Impossibility of an Ontological Proof of the Existence of God” [A&W, pp. 819-823, ending with “…by adding a few zeros to his cash balance.”]

 

 

May 4

Saturday: Final examination, 2:00-5:00 p.m.

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