Philosophy
Connecticut Hall, 432.1665
M.A., M.Phil., Ph.D.
Chair
Michael Della Rocca
Director of Graduate Studies
Karsten Harries (107 Connecticut Hall, 432.1682, karsten.harries@yale.edu)
Professors
Marilyn McCord Adams, Robert Adams, Seyla Benhabib, Susanne Bobzien, Jules Coleman, Michael Della Rocca, Keith DeRose, Karsten Harries, Robin Jeshion, Shelly Kagan, Christopher Shields (Visiting [F]), Sun-Joo Shin
Associate Professor
Tad Brennan
Assistant Professors
Katalin Balog, Troy Cross, James Kreines, Michael Nelson, Gabriel Richardson, Michael Weber
Lecturer
Eric Cavallero
Fields of Study
Fields include most of the major areas of philosophy. Please write for departmental statement.
Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree
In the first two years all students must complete a total of twelve term courses. Graduate courses are grouped: (1) metaphysics, theory of knowledge, philosophy of science; (2) ethics, aesthetics, philosophy of religion, political philosophy, and theory of value; (3) history of philosophy. No more than six and no fewer than two courses may be taken in each group. A course in logic must also be taken, although on the basis of previous work a student may petition to have this requirement waived. Two qualifying papers must be submitted, one in history, the other in another distribution area; normally the first of these papers will be submitted by mid-September, the second by December, of a student's third year. It is expected that these papers will be more substantial and professional than an ordinary term paper. Students must demonstrate competence in at least one of the following languages: French, German, Greek, or Latin, normally by the end of the second year. Students in Philosophy will teach in the third and fourth years. They must have teaching experience in at least two distribution areas. Approval of the dissertation prospectus is expected before the end of the sixth term. Upon completion of all predissertation requirements, including the prospectus, students are admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. Admission to candidacy must take place by the end of the third year of study. The norm for completion of the Ph.D. degree is five to six years.
Master's Degrees
M.Phil. See Graduate School requirements.
M.A. (en route to the Ph.D.). An M.A. degree is awarded to students after completion of six term courses with an average grade of High Pass.
Program materials are available upon request to the Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Philosophy, Yale University, PO Box 208306, New Haven CT 06520-8306. See Philosophy Web page for information (www.yale.edu/philos).
Courses
PHIL 504au, Logical Theory I: Philosophical Logic. Sun-Joo Shin. MW 1–2.15
An introduction to the metatheory of first-order logic, up to and including the completeness theorem for the first-order calculus. An introduction to the basic concepts of set theory is included.
PHIL 510bu, European Political Thought from Weber to Derrida. Seyla Benhabib. TTh 2.30–3.20, 1 HTBA
Twentieth-century European political thought is dominated by the shadows of Hegel and Nietzsche. Hegel believed in realizing reason in the modern state, whereas Nietzsche argued that modern politics mobilized resentment and anti-rational impulses. We examine Weber, Lukacs, the Frankfurt School, Arendt, Heidegger, Habermas, and Derrida in the light of this dual legacy of Hegel and Nietzsche. Special focus on the Habermas-Derrida exchanges. Also PLSC 604bu.
PHIL 565bu, Kant. James Kreines.
An introduction to the thought of Immanuel Kant. Focus on the central problems and doctrines of the Critique of Pure Reason. Topics include Kant's ethical theory as presented in the Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals.
PHIL 610bu, Aristotle on Practical Reasoning. Gabriel Richardson. M 3.30–5.20
An examination of Aristotle's theory of practical reasoning. Can we deliberate about ends? Can such deliberation affect desire? How do emotions "share in reason in a way"? Is there a robust distinction between theoretical and practical reasoning? How are we to make sense of practical irrationality? In addition to selections from the Ethics, Rhetoric, and De Motu Animalium, we briefly consider Hume's account of practical reasoning in the Treatise as a useful comparison.
PHIL 611au, Plato's Phaedrus. Gabriel Richardson. M 3.30–5.20
A close reading of Plato's dialogue on rhetoric and love. Topics include: Plato's account of moral psychology; the connection between love and the desire for happiness; the immortality of the soul; the relationship between speech making and philosophy; and Plato's critique of writing.
PHIL 612au, Plato's Late Metaphysics. Christopher Shields. T 3.30–5.20
Late in his philosophical career, in the Parmenides, Plato deploys a series of arguments intended to devastate his own Theory of Forms, a theory postulating the existence of distinctive abstract mind- and language-independent entities variously characterized as perfect paradigms and as universals. In this seminar we examine these arguments in order first to understand Plato's Theory of Forms and subsequently to determine whether we should ourselves accept the existence of abstract entities of the sort Plato understands forms to be. No knowledge of Greek or Greek philosophy is required.
PHIL 613bu, Early Arabic Philosophy. Dimitri Gutas. M 3.30–5.20
The transition from Greek philosophy in late antiquity to Arabic philosophy under the early 'Abbasids (sixth to eleventh century). Readings in English translation from the works of Kindi, Rhazes, Farabi, and Avicenna, with special emphasis on epistemology, theory of the soul, and metaphysics. Prerequisite: a course in ancient or medieval philosophy, or permission of instructor. Also NELC 818bu.
PHIL 614bu, Kant: Autonomy, Beauty, and the Finality of Nature. James Kreines. W 1.30–3.20
An examination of Kant's Critique of Judgment. Topics covered include: Kant's aesthetics, philosophy of biology, and account of the importance, nature, and limits of teleological explanation. Emphasis on how consideration of these diverse topics is supposed to help resolve the tensions inherent in Kant's transcendental idealism and his account of autonomy.
PHIL 615au, The Philosophy of Spinoza. Michael Della Rocca. W 1.30–3.20
An in-depth study of Spinoza's major work, the Ethics, with some attention to his earlier writings where helpful. Focus on Spinoza's views in metaphysics and the philosophy of mind.
PHIL 616bu, The Moral Theories of Moore and Ross. Shelly Kagan. T 1.30–3.20
What can we say systematically about right and wrong? What can we say about what things are good? Most moral philosophers ground their answers in accounts "external" to ethics—theories of human nature, the human condition, or divine will, or general claims about the nature of reason and rationality. But in the early twentieth century a more "autonomous" approach to ethics was common—the appeal to moral intuition was primary—and this approach remains important today. We study two great classics from this period: G. E. Moore's Principia Ethica and W. D. Ross's The Right and the Good. Particular attention is paid to evaluating the value theories defended by each book. Prerequisite: a previous class in moral philosophy, or permission of the instructor.
PHIL 640bu, Vagueness and the Sorites Paradox. Susanne Bobzien. W 3.30–5.20
We study some of the main approaches to the Sorites paradox and examine what semantics (if any) can be given for vague expressions as well as what role pragmatic considerations ought to play in an account of vagueness.
PHIL 641bu, The Metaphysics of Modality. Troy Cross. W 1.30–3.20
The course explores a family of modal notions including dispositions, counterfactuals, laws of nature, possibility, necessity, essence, and supervenience. We compare theories that take some of these notions as primitive with theories that attempt to explain all modal notions in terms of categorical features of the actual world. Throughout, we pay close attention to the implications of this debate for the philosophy of science and the philosophy of mind.
PHIL 642bu, Philosophy of Language. Keith DeRose, Michael Nelson. T 1.30–3.20
Some recent developments in the philosophy of language. Topics may include conversational implicatures, warranted assertability, conditionals, modal language, knowledge attributions, and context-sensitivity.
PHIL 643bu, Numbers and Our Knowledge of Numbers. Robin Jeshion. Th 1.30–3.20
An exploration of a cluster of topics about the ontology of natural numbers and the nature of our knowledge of arithmetic. These topics include: the viability of platonism; the relationship between objectivity (realism) about mathematical truth, platonism, and fictionalism; the idea that there can be no genuine ontology of natural numbers; the possibility of neo-Fregean logicism and its associated epistemology; the development of a notion of intuition and singular thought rich enough to explain belief about and knowledge of number.
PHIL 655au, Normative Ethics. Shelly Kagan. T 1.30–3.20
A systematic examination of normative ethics, the part of moral philosophy that attempts to articulate and defend the basic principles of morality. The bulk of the course surveys and explores some of the main normative factors relevant in determining the moral status of a given act or policy (features that help make a given act right or wrong). Brief consideration of some of the main views about the foundations of normative ethics (the ultimate basis or ground for the various moral principles).
PHIL 656bu, Rational Choice Theory. Michael Weber. Th 1.30–3.20
A philosophically sophisticated introduction to the theory of rational choice that underlies orthodox treatments of decision-making behavior in economics, political science, and other social sciences. Some of the paradoxes of rational choice theory are examined, including the Prisoner's Dilemma, the Allais Paradox, and Newcomb's Problem, in an attempt to derive conclusions about the nature of practical reason. Topics also include the use and alleged misuse of rational choice theory in the social sciences.
PHIL 657bu, Global Justice. Eric Cavallero. T 7–8.50
An enquiry into principles of justice for political institutions at the global level, with readings drawn from recent work in the area. Topics include the concept of political sovereignty; the moral relevance of political borders; group self-determination rights; universal human rights; intervention; just immigration policy; and global economic distributive justice.
PHIL 700a, Contemporary Critical Theory: Habermas and Beyond. Seyla Benhabib, Rahel Jaeggi. W 3.30–5.20
Deliberative democracy and struggles for recognition are two competing paradigms in critical social and political theory. This course traces the emergence of these paradigms in Habermas's work, as well as examining conflicts and convergences among them. We also trace the origins of these paradigms in the Kantian versus Hegelian roots of critical theory. Readings from Habermas, Taylor, Honneth, Fraser, Cohen and Arato, Benhabib, Forst, Bohman, Young, and others. Also PLSC 583a.
PHIL 701a, Epistemology. Keith DeRose. M 1:30–3:20
A study of some prominent issues in current epistemology. Topics may include skepticism, internalist vs. externalist accounts of knowledge and of justification, the structure of knowledge and justification (foundationalism vs. coherentism), contextualism in epistemology, and the "relevant alternatives" account of knowledge.
PHIL 702a, Nietzsche and Tragedy. Karsten Harries. T 10.30–12.20
The seminar focuses on The Birth of Tragedy and Zarathustra. An examination of the boundary that separates and joins philosophy and tragedy; also of the tasks and limits of philosophy.
PHIL 703b, Power and Poverty of Perspective: Cusanus and Alberti. Karsten Harries. T 10.30–12.20
This seminar confronts Alberti and Cusanus. Key is the theme of perspective. To confront Alberti with Cusanus is to gain a deeper understanding both of the legitimacy of the modern age and of the poverty that shadows its power. Readings include Alberti, On Painting; Cusanus, On Learned Ignorance (De Docta Ignorantia), On [Intellectual] Eyeglassses (De Beryllo), the Layman (Idiota) dialogues, and On Not-other (De Li Non Aliud).
PHIL 704a, Complexity: Theory of Meaning and the Literary Text. Benjamin Harshav. M 1.30–3.20
The course presents a comprehensive and systematic theory of works of literature as the highest sign-complexes in human culture. Departing from the basic concepts of meaning and reference in linguistics and philosophy of language, a theory of semantic integration is developed. Departing from the basic assumptions of narratology and the philosophy of fictional worlds, a theory of works of literature as complex and open-ended constructs is offered. The theoretical framework includes all their aspects: from metaphor to ideology, and from verse and style to the interaction between internal and external fields of reference. Also CPLT 541a.
PHIL 750, Tutorial.
By arrangement with faculty.
PHIL 750, Tutorial.
By arrangement with faculty.
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