Philosophy (PHIL)

PHIL 101 Introduction to Philosophy
(3 Credits, Fall/Spring/Summer)

This course introduces students to philosophy as an academic discipline and a set of cognitive and behavioral skills. This course traces important philosophical themes through history: morality and custom, wisdom, wealth and happiness, the concept of human nature, immortality, justice, knowledge, and religious belief. (This CWI course meets Idaho State Board of Education GEM competency requirements for GEM 5 - Humanistic and Artistic Ways of Knowing. It has also been E designated and will fulfill the Ethical Reasoning requirement.). (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 103 Introduction to Ethics
(3 Credits, Fall/Spring/Summer)

This course introduces students to ethics as an academic discipline and a set of cognitive and behavioral skills. Students learn about the major orientations to ethics and moral conduct (Egoism, Utilitarianism, Kantian Ethics, Virtue Ethics, etc.) and recognize some of the ethical issues they face in their studies and their lives. By the end of the course, students are able to articulate an ethical self-awareness. (This CWI course meets Idaho State Board of Education GEM competency requirements for GEM 5 - Humanistic and Artistic Ways of Knowing. It has also been E designated and will fulfill the Ethical Reasoning requirement.). (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 111 World Religions
(3 Credits, Fall/Spring)

This course introduces students to the major living world religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Jainism, Shinto, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and other global, indigenous belief systems. Reading primary texts (i.e., the Bible, Quran, Talmud, Bhagavad Gita) and other relevant documents, students explore the historical and cultural contexts that shaped the origins of each religion and how expressions of religion and beliefs influence contemporary life. In addition to exploring the unique, complex, and organic nature of the various religions, the class also focuses on such universal themes as the nature of the divine and its relation to self and society, the importance of ethical and ritual behavior, and the meaning of life and death. (This CWI course meets Idaho State Board of Education GEM competency requirements for GEM 6 - Social and Behavioral Ways of Knowing OR the CWI Global Perspectives requirement. [It will not fulfill both requirements.]). (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 209 Logic and Philosophy
(3 Credits, Fall/Spring)

This course provides an introduction to formal techniques relevant to philosophical thinking, covering propositional, quantificational, and some modal logic. The study of logic is one of the best ways to refine one's natural ability to reason and argue. Through the study of logic, one learns strategies for thinking well, common errors in reasoning to avoid, and effective techniques for evaluating arguments. (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 211 Philosophical Writing
(3 Credits, Spring)

This course provides a detailed examination of a small number of focused philosophical topics, with an emphasis on improving students as readers and writers of philosophical texts and developing their ability to communicate philosophical ideas in formal academic writing supported by research. (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 230 Political Philosophy
(3 Credits, Spring)

This course examines the most influential thinkers in Western political philosophy. Representative government, democracy, communism, socialism, and capitalism are the institutional manifestations of such noteworthy minds as Aristotle, Plato, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, John Locke, James Madison, Niccolo Machiavelli, Thomas Hobbes, Adam Smith, and Karl Marx. Students taking this course will come to appreciate the powerful influence philosophy has had on the shape and structure of various competing modern political traditions and ideologies. The class will conduct a thorough examination of each thinker's perspective on such issues as the ideal structure of government; the role of human nature in political theory; the relationship between freedom and authority; the role that equality, inequality, economics, and power play in politics; and the competing definitions of political legitimacy. Students taking this course will be well-equipped to defend their own positions in contemporary debates over issues of social and political justice. (Cross-listed with: POLS 230) (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 240 Belief and Reality
(3 Credits, Fall/Spring/Summer)

This introductory course on metaphysics and epistemology investigates the fundamental nature of reality and the foundational nature of knowledge, beginning with ontology (the science of being), then considering topics such as time, modality, causality, personal identity, and free will. This course will also examine various theories of knowledge, including the sources and limitations of knowledge. In studying the nature of knowledge, we will discuss the conditions that a belief must meet to qualify as knowledge. (This CWI course meets Idaho State Board of Education GEM competency requirements for GEM 5 - Humanistic and Artistic Ways of Knowing.) PREREQ: ENGL 101 or equivalent placement score, or PERM/INST. (3 lecture hours, 0 lab hours, 3 credits)

PHIL 293 Philosophy Internship
(1-3 Credits, Varies)

Internships allow students to apply learning to real-life career possibilities. Credits are earned through supervised fieldwork specifically related to a student's area of study. PREREQ: PERM/INST. (0 lecture hours, 3 lab hours, 1 credits)