Intro to Philosophy

At Furman University, I taught an introduction to philosophy.

Here’s the syllabus.

And here is some sample material:

Here is the course description:

  • Starting with the ancient Greeks, many philosophers have noticed that philosophy often begins with puzzlement and wonder about our basic assumptions. Philosophy starts when, after carefully reflecting on something that is, in a fundamental way, taken for granted in our practical and cognitive lives, we find them to be deeply puzzling. To introduce ourselves to philosophy, we will do exactly this: we will think carefully about some basic things, and we will get puzzled about them. The topics (the ‘basic things’) in this course will be: knowledge, our minds, our selves, our actions, moral responsibility, happiness, and rationality. For example, we will think carefully about the basic assumptions that knowledge is valuable and possible, that our minds are part of the physical world and connected to our bodies, that our selves span over many years, that our actions are up to us, that we are responsible only for what is in our control, and that what makes us happy is shaped by ourselves. On the way to getting puzzled about these and other assumptions, we will develop intellectual skills. We will learn how to distinguish good from bad reasoning, how to identify unarticulated assumptions, and how to inquire into the very nature of things. Getting deeply puzzled is just the beginning. The skills that will allow you to get to this state of mind are also the ones that will help you be autonomous to solve those practical and cognitive puzzles by yourself.