Politics, Philosophy, and Law
Student Organizations/Clubs:
Mock Trial, Prelaw Society; Parkside Philosophical Society, Phi Sigma Tau
Career Possibilities:
For information about graduate school, law school or careers in political science and philosophy, visit the department’s website.
Department Overview
The combination of philosophy, political science, and law offers a unique opportunity to Parkside students. While philosophy is the investigation of reality, knowledge, and values essential to understanding the place of human beings in the world, political science studies the institutions and behaviors which underlie human’s attempt to live in the world together. The Department offers a philosophy major in traditional areas of philosophical inquiry. The Department also offers a traditional major in Political Science and a major in Political Science with a concentration in law. The Department’s minors and certificate programs provide various avenues of specialization. Finally, the Department’s guaranteed completion program offers students a pathway for completing both the Philosophy major and the major in Political Science with a concentration in law in four years.
Program Level Outcomes for Political Science
- We seek to help our students attain a practical and theoretical knowledge of politics and the law, assisting them to become conversant in a broad-range of concepts in the areas of political theory, international politics, comparative politics, American government, and the law.
- We seek to help our students to become critical thinkers; thinkers that are able to question the assumptions that underwrite claims or positions and make reasoned determinations about the truth and strength of various arguments.
- We seek to help our students to become independent researchers, capable of identifying and articulating hypotheses, seeking information and inputs relevant to the topic, evaluating the credibility of sources and information, applying the appropriate methods and tools for testing or exploring a hypothesis, and drawing proper conclusions based on their findings.
- We seek to help our students become global citizens in the sense that they have civically-oriented consciousness, a respect for diversity, pluralism and inclusiveness, and a moral and ethical sense of responsibility and moral disposition regarding their place in local, state, national, and international communities.
Program Level Outcomes for Philosophy
- Knowledge and Understanding: Majors will gain a familiarity with several important philosophical ideas and philosophers.
- Skills: majors will learn to think logically and creatively, to critically analyze key texts and arguments and to effectively communicate their ideas.
- Values: majors will engage in fair and reasoned discourse.
Philosophy Honors
To be eligible for a B.A. with honors in Philosophy, a philosophy major must attain a GPA of 3.5 or better in all philosophy courses taken. In addition, an overall GPA of 3.00 must be attained.
Courses in Political Science
POLS 100 | American Politics | 3 cr
Examines institutions, processes and dynamics of the American governmental system emphasizing problems of policy making in a pluralistic democratic system.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives
POLS 103 | Introduction to Comparative Politics | 3 cr
Explores questions such as the role of the state, electoral systems and issues such the separation of Church and State, terrorism, war and security, human rights and nationalism through qualitative and quantitative analysis. Examines why some developed democracies have extensive welfare states.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science
POLS 104 | Introduction to International Relations | 3 cr
Explores conceptual and theoretical tools for interpreting world politics and navigating the international system. Covers basic foreign policy analysis and key actors in the international system. May be repeated for maximum of 6 credits.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science
POLS 110 | Civic Dialogue and Civil Discourse | 3 cr
Explores civic dialogue and civil discourse. Covers content research and debate on topical issues while developing the capacity to listen actively, understand and empathize with opposing positions, and move dialogue forward.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives
POLS 112 | Introduction to Political Behavior | 3 cr
Explores the factors that explain political behavior across time and context, focusing on why people believe what they believe and vote the way they do. Covers methods for studying political behavior and reflecting on political inquiry.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, CP Civics & Perspectives
POLS 116 | Introduction to Law | 3 cr
Utilizing the case approach, students will analyze the structure of the legal system and the process of judicial decision making. Students will also be introduced to substantive areas of common law.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Yearly.
Meets: Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science, Social & Behavioral Science: POLS, SBS Social & Behavioral Science
POLS 130 | State and Local Politics | 3 cr
Comparative analysis of state and local governments in the United States, and their relationships with the federal government. Focus on organization, structure, function, and administration of state and local government, addressing issues such as education, criminal justice, economic development and social services. It also examines the various roles of political leaders and interest groups at the state and local levels with a special emphasis on Wisconsin politics and government. Recommended for Teacher Education students.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall.
POLS 200 | Research Methods and Sources | 3 cr
Covers methods, philosophy and sources of political science research.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 202 | Public Policy | 3 cr
Explores the processes, problems, methods and issues involved in the formulation of public policies. Emphasizes policy formation at the national, state and local levels. Employs case studies.
Prerequisites: POLS 100.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 207 | Classical Political Philosophy | 3 cr
The works of the classical Greek political philosophers, Thucydides, Plato and Aristotle. Cross-listed with: PHIL 207.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 217 | Tactical Decision Making | 3 cr
Examines tactical decision making from both a rational and cognitive-bureaucratic perspective.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall (even years).
POLS 224 | American Foreign Policy | 3 cr
Formulation and implementation of foreign policy in the United States. Relationship of American foreign policy to its domestic foundations and to the larger international system.
Prerequisites: One POLS course or junior standing.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 231 | State and Local Government and Politics | 3 cr
Provides an overview of state and local political institutions, including state constitutions, structural organization, relationships between legislative, executive, and judicial branches, and intergovernmental relations at state and local levels. Delves into contentious public policy areas such as safety and environmental regulations, unionization, and economic development planning.
Prerequisites: POLS 100 or consent of instructor.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 290 | Special Topics in Political Science | 1-3 cr
Selected topics in political science. May be repeated for credit with a different topic.
Prerequisites: Varies by topic.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 300 | Survey of Environmental Policy | 3 cr
Surveys the key environmental laws of the United States, such as the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 302 | Environmental Policy | 3 cr
Surveys the political and social aspects of environmental policy making and how different political decision-making structures respond to various environmental issues. Community-based learning designation.
Prerequisites: POLS 202.
Offered: Occasionally.
Meets: Community Based Learning, Community Based Learning, Community Based Learning, Community Based Learning
POLS 304 | Theories of International Relations | 3 cr
Contemporary theories of international relations with selected applications to current issues or relationships in international politics. Emphasis on critical theories in the evaluation and comparison of various theoretical approaches. Cross-listed with: PHIL 304.
Offered: Spring.
POLS 306 | Modern Political Philosophy | 3 cr
Exploration of the origins of liberalism, conservatism, and socialism. Readings may include Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, Hegel, Marx, and Nietzsche. Cross-listed with: PHIL 306.
POLS 307 | Contemporary Political Thought | 3 cr
Examines contemporary philosophical works including themes of the meaning of equality, liberty, autonomy, gender, race and community in contemporary society. Cross-listed with: PHIL 307.
Prerequisites: One political science or philosophy course.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 310 | Constitutional Law: Civil Liberties | 3 cr
Examines U.S. Supreme Court cases concerned with the protection of civil liberties. Topics may include race and equality; sex, marriage, and reproduction; free speech; freedom of religion.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 312 | Introduction to Global Warming Policy and Governance | 3 cr
Examines and evaluates greenhouse gas mitigation and adaption policies which are being implemented by a variety of national and sub-national governments. Multi-career cross-listing: MAPS 512.
Prerequisites: POLS 100 or equivalent.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 313 | Politics of Professional Sports | 3 cr
An examination of the interrelationships between local and state politics and the professional sports teams located in those communities. Topics to be covered include: team location and relocation, public subsidy of stadium construction, economic development impacts, and what it means to be a "big league" city.
POLS 316 | Diversity Law: African Americans | 3 cr
Analyzes the relationship of African Americans to the United States Constitution, and includes such topics as slavery, the Fugitive Slave Acts, the Civil War Amendments, segregation, the civil rights movement, voting rights, affirmative action, and housing laws. Cross-listed with: ETHN 316.
Prerequisites: POLS 100 or Ethnic Studies minor, POLS 216 recommended.
Offered: Occasionally.
Meets: CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity
POLS 317 | Strategic Decision Making | 3 cr
Examines decision making from both a rational and cognitive-bureaucratic perspective. Investigates the universal applications of theoretical strategic thinking, integrates tactical and strategic decision making, and applies creative and critical thinking in strategic formulation and implementation. Explores case studies of military, political, and corporate strategies. Multi-career cross-listing: MAPS 517.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Spring.
POLS 318 | Legislative Politics | 3 cr
Introduces to the politics of the U.S. Congress. Examines the workings of the U.S. Congress focusing on congressional elections; goals and strategies of congressional members; parties and leaders; rules of the legislative game; committees; floor and voting; inter-branch politics; and scientific research on congressional politics. ONLINE instruction; additional online class fee.
Prerequisites: POLS 100.
Offered: Spring (even years).
POLS 320 | Constitutional Law: The Structure and Power of U.S. Government | 3 cr
Examines the structure of government established by the Constitution. Includes the relations between the states and the federal government, the power of Congress to regulate the economy, and the power of the President to conduct war.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 321 | Politics, Law, and Society | 3 cr
Examines how law and politics interact with personal and social identity, including race, gender, and class. Cross-listed with: PHIL 321.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 330 | European Politics | 3 cr
Examines political culture, political institutions, and public choices of European democratic states. Focuses on the history, institutions, and policies of the European Union.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 331 | The Politics of Developing Nations | 3 cr
Examines problems of developing political institutions as they cope with and generate processes of social change, economic development and cultural independence.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 341 | International Conflict and Cooperation | 3 cr
Cooperation and competition in the anarchic environmental of international politics. Selected models of world order investigating integration and fragmentation of nation-states, development and maintenance of international regime structures, and the influence of international/reg'l organizations.
Prerequisites: POLS 104 and one 200-level World Politics course.
POLS 344 | African Politics | 3 cr
Investigates African politics and society, stressing the transboundary linkages that exist in the local, national, and global level. Includes common challenges to African countries, such as colonial history, debt, resource development, and violent conflict. Examines political, economic and cultural strengths of African countries.
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing.
Offered: Yearly.
POLS 355 | Urban Politics | 3 cr
City and metropolitan politics in the United States; definition and description of the "urban crisis". Material from political science and allied disciplines included.
Prerequisites: POLS 100 or consent of instructor.
POLS 356 | Political Sociology | 3 cr
Examines the relationship between politics and the larger social structure, such as structure of power in the United States and the economy; political consciousness and the debate on the changing nature of industrial societies. Cross-listed with: SOCA 356.
Prerequisites: SOCA 101.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 360 | Political Parties and Interest Groups | 3 cr
Examines political party development in the United States; structure, functions, and behavior of parties and pressure groups; responsiveness to the electorate and public opinion; and some theories on the role of parties and interest groups in a democracy. Comparative material included.
Prerequisites: POLS 100.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 367 | Latinos(as) and the Law | 3 cr
Introduces and examines experiences Latinos(as) encounter with and within the U.S. criminal justice system, as well as related international and transnational issues. Uses a range of theoretical frameworks, including socio-ecological, political and psychological. Cross-listed with: LBST 367/CRMJ 367.
Offered: Occasionally.
Meets: CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity, CP Civics & Perspectives, Ethnic Diversity
POLS 375 | Elections and Political Participation | 3 cr
Introduces students to some of the major topics of debate and research in political science with regard to voter behavior and political participation in U.S. politics, with a heavy emphasis on federal elections.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 390 | Special Topics in Political Science | 3 cr
Selected topics in political science will be examined. May repeat for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 395 | Voting Behavior and Political Participation | 3 cr
Examination and criticism of several competing explanations of voting behavior and political participation in the United States. The dynamics of citizen involvement in the political process will be featured.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 403 | Women, Power and Politics | 3 cr
Examines the environmental, systematic, and political variables that define the existing and potential political position of women in the United States. Requires a research paper.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall.
POLS 405 | Model United Nations Theory | 3 cr
Explores international bargaining frameworks and theories of negotiation in international relations. Provides the basis for students to participate in the Model United Nations Conference in New York.
Offered: Spring.
POLS 406 | Model United Nations Application | 3 cr
Focuses on experiences tailoring narrative, informative, and persuasive speeches. Provides the opportunity to put the strategic elements of POLS 405 to work in the context of active, large-scale negotiation at the Model United Nations Conference in New York. Requires fees.
Offered: Spring.
POLS 415 | International Law | 3 cr
Examines international legal relationships among actors in world politics. Investigates the legal framework of public international law.
Prerequisites: POLS 104 or consent of instructor.
Offered: Fall.
POLS 424 | Why War? | 3 cr
Investigates the differences in types of war; motivations for war; and factors explaining the timing of war onset, duration, and termination. Addresses conditions that promote atrocities, war crimes, and the devolution of civil society. Explores why all wars are not created equal.
Prerequisites: POLS 104; at least one 200-level POLS course.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 445 | Senior Seminar in Political Science | 3 cr
A capstone research experience for majors in their last year. Also serves to assess mastery of the discipline of political science. Required of all political science majors who are not concentrating in legal studies.
Prerequisites: Senior standing.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 490 | Special Topics in Political Science | 1-3 cr
Studies selected topics in political science at an advanced level.
Prerequisites: POLS 100 or consent of instructor and section prerequisites.
Offered: Occasionally.
POLS 494 | Internship in Political Science | 1-12 cr
Provides opportunities to serve as intern in state, regional, county or local government offices or in the offices of elected officials.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
POLS 499 | Independent Study | 1-6 cr
Provides individual instructions on topics related to political science. Maximum of 6 credits may be applied toward the major.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and department chair.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
Courses in Philosophy
PHIL 101 | Introduction to Philosophy | 3 cr
Introduces philosophical method and typical philosophical issues, such as the existence of God, life after death, freewill, the nature and sources of knowledge and the nature of justice.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
Meets: Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts
PHIL 102 | Great Thinkers | 3 cr
A survey of the history of philosophical thought in the West from its beginnings to the 20th century, emphasizing its social and political context and its relations to the sciences.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall.
Meets: Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts
PHIL 110 | Critical Thinking | 3 cr
Introduces the analysis and evaluation of actual arguments, the practice of constructing logically sound arguments, and logic as the theory of argument. Emphasizes arguments of current or general interest.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 200 | Topics in the History of Philosophy: | 3 cr
Examination in depth of a selected figure, movement, or issue in the history of philosophy. Original sources in translation are studied. May repeat for credit.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 201 | Logic | 3 cr
Emphasis on basic skills of critical thinking, in particular the construction and analysis of arguments in everyday life. Formal and informal arguments are investigated.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Yearly.
Meets: MQR Math & Quantitative Reasoning, MQR Math & Quantitative Reasoning, MQR Math & Quantitative Reasoning, MQR Math & Quantitative Reasoning
PHIL 203 | Truth, Knowledge and Belief | 3 cr
Covers epistemological topics such as experience and perception, innate knowledge, skepticism and rational belief, and the nature of truth. May repeat once for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall (even years).
PHIL 204 | Reason and Reality | 3 cr
Explores metaphysical issues such as free will, cosmology, the nature of reality, space and time, causality, particulars and universals, and humanity's place and meaning in the universe. May be repeated once for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Spring (odd years).
PHIL 205 | Philosophy of Religion | 3 cr
Introduces major philosophical issues in religion, including the existence of God, the supernatural, the problem of evil, life's meaning, faith, reason, religious belief, science and morality and the nature of religious commitment.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
Meets: Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts
PHIL 206 | Introduction to Ethics | 3 cr
Examines the nature of ethics and its relationship to law and religion. Discusses and appraises typical meta-ethical challenges to the possibility of ethics, such as relativism, subjectivism, positivism, naturalism, and egoism. Examines the most important normative ethical systems: virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism, with particular emphasis on the work of Aristotle, Mill and Kant.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall, Spring.
Meets: Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts
PHIL 207 | Classical Political Philosophy | 3 cr
The works of the classical Greek political philosophers, Thucydides, Plato and Aristotle. Cross-listed with: POLS 207.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 212 | Philosophy of Science | 3 cr
Explores topics as the nature of scientific methods and theories; explanation, prediction, confirmation, and reduction; the relations among the sciences, culture, and values; and science versus pseudoscience. May be repeated once for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 213 | Aesthetics | 3 cr
Objectivity and criteria of art criticism, the nature of aesthetic experience, and nature of art. May be repeated once under different topics by consent of department chair.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 215 | Contemporary Moral Problems | 3 cr
Discussion of contemporary moral problems and related theoretical issues, focusing on such issues as sexual morality, punishment, abortion, racism, sexism, warfare and civil disobedience. Community-based learning designation.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Yearly.
Meets: Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Community Based Learning, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Community Based Learning, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Community Based Learning, Humanities and the Arts: PHIL, HA Humanities & Arts, Community Based Learning
PHIL 255 | Topics in Continental Thought | 3 cr
Introduces some major thinkers and movements of contemporary Continental philosophy, including the work of Friedrich Nietzsche, Martin Heidegger, Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida. Examines many current misconceptions about topics including reason, morality, historical relativity, artificial intelligence, the criminal justice system, modern terrorism.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 260 | History of Philosophy: Ancient | 3 cr
An examination of the philosophy of the Pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics and Epicureans, Skeptics and Cynics, and the Neoplatonists. Not open to students with credit in PHIL 360.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Fall.
PHIL 261 | History of Philosophy: Early Modern | 3 cr
An examination of the philosophy of Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant, and their contemporaries. Not open to students with credit in PHIL 361.
Prerequisites: None.
PHIL 275 | Techniques of Philosophical Research | 3 cr
Examines scholarly research as well as techniques for the development and assessment of philosophical arguments and positions. PHIL 201 recommended.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 290 | Special Topics in Philosophy | 1-4 cr
Selected topics in philosophy will be examined.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Yearly.
PHIL 302 | Topics in the History of Philosophy | 3 cr
Examination in depth of a selected figure, movement, or issue in the history of philosophy. Original sources in translation are studied. Research paper required. May repeat for credit.
Prerequisites: One PHIL course or consent of instructor.
PHIL 303 | Set Theory, Logic and Proof | 4 cr
Examines elementary propositional and predicate logic; language and axioms of set theory; operations on sets; well-orderings, ordinals, transfinite induction and recursion; cardinals; the axiom of choice; combinatorics; reading and writing of proofs in mathematics.
Cross-listed with: MATH 303.
Offered: Fall.
PHIL 305 | Philosophical Analysis | 3 cr
Examines topics in epistemology, philosophical logic, philosophy of language, and/or philosophic method. May repeat once with different topic.
Offered: Fall (even years).
PHIL 306 | Modern Political Philosophy | 3 cr
The works of modern political thinkers such as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill, Hegel, Marx and Nietzsche. Cross-listed with: POLS 306.
PHIL 307 | Contemporary Political Thought | 3 cr
Examines contemporary philosophical works including themes of the meaning of equality, liberty, autonomy, gender, race and community in contemporary society. Cross-listed with: POLS 307.
Prerequisites: One political science or philosophy course.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 312 | Philosophy of Science | 3 cr
Examines topics such as the nature of scientific methods and theories; explanation, prediction, confirmation, and reduction; the relations among the sciences, culture, and values; and science versus pseudoscience. May be repeated once for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 315 | Metaphysics | 3 cr
Examines topics relating to the fundamental nature of reality and of the human condition (e.g., freewill, mind/body, the meaning of life, etc.). May be repeated once for credit with different topic.
Offered: Spring (odd years).
PHIL 320 | Value Theory | 3 cr
Examines topics in moral theory or political theory or special issues such as relativism, science and morality, liberalism, Marxism, fascism, sexism, and human rights. May be repeated for credit with different content.
Prerequisites: PHIL 206 or consent of instructor.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 321 | Politics, Law, and Society | 3 cr
Examines how law and politics interact with personal and social identity, including race, gender, and class. Cross-listed with: POLS 321.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 325 | Social Philosophy | 3 cr
PHIL 328 | Ethics in the Criminal Justice System | 3 cr
An examination of ethical issues arising in connection with criminal justice in particular, punishment, legal and police ethics, and the justice of institutions associated with criminal justice.
Prerequisites: One course in PHIL, CRMJ 101, or consent of instructor.
PHIL 330 | Philosophy of Human Science | 3 cr
PHIL 331 | Philosophy of Popular Culture | 3 cr
Examines topics in popular culture such as the philosophy of film, the philosophy of sex and love, and the philosophy of zombies and vampires. May be repeated for credit with different topic.
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing.
Offered: Fall, Spring.
PHIL 340 | Bioethics | 3 cr
Examines moral conflicts that arise in the various fields associated with human biology. Analyze issues that physicians, patients, and policymakers confront in the provision of health care, the pursuit of medical research, and the allocation of finite health resources.
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or above.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 341 | Business Ethics | 3 cr
Examines business from the perspective of ethics and morals. Covers topics such as: environmentalism, financial incentives, affirmative action, globalization, conflicts of interests, and whistle-blowing.
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 342 | Environmental Ethics | 3 cr
Introduces the central questions of ethics as they relate to the environment and environmental issues.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 355 | Topics in Continental Thought | 3 cr
Introduces major thinkers and movements of contemporary Continental philosophy. Focuses on the work of Friedrich Nietzsch, Martin Heidegger, Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida.
Prerequisites: None.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 360 | History of Philosophy: Ancient | 3 cr
An examination of the philosophy of the Pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics and Epicureans, Skeptics and Cynics, and the Neoplatonists. Research paper required.
Prerequisites: One philosophy course or consent of instructor; Not open to students with credit in PHIL 260.
PHIL 361 | History of Philosophy: Early Modern | 3 cr
An examination of the philosophy of Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant, and their contemporaries. A research paper will be required. Not open to students with credit in PHIL 261.
Prerequisites: One philosophy course or consent of instructor.
Offered: Spring.
PHIL 490 | Special Topics in Philosophy | 1-4 cr
Selected topics in philosophy will be examined.
Prerequisites: 6 credits in philosophy or consent of instructor.
Offered: Occasionally.
PHIL 494 | Internship in Philosophy | 1-12 cr
Provides opportunities to serve as intern in a relevant organization to incorporate critical thinking and analysis. Increases awareness of the role of philosophy in public life.
Prerequisites: One philosophy course; junior standing; consent of instructor and department chair.
Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
PHIL 499 | Independent Study | 1-5 cr
Topics individually arranged.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and department chair.
Offered: Occasionally.