Graduate Courses

Winter 2024

PHIL 673/CLAS 461/PHIL 403 — SEM 001 Cosmology: Plato to Galileo

PHIL 673/PHIL 675/ PHIL 452 — SEM 002 Social Epistemology: Conspiracy Theories

This discussion-based course will offer a deep dive into philosophical work on conspiracy theories.  We will discuss how to define “conspiracy theory”; whether it’s rational to believe in conspiracy theories; and what, if anything, we should do about the recent apparent rise in conspiracy theorising.  Throughout this topic, one particular challenge comes from the fact that some conspiracies (Watergate, Julius Caesar’s assassination, etc) are real.  Students will be required to do close and collaborative reading of texts, oral presentations, and a substantial final essay.

PHIL 673/PHIL 402/GSJ 402 — SEM 003 Feminist Standpoint Theory

Standpoint theorists have had much to say about the harms imposed on those who are socially marginalized as knowers but, by contrast with ‘deficit’ theories, their emphasis has been on the epistemic resources, resilience, and insights that can arise from the situated experience of oppression. This orientation has been influential as a rationale for “starting inquiry from the margins” in the social sciences and as a framework in science studies for understanding the impact of transformative critique on scientific inquiry. 

PHIL 674/676 — Reproductive Ethics

PHIL 680B- Autonomy

Autonomy is a contested concept that is at the heart of debates in metaphysics, moral psychology, moral philosophy, political philosophy, medical ethics, feminist philosophy, the philosophy of disability, and more. In this course, we will explore the nature and value of autonomy and consider the role in plays in a wide range of sub-disciplines of philosophy. PHIL 680 is also the departmental ‘pro-seminar’, so philosophical discussions of autonomy will be combined with professional development topics including applying for funding, presenting work at conferences, publishing, and the job market.