ALL second- and third-level courses are assessed by one two-hour examination (50% weighting) and coursework (50% weighting), unless otherwise indicated.
Each second / third-level course carries 6 credits, except for PHIL3910 SENIOR THESIS which earns 12 credits.
Courses offered in the first semester will be examined in December 2000 and courses offered in the second semester will be examined around May 2001.
Lecturer : Dr Martin
This course will examine some of the main problems in epistemology arising from the traditional analysis of knowledge and belief. We will look at several theories which link knowledge with certainty, reason, and experience and note the difficulties each has in dealing with the challenge of skepticism. Then we will look at some of the current naturalistic analyses of knowledge to see if they fare any better. Readings will be drawn from historical as well as contemporary sources and will include selections from Descartes, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, C.I. Lewis, A. J. Ayer, G.E. Moore, W.V. Quine, Hilary Putnam and others.
Lecturer : Dr James
Charles Darwin's theory of evolution had a huge impact on the way we think about mankind's place in the world. In this course we will discuss some of the philosophical consequences of this impact. No previous knowledge of the theory is required as we will begin with a critical introduction to its development and main features. Later in the course we will also consider the contemporary debate concerning the scope and limits of evolutionary theory.
Lecturer : Dr Ci
Metaphysics concerns the existence of everything in the universe and the possibility of explaining it. As such, it is inseparable from epistemology, which concerns the nature of knowledge of existence. This course covers both the nature of existence and the nature of knowledge of it and treats the two questions as intrinsically connected. We shall examine a number of important theories of metaphysics, as well as anti-metaphysics, including those of Plato, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Nietzsche, and Heidegger. We will treat these theories not only as representing different views on metaphysics but also as forming a logical order of development. The gist of this development is well captured by Heidegger, according to whom (in the words of Richard Rorty), ``if you begin with Plato's motives and assumptions you will end up with some form of pragmatism.'' With Heidegger and Rorty as approximate guides, we will trace the philosophical trajectory from Plato's metaphysics to Nietzsche's and Heidegger's anti-metaphysics.
Preparatory reading :
Lecturer : Dr Perry
This course will discuss some of the philosophical issues which arise when we think about art and beauty. We will be asking what is involved in appreciating beauty (or indeed ugliness) in art or nature. Artworks have been said to represent things and/or to express emotion. We will be discussing what it is for a work of art (for example, a painting or a photograph) to represent something, and what it is for a work of art (for example, a piece of music) to express emotion. We will be looking at reasons why we value art and beauty - is it because art and beauty have some ethical significance? We will be asking why we devalue forged artworks and discussing whether censorship of works of art is ever justified.
Lecturer : Professor Hansen
We study the Classical Chinese view of reality, human nature, language, wisdom and the theory of dao. We will first review the metaphysical assumptions of Confucius and Mencius, then discuss the school of names. The focus will be on the Laozi and the Zhuangzi and the metaphysical concepts and arguments that informed their theories. Finally we will briefly survey Neo-Daoist, Buddhist and Neo-Confucian metaphysical developments.
A set of ten possible examination questions will be distributed in advance of examinations.
Preparatory Reading:
Lecturer : Dr Perry
What is it about you that makes you you? Is it the fact that you have the particular body you have, or the fact that you have a particular mind or soul? This course looks at these and other responses to the question of what it is for you to be the same person today as you were yesterday, or as the day you were born. We will be asking why selfhood is important to human individuals and discussing the view that the notion of selfhood ought to be to be understood in terms of an individual's relations to others. We will also be asking whether conceptions of the self vary across cultures.
Lecturer : Dr Perry and Dr James
What makes us different from other animals? One answer is that we are unique in possessing Minds. In this course we will explore some of the characteristic capacities which we enjoy in virtue of having a Mind - capacities to perceive the world, to conceptualize it, capacities to reason and feel. We will also critically assess some suggestions from evolutionary psychology as to how and why these capacities may have evolved.
Lecturers : Dr Lau
Although our sciences have given us a lot of knowledge about the universe and the world we are in, the nature of our own mind remains an area about which we know very little. Cognitive science is the science of the mind and it is an exciting area which has undergone tremendous development in recent years. By building computational models and studying the neurobiology of the brain, cognitive scientists help us better understand how the mind works. But some people argue that certain mental phenomena, such as thinking and consciousness, can never be explained using scientific methods. Others argue that it is a matter of time before we can build robots and computers that think and behave as we do. In this course we shall discuss these and other related philosophical debates.
This is a compulsory course for Cognitive Science students, but it is also suitable for all other students who are interested in finding out how the mind works.
Lecturer : Dr Lau
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for course description.
Lecturer : Dr Ci
All of us care about justice but perhaps you seldom pause to reflect on the nature of justice and the many difficult issues which justice raises. This course introduces you to these issues and systematic ways of thinking about them. In a nutshell, justice is concerned with the question, How should the benefits and burdens of social cooperation be distributed among members of society under conditions of scarcity and conflicting values? Or, as Serge-Christophe Kolm puts it, ``What should be done when different people's desires or interests oppose one another and cannot all be fully satisfied? Justice is the justified answer to this question and its science is the theory of justice.'' We will think about this question at two levels: the distribution of fundamental rights and duties in the basic structure of society; and the distribution of goods in particular domains, such as health care. Since controversy abounds at both levels, we will discuss and compare a variety of positions, including those of John Rawls, Brian Barry, Amartya Sen, Ronald Dworkin, Robert Nozick, Serge-Christophe Kolm, Norman Daniels, and Francis Kamm. We will also consider whether, and to what degree, Western theories of justice such as these are useful for thinking about issues of justice in Hong Kong and the PRC at large.
Preparatory reading :
Lecturers : Dr Ci and Dr Martin
This course will deal with practical problems that give rise to moral controversies. Questions such as the following will be addressed: ``Should people be treated equally, and in what sense?''; ``Is homosexual behaviour right or wrong?''; ``Is abortion morally acceptable, and should it be legally permitted?''; ``Should pornography, or certain types of it, be banned?''; ``Can capital punishment be justified?''; ``Is it right to take affirmative action in favour of groups that have been discriminated against in the past?"; "Should terminally ill and suffering patients be helped to die if that is what they request?''; ``What is the basis and content of human rights?''. These are all questions that have important implications for public policy, but we shall also consider ethical issues, such as sexual morality, that we face in our everyday lives.
Lecturer : Professor Hansen
We set the scene by considering Confucius famous argument against rule of law. Then we survey historical theories of law (Chinese and Western) to see what moral and political presuppositions we need to justify the rule of law. These then guide our review of the question of how we ought to reason in interpreting the law, and, finally, to draw the implications of a theory of law in evaluating punishment, rights, justice, insanity, and negligence. This course should train you in how to analyze arguments about rule of law in Hong Kong and China.
A set of ten possible examination questions will be distributed in advance of examinations.
Preparatory Readings :
Lecturer : Dr Bell
What moral obligations do we have towards each other ? Which ones are matters of public responsibility, to be enforced through governmental institutions ? Liberal philosophers, whatever their differences, typically insist upon the importance of drawing a sharp boundary between private and public responsibilities: the government has an obligation to provide a fair framework for individuals to lead freely chosen lives, but it should stay out of the business of promoting other kinds of responsibilities such as family and religious obligations. This brand of liberalism has become the dominant political philosophy in contemporary Western liberal democracies.
Liberal philosophy, however, is not without its critics. Feminists oppose the way liberal theorists tend to focus on legal discrimination, ignoring the deeper causes of women's oppression in social and family life. Marxists oppose the way liberal theorists tend to focus on ``formal'' civil and political rights, ignoring the deeper causes of inequality in capitalist societies. Communitarian theorists argue that liberalism is overly individualistic, and that it neglects the value of community. Non-Western critics, particularly in East Asia, criticize the liberal tradition of universalistic moral reasoning, which typically draws only on the moral aspirations and political practices found in Western societies and ignores the contributions of non-Western cultural traditions.
Following a brief survey of the arguments of contemporary liberal theorists such as John Rawls, this course will focus on feminist, Marxist, communitarian, and East Asian alternatives to Western liberalism.
Preparatory Reading:
Lecturers : Dr Ci and Professor Hansen
This survey of philosophy of religion will have three parts :
A set of ten possible examination questions will be distributed in advance of examinations.
Preparatory Readings:
Lecturer : Dr Bell
Philosophy, it has been said, is a series of footnotes to Plato. This course will focus on several of Plato's classic works, including the Apology, the Phaedo, the Symposium, and The Republic.
Lecturers : Dr James, Dr. Perry, Professor Hansen
The Senior Seminar provides an opportunity for third year students who have shown philosophical talent, as well as for first year postgraduate students, to pursue topics through intensive discussion. The choice of texts or topics, the assessment method, and the overall theme, if any, will be determined at the beginning of the course in light of the interests of the participants. Enrolment restricted (normally by invitation).
Assessment: 100% coursework
A thesis may be prepared under supervision for submission not later than March 31 of the final year. Notice of intention to offer a thesis must be given before June 15 of the second year, and this intention will be confirmed or modified on the supervisor's advice by the end of the first week of the first semester of the final year, after the candidate has had the opportunity to do and submit preliminary work over the summer vacation. The thesis will earn twelve credits. Only students majoring in philosophy may offer a thesis.
Assessment will be based entirely on the completed thesis.