Philosophy (PHIL)

This is a list of the Philosophy (PHIL) courses available at KPU.

For information about transfer of credit amongst institutions in B.C. and to see how individual courses transfer, go to the BC Transfer Guide bctransferguide.ca

PHIL 11003 Credits

Introduction to Philosophy

Students will study central topics in the major areas of philosophy. They will examine a variety of philosophical perspectives on issues such as mind-body problem, the nature of reality, the limits of human knowledge, morality and moral judgement, and the justification of religious beliefs.

PHIL 11013 Credits

Philosophy, Culture, and Identity

Students will be introduced, through literary and philosophical works, to issues connected with how the modern identity is formed and how it is constituted in Western culture.

PHIL 11103 Credits

Confronting Moral Issues: Introduction to Ethics

Students will consider the meaning and justification of moral judgment by examining various views on whether or not morality has an objective basis. They will be introduced to leading theories of ethical conduct and will learn to apply these theories to contemporary moral problems and workplace situations.

PHIL 11113 Credits

Sustainability: Analysis and Ethics

Students will study elements of traditional philosophy courses such as critical thinking, philosophy of science, and ethics to provide a detailed analysis of a variety of concepts of sustainability. They will examine sustainability policies and practices related to the environment, social equity, and economics.

Note: This course is cross-listed with POST 1100. Students may not get credit for both courses.

PHIL 11123 Credits

Environmental Ethics

Students will examine central problems in environmental ethics. They will investigate the philosophical implications of various views about humans' relationship to nature, and consider topics such as the extent of our obligations to non-human animals, to the environment, and to future generations.

PHIL 11453 Credits

Critical Thinking

Students will study the process of argument reconstruction and evaluation. They will focus on skills necessary that will enable them to distinguish argumentative from non-argumentative writing, rationally persuasive from rhetorically persuasive arguments, and strong from weak arguments. Students will be expected to analyze arguments from a variety of contexts such as newspaper editorials, advertising and surveys.

PHIL 11503 Credits

Introduction to Formal Logic

Students will study the basic techniques of formal deductive logic. They will learn the semantics and syntax of two artificial languages-sentential logic ( SL ) and predicate logic ( PL )-with emphasis given to the former. With the aid of the formal techniques learned in this course, students will gain insight into the nature of rational argument and sound reasoning.

Attributes: QUAN

PHIL 11553 Credits

Introduction to Scientific Reasoning

Students will examine the methodology behind arguments and experimentation in science, including the careful analysis of data, measurement of probability, and the formulation of various explanatory hypotheses. In so doing, they will become familiar, not only with how scientists go about their work, but with the philosophical foundations of scientific reasoning.

Attributes: QUAN

PHIL 21063 Credits

Ancient Greek Philosophy

Students will examine the philosophical developments in ancient Greece that gave rise to Western Philosophy, with particular emphasis on one or more of Socrates, Plato or Aristotle.

PHIL 21073 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 1107)

Modern Philosophy: Descartes to Kant

Students will study some of the major philosophical texts from the modern period, beginning from the time of Descartes. They will apply methods of philosophical analysis to these texts in the exploration of epistemological, metaphysical, ethical and social-political questions.

Prerequisites: 3 credits from courses in PHIL

PHIL 21103 Credits

Moral Theory

Students will examine some of the major normative ethical theories. They will study classic works representing the major ethical traditions, including virtue theory, deontology, social contract theory, and utilitarianism. They will examine concepts such as duty, virtue, well-being or happiness, and right action. Students will obtain a critical grasp of these ethical theories and concepts by reading classic works.

Prerequisites: 3 credits from courses in PHIL

PHIL 21153 Credits

Asian Philosophy

Students will critically examine selected representative schools of philosophy in Asian traditions, including Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Zen Buddhism. They will explore such topics as reality, self, knowledge, ethics, and death.

PHIL 21173 Credits

Social and Political Philosophy

Students will examine selected central problems in social and political philosophy. They will investigate such topics as the justification of the state, the tension between individual freedom and social constraint, and theories of social justice.

PHIL 21203 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 1120)

Philosophy of Religion

Students will examine arguments for and against the existence of God, as well as other traditional problems of theology, from a philosophical perspective. In the course of such examinations, they will use both classic and contemporary sources.

PHIL 22103 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 1210)

Epistemology

Students will study traditional themes in epistemology. Using classical and contemporary readings, they will examine problems related to the justification of beliefs, the nature of truth, and theories describing the foundations of knowledge.

Prerequisites: 3 credits from courses in PHIL or permission of the instructor

PHIL 22153 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 1211)

Metaphysics

Students will study some of the main traditional topics of metaphysics. Using classical and contemporary readings, they will investigate problems related to mind-body interactionism, space and time, free will and fatalism, and theories of reality and truth.

Prerequisites: 3 credits from courses in PHIL or permission of the instructor

PHIL 30103 Credits

Health Care Ethics

Students will study various ethical and meta-ethical theories and will apply them to moral dilemmas in health care at the clinical, professional, and organizational levels. They will analyze various case studies that will help them develop competence in moral reasoning as it relates to personal, professional, and societal values-including (but not restricted to) the abortion and euthanasia debates, patient autonomy and the right to refuse treatment, two-tier health care, allocation of scarce resources, patient abuse and management of patient behaviour, alternative therapies, and the patient-caregiver relationship.

Note: This course is intended for the Bachelor of Psychiatric Nursing and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing. It will not count as upper-level PHIL credits for Philosophy BA degree programs.

Prerequisites: 45 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher

PHIL 30333 Credits
(Formerly ENTR 3033)

Business Ethics

Students will study various ethical and meta-ethical theories, and will apply them in standard business contexts -- such as employer-employee relations, risk analysis, occupational and product safety, environmental protection, and multinational practices. Students will acquire the tools to allow them to make ethical business decisions.
Note: This course is intended for BBA students. It will not count as upper-level PHIL credits for Philosophy BA programs.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher

PHIL 30403 Credits

Philosophy of Art

Students will investigate central questions about the nature and value of art (e.g., painting, sculpture, music, literature, and film). They will critically examine attempts to answer questions such as the following: What is art? Is there a difference between aesthetic judgments and mere judgments of taste or subjective preference? What is beauty? Should moral considerations affect our evaluations of art?

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31003 Credits

Great Philosophers of the 20th Century

Students will examine the life, work, and influence of one or more notable 20th Century philosopher(s). They will apply principles of rhetoric and philosophical analysis through close reading of selected texts, informed discussion, and formal writing.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31013 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 2101)

20th Century Analytic Philosophy

Students will acquire a detailed historical and conceptual framework for the assessment of 20th Century philosophical analysis. They will study issues raised by Russell and others near the beginning of the 20th Century. Students will then consider the historical and conceptual unfolding of various alternative approaches to these issues by later 20th Century analytical philosophers. They will focus on a technical examination of concepts such as: truth, reference, description, and meaning.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31053 Credits

Life and Death

Students will study various ethical and metaphysical issues surrounding human existence and mortality. In particular, they will investigate the two central questions, "What is a good life?" and "Is death bad for the person who dies?" Using a variety of philosophical sources, they may also examine a number of related issues, including the possibility of life after death, the relationship between personal identity and immortality, the reasons why killing is generally considered wrong, and the moral status of abortion, euthanasia, and suicide.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31093 Credits

Foundations in Ethics

Students will investigate central questions about the nature and foundations of ethical judgement. They will examine a variety of perspectives on such issues as the objectivity and prescriptivity of moral judgement.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31103 Credits

The Possibility of Knowledge

Students will investigate central questions about the nature and foundations of epistemic judgement. They will examine a variety of perspectives on such issues as the justification of knowledge claims and the internalism/externalism debate in epistemology.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL, or permission of the instructor

PHIL 31183 Credits

Ethics and Public Policy

Students will critically examine ethical issues in public policy through readings in classic and/or contemporary texts. They will consider topics such as policy governing life and death, sex and reproduction, freedom of speech, punishment, and the environment.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from PHIL.

PHIL 31193 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 2119)

Contemporary Moral Theory

Students will consider selected problems associated with various philosophical approaches to morality. They will investigate standard moral perspectives such as Utilitarianism, Kantianism, Contractarianism, Feminist Ethics, and Virtue Theory, in order to assess their philosophical strengths and weaknesses by introducing theoretical as well as practical considerations.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from PHIL.

PHIL 31203 Credits

Free Will and Determinism

Students will examine the philosophical problems involved in assigning moral responsibility in a world governed by causes which are, ultimately, outside of our control. Using both classic and contemporary sources, they will evaluate the reasoning behind deterministic theories that deny the reality of free will, claiming that all events, including human actions, have prior causes that render them inevitable.

Prerequisites: 18 credits from courses at the 1100 level or higher, including 3 credits from courses in PHIL

PHIL 31503 Credits
(Formerly PHIL 1250)

Advanced Formal Logic

Students will be introduced to contemporary symbolic logic. They will gain a working understanding of some symbolic languages, propositional logic and first-order predicate logic. Students will also discuss syntax and semantics at an elementary level, and soundness and completeness of first-order logical systems will be proved.

Prerequisites: Either (a) PHIL 1150 or (b) Level C1 as defined in the Math Alternatives Table

Attributes: QUAN

PHIL 32203 Credits

Empiricism

Students will study the motivations and influence of empiricism-the epistemological theory that genuine information about the world must be acquired by a posteriori or experiential means, so that nothing can be thought without first being sensed. They will analyze and compare the views of prominent empiricists such as Francis Bacon, John Locke, George Berkeley, David Hume, and John Stuart Mill.