Key facts

Type	Weekly Classes
Location	Gerrards Cross
Address	Gerrards Cross Memorial Centre East Common Gerrards Cross Bucks SL9 7AD
Dates	Wed 9 Jan to Wed 20 Mar 2013 Day: Wednesday Time of meeting: 2.00-4.00pm Number of meetings: 10
Subject area(s)	Philosophy
CATS points	10
Fees	From £145.00
Application status	Course cancelled
Course code	E12P555PHW
Course contact	If you have any questions about this course, please email ppweekly@conted.ox.ac.uk.

Overview

Do old philosophers still matter? What impact, if any, do they have on how we respond to contemporary social questions? This course traces the history of modern European philosophy investigating some key ideas that continue to shape our world.

Description

The development of European thought since the Enlightenment has been so rapid and revolutionary so that it is not easy to see how ideas like queer theory and postmodernism can be linked to medieval thinking at all. Yet the enormous scope and range of ideas which inform contemporary Western culture and politics have largely evolved from a common European heritage.

This course works either as a stand alone unit or as a practical application of the subjects studied in the course 'Introduction to Continental Philosophy'. Using various media and working through a combination of lectures, quizzes, private reading and discussion we will excavate the history of European ideas to uncover the structural foundations of some of our modern attitudes and approaches to the world. The aim is to develop an understanding of how particular European philosophers and philosophies have formed our contemporary outlook.

Programme details

Week 1: The birth of the modern subject
Week 2: Empiricism and rationalism
Week 3: Dialectic and the form of thinking
Week 4: Nihilism & atheism
Week 5: Materialism & economics
Week 6: Psychology and sex
Week 7: Relationship to the lived environment
Week 8: Time and modern life
Week 9: Thinking after Hitler
Week 10: Political and social exclusions

Background Reading:

William McNeil & Karen S. Feldman (eds.),Continental Philosophy: An Anthology
Anthony Kenny, The Rise of Modern Philosophy
Anthony Kenny, Philosophy in the Modern World
William R. Schroeder, Continenal Philosophy: a critical approach
Robert C. Solomon, Continental Philosophy since 1750
Richard Kearney, Modern Movements in European Philosophy

Staff

Course aims

Course Aim:
to introduce participants to the history of modern European philosophy and its continuing relevance

Course Objecitves:

1. To understand how modern Westerners have been formed by the history of European thinking.
2. To familiarise particiapnts with key philosophers and texts.
3. To provide a forum for discussion of contemporary philosophical questions.

Assessment methods

Either short (500 word) reports on two of the themes
or an essay of 1,000 words
or a 15-20 minute presentation to the group with background notes (c. 1000 words)

Teaching methods

Lectures, quizzes, discussions. Students will be asked to read a short philosophical text before class each week. After an introduction to the topic by the tutor, students will be encouraged to take part in open debate. There will be a handout for each class.

Teaching outcomes

By the end of the course partipants should be able to
1. recognise the ideological significance of several key European philosophers
2. trace the philosophical background to some contemporary social and political debates

Fee options

Programme Fee

EU Fee: £145.00

Non-EU Fee: £145.00

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