PHL2110

Origins of modern philosophy

Elizabeth Prior Jonson and Richard Hanley

8 points
* 3 hours per week
* Second semester
* Clayton, Caulfield, Peninsula, Berwick
* Prerequisites: A first-year sequence in philosophy
* The department proposes to offer PHL2110 in flexible delivery mode to students on any campus in any semester. If you are interested in taking this subject in flexible delivery mode, please contact the department.

Objectives On completing the subject students will have a grasp of some main topics in metaphysics and epistemology discussed by the great philosophers of the early modern period. They should then be in a better position to understand contemporary philosophical work in these areas. This should serve as a sound foundation for more advanced work in both the history of philosophy and contemporary epistemology and metaphysics.

Synopsis This subject aims to provide an introduction to the main issues in metaphysics and epistemology. Topics to be covered include scepticism, perceptual knowledge, language and meaning, concepts of substance, identity and causation, minds and persons. The discussion of these topics will be introduced through the work of the major rationalist and empiricist philosophers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries - especially Descartes, Locke and Hume - but the emphasis will be on issues of contemporary relevance.

Assessment on-campus Two essays (2000- 2500 words each): 40% each
* One 1-hour examination: 20%
* One essay may optionally be replaced by a two-hour examination.
Assessment flexible-mode Two essays (2000 words each): 30% each
* Two exercises: 10% each
* One 1-hour examination: 20%
* Full details of the assessment, which conforms to the Keller Plan, will be provided at the commencement of the course.

Prescribed texts

Descartes R (tr. J Cottingham) Meditations on first philosophy CUP
Hume D A treatise of human nature: Book one Penguin
A collection of readings available from the Monash Bookshop and on reserve in the Sir Louis Matheson Library

PHL2110

Origins of modern philosophy

Aubrey Townsend and others

8 points
* 3 hours per week
* Berwick
* Prerequisites: A first-year sequence in philosophy

Objectives On completing the subject students will have a grasp of some main topics in metaphysics and epistemology discussed by the great philosophers of the early modern period. They should then be in a better position to understand contemporary philosophical work in these areas. This should serve as a sound foundation for more advanced work in both the history of philosophy and contemporary epistemology and metaphysics.

Synopsis This subject aims to provide an introduction to the main issues in metaphysics and epistemology. Topics to be covered include scepticism, perceptual knowledge, language and meaning, concepts of substance, identity and causation, minds and persons. The discussion of these topics will be introduced through the work of the major rationalist and empiricist philosophers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries - especially Descartes, Locke and Hume - but the emphasis will be on issues of contemporary relevance.

Assessment on-campus Two essays (2000- 2500 words each): 40% each
* One 1-hour examination: 20%
* One essay may optionally be replaced by a two-hour examination.
Assessment flexible mode Two essays (2000 words each): 30% each
* Two exercises: 10% each
* One 1-hour examination: 20%
* Full details of the assessment, which conforms to the Keller Plan, will be provided at the commencement of the course.

Prescribed texts

Descartes R (tr. J Cottingham) Meditations on first philosophy CUP
Hume D A treatise of human nature: Book one Penguin
A collection of readings available from the Monash Bookshop