Introduction to Philosophy
This course covers a variety of topics in philosophy as considered by notable western philosophers.
It's perfect for all students who want an introduction to the "big questions"!
The schedule will be based on student interests.
The Meaning of Life
Richard Taylor's "The Meaning of Life"
http://faculty.smu.edu/jkazez/mol12/Taylor.pdf
Thomas Nagel's "The Absurd"
https://philosophy.as.uky.edu/sites/default/files/The%20Absurd%20-%20Thomas%20Nagel.pdf
Susan Wolf's "The Meanings of Lives" (NOTE: the essay ends on page 25 and a new essay begins on the next page.)
http://philosophy.umassd.wikispaces.net/file/view/Wolf,+'The+Meanings+of+Lives'.pdf
God
Aquinas' Summa Theologica "Article 3: Whether God exists?"
http://www.newadvent.org/summa/1002.htm
William Paley's "The Watchmaker Argument"
http://homepages.wmich.edu/~mcgrew/PaleyWatch.pdf
Bertrand Russell's "Why I am Not a Christian"
http://www.users.drew.edu/~jlenz/whynot.html
The Mind
Bertrand Russell's "Death as the Final Event of the Self"
http://www.personal.kent.edu/~rmuhamma/Philosophy/RBwritings/deathFinalEvent.htm
Derek Parfit's "Divided Minds and the Nature of Persons" (Once you open the link, click on "Download from Archive" and this will give you the PDF.)
http://philpapers.org/rec/PARDMA
David Dennett's "Where Am I?"
http://www.lehigh.edu/~mhb0/Dennett-WhereAmI.pdf
Knowledge
Renee Descartes' Meditations I and II
http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/texts/descartes/meditations/meditation.html
George Berkeley's A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Understanding, Nos. 1-4, 17-20, 23 & 24 (Make sure you scroll down past the introduction.)
http://18theserver.org/berkeley.html
Edmund Gettier's "Is Justified True Belief Knowledge?"