Course description

Title: Reading Seminar in Philosophy

Code:              xxxn9816

Teacher:         Gábor Kutrovátz

Institution:       ELTE

Term:              2008 spring

Course description:

In the form of a reading seminar, the course offers discussions on important passages from cenrtal texts in the history of Western philosophy. The selected texts, each discussed on separate occasions, provide insight into some of the fundamental historical problems of epistemology and ontology. Each text is introduced by individual student talks, followed by group discussions.

Assignment:

The grade is determined with equal weights by three factors:

· Introduction of 1-2 texts during the semester, depending on the number of participants

· Active attendance at course occasions

· Closing exam

Texts:

Parmenides: Fragments (Proemium)

Plato: Phaedo (70c – 77a)

Aristotle: Categories (Parts 2 – 6)

Augustine: Confessions  (Book 11, Sections 12 – 18)

René Descartes: Discourse on the Method of Reasoning (Parts II – IV)

John Locke: An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding  (Book I, Chapter I)

George Berkeley: A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge  (Book I, Paragraphs 1 – 40)

David Hume: An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding (Sections II – IV)

Immanuel Kant: The Critique of Pure Reason (Introduction)

Bertrand Russell: The Problems of Philosophy (Chapters 1, 2)

Ludwig Wittgenstein: Philosophical Investigations (Paragraphs 1 – 50)

All the texts will be available online.