History of Philosophy II
Module Code: PI2002
Module Name: History of Philosophy II
- ECTS Weighting: 15
- Semester/Term Taught: Michaelmas + Hilary Term
- Contact Hours: 44 hours of lecture and 11 hours of tutorial
- Module Personnel: Lecturers – Dr. Stefan Storrie, Dr. Manfred Weltecke, Dr. Georg Urich, Professor James Levine
Learning Outcomes
Having successfully completed this module, students will be able to:
- identify and critically evaluate the central elements of Kant's metaphysics and epistemology;
- identify and critically evaluate central arguments in Schopenhauer and Hegel;
- critically evaluate central features of the views of Marx and Nietzsche;
- critically assess the views of key analytic philosophers on questions of a priori knowledge and the status of metaphysics.
Module Content
This course continues the sequence of the history of western philosophy. Beginning with Kant, it moves through post–Kantian continental philosophy and on into analytic philosophy.
Component 1: Kant's Epistemology and Metaphysics – Dr. Stefan Storrie
This module will study Kant's important and difficult text The Critique of Pure Reason (1781) in detail. In particular we shall be focusing on his account of space and time, his account of the relation between a priori and empirical knowledge and his response to issues raised by the so–called rationalist and empiricist philosophers, e.g., the mind–body problem and the nature of the self, scepticism and the problem of causation.
Component 3: Schopenhauer and Hegel – Dr. Manfred Weltecke
In this part of the course we will first look at Hegel's and Schopenhauer's criticism of Kant's theoretical philosophy. While both thinkers admired Kant greatly they did not accept his claim that metaphysics is an impossible enterprise, each of them developing their own, albeit diametrically opposed, metaphysics.We shall then look in some detail at Hegel's views on the philosophy of history and Schopenhauer's metaphysics of the will and his pessimism. A knowledge of the basic ideas of the philosophies of Hegel and Schopenhauer is essential to put Marx and Nietzsche in their context. Both were deeply influenced by these philosophies, Marx in his own views on history and Nietzsche in his emphasis on the will over the intellect.
Component 3: Marx and Nietzsche – Dr. Georg Urich
The course traces the history of European philosophy in the mid and late ninteenth century, with a focus on Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche. While it is difficult to find two philosophers more different in stance or style, Marx and Nietzsche do share certain features. Both reject much of the philosophical thinking of the past, especially metaphysics, both attack religion, and both are highly critical of contemporary society. Instead, in Marx's historical materialism and Nietzsche's naturalistic outlook we find philosophy interpreted from an historical and evolutionary standpoint; both are outspoken athiests; and both advocate emancipation from oppressive forms of society and morality, promoting a utopian ideal instead: a new society (Marx's communist society) and a new man (Nietzsche's Übermench.
The discussion of Marx focuses on his early, most overtly philosophical writings&358; we will consider his contribution to a Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right, Introduction (1843) primarily for its critique of religion; On the Jewish Question (1843) for his views on central political notions such as freedom, justice, political emancipation, and human emancipation; and the Theses on Feuerbach (1845) which provide an overview of Marx's reaction to the philosophy of his day, particularly his rejection of existing versions materialism and idealism, as well as the development of historical materialism.
Of Nietzsche's works we will consider primarily his Gay Science (1882), a comparatively clear and calm work of critical reflections on moral behaviour and religious belief typical of his science–inspired middle period which is perhaps best known for the idea that 'God is dead' and the doctrine of eternal recurrence; and two later works, Beyond Good and Evil (1886) and On the Genealogy of Morals (1887), for his account of the origin of moral values and the notion of the will to power.
Component 4: Modern Analytic Philosophy – Professor James Levine
In this component we will focus on the work of major figures within the analytic tradition, including Bertrand Russell, G.E. Moore, Ludwig Wittgenstein, A.J. Ayer, Rudolph Carnap, and W.V. Quine. In doing so we will examine how these philosophers have differed on a number of central issues, including a priori knowledge, the status of metaphysics, and the role of philosophy.
Assessment Details
Students will be required to submit three essays for this component, comprising 50% of the overall grade. The annual examination accounts for 50% of the overall grade.