GPhilosophy 101: Dr. William O'Meara

http://falcon.jmu.edu/~omearawm/ph101syllabus.html

Fall, 2008, Phone: 540-568-6547.  Best Way to contact me is by e-mail: omearawm@jmu.edu

• O'Meara, The Continuing Quest          Google Search Engine

• O'Meara, Set of Lectures and Study Guides on line and also in Blackboard

I. Introduction to Philosophy: What is my basic commitment?

• August 25: Wilt’s class: The commitment of Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., to the Examined Way of Life and Non-Violence
• Self-Knowledge and the Values of Mahatma Gandhi
• Letter from a Birmingham Jail
• August 27: O'Meara's class: The basic commitment of Socrates to the examined way of life: Text, The Apology, pp 1-6.
• Philosophy 101: Goal
• First Paper in Class: The Abraham-Isaac Story
• August 29: O'Meara's class: Lecture on these Readings:
• Four Essential Points of World Religions and Philosophy, packet 5-7
• The four essential points of world religions and philosophy of beauty exemplified in Ancient Philosophy, packet 8-15
• Optional Readings
• The four essential points in several world religions
• Dr. O'Meara's Personal Essay on Self-Knowledge
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II. Morality: How do I explain my commitment to the moral value of the human person?

• A. Morality based on the desire for happiness: Moral values are what they are because they are the appropriate means to happiness.
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  • September 3:  O'Meara's class: Aristotle's development of the Socratic Commitment: Text 15, The Golden Mean
  • Text from Aristotle's Ethics with Lecture-Commentary, packet, 17-26
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  •  September 5: O'Meara's class: Mill's Development of the Socratic Commitment: Text 17, Utilitarianism
  • Lecture on the Ethics of Mill, packet 28-33

   

  • September 9: Wilt’s class: Study Guide Questions Due on Aristotle on Friendship as a Basis for Discussion
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  • September 11: Wilt’s  class: Continuation of Discussion
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  • September 15:  Wilt's class:  Objective Test on all material, excluding optional readings
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• B. Morality based on the dignity of the person as a rational being (not on the emotional desire for happiness): Moral values are what they are because they are the appropriate way to be truly rational and to respect the dignity of the person.

• September 17: O'Meara's class: Kant's development of the Socratic commitment: no reading in text
• Lecture One on Kant, packet 35-38
• First Two Moral Problems from Kant drawn from (Paper on Four Moral Problems from Kant, packet 47-49)
• September 19: O'Meara's class: Kant's development of the Socratic commitment: no reading in text
• Second Reading on Kant, packet 39-46
• Third and Fourth Moral Problems from Kant drawn from (Paper on Four Moral Problems from Kant, packet 47-49)
• September 23: Wilt’s class: Second Paper: Paper on a Virtue or Good Habit, packet p. 27
• September 25: Wilt’s Class: Third Paper: Paper on a Vice or Bad Habit, packet 34
• September 29: Wilt's class:

• Wilt’s class: Review of Kant and/or Drafting an Outline for Extra Credit Paper in Moral Philosophy

 

III. Determinism vs. Freedom of Choice: Am I determined or am I free in my commitments?

• A. Determinism: I am determined: Skinner's View

• October 1: O’Meara's class: Skinner: Text , Skinner-Rogers Debate, pp. 37-43
• Lecture on B.F. Skinner's Determinism 53-55  (Short paper in class on Skinner)
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·        October 3: Wilt’s class: Test on Kant’s Ethics

 

B. Determinism and Freedom: I am determined and free: Rogers' View

• October 7: Wilt's class: Carl Rogers: Text : Skinner-Rogers Debate, pp. 37-43
• Lecture on Carl Rogers' Concept of Determinism and Freedom, packet 57-60

·        October 9:  Wilt's Class: "I am Determined and Free" Sixth Paper on An Exemplification of Rogers' Theory, packet 59-60

• October 13: Holiday
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C. Freedom: I am free: Sartre's View

• October 15: O'Meara’s class Reading on Sartre, Text 25-31
• Lecture 1 on Sartre
• October 17: O'Meara's class
• Lecture 3 on Sartre, packet 65-68
• October 19: Wilt's class:  Freedom in Sartre's Play No Exit and/or Reading on Nietzsche, Text 44-47
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• October 21: Wilt's class Lecture 2 on Sartre, packet 61-6

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• October 23: Wilt’s class: Review of Determinism and Freedom and/or Drafting an Outline for Extra Credit Paper in Moral Philosophy
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• October 27: Wilt’s class: Test
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• IV. Religion: Is the commitment of religious belief reasonable?
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• Rationalism: Theory of Knowledge and Application to Knowledge of God

• Rationalism: Descartes' Method: Text 55-59
• October 29: O'Meara's class: Overview and Lecture on Descartes' Method of Knowledge, packet 93-97
• October 31: O'Meara's class Lecture on Descartes and Anselm, The Ontological Argument, packet 98-100
  • Read also Text, Anselm, 131-132
• November 5: O'Meara's class; Lecture on Thomas Aquinas's Second and Third Ways, packet, 108-118.

§ Read also Text on Aquinas, Text 133-136

Empiricism

• November 7: O'Meara's class:  Lecture on  (Lecture on Hume's Empiricism and the Causal Proof for God is in packet, 104-107)

  § Read also Text on Hume's Theory of Knowledge, Text 60-62

   

Study Guide Questions on Pragmatism and the Will to Believe from packet 136-14

James's Essay "The Will to Believe," packet 141-153

 

December 3: Extra Credit Paper due and O'Meara’s class: Written Paper in class on John Dewey and Religious Experience from packet, pp. 205-206

§Study Guide Questions on Dewey and Stace, packet 166-171

§Lecture on Dewey and Stace on Religious Experience, Religion , & Mysticism: Is God the Ideal Beauty of Morality that Motivates Humanity to Generous Commitment to all Humanity and the Cosmos, or Is God the Divine Being with Perfect Knowledge, Perfect Love, and Perfect Beauty? Packet 173-177

§Read Text for Dewey, 137-145 and text for Stace, 155-166 (The Stace reading in the text is the source for study guide questions on Stace)

• Existentialism vs. Rationalism and Empiricism

·         December 5: O'Meara's class: Lecture  for Beyond Toleration, packet 178-182 for Lecture "Beyond Toleration, packet 183-19   Read also Text: Polanyi, "Personal Knowledge" 74-80 and Text: Hick, Religious Faith  as Interpretation, 146-154

 

§ December 9: Wilt's class:  Students do as Homework for this class: Study Guide Questions on Dewey and Stace, packet 166-171

 

§ December 11: Wilt’s class: Review or Paper Written in class, assigned in form of a letter to one's parent(s), sibling, or friend, packet 199-200

 

§ December 15: Wilt’s class: Review or Paper Written in class, assigned in form of a letter to one's parent(s), sibling, or friend, packet 199-200·     December 17: Wilt's class: Review or Test or Optional Material from December 19

·         December 19: Wilt's class: Test or Optional Material:  Answers to Questions and Short Essay on Ways of Reasoning and Valuing, packet 191-198, on stages of aesthetic, cognitive, ethical, and religious reasoning and valuing

Grades: 7 Point Scale used by Dr. O'Meara at JMU:    Every paper and written assignment will have a number of points assigned to it.   Satisfactory completion of writing assignments and questions guarantees at least a C or a C+; results of tests can raise students into A or A- or B+ or B or B- grades are based on a seven point scale.   Extra credit writing assignment is possible.
Study guides are included in the WWW and in Blackboard for each lecture of the course.

See for general tips on writing papers:

§  How to get Better Grades on your Philosophy Papers (Martin Young) - a detailed guide!

§  How to Write a Philosophy Paper (Istvan Berkeley)

Attendance is required. Students who miss any class may be penalized.  Students who are late may be penalized. No late papers will be accepted unless the student has a reasonable excuse; a student with a reasonable excuse does not have to ask the teacher's prior approval for a late paper and will not be penalized when the student is ill the day before it is due or when other serious reasons prevent completing the assignment.