Philosophy

Philosophy approaches big questions — what is consciousness? does God exist? are all values just subjective or cultural? what is justice? — through close reading and analysis of historical and contemporary texts, careful reasoning, sophisticated writing, and vigorous discussion in and out of the classroom. Students who pursue either our B.A. or minor develop strong critical thinking and communication skills and an ability to step back and analyze situations and issues from many perspectives.

Because philosophy is an inherently inter-disciplinary field, it helps students engage more deeply in whatever else they study and so to be a real part of the larger community of the University. Our faculty all themselves have multi-disciplinary backgrounds, allowing them to teach classes on topics such as philosophy of mind, philosophy of biology, feminist ethics, and political philosophy, and to contribute to programs in Sustainability Studies, Cognitive Science, Women and Gender Studies, and Religious Studies. Because of its breadth, the Philosophy minor complements just about any major, and many of our majors double major in other fields ranging from physics to biology to psychology to English.