Early Modern Philosophy

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2016:

170 hours

Admission to fourth year Honours or the Graduate Diploma (Advanced) in the discipline of Philosophy.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject focuses on a careful study of one or more major works in the history of 17th and 18th century Continental European or British philosophy, such as Spinoza’s Ethics, Locke’s Essay concerning Human Understanding, Leibniz’s New Essays on Human Understanding, Hume’s Treatise of Human Nature, Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason.

Many of these texts aim to develop a systematic philosophical theory of the mind, the world, human understanding and/or the limitations of human understanding, human actions and passions. Through a close study of these texts we will be studying influential 17th and/or 18th century approaches to philosophy of mind, metaphysics, epistemology, moral psychology and/or ethics.

Our approach will be both philosophical and interpretive: our chief aim will be to understand the philosophical motivations the thinker(s) had, and to assess them. We will draw attention to responses by other 17th and 18th century philosophers and use comparisons to present-day philosophy wherever helpful.

Students who successfully complete this subject will:

• reflect critically upon early modern philosophy and influential 17th and/or 18th century approaches to philosophy of mind, metaphysics, epistemology, moral psychology and/or ethics;
• identify and analyze philosophical arguments in historical texts;
• interpret philosophical texts that were written in the 17th and/or 18th century, show awareness of different possible interpretations and learn to assess the strengths and weaknesses of different interpretations;
• write well-structured and well-argued research essays that explain and critically assess the relevant philosophical views and critically position their own interpretation in relation to other interpretations in the literature;
• articulate own responses to philosophical views, support them by reasons, and defend them in light of criticism.

• A short 1000 words essay, due mid semester (10%)
• A final 4000 words research essay, due at the end of the semester (90%)

Hurdle requirement:

• Students must attend a minimum of 75% of classes in order to pass this subject.
• All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Note: Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 2% per day. After five days late assessment will not be marked. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked.

All texts will be available online, a list of acceptable published versions will also be made available.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.