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GEHU 204 | Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Name

Fundamentals of Philosophy

Code	Semester	Theory (hour/week)	Application/Lab (hour/week)	Local Credits	ECTS
GEHU 204	Fall/Spring	3	0	3	6

Prerequisites	None
Course Language	English
Course Type	Service Course
Course Level	First Cycle
Mode of Delivery	-
Teaching Methods and Techniques of the Course	-
National Occupation Classification	-
Course Coordinator	-
Course Lecturer(s)	Yrd. Doç. Dr. Ali Özgür GÜRSOY
Assistant(s)	-

Course Objectives

To provide an introduction to the fundamental concepts and argumentative strategies of philosophy through an investigation of the question “What is a rational animal?” in relation to logic, epistemology, ethics, and political philosophy.

Learning Outcomes

The students who succeeded in this course;

will be able to understand and use basic concepts of logic, epistemology, ethics, and political philosophy.
will be able to acquire and sharpen critical reasoning and writing skills.
will be able to develop skills necessary for the close reading and analysis of texts in the humanities and the social sciences.
will be able to evaluate arguments in terms of their validity and the truth of their premises.
will be able to distinguish between consequentialist (utilitarian), deontological, and virtue ethical types of evaluation for human actions.
will be able to distinguish between descriptive and prescriptive propositions, and apply that distinction to the problem of justification of political authority.
will be able to familiarize themselves with classical and contemporary philosophical and literary texts.

Course Description

Course Category	Core Courses
	Major Area Courses
	Supportive Courses
	Media and Management Skills Courses
	Transferable Skill Courses

WEEKLY SUBJECTS AND RELATED PREPARATION STUDIES

Week	Subjects	Related Preparation	Learning Outcome
1	Presentation and overview of the course; discussion of how to begin philosophy by acknowledging that we have already begun.	Overview and discussion of a number of dilemmas and paradoxes.
2	Plato	Apology
3	What is an argument? The concepts of validity, truth and soundness. Types of justification; types of refutation: by parallel reasoning, counter-examples, reductio ad absurdum.	R. Fogelin, Understanding Arguments, pp 45-53 and pp. 405-433.
4	Fallacies of vacuity: circular reasoning, question-begging; fallacies of relevance: ad hominem, straw man, false cause, appeals to authority	Fogelin, pp. 477-405
5	The Chinese Room Argument: Can Computers think? Discussion of artificial intelligence.	Turing, A., 1948, ‘Intelligent Machinery: A Report’, London: National Physical Laboratory; Searle, J., 1980, ‘Minds, Brains and Programs’, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 3: 417–57
6	MIDTERM
7	Introduction to epistemology	Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy, Meditation 1 and 2
8	Skepticism, sources of knowledge, methodic doubt, certainty as epistemic criterion, the cogito as first principle and model of	Descartes, Meditations 2 (contn’d) and 3
9	Philosophy and science: the thinking subject as embodied being subject to the laws of nature. FIRST PAPER DUE	Janet Richards, Human Nature After Darwin, pp. 4-25 FIRST PAPER DUE
10	Evolutionary biology as philosophical challenge and answer to the question “What is a rational animal?”	Richards, pp. 25-51
11	Determinism, freedom of the will, morality as a scientific problem and science as a moral problem	Richards, pp. 126-154
12	Consequentialism (Utilitarianism) and Deontology: arguments and criticisms	Kant, pp. 274-281; Bennett, pp. 294-306; Bentham, pp. 306-312; Williams pp. 339-345; M. L. K. Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail.
13	Moral Psychology and Perspectivism.	Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Morals, essays I and II.
14	The responsibilities and the problems of rational thought; the rational animal and the polis.	Aristotle, Politics, Bk. 1 1986-2000; Locke, 249-253; Bentham and Mill, 270-274 Levi, If This is a Man.
15	Week 14 cont’d. SECOND PAPER DUE.	Levi, Contn’d.
16	Final

Course Notes/Textbooks
Suggested Readings/Materials

EVALUATION SYSTEM

Semester Activities	Number	Weigthing
Participation
Laboratory / Application
Field Work
Quizzes / Studio Critiques	1	35
Portfolio
Homework / Assignments	1	30
Presentation / Jury
Project
Seminar / Workshop
Oral Exams
Midterm	1	35
Final Exam
Total

Weighting of Semester Activities on the Final Grade	3	100
Weighting of End-of-Semester Activities on the Final Grade
Total

ECTS / WORKLOAD TABLE

Semester Activities	Number	Duration (Hours)	Workload
Theoretical Course Hours (Including exam week: 16 x total hours)	16	3	48
Laboratory / Application Hours (Including exam week: '.16.' x total hours)	16		0
Study Hours Out of Class	16	3	48
Field Work			0
Quizzes / Studio Critiques	1		0
Portfolio			0
Homework / Assignments	1		0
Presentation / Jury			0
Project			0
Seminar / Workshop			0
Oral Exam			0
Midterms	1	20	20
Final Exam		22	0
		Total	116

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND PROGRAM QUALIFICATIONS RELATIONSHIP

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#	PC Sub	Program Competencies/Outcomes	* Contribution Level
			1	2	3	4	5

*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest

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