Full-Time Faculty: John Zeis, Chair; George Boger, Marianne Djuth, Michael J. Forest, Shaun A. Gallagher, Ladislaus F. Juhasz, S.J., John E. Kelly, Janice L. Schultz-Aldrich, Stanley L. Vodraska.

The objective of the philosophy program is to develop reflective and analytical skills to help students understand, articulate, and evaluate the values, principles, and assumptions on which major individual and social decisions rest.

By studying the perennial issues of 2500 years of philosophy and analyzing the underlying philosophical issues facing today’s persons and societies, students can attain perspective, knowledge, and skills important to anyone who expects to make significant personal, professional, or public decisions. In view of this, the Canisius College core curriculum includes three courses in philosophy: Introduction to Philosophy (PHI 101) and two other courses selected from Area V.

Further study of philosophy – as a major program, as a minor program, as half of a dual major, or as an elective concentration – is a good preparation for students with personal or professional goals in business, law, medicine, religion, government, or education. For example, a well-designed philosophy program can serve as an excellent undergraduate component in Canisius College’s Dual Degree program, which leads to the M.B.A. or M.B.A.P.A. degree (see pages 120-120). Coupled with the appropriate pre-professional concentration, philosophy provides a strong undergraduate preparation for subsequent professional training in law, medicine, or theology or for certain civil service positions in state or federal government.

With the approval and assistance of the chair of the Department of Philosophy, the major program in philosophy can be tailored to the needs and plans of the individual student. Some recommendations geared to specific career plans can be found in the chart at right. Normally, programs will include courses in the central issues of philosophy, the history of philosophy, some major philosophers, and ethics. Seminar experience is an ordinary part of a philosophy program.

Admission

Admission to the major program in philosophy is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of PHI 101 and two additional courses in philosophy with a grade of C. The approval of the Department of Philosophy is required.

Philosophy Curriculum:

1.	ENG 101, ENG 102, PHI 101, RST 101	(4 courses)	(12)
2.	Area Studies: Two courses from each of these areas: I, II, III, IV, VI, VII, VIII	(14 courses)	(42)
3.	Major course requirements:	(12 courses)
	PHI 300	Logic	(3)
	PHI 340	Ethics	(3)
	PHI 350	Ancient Philosophy	(3)
	PHI 352	Medieval Philosophy	(3)
	PHI 354	Modern Philosophy I	(3)
	PHI 356	Modern Philosophy II	(3)
	PHI 401-402	Topics in Philosophy	(6)
	PHI 403-404	Philosophy Capstone Senior Seminar	(6)
	Philosophy electives: two courses		(6)
4.	Electives	(10 courses)	(30)
Total		(40 courses)	(120)

Recommended Schedule:

Fall		Spring
Freshman Year
ENG 101	3	ENG 102	3
AS	3	PHI 101	3
AS	3	AS	3
AS	3	AS	3
Elective	3	Elective	3
Total	15	Total	15
Sophomore Year
RST 101	3	Philosophy elective	3
PHI 300	3	PHI 352	3
PHI 350	3	AS	3
AS	3	AS	3
Elective	3	Elective	3
Total	15	Total	15
Junior Year
PHI 340	3	PHI 356	3
PHI 354	3	Topics course	3
AS	3	AS	3
AS	3	AS	3
AS	3	Elective	3
Total	15	Total	15
Senior Year
PHI 403	3	PHI 404	3
Topics course	3	Philosophy elective	3
AS	3	Elective	3
Elective	3	Elective	3
Elective	3	Elective	3
Total	15	Total	15
		Total	120

Philosophy Minor:

PHI 350	Ancient Philosophy
OR		(3)
PHI 352	Medieval Philosophy
PHI 354	Modern Philosophy I	(3)
Topics course: one course
(Topics courses are PHI 401, 402, 403, 404)		(3)
Philosophy electives: (3 courses) selected in
consultation with Philosophy adviser		(9)
Total	(6 courses)	(18)

Note: Students may choose to concentrate their course work in a specific area, such as history of philosophy, ethics, metaphysics and epistemology, Thomistic philosophy, philosophy of religion, phenomenology and hermeneutics, Christian philosophy, logic, and the philosophy of science.

Other Programs

The Philosophy Department routinely offers a dual major with any of the other departments in the humanities. Special arrangements can be made to accommodate students in any curriculum. Philosophy majors may also take a minor in another department or program (e.g., Cognitive Science).

COURSES: 2001-2003

Note: PHI 101 replaces GST 005. Students who have successfully completed GST 005 are not eligible to register for PHI 101. GST 005 or PHI 101 is a prerequisite for all other courses in Philosophy.

PHI 101 Introduction to Philosophy 3

A thoughtful examination of several representative philosophical issues. Emphasis on logical and critical analysis of claims and arguments proposed by some prominent classical and modern philosophers.

PHI 300 (CSI 300) Logic 3

Introduction to the principles of sound reasoning and the art of evaluating arguments. (AS V)

PHI 301 Philosophy of the Person 3

Examination of several theories of human nature, and of the relation of human beings to the social and natural environment. (AS V)

PHI 302 Reality and Knowledge 3

Consideration of basic pre-suppositions about the world of reality and human understanding of it. (AS V)

PHI 303 (CSI 303) Philosophy of Mind 3

Examination of contemporary philosophical approaches to the explanation of consciousness and cognition as they relate to the interdisciplinary fields of cognitive science. (AS V)

PHI 304 God and the World 3

Critical examination of key contemporary and classical discussions of the existence and nature of God. (AS V)

PHI 305 (GRN 305, SOC 305) Time and the Human Condition 3

Examination of major theories of time and temporal processes. Discussion of implications of these theories for study of human nature. (AS V) (ICD)

PHI 330 Political Philosophy 3

Analysis of the political theories and concepts of power, authority, and law operative in Western civilization. Formerly PHI 465. (AS V)

PHI 335 Philosophy of Law 3

Examination of nature, source and sanctions of law; analysis of legal positivism, natural law, rights, and justice; discussion of relationship between law and morality. Formerly PHI 463. (AS V)

PHI 340 Ethics 3

Reflection on the nature of moral values and principles, and examination of the basis for making moral decisions. (AS V)

PHI 342 Medical Ethics 3

Consideration of current problems in medicine and the life sciences. (AS V)

PHI 344 Ethical Issues in Business 3

Examination of some ethical problems in business and related issues in ethical theory. (AS V)

PHI 348 Environmental Ethics 3

Examination of various theories of environmental ethics that treat the issue of what ethical responsibilities human beings ought to have for the natural world. (AS V)

PHI 350 Ancient Philosophy 3

Early philosophical thought in the West with special emphasis on the Presocratics, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. (AS V)

PHI 352 Medieval Philosophy 3

From St. Augustine in fifth century A.D. to Renaissance of 15th century. Principal figures, ideas, and influences. Basic texts analyzed. (AS V)

PHI 354 Modern Philosophy I 3

Development of early modern philosophical thought from Descartes in the early 17th century to Kant at the end of the 18th century. (AS V)

PHI 356 Modern Philosophy II 3

Survey of 19th and early 20th century philosophical thought, especially Kant, Hegel, Marx, Kierkegaard, Mill, Nietzsche. (AS V)

PHI 358 Contemporary Philosophy 3

Study of several major twentieth-century philosophers (e.g., Dewey, Wittgenstein, Heidegger) and a sampling of recent philosophical work. (AS V)

PHI 365 Existentialism 3

Introduction to major concepts of existentialism. Consideration of 19th and early 20th century background. Detailed examination of such figures as Camus, Sartre, and Marcel. (AS V)

PHI 372 Catholic Social Thought 3

Analysis of Catholic social principles and their time-conditioned application through examination of papal social encyclicals from Leo XIII to John Paul II. (AS V)

PHI 376 Philosophy of the Family 3

Readings and discussions of texts representative of a traditional

Western philosophy of the family; covers from Xenophon and Aristotle to Engels and Marcel. (AS V)

PHI 380 Political Philosophy 3

Analysis of the political theories and concepts of power, authority, and law operative in Western civilization. Formerly PHI 465. (AS V)

PHI 401-402 Topics in Philosophy 3 each

Critical examination of selected important thinkers in the history of philosophical thought or of selected philosophical topics in areas such as metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and aesthetics. Subject matter determined by the instructor.

Prerequisite: Three courses in philosophy.

PHI 403-404 Philosophy Capstone 3 each

PHI 499 Directed Readings in Philosophy 3

Tutorial. Personally designed with a member of the Philosophy Department. Topics and terms mutually determined by student and mentor.

Prerequisite: Three previous courses in philosophy.