Foundations in philosophy — instructional objectives of the Department of Philosophy
Philosophy explores answers to the most fundamental questions about human experience, the nature of the human person, the existence of God and immortality, freedom, moral and political values, the relation between appearance and reality, and about knowledge, wisdom, and truth. Each program of philosophical inquiry at Canisius College is established on the same intellectual foundation and expectation of scholarly excellence. Moreover, each program involves systematically and rigorously engaging outstanding classical and contemporary philosophers with the overarching aim that each graduate acquire broad familiarity and competence with philosophical inquiry. The philosophy faculty identifies the following goals and learning objectives.
KNOWLEDGE of PHILOSOPHY
Each philosophy graduate will acquire a broad knowledge of western philosophy (ancient - contemporary) — major figures, branches, terminologies, and traditions — and a working familiarity with philosophy from Asia, Africa, or Latin America.
- To identify major western philosophers, their principal texts, their times, and the philosophical traditions of which they are a part.
- To summarize in substantive philosophical discourse the principal contributions of important western philosophers by means of citing appropriate primary sources.
- To articulate some important contributions of philosophical trends in non-western cultures to identify similarities and differences with traditional western thinking.
- To recognize and explicate the principal issues of ethics, metaphysics, and epistemology, inclusive of their challenges, traditions, and specific terminologies.
- To extract from important traditional moral philosophies their concern with values relating to justice, equality, and peace and to interpret them for contemporary times.
Each philosophy graduate will acquire an enhanced capacity for communicating ideas specific to philosophy by both oral and written means.
- To write cogent expository and discursive prose to communicate ideas effectively to both philosophical and non-philosophical audiences.
- To present philosophical ideas cogently and effectively by means of oral presentations in a colloquial format.
- To define terms specific to philosophic discourse with precision and to apply them appropriately in both oral and written communication.
- To clearly distinguish knowledge and belief and to apply this distinction in assessing deductive, demonstrative, and persuasive discourse.
- To analyze argumentational and persuasive discourse inclusive of both formal, logical matters and the information contained in such discourse.
- To identify and properly frame problems in respect of their philosophical character and to develop strategies for their resolution.
- To assess contemporary thinking by means of applying what is learned from the canon of western and non-western philosophy.
- To specifically identify the moral and social values presupposed or underlying a philosopher’s argumentative discourse.
- To cite properly and to work effectively with important secondary sources and to become facile with reference resources discipline-specific to philosophy.
- To critically analyze important primary sources with special attention to identify a philosopher’s underlying principles and to reconstruct his/her argumentation.
- To find and use secondary sources and to develop research techniques appropriate for assessing philosophic discourse and argumentation.
VALUES for LIVING a MEANINGFUL LIFE
Each philosophy graduate will value the importance of good citizenship by considering the service of faith and the promotion of justice.
- To work with the principle that all persons have dignity and are to be valued and respected; to value human diversity.
- To associate the humanistic values of justice, caring, trust, and tolerance with good citizenship in a community of men and women for others.
- To take moral matters seriously in their private and professional lives; to cultivate personal moral and intellectual integrity as a life-long commitment.
- To accept the importance of reason and knowledge for making good decisions that relate to personal growth and responsible citizenship.
- To embrace dialogue and rational inquiry as part of a life-long commitment to seeking truth and understanding in a diverse, multicultural global world.