Prof Christian List

This course is available on the BSc in Philosophy and Economics, BSc in Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method, BSc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and BSc in Politics and Philosophy. This course is available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit and to General Course students.

Students must have completed The Big Questions: An Introduction to Philosophy (PH103).

Short description:

Some central topics in metaphysics and the philosophy of mind and action. Topics may vary by year.

More detailed description:

This course will cover selected key questions from metaphysics and the philosophy of mind and action. Illustrative questions include:

Metaphysics: Is "physicalism" – the thesis that everything is ultimately grounded in physical processes – philosophically defensible? Are there any features of the world that go beyond physical ones? What are the arguments for and against a reductionistic worldview? Is the world deterministic? Could there be true randomness? What is the nature of causation and causal laws? What is the role of time? 

Mind and action: What does it mean to have a mind? What is an intentional agent? How can we make sense of the emergence of human and animal minds against the background of a physical world? Can mental states cause physical effects? What is consciousness, and how does it relate to physical properties? Do we have free will, and how should we think about this issue? Could agency be instantiated in entities other than biological organisms, such as robots or corporations?

The emphasis will be on developing a sharp understanding of key concepts, arguments, and the logical relationships between different ideas, rather than providing an encyclopaedic historical or exegetical coverage. We aim to give students a conceptual toolbox for a rigorous analysis of some central philosophical questions in the areas of metaphysics and the philosophy of mind.

15 hours of lectures and 10 hours of classes in the LT.

Students will be expected to participate actively in their classes and to write one formative essay. This may not be a draft of the summative assignment. They subsequently write a second essay, which is summative, to be submitted at the beginning of the next term.

• David Chalmers, The Conscious Mind;
• Jaegwon Kim, Physicalism, or Something Near Enough;
• L. A. Paul and Ned Hall: Causation: A User’s Guide.

Exam (50%, duration: 1 hour) in the summer exam period.
Essay (50%, 1500 words) in the ST Week 1.