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| Taught by: Dr. Dan Lloyd, Associate Professor of PhilosophyWhat is real, and what is not? And how do you know for sure? We human beings live in a world built of guesses, wishes and second-hand surmises, and we call it Real. But a little reflection shows reality to be a fragile construct. In this seminar, we’ll question reality with a mix of approaches. We’ll examine a few of the great crises in knowledge in the Western tradition, on the path to modern scientific reality. (Authors include Thucydides, Plato, Montaigne, Descartes, Sartre and others.) We’ll consider critiques of modern knowledge from (for example) feminist philosophers. We’ll look at non-Western alternatives to the familiar division between real and unreal, from (for example) Native American sources. Finally, we’ll consider whether new realities (e.g. "virtual" realities) are emerging. Throughout the seminar, students will exercise and develop reality-building skills of reflection, reasoning, and writing. | |