PHI 5934 Wittgenstein Fall 2006
Mondays and Wednesdays, 2:00-3:15 in GC 289
Copyright © 2006 Bruce W. Hauptli
This semester PHI 5934 will concentrate on the early, middle, and late works of Ludwig Wittgenstein. Registration for this course is by permission of the instructor, and interested students should read this syllabus (and, as becomes clear, that of PHH 4930) and then contact me to seek such permission. I will not grant such permission after the first meeting of the course without an extraordinarily compelling argument.
This course is cross-listed with PHH 4930, and the syllabus for that class constitutes the first part of the syllabus for this class. Students should read this material and also the PHH 4930 Syllabus as all of its terms and conditions apply except for the material in section 4 which, for students enrolled in this class will read as follows:
4. Papers, examination, and deadlines: because writing is important to philosophy, students in this course will be required to write two critical, analytical or expository philosophy papers each of which should be approximately 2,000 words long (equivalent to eight double-spaced typewritten pages of 250 words per page). This indication of length is meant as a guide to the student—papers much shorter than the indicated length are unlikely to have adequately addressed one of the assigned topics. Papers may, of course, be longer than the indicated length. These papers should be typed and are due in my office by 4:15 P.M. on the following dates: Monday, October 23 and Monday, November 27. There will also be one closed book and closed notes in-class essay midterm exam on Monday, October 16. Finally, students will be responsible for submitting a graduate-level interdisciplinary paper which must addresses a significant connection, relation, application, or challenge which a significant element of Wittgenstein’s philosophical orientation (early, middle or late) to an important topic, concern, or problem in the area of their program of graduate studies. A two-page proposal for this paper is due no later than Wednesday, November 15, and the paper itself is due by 4:30 on Wednesday, December 6. Students enrolled in this course will not be responsible for taking the Final Exam for PHH 4930, and need not attend the review class on December 6 (and since class is cancelled on December 4, they will have free time at the end of the semester to work on this paper).
A supplement entitled “Writing Philosophy Papers” is available on the course web-site. It describes in detail what my expectations are as well as clarifying what critical, analytical or expository philosophy papers are like. This supplement also provides a list of “grader’s marks” which I employ in grading papers and exams. I provide detailed comments regarding the compositional, expository, and the critical elements of such papers, and I review the comments from earlier papers prior to reading later ones so that I can assess continuing progress and problems. Paper topics will be distributed so that students have at least two weekends to work on their papers, and the topics will be directly related to the readings, lectures, and discussions in the course prior to the assignments.
The midterm examination will be in-class objective essay exam. It will be designed to assess the students’ understanding of the philosophical theories, positions, topics, and methodologies studied. Sample study questions will be distributed in advance of the exam so that students have an opportunity to organize their thoughts and integrate the readings and lectures around sample questions designed to indicate what they are expected to have mastered.
Together the papers are worth 90% of the grade (30% each), the midterm exam is worth 10%. Students must submit all papers and take the midterm exam to pass the course—that is, failure to complete any of the course requirements will result in a grade of F for the course. Therefore, students who do not turn in a paper or take an exam on time must nonetheless submit that paper or take a make-up exam if they wish to pass the course (grades higher than an F are given only for performance and accomplishment; and late papers and make-up exams may demonstrate these, while unfulfilled requirements demonstrate neither). An incomplete will not be assigned simply because work is late—after the designated final exam day, if a student has not been granted an extension and any required work has not been turned in, the student will receive a grade of F for the course.
I regularly provide extensive lecture supplements and course materials on the web for students, and for this cross-listed course I will primarily post the information on the PHH 4930 Website. Should there be a need to post information specifically for the students taking this course, I will also communicate such information directly to students individually via email.
File revised on 08/10/2006.