Introduction to Philosophy

This course is an introduction to philosophy. The chief text is Mortimer Adler’s Aristotle for Everybody, which describes how the Greek philosopher Aristotle addressed philosophical questions. Aristotle lived a long time ago but, as Adler points out, his thinking remains valuable today. Adler’s book will be supplemented with readings from other philosophers. A student who completes this course will be familiar with questions that philosophers have asked and understand why those questions are interesting. Here are examples of the questions that the course will address: 1. What is logical thinking and why is logic persuasive? 2. What kinds of things are there? Are there immaterial things? 3. What are material things? What makes living things different from nonliving things? 4. How does science work? What makes one scientific theory better than another? 5. Are there objective moral rights and wrongs, virtues and vices? 6. Do we know any truths about the world? 7. Can there be an infinite number of things? 8. Does God exist?

Prerequisites

The course is intended for high school students who have encountered the works of any famous philosophers, or arguments about topics such as ethics, the nature of science, and the existence of God. The course is a survey of philosophical topics, not a deep dive into any of them.

Recommended background

Prior courses that feature analysis of arguments or reasoning.

Textbooks and Materials

This item is required:

Aristotle for Everybody [Edition or Version: 1], Authors: Mortimer J. Adler

ISBN: 0684838230

Publisher's website: Aristotle for Everybody

Best sources: Scholars Online Bookstore

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