Syllabus

Reading Schedule

Handouts & Assignments

Study Questions

Paper Topics

Internet Links

This is the Homepage for Philosophy 220/320: Metaphysics and Epistemology.  From this page, using the links to the left, you will be able to access all the on-line class materials, including a syllabus, the schedule of readings, study questions, paper topics, as well as copies of any handouts and class assignments.  Using the links above, you will be able to access Andrew Mills' Homepage, the Class Resources Homepage (containing links to all the courses Prof. Mills teaches) as well as the Department of Religion and Philosophy Homepage.  If you ever get lost, clicking on the image of Plato in the upper-left-hand corner will bring you back to this page.

This is an introduction to metaphysics and epistemology.  The course is centered not on particular philosophers from history, but rather on various central issues in metaphysics and epistemology.  We shall begin with an investigation of various metaphysical issues (Platonism, the ontological status of numbers, identity, free will, modality, cosmology), and then turn to epistemological considerations (the nature and possibility of knowledge, the various kinds of knowledge, the reliability of perception, memory, and testimony, the nature of justification and evidence, etc.)  Competence and familiarity with these issues is essential for a well-rounded philosophical education.

The primary goal of this course is to gain an appreciation of the ideas and arguments which form the content of the readings.  A secondary, but no less important goal, is to develop the critical thinking and writing skills essential to success in any philosophy class.  It is my hope that you leave this class a better philosopher yourself, not just someone who knows something about what metaphysics and epistemology is.  We shall spend a good deal of time interacting with the assigned texts, and doing so serves both goals: it is only by responding to the readings that we will come to understand their positions, and by engaging in a philosophic conversation with them we will hone our critical skills.  The reading for this course is, at times, quite difficult, but with the help of the professor and the other students, and with a good deal of effort on your own part, you will come out of this class with a deeper appreciation of metaphysics and epistemology, and, I hope, a better thinker.