Special Topics in Philosophy I (Level 6)

• Credit value: 15 credits at Level 6
• Convenor: Stacie Friend
• Assessment: a 750-word essay or skills-based assignment (40%) and a 1000-word essay or skills-based assignment (60%)

This module is designed to enable upper-level philosophy students to study a specialised topic in philosophy that is not offered in the regular curriculum, in a seminar format. Specific topics change from year to year, determined by lecturer research and student interest, and may focus on a particular philosopher or philosophical debate; close readings of historical or contemporary philosophical texts; or skills such as advanced logic.

Indicative module syllabus

• Advanced logic
• Aristotle’s biology
• Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason
• Rationality
• Theories of fiction
• Spinoza’s Ethics
• Emotion

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• demonstrate a systematic understanding of a specialised topic in philosophy
• demonstrate in-depth understanding of different ideas, contexts and frameworks deployed by contributors to philosophical debates concerning the specialised topic, and recognise some of their strengths and weaknesses
• undertake thorough critical analyses of different philosophical theories about the specialised topic, and evaluate the outcomes
• critically challenge positions in debates about the specialised topic.