My teaching typically includes courses in epistemology and philosophy of mind. You can read my teaching statement here.
Introduction to Philosophy for Interested Students
Philosophy concerns some of the biggest questions that have ever been asked, questions like What is the right way to live?, What do we really know?, Is there a God?, and Do we have free will?. Philosophers don’t ask these questions as mere idle curiosities. We try to formulate clear answers to them, and to evaluate whether our answers are true by considering the arguments on all sides.
There are many subfields within philosophy, but some of the most prominent include:
- Ethics: What is right way to live? What are our moral obligations to other people?
- Epistemology: What do we really know? Which of our beliefs are rational? Can it ever be reasonable to believe without evidence?
- Political philosophy: How should society be organized? Is it fair for some people to have so much while others have so little?
- Metaphysics: Is there a God? Do we have free will? What is the fundamental nature of reality?
- Philosophy of Science: Does science represent the world objectively in a way that non-scientific ways of understanding do not? What is the scientific method, and how does it work?
- Philosophy of Mind: Do you have an immaterial soul? Is there some part of you that might survive death? What is the mind, and what is its relationship to the body and brain?
Past Courses