CS PHILOSOPHY OF THE SOCIAL
SCIENCES
NOTE: IN 2007-2008 THE
COURSE WILL BE TAUGHT BY THOMAS NYS, FOCUSING ON HARRY FRANKFURT'S WORK
ON AUTONOMY. MORE INFORMATION VIA THE LINK HERE:
http://www.phil.uu.nl/onderwijs/wijsbegeerte/2007-2008/perioderoosters/Per3VTM07.shtml
Instructor: Joel
Anderson
Onderwijsinstituut: Faculteit der Wijsbegeerte
Studiepunten: 7.5
Code: WBMA3041
Niveau: M
Periode: 3
Toegangseisen:
Masters student status in philosophy; “doctoraal” students (old
system): WB3040 (“Handeling, Rationaliteit, Identiteit”) or permission
of the instructor.
Voertaal: English
The topic for this “capita selecta” seminar will be different each
time, but will be in the area of “philosophy of the social sciences,”
broadly construed to include issues in action theory, philosophical
anthropology, practical reasoning, normativity, and social explanation.
Past and future topics can be found on the instructor’s web page: htpp://www.phil.uu.nl/~joel.
The topic for 2005/2006: “Agency and
Social Practices”. Link
to the syllabus
This course is concerned with examining a family of approaches to the
nature of human agency in which the concept of social practices plays a
pivotal role. According to this view, what distinguishes agents
from other entities is that they are not simply causes of events but
that are sources of motivated actions, i.e., actions that are performed
at least in part because they make sense to the agent. Thus,
although many entities that can generate movements, only genuine agents
can make a move in a social practice, the way one can make a move in a
game of chess. This capacity is linked to the essential
normativity of agency.
Topic for 2003/2004: "Freedom
through Constraint" (PDF
of the syllabus)