(Offered as PHIL-311 and LJST-211) Law shapes every corner of our lives. Law defines our rights against the state as well as our obligations to it. Law makes us into citizens, criminals, owners, spouses, and more. But what justifies law’s enormous power over us, and what is law, really? This course, an introduction to legal philosophy, explores the nature of law’s authority and in particular, law’s relationship to morality. Our questions will include: Are laws best understood as social conventions or as moral truths? When, if ever, is criminal punishment justified?

What makes one action morally right but another morally wrong? In the first part of the course, we will examine the two most influential answers to this question: Utilitarianism and Kantianism. In the second part of the course, we will discuss a selection of the best essays in contemporary ethics, covering topics such as moral sainthood, moral luck, evolution and morality, and psychological egoism.

Prerequisite: One course in Philosophy or consent of the instructor. Priority is given to Amherst College students.

Limited to 25 students. Spring semester. Professor Shah. (V)

(Offered as RELI 218 and PHIL 229). Christian religious traditions have assumed that God is omnibenevolent, omniscient, and omnipotent.  But attributing these attributes to the creator of the universe makes the existence of evil puzzling.  If God is omnibenevolent, then God would not want any creature to suffer evil; if God is omniscient, then God would know how to prevent any evil from occurring; and if God is omnipotent, then God would be able to prevent any evil from occurring.

This course examines philosophical questions in and about literature. What is a work of literature? Can a work of literature also be a work of philosophy? Can fictional literature yield knowledge about the real world? Do works of literature have determinate meanings, and if so, how can we know them? Are the author's intentions or identity relevant to how a work should be interpreted? Can works of literature be immoral? What should we say about them if they are?

(Offered as PHIL-221 and SWAG-219) This course will offer a systematic examination of a variety of philosophical issues raised by the existence of gender roles in human society: What’s the connection between biological sex differences and gender roles? Are gender roles inherently oppressive? How does the category gender interact with other socially significant categories, like race, class, and sexual orientation? What would gender equality look like?

Limited to 20 students. Spring semester. Visiting Professor Louise Antony. (T) or (V).

A survey of European philosophy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries with emphasis on Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, and Kant. Reading and discussion of selected works of the period.

Limited to 25 students. Spring semester. Assistant Professor Leydon-Hardy. (H)

How to handle overenrollment: Preference to seniors and Philosophy majors.

This is an introduction to philosophy that explores a range of issues pertaining to religious conviction, knowledge, mind, freedom, ethics, and value. This exploration will take place through critical engagement, via reflection, writing, and conversation, with written work – some classical, some contemporary – in the philosophical tradition.

Limited to 20 students. Fall semester: Professor Nishi Shah. Spring semester: Professor Rafeeq Hasan. (T or V).

Research in an area relevant to neuroscience, under the direction of a faculty member, and preparation of a thesis based upon the research.

Spring semester. The Committee.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Emphasis on independent research and writing.

Research in an area relevant to neuroscience, under the direction of a faculty member, and preparation of a thesis based upon the research.

Spring semester. The Committee.

How to handle overenrollment: null

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Emphasis on independent research and writing.

(Offered as MUSL 182H and THDA 182H) This course provides individual performance instruction in digital music production and recording including sound capture, mixing, mastering, and use of Digital Audio Workstations (DAW) to create music. Students have weekly lessons with the instructor with an expectation of five hours per week of practice. The course is open to students of any level, beginning to advanced, and it may be repeated.

Admission with consent of the instructor. Fall and spring semesters.

How to handle overenrollment: null