PHIL 100B: The Rationalists (Winter 2016)
Monday, Wednesday, Friday 11-12:10—Soc Sci 2, 071
Instructor:
Prof. Samantha Matherne
Email: [email protected]
Office: Cowell Annex A101
Office Hours: Mondays 12:30-2:30 and by appointment
Teaching Assistants:
Amena Coronado, [email protected], Sections 01A, O1B
Linda Dayem: [email protected], Sections 01C, 01D
Course Description:
Just as there was a Scientific Revolution in the 17th century, so too was there a revolution in
philosophy. Prior to this period, external authorities, like the Church, the Bible, or
Aristotelians, governed how philosophers approached questions about how we are to
understand the natural world, our own selves, and God. However, in the 17th century,
philosophers began to turn inwards, towards reason, and proclaimed this to be the authority.
This inward turn gave rise to an influential tradition in philosophy known as ‘Rationalism’ in
which philosophers sought to answers these questions through intellectual ‘meditation’ and
careful reflection on their own reason.
In this course we will look at works by René Descartes, Princess Elizabeth, Baruch
Spinoza, Ann Conway, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, and Lady Masham. We will be interested
primarily in questions relating to epistemology and metaphysics. In particular, we will focus
on debates about the relationship between our mind and body, the nature of perception, the
connection between perception and knowledge, and our knowledge of the natural world, our
own selves, and God. However, we will ultimately have a systematic aim: what sort of
philosophical system does each philosopher develop? How does he or she situate God, the
soul, and the world whole into one comprehensive picture?
Required Texts (available for purchase at the Literary Guillotine):
—René Descartes Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy (Hackett, 4th edition,
Transl. Donald Cress)
—Baruch Spinoza, Ethics: Treatise on The Emendation of the Intellect and Selected Letters (Hackett,
Transl. Samuel Shirley)
—Margaret Atherton (editor), Women Philosophers of the Early Modern Period (Hackett) [WP]
—G.W. Leibniz, Discourse on Metaphysics and Other Essays (Hackett, Transl. Daniel Garber and
Roger Ariew)
*Other required reading will be posted under the ‘Resources’ tab on E-Commons
Requirements:
(1) Regular attendance and participation in class and at sections
Note: Missing more than 50% of either the lectures or sections will result in failing
the course
(2) Careful reading of the assigned texts
(3) Weekly questions sets (10% total)
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Each question set will be posted on E-Commons under the ‘Tests and Quizzes’ tab
on Mondays and they are due by 11:59pm on Fridays
(4) Two take-home midterms (25% each)
(5) A final paper (40%)
Course Policies:
Academic Honesty Policy: While students are encouraged to discuss the readings and
assignments with one another, students are expected to submit work that is their own and
which includes appropriate citations. Cheating and plagiarism is strictly prohibited and
students are expected to comply with the University’s Academic Integrity Policy.1 In the
event of plagiarism, students will (a) be reported to the Academic Tribunal, (b) receive a
failing grade on that assignment, and (c) may receive a failing grade for the course.
Late Policy: Students will be deducted a partial letter grade for every day an assignment is
late, e.g., if the paper would originally have received an A, after one day late, it will receive an
A-, two days, a B+, three days, a B, etc.
Schedule (subject to change)
Week 1
January 4th: Introduction: The Legacy of the Scientific Revolution
January 6th: Descartes, Discourse on Method, Parts 1-2 (pp. 1-13)
January 8th: Descartes, Letter of Dedication and Preface (pp. 47-53)
Week 2
January 11th: Descartes, Meditation One (pp. 59-63)
January 13th: Descartes, Meditation Two (pp. 63-69)
January 15th: Descartes, Meditation Three (pp. 69-81)
Week 3
January 18th: No Class
January 20th: Descartes, Meditation Four (pp. 81-87)
January 22nd: Descartes, Meditation Five (pp. 87-92), Selection from Principles of Philosophy
(posted on E-Commons)
Week 4
January 25th: Descartes, Meditation Six and Synopsis of the Meditations (pp. 92-103, pp. 54-56)
January 27th: Princess Elizabeth’s Correspondence with Descartes (WP 11-21)
January 29th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part I, Definitions and Axioms (pp. 31-2)
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http://www.ue.ucsc.edu/academic_integrity
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Week 5
February 1st: Midterm #1 Due, Spinoza, Ethics, Part I, Propositions 1-15 (32-43)
February 3rd: Spinoza, Ethics, Part I, 16-24 (pp. 43-49)
February 5th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part I, Propositions 25-36
Week 6
February 8th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part I, Appendix (pp. 57-62) and Part II, Definitions and
Axioms (pp. 63-4)
February 10th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part II, Propositions 1-12 (pp. 64-71)
February 12th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part II, Propositions 13-31 (pp. 71-85)
Week 7
February 15th: No Class
February 17th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part II, Propositions 32-43 (pp. 85-92)
February 19th: Spinoza, Ethics, Part II, Propositions 44-49 (pp. 92-101)
Week 8
February 22nd: Ann Conway, The Principles, Chapter VI, VII-IX (WP pp. 48-76)
February 24th: Leibniz, Discourse on Metaphysics, §§1-9 (pp. 1-9)
February 26th: Midterm #2 Due, Leibniz, Discourse on Metaphysics, §§10-22 (pp. 9-25)
Week 9
February 29th: Leibniz, Discourse on Metaphysics, §23-29 (pp. 25-31)
March 2nd: Leibniz, Discourse on Metaphysics, §§30-37 (pp. 31-41)
March 4th: Leibniz, The Monadology §§1-30 (pp. 68-72)
Week 10
March 7th: Leibniz, The Monadology §§31-89 (pp. 72-81)
March 9th: Lady Masham, Letters II, IV, VI, IX, XI (WP 80-95)
March 11th: The Rise of Empiricism in the 18th Century: Selection from Hume’s Enquiry
Concerning Human Understanding (posted on E-Commons)
March 16th: Final Paper Due
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