Syllabus
 

Class schedule, notes, links, assignments, etc.:
 

On Some Standard Accounts of Action

W Jan 17:  Ryle, The Concept of Mind (excerpts)  [Class Notes]
    Davidson, "Actions, Reasons, and Causes"  [Class Notes]

    Recommended readings:
    Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on action theory:  http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/action/
    G.E.M. Anscombe's Intention.  I've checked out our library's copy; let me know if you want to take a look.

W Jan 24:  Davidson, "Agency"  [Class Notes]
    Frankfurt, "Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person"  [Class Notes]
    Frankfurt, "Identification and Externality" [Class Notes]

    Recommended readings:
    Frankfurt, ''The Problem of Action"
    Frankfurt, ''Identification and Wholeheartedness"
    Davdison, ''Intending"
    Davidson, ''Psychology as Philosophy"

W Jan 31:  Velleman, "Introduction"[Class Notes]
    Velleman, "What Happens When Someone Acts?"  [Class Notes]

    Recommended readings:
    Velleman, "Identification and Identity"

The Humean Theory of Motivation

W Feb 7:  Hume, A Treatise of Human Nature (excerpts)  [Class Notes]
    Williams, "Internal and External Reasons"  [Class Notes]
    Smith, "The Humean Theory of Motivation" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]

    Recommended readings:
    Derek Parfit and John Broome, "Reasons and Motivation"

W Feb 14:  Pettit, "Humeans, Anti-Humeans, and Motivation" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]
    Smith, "On Humeans, Anti-Humeans, and Motivation:  A Reply to Pettit" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]
    Mele, "Motivation:  Essentially Motivation-Constituting Attitudes" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]

W Feb 21:  Nagel, The Possibility of Altruism (excerpt)  [Class Notes]
    Korsgaard, "Skepticism about Practical Reason"  [Class Notes]
    Velleman, "The Possibility of Practical Reason"  [Class Notes]
 

Motivation and Value

W Feb 28:  Davidson, "How is Weakness of the Will Possible?"  [Class Notes]
    Watson, "Skepticism about Weakness of Will" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]
    Stocker, "Desiring the Bad: An Essay in Moral Psychology" (JSTOR)  [Class Notes]

W March 7:  Velleman, "Is Motivation Internal to Value?"  [Class Notes]
    Velleman, "The Guise of the Good"  [Class Notes]
 

Motivation and Imagination

W March 14:  Velleman, "On the Aim of Belief"
    Currie, "Imagination as Motivation"

W March 21:  NO CLASS   SPRING BREAK

W March 28:  Nichols and Stich, Mindreading (excerpt)
    Funkhouser and Spaulding, "Imagination and other Scripts"
 

Mele's Motivation and Agency

W April 4:  Mele, "Motivation and Agency: Precis" (SpringerLink)
    Mele, M&A pp. 3--66  [Class Notes] (Chapter 2 only)

W April 11:  Mele, M&A pp. 69--157

W April 18:  Mele, M&A pp. 161--245  [Class Notes] (Chapters 7 and 8)

W April 25:  Davis, "The Antecedent Motivation Theory --- Discussion" (SpringerLink)  [Class Notes]
    Ginet, "Comments on Alfred Mele, Motivation and Agency --- Discussion" (SpringerLink)
    Roth, "The Mysteries of Desire:  A Discussion" (SpringerLink)  [Class Notes]

W May 2:  Mele, "Motivation and Agency: Replies" (SpringerLink)
    Summary

*Paper is due Wednesday,  May 9th, at 6:00 p.m.
 
 

View My Stats