PY500-7-AU-CO:
Kant's Revolution in Philosophy
2021/22
Philosophy
Colchester Campus
Autumn
Postgraduate: Level 7
Current
Thursday 07 October 2021
Friday 17 December 2021
20
17 May 2021
Requisites for this module
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This module covers Kant`s epistemology as developed in his Critique of Pure Reason. This is a pivotal text in philosophy. Kant`s epistemological position was a response to the problems of both rationalism and empiricism, and resulted in a radical and lasting change to the shape of our philosophical map. An understanding of Kant`s position and of this text is foundational for any student of modern philosophy (in both the continental and the analytical traditions).
The module concentrates primarily on the Transcendental Aesthetic and the Transcendental Analytic. Particular attention will be given to the formal status of Kant`s epistemology and the assessment of whether this counts as a weakness or a strength.
Students will develop an understanding of the details of Kant`s position in the Critique; a critical grasp of the central arguments of Kant`s position; and an appreciation of the central significance that position has in the history of philosophy. This will be achieved through developing a close familiarity with the text and with relevant secondary literature.
At the end of the module students should have:
1. a good understanding of the major arguments of Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason, especially those concerning the nature of space and time, the status and function of the basic categories of our thought and experience, and the contradictions into which reasoning falls when it is divorced from experience;
2. a good understanding of Kant’s innovations in method, and in particular the procedure of ‘transcendental deduction’;
3. a good understanding of the thrust of Kant’s critique of traditional metaphysics;
By the end of the module, students should also have acquired a set of transferable skills, and in particular be able to:
1. define the task in which they are engaged and exclude what is irrelevant;
2. seek and organise the most relevant discussions and sources of information;
3. process a large volume of diverse and sometimes conflicting arguments;
4. compare and evaluate different arguments and assess the limitations of their own position or procedure;
5. write and present verbally a succinct and precise account of positions, arguments, and their presuppositions and implications;
6. be sensitive to the positions of others and communicate their own views in ways that are accessible to them;
7. think 'laterally' and creatively - see interesting connections and possibilities and present these clearly rather than as vague hunches;
8. maintain intellectual flexibility and revise their own position if shown wrong; think critically and constructively.
Erasmus/IP students must have already taken two philosophy modules at their home institutions.
1 x 2 hour seminar each week for 9 weeks and 1 reading week with no seminars. Discussion will be encouraged throughout.
This module does not appear to have a published bibliography for this year.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
4000 word essay |
|
|
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr Fiona Hughes, email: fhughes@essex.ac.uk.
spahpg@essex.ac.uk
Yes
Yes
Yes
Dr Alexander Golob
King's College London
Senior Lecturer
Available via Moodle
Of 27 hours, 26 (96.3%) hours available to students:
1 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.
Philosophy
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