Philosophy

Department of Philosophy

• General Information
• Minors, Majors and Honours 
• Certificate in Ethics
• Graduate Study in Philosophy at UNB

 Faculty

• Bell, Jason, BA (Oklahoma City), PhD (Vanderbilt), Assist Prof - 2016
  
• Frooman, Jeffrey, BS, BA (Illinois), MBA (Michigan), MA, PhD (Pittsburgh), Prof - 2000
• Larmer, Robert A., BA (Car), MA, PhD (Ott), Prof - 1986
  
• Weed, Jennifer Hart, B.Sc (UWO), PhD (SLU), Assoc Prof - 2008
  
• Weed, Ronald, BA (BC), MA (UT), MTS (Regis), PhD (SLU), Assoc Prof - 2008
  

General Information

Prerequisites

Any course in Philosophy may be taken in any year, provided that the prerequisites for the course have been met, and subject to the regulations of the student's degree program. The following list gives the general prerequisites for Philosophy courses at each level:

1000 Courses: General introductory courses. 

2000 Courses: Courses in specific areas of the subject. They have no formal prerequisites, and are often taken by students beginning with a subject, have a special interest, or other reasons for taking them. They may be taken by first year students.

3000 Courses: Open to students in the second year of their studies or above, or others with the permission of the instructor. 

4000 Courses: 6 ch in Philosophy, or the permission of the instructor, is prerequisite. 

Minors, Majors and Honours

Minors

The following Minors programs in Philosophy may be taken by students in any degree program. A grade of C or better is required in each course.

1. A Minor in Philosophy will consist of two 1000 level courses and any other 18 ch in Philosophy.
2. A Minor in Ethics will consist of two 1000 level courses and 18 credit hours from PHIL 2201, PHIL 2203 , PHIL 3203, PHIL 3205, PHIL 3206, PHIL 3251, PHIL 3302, PHIL 3308, PHIL 3315, PHIL 3316.
3. A Minor in the History of Philosophy will consist of PHIL 1301 , PHIL 1302 , and 18 ch chosen from PHIL 3301 , PHIL 3302 , PHIL 3303 , PHIL 3304 , PHIL 3305, PHIL 3306, PHIL 3308, PHIL 3311, PHIL 3312, PHIL 3313, PHIL 3314, PHIL 3315, PHIL 3316, PHIL 3317, PHIL 3318, PHIL 3331, PHIL 4301, PHIL 4311. Certain courses in the Department of Philosophy at STU may also be included with the approval of this Department.

Minor in Ancient Philosophy

Students may minor in Ancient Philosophy by completing 24 ch of courses offered by the Department of Classics & Ancient History and the Department of Philosophy. For Classics (CLAS) departmental course descriptions, please consult that department’s calendar listing.

Students are required to complete 24ch as follows:

a. 6 ch of introductory philosophy chosen from PHIL 1101 , PHIL 1201 , PHIL 1301 , PHIL 1302 , PHIL 1401.
b. 6 ch of ancient language: GRK 1203 / 1213 or LAT 1103 / 1113 or any other 6ch of Greek and/or Latin.
c. 6 ch of advanced philosophy courses, including at least one of PHIL 3301 , PHIL 3302 , PHIL 3306 , PHIL 3308, PHIL 3311, PHIL 3314, PHIL 3316.
d. 6 ch of advanced classics (CLAS) courses, including at least one of CLAS 3703, CLAS 3723 and CLAS 3733. 

Majors:

Students in the BA degree program who wish to take a Major in Philosophy, either singly or with some other subject, should consult with the Major/Honour advisor of the Philosophy Department. 

• Single Major: A Major in Philosophy will consist of PHIL 1301 , PHIL 1302 , at least one of PHIL 1101 or PHIL 3101 , and 27 credit hours of advanced courses (3000 and above). At least one course from each of the three streams of ethics, history of philosophy and metaphysics/epistemology must be taken while attaining a minimum grade of C in all philosophy courses.
• Double Major: as for Single Major. 

Students qualifying for a degree other than the BA, who meet the above requirements for a Major in Philosophy, may request the Registrar to note this fact on their transcript. 

Honours

Students in the BA degree program who wish to take Honours in Philosophy must consult with the Major/Honours advisor of the Philosophy Department.

• Single Honours: Students taking Honours in Philosophy must complete at least 48 credit hours in Philosophy. The student’s program must include PHIL 1301 and PHIL 1302 , at least one of PHIL 1101 or PHIL 3101 (Honours students are strongly encouraged to take 3101), and 36 credit hours in advanced courses in Philosophy. At least one course from each of the four streams of logic, ethics, history of philosophy and metaphysics/epistemology must be taken. With the approval of the Department, up to 12 ch in related courses in other departments may be counted as credit hours in Philosophy. Students must obtain a grade of B in all courses counting as fulfilling their Honours requirements in Philosophy.
• Joint Honours:  PHIL 1301 and PHIL 1302 and 24 credit hours in advanced courses in Philosophy. At least one course from each of the four streams of logic, ethics, history of philosophy and metaphysics/epistemology must be taken. With the approval of the Department, up to 12 ch in related courses in other departments may be counted as credit hours in Philosophy. 

a. Courses in Logic

PHIL 1101 Critical Thinking
PHIL 3101 Introduction to Symbolic Logic

b. Courses in Ethics or Social Philosophy

c. Courses in the History of Philosophy

PHIL 1301 Introduction to the History of Philosophy I
PHIL 1302 Introduction to the History of Philosophy II
PHIL 3301 Early Greek Philosophy
PHIL 3302 Later Greek Philosophy
PHIL 3303 Modern Philosophy I
PHIL 3304 Modern Philosophy II
PHIL 3305 Capitalism Vs. Communism
PHIL 3306 Introduction to 19th and 20th Century Existential Philosophy
PHIL 3308 Plato's Republic
PHIL 3311 Nietzsche on Socrates' Death-Wish
PHIL 3312 Infinity: Emmanuel Levinas' Encounter with the Other
PHIL 3313 Reason Vs. Faith: The Philosophy of Kierkegaard
PHIL 3314 Nietzsche's Faith and Critique of Christianity
PHIL 3315 Hannah Arendt and Simone de Beauvoir
PHIL 3316 Michel Foucault on Sexuality and the Self
PHIL 3317 Jean-Paul Sartre's Philosophy of Freedom
PHIL 3318 Martin Heidegger's Destruction of Philosophy
PHIL 3331 Michel Foucault's Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison
PHIL 4311 Nietzsche's Zarathustra

d. Courses in Metaphysics and Epistemology

e. Courses in Aesthetics

PHIL 1501 Monsters and Philosophy
PHIL 2501 Philosophy and Film

f. Courses in Political Philosophy

PHIL 3601 Liberalism and Its Critics
PHIL 3602 The Philosophy of Richard Rorty 

Honours students should also note the standards required for ranking Honours degrees. These are stated in the regulations for the Bachelor of Arts degree.

Credit Courses from Cognate Disciplines

The Department of Philosophy will accept as credit courses in ancient philosophy, CLAS 3703 , CLAS 3723 , CLAS 3733 . It will also accept for philosophy credit courses, KIN 3093 , KIN 4093, POLS 3410, POLS 4483. 

Certificate in Ethics

The Certificate in Ethics will provide students with the opportunity to gain a university-level credential in theoretical and applied ethics. 

1. Required Courses
   
   The Certificate will require the successful completion (with a grade of B-or higher) of six (6) courses, totalling eighteen credit hours, which shall include the following:
   
   a. three (3) core courses, including PHIL 1101 Critical Thinking, a 2000-level course in Ethical Theory, and a breadth of requirements drawn from a Certificate area of concentration in applied ethics that is NOT being pursued by the student.
   b. three (3) elective courses in the student's area of concentration, including one (1) 3000-level course.
   (For a list of possible courses see below).
   c.  with the added proviso that students cannot take more than two (2) elective courses from the student's own home department.
   
   The course work will be approved by the Department of Philosophy.
   
   To be awarded the Certificate, a minimum of nine (9) hours must be completed at UNB. Subject to approval by the Dean of Arts, a maximum of nine (9) credit hours (or the equivalent) of comparable coursework may be transferred from another recognized post-secondary institution. Credit will not normally be awarded for those courses completed more than five years prior to student’s return to university study, in accordance with the norms already in place by the Registrar’s office.
   
   
2. Possible Courses 
   
   ADM 3875 Labour Relations
   ANTH 4024 Anthropology and Ethics
   ECON 3203 Public Finance Analysis
   ENGG 4013 Law and Ethics for Engineers
   ENR 1001 Resource Management Issues, Ethics and Communications I
   ENR 1002 Resource Management Issues, Ethics and Communications II
   ENR 2021 Natural Resource Management , Institutions, Policy and Government
   ENVS 2023 Understanding Environmental Issues
   FOR 2933 Bioethics in Forestry
   FOR 2946 Bioethics, Emotional Intelligence, and the Nature of Spirituality
   KIN 3093 Introduction to Ethics of Sport & Recreation
   KIN 4093 Seminar on Health Care Ethics
   PHIL 1201 Ethics of Life and Death
   PHIL 2201 Autonomy, Value and Well Being: An Introduction to Ethical Theory
   PHIL 2203 Business Ethics
   PHIL 3203 Health Care Ethics
   PHIL 3205 Contemporary Ethical Theory
   PHIL 3206 Environmental Ethics 
   PHIL 3302 Later Greek Phil
   PHIL 3306 Introduction to 19th and 20th Century Existential Philosophy
   PHIL 3308 Plato's Republic
   PHIL 3312 Infinity: Emmanuel Levinas' Encounter with the Other
   PHIL 3315 Hannah Arendt and S. de Beauvoir
   PHIL 3316 Michel Foucalt on Sexuality and the Self
   PHIL 3251 Advanced Business Ethics
   POLS 1503 Law, Power and Politics
   POLS 1603 Politics of Globalization
   POLS 2503 Women & Politics
   POLS 3103 Right in Conflict in North America
   POLS 3715 Critique of Alienation in Social & Political Thought
   POLS 3415 Liberalism
   POLS 3433 Feminist Issues in Political Thought
   POLS 4463 Eros & Leadership
   SOCS 3004 Theoretical Foundations of Sociology
   SOCI 4623 Human Rights
   SOCI 2365 Sociology of Death and Dying
   SOCI 4273 Disability and Social Policy
   SOCI 3623 White Collar Crime
   SOCI 3371 The Institution of Health Care
   SOCI 3533 Social Stratification
   SOCI 4513 Inequality and Social Justice
   SOCI 3636 Restorative Justice
   SOCI 3635 Conflict Resolution

Graduate Study in Philosophy at UNB

To be accepted as a candidate for the degree of MA in Philosophy, applicants will normally be expected to have a letter grade average of at least B in a minimum of 42 credit hours in Philosophy (or equivalent, e.g. a 70% average in seven full courses in Philosophy). Applicants with an average of less than B or fewer than 42 credit hours in Philosophy may be admitted conditionally as graduate students for a qualifying year. Further details may be found in the Calendar of the School of Graduate Studies.