Final Paper
Contemporary Philosophy
Final Paper
Due Monday, May 15
25 points
Assignment: 3-page, double-spaced thesis essay. Submit as word.doc on Moodle
Your final paper assignment requires you to respond to one of the following prompts and to develop a thesis that argues for and supports your own position. This paper is not merely a summary or interpretation but asks you to develop your own position about the philosophers you consider. This is not a research paper and should only refer to primary texts. Restrict your arguments to one or two philosophers at most. I have provided the following questions to help you develop a thesis statement. (You can modify them if you speak with me first):
Topics:
1. Existential philosophy has developed a philosophical theory of the human being as an open project. For thinkers like Sartre, freedom and transcendence are fundamentally human characteristics of human existence. Later philosophers (like Fanon and Foucault) challenged the idea that the human being exists in the mode of freedom by pointing to social relations that shape our identity. Which perspective on the human do you agree with? Are humans free to make themselves or are we always the product of our relations and social structures?
2. Contemporary philosophy is divided regarding the status and importance of cognition and experience. For many contemporary philosophers of mind (such as Chalmers, Noë), consciousness is the key aspect of mind. The tradition of phenomenology, however, has tried to emphasize other aspects of experience, like embodiment, habit, and context (for example, Heidegger and Merleau-Ponty). Which point of view do you agree with. Is consciousness the key to an understanding of mind, or should philosophy continue to investigate the role of the body, habit, and context in our experience of the world?
3. Develop your own topic and thesis statement. Be sure to discuss your plan for the paper with me prior to writing your draft!