Contract Instructor Opportunities
Fall 2022/Winter 2023
Department of Philosophy, Carleton University
Note: The University may require that all or part of these courses be delivered remotely, including online. If public health restrictions allow, the planned mode of delivery for some of these courses will be in-person face-to-face lectures.
The following courses are subject to final budgetary approval.
Pursuant to Article 16 of the CUPE 4600 Unit 2 Collective Agreement, applications are invited from members of the CUPE 4600-2 bargaining unit and other interested persons to teach the following Philosophy courses during the Fall 2022 and Winter 2023 terms:
FYSM 1210 [0.5 credit]: First Year Seminar: Special Topics
There are three sections scheduled: two in the Fall semester and one in the Winter semester.
Modality: All sections to be taught in-person.
Selected topics in the study of philosophy. Topics offered may vary from year to year and will be announced in advance of the registration period by the Department of Philosophy.
Note: If you are applying to this course, please propose a topic in your application.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 1200 [0.5 credit]: The Meaning of Life
Scheduled in Winter semester.
Modality: Online.
This course is intended as an introduction to philosophical issues surrounding the enduring question of life’s meaning. Through a consideration of a number of philosophical writings on the topic (particularly from 19th century, 20th century, and contemporary authors in the Western philosophical tradition), students will be familiarized with various examples of all three major approaches to life’s meaning, viz. supernaturalist (including religious) approaches, naturalist approaches, and nihilist (or pessimistic) approaches.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 1301 [0.5 credit]: Mind, World, and Knowledge
Scheduled in both Fall and Winter semesters.
Modality: TBD
Introduction to a variety of philosophical works, including contemporary, on such topics as: the nature of being, the mental, the external, consciousness, perception, experience, meaning, truth, the nature of knowledge, scientific understanding, and how language and thought represent the world.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 1550 [0.5 credit]: Introduction to Ethics and Social Issues
Scheduled in both Fall and Winter semesters.
Modality: Both sections to be taught online.
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the nature and practice of ethics and social philosophy by looking at some important ethical and social problems and issues that are prominent in the contemporary world. Typical questions might abortion, affirmative action, racism, human rights, children’s rights, world hunger, capital punishment, euthanasia, censorship, pornography, legal paternalism, animal rights and environmental protection. Students will learn some of the main positions that have been taken on these issues, along with prominent arguments that have been offered for and against these different positions. The goal of the course is to stimulate students’ thinking about the chosen questions and provoke them to form views about them. The objective is not merely for them to understand how philosophers and others have answered these questions, but to understand and evaluate their arguments, recognizing their strengths and weaknesses, possibly trying to improve upon them. Students should be encouraged to formulate their own arguments and defend them, as far as they are able. Students will also learn prominent moral theories that are relevant to those arguments and issues.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 1700 [0.5 credit]: Philosophy of Love and Sex
Scheduled in Fall semester.
Modality: TBD
A survey of philosophical classics, on themes of romantic love, friendship, self-love, altruistic love, sexuality, eroticism and the passion/reason dichotomy, from Plato’s Symposium to Foucault’s History of Sexuality; and an examination of related contemporary issues (such as pornography, sex work, polyamory, sexual ‘perversions’, S/M) in light of these perspectives.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 2001 [0.5 credit]: Introduction to Logic
Scheduled in both Fall and Winter semesters.
Modality: Both sections to be taught online.
An introduction to the techniques and philosophical implications of propositional and predicate logic with emphasis on translation of expressions into symbolic form, testing for logical correctness, the formulation and application of rules of inference, and the relation between logic and language. While the course will be accessible to students with non-philosophical backgrounds, the textbook and assignments will provide students with basic knowledge of propositional and predicate logic that are assumed by higher-level courses in philosophy.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 2003 [0.5 credit]: Critical Thinking
Scheduled in Fall semester.
Modality: Online.
This course introduces students to basic principles of informal and formal reasoning. The main objective of the course is to enhance students’ capacity for critical thought in everyday life as well as in more specialized contexts. Topics explored in the course typically include: the nature and identification of arguments as reasons for belief; logical strength in deductive, inductive, and abductive arguments; common informal and formal argumentative fallacies; the method of counterexamples and other strategies for assessing the truth of argument premises; core insights from the probability calculus for estimating likelihoods; dealing with expert disagreement; and the special concerns of thinking critically about moral matters.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 2340 [0.5 credit]: Philosophy and Pop Culture
Scheduled in Winter semester.
Modality: Online
Philosophy is all around us, it permeates culture. This course explores philosophical questions through the lens of popular culture. The material used may include films, shows, music, novels, video games, advertising, comic books, and so on.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
PHIL 2501 [0.5 credit]: Introduction to Philosophy of Mind
Scheduled in Fall semester.
Modality: TBD
An introduction to major philosophical issues concerning human cognition. Topics may include: the relation of mind to body, knowledge of other minds, the relation of mental states to personhood and personal identity, mental illness, consciousness, intentionality, action, mental realism.
The University may require that all or part of this course be delivered remotely, including online.
Application Procedures and Deadlines
Required Professional Qualifications: MA Degree in the appropriate field.
Closing Date and Time: Sunday. May 29, 2022, 11:59 pm.
All applicants must apply electronically to the Department Head, clearly stating which courses they are applying for:
Professor Annie Larivée
Chair, Department of Philosophy
c/o rima.sanaallah@carleton.ca
As per Article 15.3 of the current CUPE 4600 Unit 2 Collective Agreement, applicants are required to submit an up to date CV, including a complete listing of all courses taught within the CUPE 4600 Unit 2 bargaining unit at Carleton University. Candidates who have already contacted the department and submitted a CV recently need only indicate their interest in particular courses. NOTE that when applying to classes for which they have incumbency, applicants shall not be required to (re)submit documentation beyond their updated CV.
Pre-Posting Hiring Decisions:
The following courses have been assigned to graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, or visiting scholars. These courses are not open for applications but the department will contact the most senior incumbent to review their rights under Article 17.6 of the CUPE 4600-2 Collective Agreement:
- N/A
A note to all applicants: As per Articles 16.3 and 16.4 in the CUPE 4600-2 Collective Agreement, the posted vacancies listed above are first offered to applicants meeting the incumbency criterion. A link to the current CUPE 4600-2 Collective Agreement can be found at the Academic Staff Agreements webpage on the Carleton University Human Resources website http://carleton.ca/hr/collective-agreements/academic-staffing-agreements/ and the CUPE 4600-2 website http://4600.cupe.ca/