Graduate Seminars 2026-27
Please note: Cross-listed seminars in Political Science and Humanities will be listed closer to the registration period.
Fall 2026:
Annie Larivee
PHIL 5000: Special Topic: Philosophy as a Way of Life
Philosophy as a Way of Life (PWL), a meta-philosophical movement originating in the work of historian Pierre Hadot (1922–2010), has become an influential way of rethinking the aims and methods of philosophy. Not to be confused with Public Philosophy, it offers an alternative to philosophy as a purely theoretical, professionalized activity, while remaining firmly anchored in the history of philosophy (esp. Greek and Roman). Different versions of the paradigm have been developed, and critical work has taken place from within. Yet despite its growing influence inside and outside academia, PWL has rarely been examined critically from outside its own conceptual horizon.
To prepare for this external assessment, the seminar will first examine competing versions of PWL, each engaging ancient philosophy differently: Hadot’s spiritual exercises; Nussbaum’s therapy of desire; Foucault’s practice of care for the self; Sellars’ art of living; Cooper’s reasoned life; and Telo’s strengthening of reason. We will identify points of convergence and divergence among these versions and consider their (in)compatibility with academic philosophy, the criteria by which they might be assessed, and whether philosophy as a way of life (in one or multiple versions) can be coherently integrated into contemporary practice. Participants, including the instructor, will be encouraged to clarify their own philosophical commitments in light of these discussions.
Josh Redstone
PHIL 5200: Transhumanism; or, the Ethics of Enhancement
The Transhumanist movement advocates enhancing the human mind, the human body, and society. Within the movement, philosophers and scientists alike argue that the human condition can – and should – be improved using such enhancements as brain-machine interfaces, nootropics, genetic engineering, etc. In this seminar, we’ll explore the ethics of human enhancement by discussing the nature of the human being, our relationship with technology, and the ethical and empirical claims of transhumanist thinkers.
Myrto Mylopoulos
PHIL 5701: Fall Colloquium
Students attend each talk in the departmental colloquium series, preparing by doing mandatory background readings, and submit in writing a critical analysis of some aspect of the presentation.
Gordon Davis
PHIL 5850: Proseminar: Philosophical Naturalism
As a philosophical movement, naturalism eschews the nonphysical and emphasizes scientifically respectable methods of inquiry. The objective of this seminar is to familiarize you with the roots and guises of contemporary naturalism and with its presence in three main areas of philosophy—the philosophy of mind, epistemology, and ethics. Particular topics to be discussed include the historical origins of contemporary naturalism, its ontological and methodological commitments, the causal closure of the physical domain, varieties of physicalism about the mental, whether a naturalized epistemology vitiates traditional epistemology’s reliance on intuition and the a priori, naturalist challenges to metaethical realism, and the implications of naturalism for the perennial question of life’s meaning.
Winter 2027:
Gabriele Contessa
PHIL 5500: Echo Chambers (and Other Epistemic Communities)
Blurb: Social epistemologists are increasingly aware that the communities we belong to shape what we know and believe—determining which information reaches us, which sources we trust, and ultimately what we take to be true. They also recognize that certain communities are epistemically unhealthy. Echo chambers are one of the paradigmatic examples of epistemically unhealthy communities. This seminar explores questions like: What exactly are echo chambers, and how do they differ from epistemically healthier communities? Can someone trapped inside an echo chamber recognize their situation or find a way out? And to what extent are people responsible for the beliefs they hold because they are in an epistemically unhealthy community?”
Kyla Bruff
PHIL 5500: Adorno’s Critique of Modern Society
Course description coming soon
Myrto Mylopoulos
PHIL 5751: Winter Colloquium
Students attend each talk in the departmental colloquium series, preparing by doing mandatory background readings, and submit in writing a critical analysis of some aspect of the presentation.
Christine Koggel
PHIL 5900: Research Seminar
Mandatory seminar course for all first-year MA students. The primary objective of this seminar is to develop topics for theses or research essays. Students will consult with potential supervisors during this process.