Graduate Seminars 2026-27
Please note: Cross-listed seminars in Political Science and Humanities will be listed closer to the registration period.
Fall 2026:
PHIL 5000: Special Topic: Philosophy as a Way of Life
Annie Larivee
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.
PHIL 5001: Political Theory
Sophie Marcotte Chénard
This course explores different methodological approaches to the study of texts in political theory. It examines the essential methodological considerations that are involved in designing and conducting a study in political theory
PHIL 5101: Ethical Methods for Public Issues
Jay Drydyk
This seminar course develops a methodology for ethical research on public issues. It begins with a critical review of other available methods for analyzing ethical dimensions of public issues, ranging from applied political philosophy and applied ethics to engaged philosophy and grounded normative theorizing. Then evolutionary moral psychology is enlisted to develop a methodology of discerning diverse ethical concerns in the different dimensions of care/harm, loyalty, trust, respect, and justice. We will exemplify this methodology initially in application to an issue that is likely novel to most or all of the students: the ethics of ecotourism. Midway through the course, each student will present a research proposal for their final paper, applying this methodology either to a limited aspect of the ecotourism issue, or to a public policy issue of their choice. After Fall Break we inquire how ethical divergences and conflicts might be settled by various approaches to public reasoning, as advocated by Kant, the Frankfurt school, Rawls, Taylor, and Sen. The final two weeks will be given to presentation and discussion of short seminar papers focusing on central arguments from each student’s final research paper.
Also listed as EPAF 6101.
Precludes additional credit for EPAF 6100.
PHIL 5200: Transhumanism; or, the Ethics of Enhancement
Josh Redstone
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.
PHIL 5701: Fall Colloquium
Myrto Mylopoulos
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.
PHIL 5850: Proseminar: Philosophical Naturalism
Gordon Davis
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:
PHIL 5201: Engaged Philosophy and Public Policy
Vida Panitch
What does it mean to do engaged philosophy as distinct from applied philosophy? According to Jonathan Wolff, applied philosophy proceeds in a top-down (theory-driven) fashion, such that we simply choose our favourite theory and extract its implications for any given policy issue, whether or not it generates a conclusion that is likely to gain widespread acceptance or institutionalization. Alternatively, doing engaged philosophy means that we proceed in a bottom-up (problem-driven) fashion, where the goal is to understand the moral difficulties of a policy issues and the conflicting views and values at stake, and to untangle those complexities and disagreements by appeal to philosophical ideas and methods of reasoning, with the aim of both enriching public discourse and improving public policy.
In this course we will undertake the project of engaged philosophy with respect to three specific areas of policy concern: public health care, the regulation of body markets, and basic income. We will explore the various moral, political, and economic complexities these issues raise, using Wolff’s text Ethics and Public Policy (Routledge 2020) as our primary source, along with supplementary readings from contemporary texts in ethics and political philosophy. Students will also have the chance to present and complete research papers on a variety of additional topics including immigration, drug regulation, gambling, crime, disability, and animal experimentation.
Also listed as EPAF 6201.
Precludes additional credit for EPAF 6200.
PHIL 5500: Echo Chambers (and Other Epistemic Communities)
Gabriele Contessa
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?”
PHIL 5500: Adorno’s Critique of Modern Society
Kyla Bruff
Course description coming soon
PHIL 5751: Winter Colloquium
Myrto Mylopoulos
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.
PHIL 5900: Research Seminar
Christine Koggel
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.