Room: CSB 004 Prof. Eric Watkins
Times: T & Th 11:00-12:20 Office: H&SS 8018
Term: Fall Quarter 2009 Office tel: 822-0082
Office Hours: Th 2:00-3:30 & by appointment E-mail: ewatkins@ucsd.edu


Phil 107 Hegel

The purpose of this course is to introduce the philosophical thought of G.F.W. Hegel by considering the works of his main immediate predecessors and major sections of his Phenomenology of Spirit (1807).

I. Reading Assignments (subject to adjustment)

Th 9-24 Introduction
   
T 9-29 Introduction (Kant) cont.
Th 10-1 Reinhold, The Foundation of Philosophical Knowledge (1791) (53-74, 82-85) (in BKH)
   
T 10-6 Schulze, Aenesidemus (1792) (105-112) (in BKH),
Fichte, "Review of Aenesidemus" (1792) (137-153) (in BKH)
Th 10-8 Fichte, An Attempt at a New Presentation of the Wissenschaftslehre, Chapter One (106-118) Handout (pdf)
    Terms, Chronology
T 10-13 Hegel, "Faith and Knowledge" (67-75, 153-161) Handout
Th 10-15 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit (1807) Introduction (46-57) Outline
   
T 10-20 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Introduction, cont.  Chisholm's "Problem of Crit."
Th 10-22 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Introduction, cont. First Paper Topic
   
T 10-27 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Sense Certainty (58-67) Paper due, Outline
Th 10-29

Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Sense Certainty, cont.


   
T 11-3 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Perception (68-79) Paper due, Outline
Th 11-5 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Perception, cont.
   
T 11-10 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Force and the Understanding (79-103)
Th 11-12 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Force and the Understanding, cont.
   
T 11-17 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Lordship and Bondage (104-119) Outline
Th 11-19 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Lordship and Bondage, cont.
   
T 11-24 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, Lordship and Bondage, cont.
Th 11-26 Thanksgiving
   
T 12-1 Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit, The Ethical Order  (263-294) Sophocles' Antigone
Th 12-3 Absolute Knowing (479-493) & Concluding Lecture

 
Wed 12-9 Final Exam (11:30-2:29)


II. Texts:

Required

di Giovanni, G. and Harris, H., Between Kant and Hegel: Texts in the Development of Post-Kantian Idealism. [abbreviated as BKH above] Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 2000.

Hegel, G.W.F., Phenomenology of Spirit. transl. A.V. Miller, New York: Oxford University Press, 1977.

The texts are available in the UCSD bookstore. All readings listed on the syllabus will be from these books.

Recommended

Beiser, Frederick, Hegel, New York: Routledge, 2005.

Beiser, Frederick, The Cambridge Companion to Hegel, New York: Cambridge, 1993.

Henrich, Dieter, Between Kant and Hegel, Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2003.

Taylor, Charles, Hegel, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1975.

III. Requirements:

1. One medium-length paper (25%)
The paper will be 4-5 pages and explain the basic claim and argument of either "Sense Certainty" or "Perception". The paper must be turned in prior to the class discussion on it.

2. Final exam (50%)
The final exam will be comprehensive, though Hegel will always be involved in the question in one way or another.

Or:

One Term Paper (50%)
The term paper should be
15 pages in length. It should involve both primary and secondary literature. Term paper topics will not be assigned; instead, by the beginning of the 8th week (Tuesday, November 18) one must submit for my approval a 2-3 page description of the topic and what literature (both primary and secondary) will be discussed.

3. Class Participation (25%)
Class participation is important and will be part of the final grade. One way to participate in class is to submit detailed reactions to and/or thoughtful questions about the reading 
(300 word minimum and maximum) in advance of the relevant class (via e-mail). 

Make-up Exam Policy
A make-up examination will be arranged only if evidence of a valid excuse (e.g., a note from the doctor, the dean or athletic department, etc.) is presented in a timely manner. If a student misses an examination without a valid excuse, the student will receive a grade of F for that exam.

IV. Other Information

1. I expect students to have read the material in advance and to be prepared to discuss it in class. This is not a lecture course, so class discussion is essential.

2. Honor Code. The Academic Honor Code must be observed in this course.

3. If accommodations are needed for a disability or religious reasons, please notify me during the first class period or as soon as possible.