Course Schedule



Week 1
Aug. 29th:
Introduction to the course, What is early modern philosophy?
Descartes



31st:
Descartes’ break from the past: Rules for the Direction of the Mind, §1-3 (pp. 2-7); The World and Letter to Mersenne, April 1634 (pp. 30-45); Discourse on Method, Part One (pp. 46-50); Meditations on First Philosophy, Meditation One (p. 104, first paragraph only)
Week 2
Sep. 5th:
Class cancelled—Labor Day

7th:
Descartes’ philosophical project: Preface to the Principles (pp. 222-31); Letter to Mersenne, April 1632 (pp. 28-9); Letter to Mersenne, January 1641 (pp. 95-6)
Week 3
12th:
Descartes’ discovery of a first principle for knowledge: Letter of Dedication to the Meditations (pp. 97-100); Meditation One (pp. 104-7); Objection 1 of Third Set of Objections and replay (p. 167); first three paragraphs of Meditation Two (pp. 107-108).

14th:
Forming clear concepts of the mind and the body: Meditation Two (pp. 108-13); Objection 2 from Third Set of Objections and reply (pp. 167-70); Synopsis of the 2nd and 3rd Meditations (pp. 102-3); Principles, Part I: 7-12 (pp. 232-4).
Week 4
19th:
Proof of God’s existence: Meditation Three (pp. 113-22); Objection IX from Third Set  of Objections (p. 174); Principles, I: 13-23 (pp. 234-7); Letter to Buitendijck, 1643 (pp. 212-3)

21st:
Positive and negative freedoms of the will: Meditation Four (pp. 122-7); Principles, I: 24-42 (pp. 237-242); Letter to Mesland, May 1644 (pp. 216-21).
Week 5
26th:
Mind-body dualism: First six paragraphs and the last three paragraphs of Meditation Five (pp. 127-8, 130-1); Meditation Six (pp. 132-41); Principles, I: 51-53, 60 (p. 244-5, 247), II: 1-8 (pp. 253-256).

28th:
No classes scheduled at Hunter
Spinoza


Week 6
Oct. 3rd:
Human flourishing and its obstacles: Treatise, §1-32 (pp. 164-70); Ethics, V:Preface, first paragraph only (p. 143), IV: Preface (pp. 102-4); Short Treatise, Chapter X (pp. 214-5); Treatise on Theology and Politics, Preface* (pp. 1-11).

5th:
A true idea of the existence of God, or Nature: Ethics, I: D1-P14 (pp. 3-10); Short Treatise, Chapters I (pp.193-196); Letter 60 (pp. 293-4).
Week 7
10th:
No class—Columbus Day

12th:
The “nature” of God: Ethics, I: P15-P20 (pp. 10-16); Short Treatise, Chapter II (pp. 196-206); Letters 8,9 (pp. 258-63).
Week 8
17th:
Things “natured”: Ethics, I: P21-Appendix (pp.16-29); Short Treatise, Chapter III-IX (pp. 206-14)

19th:
Thought and physics: Ethics, II:D1-P23 (pp. 29-44).
Week 9
24th:
Intellect emending: Treatise, §33-110 (pp. 170-190).

26th:
Once more, with feeling!: Ethics, II:P24-P49 (pp. 44-60). First essay assigned.
Leibniz


Week 10
31st:
Contra mind-body dualism: Monadology*

Nov. 2nd:
Contra pantheism: Monadology*
Locke


Week 11
7th:
On the nature and origins of our ideas: Essay, Epistle to the Reader, Book I, Chapter I (pp. 1-7); Bk II, Ch. I, §1-10 (pp. 33-6), §23-5 (p.39); Ch. XI, §17 (p. 65); Bk IV, Ch. XXI, §4 (pp. 336-7); Bk II, Ch. II (pp.40-1). First essay due.

9th:
Simple and complex ideas: Essay, Bk II, Chs. III-IX (pp. 41-56); Bk II, Ch. XII-XIII (pp. 66-78); Ch. XXII-XXIII (pp. 114-29).
Week 12
14th:
On words and essence: Essay, Bk II, Chs. I-III (pp. 176-87); Ch. VI (pp. 192-203); compare to Bk II, Ch. XXXI, §6 (ppp. 162-3).
XVII
16th:
On the nature, extent and reality of knowledge: Essay, Bk IV, Ch. I, §1-7 (pp. 224-6); Chs. II-IV (pp. 228-54); Ch. VI, §6-16 (pp. 260-4).
Week 13
21st:
Knowing God, unknowing reason: Bk IV, Ch. IX-XI (pp. 274-91), Ch. XVII-XVIII (pp. 312-325).
Berkeley



23rd:
Critique of immaterialism: Principles, Introduction*


Thanksgiving Recess
Hume


Week 14
28th:
Idea empiricism: Enquiry, Sect. 2 (pp. 9-13)

30th:
Problem of induction: Enquiry, Sect. 4 (pp. 15-25)
Week 15
Dec. 5th:
Source and nature of belief: Enquiry, Sects. 5-6 (pp. 25-39); Sect. 9 (69-72).

7th:
The idea of a cause: Enquiry, Sect. 7 (pp. 39-53). Second essay assigned.

12th:
Compatibilism: Enquiry, Sect. 8 (pp. 53-69)




19th:
Second essay due
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