
Russell Marcus
Russell Marcus teaches logic and modern philosophy, as well as philosophy of language and philosophy of mathematics, his main area of research.
Philosophy is a practice at Hamilton, where your professors will encourage you to be engaged and to apply your training beyond the classroom. For instance, philosophy majors have developed and taught philosophy mini-classes to their peers and to local high school students. You’ll think creatively about what philosophy is and how it may (or may not) demand practical action.
Most of the courses require students to give presentations or participate in discussions or debates, and in some courses, they take oral exams. The small, introductory classes require students to read primary sources rather than predigested material in textbooks. To encourage students to learn to read philosophical texts early, concentrators are required to take three courses in the history of philosophy — from the ancient through the contemporary.
I’ve never felt that I’m able to explore intellectually like I can in a philosophy class – in a really neat way that I haven’t experienced in other types of classes. I speak very highly of our philosophy department.
Emi Birch — philosophy major
The department hires up-and-coming new scholars as postdoctoral fellows, allowing students to benefit from the latest philosophical research and trends in the country’s best graduate schools. Visiting scholars, speakers and conferences bring some of the most prominent names in philosophy to campus and into philosophy classes.
Russell Marcus teaches logic and modern philosophy, as well as philosophy of language and philosophy of mathematics, his main area of research.
Justin Clark researches ancient theories of virtue and various problems in moral psychology.
Katheryn Doran's interests include American philosophy, contemporary Anglo-American philosophy, and environmental ethics.
Todd Franklin focuses on transformations of consciousness.
Marianne Janack wrote What We Mean By Experience, published by Stanford University Press.
Alessandro Ramón Moscarítolo Palacio is also exploring new ways to bring philosophy to bear on social justice concerns.
Alexandra Plakias’ research focuses on issues in moral psychology, such as the role of evolution and culture in our moral values.
Richard Werner’s research interests center on issues relating to applied philosophy.
An introduction to various theories and expressions of 19th and 20th century existential thought. Readings include Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Camus, Heidegger, Sartre, Wright, and de Beauvoir. Writing-intensive. Oral Presentations. Proseminar.
View All CoursesA philosophical exploration of a variety of historical and contemporary works that illuminate and influence the phenomenological experience of being black. Writing-intensive.
View All CoursesFocus on the philosophical analysis of scientific knowledge, scientific method and the practice of science. Readings include classic texts in the philosophy of science as well as contemporary discussions of science as a social product and critiques of the notion of scientific objectivity. Taught in alternating years. Writing-intensive.
View All CoursesIt makes sense to see morality as adaptive, yet from an evolutionary perspective it’s puzzling that we follow and enforce moral standards even when it is costly for us to do so. This course will critically examine different sorts of evolutionary accounts of morality (e.g. group selection, cultural evolution), with methodological issues in mind.
View All CoursesExploring the Morality of Cultural Appropriation
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