About this course: This course will introduce you to some of the main areas of research in contemporary philosophy. Each module a different philosopher will talk you through some of the most important questions and issues in their area of expertise. We’ll begin by trying to understand what philosophy is – what are its characteristic aims and methods, and how does it differ from other subjects? Then we’ll spend the rest of the course gaining an introductory overview of several different areas of philosophy. Topics you’ll learn about will include: Epistemology, where we’ll consider what our knowledge of the world and ourselves consists in, and how we come to have it; Philosophy of science, where we’ll investigate foundational conceptual issues in scientific research and practice; Philosophy of Mind, where we’ll ask questions about what it means for something to have a mind, and how minds should be understood and explained; Political Philosophy, where we'll investigate whether we have an obligation to obey the law; Moral Philosophy, where we’ll attempt to understand the nature of our moral judgements and reactions – whether they aim at some objective moral truth, or are mere personal or cultural preferences, and; Metaphysics, where we’ll think through some fundamental conceptual questions about free will and the nature of reality. The development of this MOOC has been led by the University of Edinburgh's Eidyn research centre. To accompany 'Introduction to Philosophy', we are pleased to announce a tie-in book from Routledge entitled 'Philosophy for Everyone'. This course companion to the 'Introduction to Philosophy' course was written by the Edinburgh Philosophy team expressly with the needs of MOOC students in mind. 'Philosophy for Everyone' contains clear and user-friendly chapters, chapter summaries, glossary, study questions, suggestions for further reading and guides to online resources. Please click "Start Here" and navigate to the "Optional Reading" page for more information.
Taught by: Dr. Dave Ward, Lecturer in Philosophy
University of Edinburgh
Taught by: Professor Duncan Pritchard, Professor of Philosophy
University of Edinburgh
Taught by: Professor Michela Massimi, Full Professor
Philosophy
Taught by: Dr. Suilin Lavelle, Lecturer in Philosophy
University of Edinburgh
Taught by: Dr. Matthew Chrisman, Reader in Philosophy
Philosophy
Taught by: Dr. Allan Hazlett
Taught by: Dr. Alasdair Richmond, Dr.
Philosophy
Taught by: Guy Fletcher, Lecturer
Philosophy
Taught by: Elinor Mason, Senior Lecturer
Philosophy
| Language | English, Subtitles: Chinese (Simplified), Vietnamese, Dutch, Turkish, Hebrew, Spanish, Romanian |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
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Super good course. The course gives a birds' eye view of philosophy, various substrata of thinking within the field and really gave me a deeper understanding of what philosophy is about.
its Excellent, so interesting
It is an enriching experience. This was my first ever attempt in understanding certain nuances of philosophy. The course got my mind blown as it changed my way of looking at things. Before taking this course, I had assumed certain things to be too obvious to be true. The array of examples and schools of different thoughts assimilated in the videos have made the whole learning experience more edifying. I don't know how much of this knowledge will I be able to retain. Initially, I had doubts over taking this course as I had no clue of what it will unfold but turns out that it was a correct decision. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone behind this course.
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IM
The course has been successful in organizing my thoughts with regard to several questions on general philosophy and metaphysics particularly. I have come to understand that even today, there is no correct way of thinking. More precisely, there is no correct answer and that we are free to believe in whatever seems right after keen philosophical inspection.
Thank you very much!