Online Philosophy 2023-2024

This course introduces the student to key writings from the Scottish Enlightenment. In particular, the course will focus on the work of Francis Hutcheson, David Hume, Thomas Reid, and Adam Smith. Students will be guided through the work of these thinkers with support from staff in History and Philosophy. In addition, we will draw on Aberdeen’s wealth of academic expertise in this area to provide a wider context within which to situate and understand this work. In particular, we will discuss the contexts within which this work arose and the significant influence it had on the European Enlightenment and beyond. Finally, we will reflect on what we might learn from these thinkers today as we face our own intellectual, social and political challenges.

This team taught-course, linked to the Centre for Knowledge and Society (CEKAS), examines key issues in contemporary applied philosophical research, with special emphasis on topics associated with CEKAS research streams. Students will engage with philosophical arguments and concepts central to a variety of applied domains, including science, medicine, technology education and the arts. Students will be taught by a research expert in each topic and will have the opportunity to select their own topic for their assessments (essay and presentation).