Philosophy
Department website: http://www.sbcc.edu/philosophy/
Doing philosophy means reasoning about questions that are of fundamental importance to the human experience, such as: What is a good life? What is reality? How can we know anything? What should we believe? How should our societies be organized? How should humans interact with non-humans and the environment? Philosophers critically analyze ideas and practices that often are assumed without reflection. At SBCC, the Philosophy Department approaches subjects with techniques from a range of traditions of inquiry and offers a wide variety of perspectives on the deep and perplexing questions that are central to the study of philosophy.
The Philosophy Department offers a wide variety of courses: Introduction to Philosophy, Ethics, Critical Thinking, Logic, Comparative World Religions, Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy of Art, Great Ideas of Physics, and History of Philosophy: Ancient, Modern, and Contemporary. The Department also has Honors courses in Introduction to Philosophy and Ethics.
The Department also offers Philosophy Club, Internships, Independent Study, and Debate Team, and selects one student as Outstanding Student who is presented the Philosophy Award at the annual year-end SBCC Awards Banquet.
Planning a Program of Study
The required Philosophy courses for majors may be taken in any order, but it is recommended that Introduction to Philosophy be taken as a prelude to the other courses.
Preparation for Transfer
Course requirements for transfer vary depending upon the college or university a student wishes to attend. Therefore, it is most important for a student to consult with his/her counselor and departmental adviser before planning an academic program for transfer. Information sheets for majors, outlining transfer requirements, are available in the Counseling Center and Transfer Center.
Philosophy (PHIL)
PHIL 100 Introduction to Philosophy (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
A survey course that investigates the basic problems and systems in philosophy. Special consideration is given to logic, theories of knowledge, metaphysics, ethics, philosophy of religion, and political philosophy. We will examine these areas from a wide array of perspectives, including Western, Eastern, and Indigenous traditions, and make connections to our current state of existence.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
UC Transfer Limit: PHIL 100 and 100H combined: maximum credit, one course.
C-ID: PHIL 100.
PHIL 100H Introduction to Philosophy, Honors (4 Units)
Limitations on Enrollment: Other: Acceptance into the Honors Program.
Hours: 72 (72 lecture)
In-depth survey of the basic problems and systems in philosophy. Special consideration given to Logic, Epistemology, Metaphysics, Ethics, Philosophy of Religion, Political Philosophy, and Aesthetics.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
UC Transfer Limit: PHIL 100 and 100H combined: maximum credit, one course.
C-ID: PHIL 100.
PHIL 101 Introduction to Ethics (3 Units)
Skills Advisories: Eligibility for ENG 110 or ENG 110H.
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Examination of the nature of morality, moral concepts, moral theories, such as virtue theory, natural law, consequentialism, and Kantianism, and disputed moral issues, such as abortion, world hunger, pornography, environmentalism, cloning, genetic enhancement, war, euthanasia, capital punishment and animal rights.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
UC Transfer Limit: PHIL 101 and 101H combined: maximum credit, one course.
C-ID: PHIL 120.
PHIL 101H Introduction To Ethics, Honors (4 Units)
Limitations on Enrollment: Acceptance into the Honors Program.
Hours: 72 (72 lecture)
In-depth study of the types and history of ethical theories. Analysis of the factual and normative factors involved in making moral choices. Discussion of the nature of moral standards and values and their relevance to present times. Topics include the meaning of "should," "right," "justice," "blame," "responsibility." Examines the moral aspect of social issues, such as abortion, euthanasia, the environment and drug legalization, etc.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
UC Transfer Limit: PHIL 101 and 101H combined: maximum credit, one course.
C-ID: PHIL 120.
PHIL 102 Comparative World Religions (3 Units)
Skills Advisories: Eligibility for ENG 110 or ENG 110H.
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Presentation and interpretation of the fundamental concepts, ideals, customs, rituals and insights of the major religious traditions. Religions discussed are Hinduism; Buddhism; Greek; Roman; Taoism; Confucianism; Shintoism; Jainism; Zoroastrianism; Sikhism; Judaism; Christianity; and Islam.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C, SBCCGE Area E5
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
UC Transfer Limit: PHIL 102 and 102H combined: maximum credit, one course.
PHIL 111 Critical Thinking And Writing In Philosophy (3 Units)
Prerequisites: ENG 110 or ENG 110H.
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Examination of the basic elements of logic, including the study of the principles of inductive and deductive reasoning, their relevance to problem-solving, scientific method, and argument analysis/evaluation. Development of critical thinking skills, including identifying and evaluating arguments, recognizing informal fallacies, and the uses and misuses of language in a variety of contexts. Integration of critical thinking skills with the techniques of effective argumentative writing, addressing themes of social and multicultural relevance. (Fulfills Critical Thinking requirement for IGETC/CSU General Education.)
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area D2
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area A3, IGETC Area 1B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 200 History Of Philosophy: Ancient (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Study of the thought of major philosophers from the time of Thales, 640 B.C., through the Romans. Philosophers discussed are the Pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Greek Atomists (Leucippus, Democritus, Epicurus), the Stoics (Seneca and Epictetus) up to Marcus Aurelius.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
C-ID: PHIL 130.
PHIL 201 History of Philosophy: Modern (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Study of the thought of the major philosophers from the rise of science in the late 1500s to 1800s. Philosophers discussed include many or all of the following: Bacon, Galileo, Hobbes, Descartes, Spinoza, Conway, Malebranche, Leibniz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume and Kant.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
C-ID: PHIL 140.
PHIL 203 Truth, Meaning, and Existence (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Philosophers of the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries are studied, showing their impact upon thought, culture and society. Some of the philosophers presented include: Karl Marx, Soren Kierkegaard, William James, Bertrand Russell, Gottlob Frege, G.E. Moore, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Martin Heidegger, Michel Foucault, bell hooks, Martha Nussbaum, Cornel West, Charles Mills, John Rawls, and Angela Davis. We will examine these philosophers and their impact on contemporary issues such as language, logic, experience, and oppression.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 204 History And Philosophy Of The Great Ideas Of Physics (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Examines the history and development of the major ideas of physics. Designed particularly for philosophy students and others in the liberal arts and humanities; however, STEM students may find the course useful in its logical analysis of the structure of scientific methodology. Physical ideas of three significant eras: ancient Greece; the beginnings of modern science from the 17th to 18th centuries, including the thinking of Copernicus, Galileo and Newton; and the revolutionary ideas of early 20th century and contemporary physics. Course is designed to be conceptual, rather than mathematical, in its investigation of the great ideas of physics.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 205 Introduction to Logic (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Formal investigation into the nature of argument. Topics covered are validity, implication, statement (propositional) logic, truth tables, syllogistic (categorical) logic (including Carroll or Venn diagrams), and predicate (quantificational) logic.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area D2
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area A3, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
C-ID: PHIL 110.
PHIL 206 Philosophy of Religion (3 Units)
Skills Advisories: Eligibility for ENG 110 or ENG 110H.
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Provides a critical examination of the central philosophical issues associated with religion. Topics may include the existence and nature of a deity, good and evil, miracles, souls, life after death, revelations, and the relationships between myth and religion, religious experience and justification, faith and knowledge, and between religious beliefs and moral conduct.
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 207A Comparative Philosophy, East And West (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
Critical examination of the predominant philosophical ideas of the most influential philosophical perspectives in world history: Western Greek and Roman philosophy, Indian philosophy, and Chinese philosophy.
SBCC General Education: SBCCGE Area C
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 207B Philosophy of Art (3 Units)
Hours: 54 (54 lecture)
The philosophical study of art, art critique and aesthetic experience. Discussions include the nature of art objects, the uniqueness of aesthetic experience, distinctions between the beautiful and the sublime, the subjective/objective status of judgments about art, and commonalities and differences among the arts, including painting, sculpture, performance, poetry and music.
Transfer Information: CSUGE Area C1, CSUGE Area C2, IGETC Area 3A, IGETC Area 3B, CSU Transferable, UC Transferable
PHIL 295 Internship In Philosophy (2-4 Units)
Limitations on Enrollment: Completion of two courses (in applicable discipline) at SBCC prior to enrolling in an internship course.
Hours: 210 (210 lab)
Structured internship program in which students gain experience in community organizations related to the discipline. Course restricted to 3 repetitions
Transfer Information: CSU Transferable
PHIL 299 Independent Study In Philosophy (1-4 Units)
Limitations on Enrollment: At least three Philosophy courses.
Hours: 192 (192 lab)
To be eligible for independent student, a student must have completed a minimum of 12 units at Santa Barbara City College with a 2.5 G.P.A. For complete information, see "Independent Study" in the Catalog Index.
Transfer Information: CSU Transferable