Philosophy of action

General data

Course ID:	3501-FD20-M-OG
Erasmus code / ISCED:	08.1 Kod klasyfikacyjny przedmiotu składa się z trzech do pięciu cyfr, przy czym trzy pierwsze oznaczają klasyfikację dziedziny wg. Listy kodów dziedzin obowiązującej w programie Socrates/Erasmus, czwarta (dotąd na ogół 0) – ewentualne uszczegółowienie informacji o dyscyplinie, piąta – stopień zaawansowania przedmiotu ustalony na podstawie roku studiów, dla którego przedmiot jest przeznaczony. / (0223) Philosophy and ethics The ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) code has been designed by UNESCO.
Course title:	Philosophy of action
Name in Polish:	Filozofia działania
Organizational unit:	Faculty of Philosophy
Course groups:	General university courses in the humanities
ECTS credit allocation (and other scores):	(not available) Basic information on ECTS credits allocation principles: the annual hourly workload of the student’s work required to achieve the expected learning outcomes for a given stage is 1500-1800h, corresponding to 60 ECTS; the student’s weekly hourly workload is 45 h; 1 ECTS point corresponds to 25-30 hours of student work needed to achieve the assumed learning outcomes; weekly student workload necessary to achieve the assumed learning outcomes allows to obtain 1.5 ECTS; work required to pass the course, which has been assigned 3 ECTS, constitutes 10% of the semester student load. view allocation of credits
Language:	Polish
Type of course:	elective monographs general courses
Prerequisites (description):	Students ought to have some prior exposure to philosophy. It is advised but not required that the students have taken philosophy of mind.
Mode:	Classroom
Short description:	The purpose of the lecture is an introduction into contemporary philosophy of action. Its main aim is a survey of various answers to the problem of the nature of action, which is epitomized by Wittgenstein’s question: What is the difference between my raising my arm and my arm going up.
Full description:	The notion of action constitutes a bridge between the physical and the rational. When John reaches out to press a switch, his physical movement might embody a great deal of thought and deliberation. Indeed, one of the possible consequences of John’s action might be the destruction of humankind. His action might be intentional. He might be responsible for it. The notion of action is entangled in the conceptual network of moral, psychological, social, biological and physical theories. The purpose of the lecture is an introduction into contemporary philosophy of action. Its main aim is to answer the problem of the nature of action, which is epitomized by Wittgenstein’s question: What is the difference between my raising my arm and my arm going up. We will consider such topics as: Logical Connection Argument, Contextualism, Anscombe’s Theory, Davidson’s Causal Theory and Its Problems, The Debate on Action Individuation, Volitionalism, Hornsby’s Theory, Agent Causation Theory, Agent Control Theory, Responsibilism, Debates about intentions and about reasons.
Bibliography:	Davis L.H., 1979, Theory of Action, Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. Moya C.J., 1990, The Philosophy of Action, Cambridge: Polity Press. Stout R., 2005, Action, Chesham: Acumen. Hyman J., Steward H. (red.), 2004, Agency and Action, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Mele A.R. (red.), 1997, The Philosophy of Action, Oxford: Oxford University Press. O'Connor T., Sandis C. (red.), 2010, A Companion to Philosophy of Action, Oxford: Basil Blackwell. Sandis C. (red.), 2009, New Essays on the Explanation of Action, New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Dancy, J., Sandis, C. (red.), Philosophy of Action: An Anthology, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2015 White A.R. (red.), 1968, The Philosophy of Action, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Learning outcomes:	Acquired knowledge - knows the main positions in contemporary philosophy of action - knows the main arguments in the debates in philosophy of action - understands the relations between philosophy of action and other philosophical disciplines: ethics, ontology, epistemology Acquired skills - is able to briefly explain a problem in writing - is able to explain basic positions in philosophy of action and basic arguments in the debates Acquired social competences - is open to discuss philosophical issues - is open to new ideas
Assessment methods and assessment criteria:	The final grade is based on the final written test (100%) to be taken on the last day of class. Permissible number of absences: 2

This course is not currently offered.

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