Introduction to Philosophy

My approach to teaching an introductory philosophy course tends to be topically-focused rather than historical, though I do highlight relevant historical context and provide information about authors to give students a sense of the people behind the ideas. To further engage students, the final two weeks of the course are reserved for a special topic proposed and voted on by the class.

In teaching Introduction to Philosophy, as well as in my own studies as an undergrad, I found that I enjoyed pairing the “hard” philosophical material with short fiction that further explores the philosophical ideas. Fiction can, and often does, intellectually serve as a theoretical space for testing ideas and exploring their logical conclusions.

The inclusion of narrative elements serve as anchors for referencing and applying the philosophical material, drawing helpful analogies with the other works, and encouraging students to synthesize their learning by drawing connections between the philosophy and the fiction. Students also seem to enjoy it, too!

I am in the process of altering my Intro to Philosophy syllabus to include stories hosted by Teaching Ethics with Short Stories (TESS: http://www.teachingethicswithshortstories.com/) to include more diverse voices and narratives that match the course content I want to engage students with.