Unit name | Philosophy of Perception |
---|---|
Unit code | PHIL30119 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
Unit director | Dr. Anya Farennikova |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
none |
Co-requisites |
none |
School/department | Department of Philosophy |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This course surveys key topics in contemporary philosophy of perception. Questions include: Is there a sharp divide between perception and cognition? Can our beliefs and biases influence how we see the world? What can synesthesia teach us about perceptual content? Can we perceive moral and aesthetic properties, or is perception limited to physical properties such as colours and shapes? Can perception be completely idle, or is it essentially linked to action? Special emphasis is given to two current debates in philosophy of perception: cognitive penetrability of perception and admissible contents of experience. Many readings focus on visual perception, but we will also consider other sensory modalities, such as tactile perception and audition.
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
11 one-hour lectures and 11 one-hour seminars
All assessment for this unit is summative
Dretske, Fred (1969). Seeing And Knowing. Chicago: University Of Chicago Press.
Fodor, Jerry A. (1983). The Modularity of Mind. MIT Press.
Gendler, Tamar & Hawthorne, John (eds.) (2006). Perceptual Experience. Oxford University Press.
Noë, Alva & Thompson, Evan (eds.) (2002). Vision and Mind: Selected Readings in the Philosophy of Perception. MIT Press.