Undergraduate Module Descriptor

PHL3108: Fundamental Ontology

This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.

Module Aims

What is the world made of? Philosophical attempts to address this question form the core of this module. We aim to explore a range of attempts to explain the nature of the world around us, in terms of its most basic constituents. Notions such as “substance”, “process”, “atoms”, “ideas” have all been central in questions of fundamental ontology and we will aim to develop a critical understanding of their place in our attempts to understand the world. We also aim to explore related questions concerning the number of types of “stuff” (i.e. the debates between pluralists and monists) - and the problem of change and stability. Is change an illusion? What features of the world (if any) are constant? Is the world simply material? We aim to critically engage with philosophical attempts to answer these questions as well as question the place of philosophy in addressing them.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. Develop an advanced understanding of the problems of fundamental ontology and a range of philosophical attempts to address these problems 2. Analyse and critically engage with a range of ontological theories, developing an understanding of issues at stake in some key metaphysical disputes over the fundamental nature of the world
Discipline-Specific Skills	3. Reveal and critique the ontological assumptions underlying of a range of areas of philosophy (e.g. mind, science) 4. Understand how fundamental question of ontology relate to wider philosophical understanding of the world (e.g. substance as a fundamental philosophical category) and make use of this insight in your wider philosophy)
Personal and Key Skills	5. Grasp, and be able to articulate clearly, the problematic nature of many of our basic assumptions about the world 6. Explain a wide range of problems and theories of varying degrees of abstractness, and present coherent clear arguments in response to these problems and theories. 7. Demonstrate the ability to work independently, within a limited time frame, and without access to external sources, to complete a specified task.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

The philosophers listed are indicative. The texts chosen may deviate from those mentioned below.

The problem of change in ancient Greek philosophy – Zeno, Parmenides, Heraclitus, Democritus, Plato
Aristotle on substance – Aristotle
Cartesian dualism and responses – Descartes, Spinoza and Leibniz
Idealism – Berkeley, Kant, Hegel
Materialism – Democritus, Hobbes, Marx
Neutral Monism – Spinoza, Mach
Process and the critique of substance – Whitehead
Physicalism and the place of philosophy – Sandra Mitchell, Quine, Carnapp

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
28.5	121.5	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Lectures	17.5	11 x 90 minute lectures
Tutorials	11	11 one hour lectures
Guided independent study	33	Assigned reading associated with lecture and tutorials
Guided independent study	10	Preparation for in-class discussion
Guided independent study	33	Preparation for assigned essay
Guided independent study	47.5	Exam Revision and private study

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

Aristotle’s Metaphysics (Ross translation available at http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/metaphysics.html)

How this Module is Assessed

In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.

Formative Assessment

A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
In-class presentation	10 Minutes	1,2,5,6	Verbal

Summative Assessment

A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
50	50	0

...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Essay	50	2000 words	1-6	Written
Exam	50	1.5 Hours	all	Written
	0
	0
	0
	0

Re-assessment

Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Essay	Essay	all	August/September assessment period
Exam	Exam	all	August/September assessment period

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

Basic reading:
Lloyd, G.E.R. (1970) Early Greek Science: Thales to Aristotle. Norton (New York, London)
Collingwood, R.G. (1945) The Idea of Nature OUP (Oxford)
Woolhouse, R.S. (1993), Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz: The Concept of Substance in Seventeenth Century Metaphysics. Routledge (London, New York)
Rescher, N. (2000), Process Philosophy: A survey of Basic Issues. University of Pittsburgh Press (Pittsburgh)

Selections from…
Spinoza’ Ethics (1996) Penguin Classics translated by Edwin Curley
Leibniz (1992) Discourse on Metaphysics and Other Essays: Translated and Edited by Garber, D. and Ariew, R. Hackett (Indianapolis)
Whitehead, A.N. (1946) Science and the Modern World, Cambridge University Press (Cambridge)