Undergraduate Module Descriptor

PHL1010: Introduction to Asian Philosophy

This module descriptor refers to the 2020/1 academic year.

Module Aims

At the end of the module you will be familiar with major Asian philosophical traditions, their historical and social background, and their central concepts as discussed in major classical texts. You will be aware of the existence of spiritual traditions concerned with the practice of self-cultivation, and understand the relationship between meditative practices and philosophical worldviews.

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. Competently illustrate the main tenets of different Asian philosophical traditions; 2. Understand and explain key concepts in classical Indian and Chinese texts; 3. Articulate your own arguments in favour of different conceptions of selfhood; 4. Explain in an informed way the relation between spirituality, philosophy and meditative practices in different Asian traditions.
Discipline-Specific Skills	5. Analyze in a critical way different philosophical texts; 6. Present and discuss, orally and in writing, a variety of philosophical concepts;
Personal and Key Skills	7. Illustrate and explain difficult ideas in writing and orally; 8. Analyze complex ideas and concepts and relate them to their social context; 9. 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

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

Indian traditions: Brahmanical and Hindu thought; Indian Buddhism.
Chinese traditions: Confucianism; Taoism.

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
27.5	122.5

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

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching activity	27.5	11 x 2.5hs weekly lecture + seminar
Guided Independent Study	45	Weekly assigned readings
Guided Independent Study	10	Preparation for class discussion
Guided Independent Study	22.5	Preparation for essay
Guided Independent Study	45	Preparation for final exam

Online Resources

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

ELE – http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/

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 texts:

Walpola Rahula, What the Buddha Taught. Grove Press, 1994.
P.J. Ivanhoe & B.W. Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy. Hackett, 2006.