Introductory description

In this module, you will learn about some of the major world philosophies such as Chinese Philosophy and Buddhist Philosophy, as well as about some of the questions raised by the existence of different philosophical traditions. What answers do different philosophical traditions offer to questions such as: What is reality? What is the relation between appearances and reality? What is the relation between knowledge and truth? How do we achieve a good life? And how should we think about the relations between the different ways of thinking by which they arrive at these answers? By the end of the module, you will have a theoretical knowledge of some of the major world philosophies and be able to apply this knowledge to the analysis of texts in non-Western philosophical traditions.

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Week 1
World Philosophies: An Introduction

Week 2
Rationality or Rationalities? What is Decolonisation?

Week 3
Colonialism and Négritude: Senghor, Césaire, Fanon

Week 4
Non-Western “Art” and Cultural Appropriation

Week 5
The Problem of Translation in World Philosophies

Week 7
Indian Philosophy and German Idealism; Or, Was Schopenhauer a Bad Buddhist?

Week 8
Buddhist Philosophy: Nagarjuna’s “Examination of Fire and Fuel”

Week 9
Chinese Philosophy part 1: The Metaphysics of Laozi 老子

Week 10
Chinese Philosophy part 2: Ziran 自然 and Wuwei 無為

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• By the end of the module you will be able to: Demonstrate a theoretical knowledge of the principles implied in some of the major world philosophies.
• Demonstrate familiarity with the main theoretical issues of different world philosophies and communicate clearly and substantively in speech and in writing on the questions addressed in the module.
• Critically assess the key claims and arguments of the core texts and the case studies analysed in the module.
• Organize philosophical research and engage independently in comparative philosophical analysis.

Indicative reading list

Césaire, Aimé. 2000. Discourse on colonialism. New York: Monthly Review Press.
Cooper, David E. 2012. ‘Schopenhauer and Indian Philosophy’. In B. Vandenabeele (ed.) A Companion to Schopenhauer. Chicester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Deutsch, Eliot, ed. 1991. Culture and Modernity: East-West Philosophic Perspectives. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.
Deutsch, Eliot, and Ronald Bontekoe, eds. 1999. A Companion to World Philosophies. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell.
Dutton, Dennis. 2008. “But they Don’t have our Concept of Art” in Alex Neil & Aaron Ridley (eds), Arguing About Art: Contemporary Philosophical Debates, Third Edition, London: Routledge
Escande, Yolaine, Vincent Shen, and Chenyang Li, eds. 2013. Inter-culturality and Philosophic Discourse. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Fanon, Frantz. 2001/1967. The Wretched of the Earth. Translated by Constance Farrington. London: Penguin.
Janaway, Christopher. 2021. ‘Schopenhauer’s “Indian” Ethics’. In P. Hassan (ed.) Schopenhauer’s Moral Philosophy. London: Routledge.
Laozi 老子, Daodejing 道德經.
Ma, Lin, and Jaap van Brakel. 2016. Fundamentals of Comparative and Intercultural Philosophy. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Senghor, Léopold Sédar. 1964. Négritude et humanisme. Paris: Editions du Seuil.
Shiner, Larry. 2008. “Western and Non-Western Concepts of Art” in Alex Neil & Aaron Ridley (eds), Arguing About Art: Contemporary Philosophical Debates, Third Edition, London: Routledge.
Ryan, Christopher. 2017. ‘Schopenhauer and Gotama on Life’s Suffering’. In S. Shapshay (ed.) The Palgrave Schopenhauer Handbook. London: Palgrave-Macmillan
Van Norden, Bryan W. 2017. Taking Back Philosophy: A Multicultural Manifesto. New York: Columbia University Press.

Research element

Both assessments – video presentation and essay – require research elements.

Interdisciplinary

The module addresses the issue of how the analysis of different philosophical traditions needs to combine methods and insights from different academic disciplines.

International

By definition, the analysis of different world philosophies needs to consider different cultural traditions in a multicultural and international context

Subject specific skills

Through this module you will acquire
(a) The ability to understand the distinctive features of some of the major world philosophies;
(b) The ability to apply different approaches in the comparative philosophical analysis;
(c) The ability to pursue independent philosophical research.

Transferable skills

Through this module you will acquire
(a) The ability to communicate information (verbally and in written form) to people both expert and non-expert in the field;
(b) The ability to analyse, evaluate, critique and apply complex information gathered from reading, reflection, reasoning or communication;
(c) The ability to effectively manage schedules and deadlines.