Ministry for Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation
Department of Philosophy
Master of Arts in Philosophy
Concentration in Philosophical Anthropology
MOSCOW, 2010-2011
8/2 Maliy Trechsviatitelskiy pereulok, Moscow, Russia
Phone: 772-95-90 *2682
Dean,Dr.Sc., Professor:
Alexey Rutkevitch
Phone: +7(495)772.95.90*2683
e-mail:
Deputy Dean, Cand.Sc., Professor:
Dmitriy Nossov
Phone: 7 (495)772.95.90*2784
e-mail:
Deputy Dean for international and academiccooperation,
Cand.Sc.,Ass.Profesor:
Anastasia Yastrebtseva
Phone: +7(495)772.95.90*2692
e-mail:
Deputy Dean:
Julia Gorbatova
Phone: +7(495)772.95.90*2692
E-mail:
TableofContents
- General Description of the Program...... 4
- List of topics...... 4
- Curriculum...... 4
- Maintypes of training...... 4
- Program for the Academic Year 2010-2011...... 5
5.1. First year...... 5
5.2. Second year...... 11
- List of Courses...... 14
- GeneralDescriptionoftheProgram
The program for concentration in"Philosophical anthropology" is developedbased on the state standard of educationapproved by thedecree of the Ministryof Educationof theRussianFederation№686on03/02/2000.
Concentration in philosophical anthropologycomprises core courses from the federaland regional (institutional) components, special and elective courses,andresearch.
The program is designed to prepare its graduates for workin the crucialareasof higher educationinRussia, including but not limited to teaching humanities in the modern setting,as it transitionsintoa system of highereducation compliant with the Bologna process.
Instruction uses a systematic and comprehensive approach to the subject matter.
- List of topics
- Philosophical anthropology,
- Currentissuesin philosophical knowledge,
- Value systems of different levels,
- Socialperspectivesandideologicalprograms.
- Curriculum
The program for Master of Artsis developed inaccordancewith state standards of education. Core andspecialcourses of theprogramrepresent a logical development of the Bachelor’s curriculum and are thereforethe second level ofa two-tiersystem ofhighereducation in the field of philosophy.
The firstlevel(Bachelor’s) includes:
- corecourses in philosophy at the Department of Philosophy spread across20 modules;
- relatedcourses that are neededfor a comprehensiveunderstandingof social and politicalissues;
- specialcoursesfor concentrations inontologyandepistemology, history ofphilosophyandpracticalphilosophyto be taken during the 3rdand the4thyears(648hours), whichprovide for adeepunderstanding oftheoretical concepts,methodsandconceptsof philosophyandconstitutethe foundationoftheMaster of Artsprogram with concentration in philosophical anthropology.
Required coursesof the federal levelin theMaster of Arts program take up a significantportion ofinstructional time(702 hoursfrom1,026hours). Most of the material is covered during thefirstyear.
First year curriculum is designed to allow for further development ofstudents'research skills. Muchattentionis paid tostudents' independent work, consultationwith instructors and academic advisors.
- Maintypes of training:
•Lectures;
•Discussions;
•Papers on the keyissuesof philosophicalanthropology;
•Workshops;
•Homework Assignments;
•Individual and groupresearchprojects;
•Conferences/poster presentations/researchworkshopsallowing students to present their researchprojects, courseworkandotherindependent work;
• Methodologicalseminarsas aform ofdiscussionof scientific concepts, hypotheses andresearchmethodsof modern philosophy;
•Individualstudy(homework assignmentsand essays, preparationfordiscussions, research projectsand termpapers);
•Consultationswithinstructors andscholarsto helpstudentsmasterboth theoretical and practicalmaterialas well asdeepentheirunderstanding ofmodern Russia.
In the second yearstudents take on ateachingassistantshipand write amaster's thesis. The thesis is a piece of independentresearchandshoulddemonstratethe abilityof studentsto apply theoretical knowledgeto solvespecificscientific and applied problemsin thefield ofphilosophical anthropology.
After thesis defensestudents are awardeda Master of Arts in Philosophywith concentration in philosophical anthropology.
5. Program for the Academic Year 2010-2011
5.1. First year
Requiredcourses:
I.Current issues in philosophy(course is dividedinto 4blocks)
Credits: 7,5
I/1 Current issues inpracticalphilosophy
Lecturer: Filippov Alexander, Doctor of science (Sociology), professor, Head of the Departmentof Practical Philosophy(e-mail: )
Research Interests: history of classical sociology, theoretical sociology, sociology of politics, sociology of space, sociology of culture, political philosophy, theory of action
Summary: Practical philosophyhas been long recognized as partofthe education in the field of philosophy. It focuses on concepts of being and cognition through concepts duty and action. On the other hand it is orientedtowardpracticeof politics, economics and social life more than any other branch of philosophy. It is also a philosophy of culture, politics, sociality and philosophy of economics.
Below are the principal questions of practical philosophy:
Ethics: What is welfare? What is duty? How to apply moral principles of standard ethics to resolve specific conflict situations?
Political philosophy: What is politics? What is domination? What is political justice?
Social philosophy: What is the nature of human sociality? What is the nature of social action? How are society and social order possible?
Philosophy of economics: How are human position in the world and economic method of take possession of the world related to each other? How can we reconcile ethical conception of duty and idea of possession?
Issues in philosophy of culture and social philosophy are right in between political and moral philosophy andtheory of culture and general philosophy.
I/2 Philosophical Hermeneutics
Lecturer: Michaylovsky Alexander, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: history of modern German philosophy, philosophy of techniques, political philosophy
Sumary: This course begins with a consideration of the background of philosophical hermeneutics in a protestant theory of interpretation. It follows the hermeneutic tradition in philosophy as it develops in the twentieth century, through a philosophical examination of the works of influential hermeneutical philosophers, especially Martin Heidegger, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Jürgen Habermas and Paul Ricoeur. Attention is paid mostly to Hans-Georg Gadamer’s "Truth and method".
I/3Problemof the subjectincontemporarypractical philosophy
Lecturer: Yastrebtseva Anastasia, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: political and moral philosophy, historyof Russian philosophy; philosophy of education, philosophy of law.
Summary: The course deals withthe phenomenaof subject andsubjectivity,power relations, their politicalandethicalaspects. XIX and XXcenturies brought significantchanges tothe very ideaofthe significance and roleof the subject inhistoryandpolitics, political andsocio-philosophical categoriesof human existence-freedom, responsibility, will, values,ideals, etc.In the end, inpostmodernliterature renounced the subject, proclaiming"the death of the subject" and"death of the author”.However, inrecentdecades,we try to reconstructthe subjectandsubjectivitybringing tolifethe anthropologicalconceptof the past,for example, the philosophy ofImmanuel Kant.Rejection ofNietzsche'svision of themanand influenceof psychoanalysishave demonstratedthe need to rethinkthe role andplaceof the humansubjectin historical and culturaldevelopment of the mankind.
I/4Contemporary Metaphysics
Lecturer: Levina Tatiana, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
ResearchInterests: realism, possible worlds, modalities, cognitive theory
Summary: Contemporary Metaphysics covers metaphysical issues in Analytic Philosophy of the late XX century –early XXI century. There was a very fruitful return to classical topics in Philosophy around 1980 inAustralia, Great Britain and US. The salvation of classical problems has appeared to be unique because of the analytical method, elaborated by Analytical Philosophy in 1950-60. Though the nominalist theories prevail in Analytic Philosophy, we will focus on topics that emergedin recent decades.
The main topics are:
1.Possible Worlds and Modalities, stated by Alvin Plantinga, David Lewis and Robert Stalnaker and De Re propositions, related to it
2.Universals and methodology of Realism, elaborated by David Armstrong and others (David Lewis, Sidney Shoemaker)
3.Theory of Non-existent objects, as suggested by Terence Parsons, who bases his investigation on phenomenology of Alexius Meinong,
4.Theory of Abstract Objects of neo-fregeanists Bob Hale, Crispin Wright, Edward Zalta.
The goal of this course is not only to read and understand suggested texts, but in juxtapose them withthe greater classical tradition of Plato, Scholiasts, Leibnitz and Philosophy of XX century to make a conceptual analysis.
II.Modern philosophy(course is dividedinto 4blocks)
Credits: 7,5
II/1History and philosophy of science
Lecturer: Porus Vladimir, Doctor of science (Philosophy), Professor, Head of the Departmentof Ontology, Logics and Cognitive Theory (e-mail: )
ResearchInterests: history of philosophy, logic and science methodology, philosophy of culture
Summary:Issues philosophy of science are discussed based on the historical background. The main trends in contemporary philosophy of science (from Comte to Popper and so on) are passed as the historical search for the science's own outline. The main focus is on the “science-in-context” problem.
II/2The Philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein
Lecturer: Danko Sofya,Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: cognitive theory, analytical philosophy
Summary: This course surveys Wittgenstein’s principal contributions to 20th Century philosophy of language, metaphysics and epistemology.Course considers the continuities and discontinuities between his early and late work and the broader philosophical motivations and consequences of the specific arguments he offers. The emphasis throughout the course will be on careful reading and interpretation of Wittgenstein’s texts themselves and on their interpretation.While this course does not directly address the huge secondary literature on Wittgenstein, students are encouraged to make use of the commentaries and discussions placed on reserve in the library as aids or foils in developing readings of Wittgenstein’s views. Apart from the details of Wittgenstein’s philosophical positions the course is also considering the continuity of his philosophy and his views on ethics.
II/3Science and Technology Studies: A Philosophical Introduction
Lecturer: Stoliarova Olga, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: historyandphilosophyof science, science and technology studies(STS), realisticinterpretation of theconstructivistepistemology, return tothe dialecticas a"relational ontology"
Summary: The course unfolds a philosophical perspective on Science and Technology Studies (STS). Its meta-goal is to analyze current epistemological and methodological agenda as tightly connected with ontological premises, to trace how changes on the side of ontology induce new epistemological schemes, to inscribe STS in the wider range of mixed reality models that are about to draw natural and social sciences together. The historical (preliminary) part of the course covers two modern traditions – ‘ontology of nature’ (natural sciences and metaphysics) and ‘ontology of culture’ (social sciences and critical theories) – tracing their paths up to ‘nature-culture ontology’ in XX century (philosophies of process, complexity and system theories). The traditions of history of science, philosophy of science, sociology of science and philosophy of technology are considered as predecessors of STS.
II/4Philosophy of Mind
Lecturer: Gasparian Diana, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: Philosophy of 20th century, Philosophy of Mind.
Summary: The branch of philosophy called the “philosophy of mind” related to our understanding of the mind’s place in the universe. We begin with our commonsense understanding of the mind, as a collection of properties, attributes, states activities and abilities that we refer to in our everyday use of psychological terms and expressions to characterize each other and ourselves. With this commonsense understanding in hand, we ask: What sort of entity is the mind? This is a metaphysical questions; it concerns the fundamental constitution of the universe, the things we find in that universe, and the way in which the mind exists in nature.
The focus of this course can be divided very roughly into four main sections, each of which, however, overlaps with and is in many respects a continuationof the other topics. (1) First, we address the traditional ‘mind-body’ problem – the question concerning the relationship between the mental and the physical world. We will canvass the most influential answers to the mind-body problem focusing on dualism and psycho-neural identity. (2) Second, we will examine in greater depth the doctrine of physicalism and considerations for and against “reductive” and “non-reductive” physicalism. (3) Third, we will examine the problem of phenomenal consciousness and the proposal that the existence of “qualia” demonstrates that reductive physicalism is false. (4) Finally, we will examine the nature of phenomenal concepts – the cognitive tools our minds purportedly use to think and reason about phenomenal properties.
The primary aim of the course is to leave students with a firm grasp of many of the central issues addressed in recent works by “analytic” philosophers of mind.
- Philosophical Anthropology
Credits: 7,5
Lecturer:Rutkevitch Alexey, Doctor of science (Philosophy), Professor, Head of the Department of History of Philosophy(e-mail: )
Research Interests:history of contemporary Western philosophy, philosophical anthropology, hermeneutics, psychoanalysis
Summary:This course offers students a chance to addressthe fundamental questions of human life. In the process of course students develop skills of critical enquiry, sensitivity and an appreciation of topical debates about human being. Over the course, a range of theoretical and methodological propositions concerning philosophical view of man is explored. Ultimately, all theories and methodological approaches could be read as statements about human being and the worlds they create and inhabit. The course addresses two main issues. The first is concerned with the main theoretical perspectives of human being, discussions and critics the fundamental philosophical doctrines. The second refers to methodological questions: How to think about man? What are the main arguments and mental instruments for investigation of human being? How cultural contexts affect our theoretical descriptions? Therefore course explores the relationship between theoretical and methodological issues.
IV.ResearchSeminar"Philosophical Anthropology"
Credits: 3
IV/1 Seminar on Plato's Sophist and Parmenides
Head ofWorkshop:Michaylovsky Alexander, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor (e-mail: )
Research Interests: history of modern German philosophy, philosophy of techniques, political philosophy
Summary:The seminar examines two most important late Platonic dialogues Sophist and Parmenides. The focus of the seminar will be on the doctrine of the limited intercommunion of Forms, of not-being as otherness in Sophist and the self-criticism of Plato’s theory of Forms in Parmenides. The students will also analyze Plato’s most intense study in metaphysics.
Credits: 4,5
IV/2 Politicaltheoryin the twentiethcentury
Head ofWorkshop: Pavlov Alexander, Candidate of Science (Law), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
Research Interests: history of political philosophy, American political thought of XX century, legal philosophy, Social theory
Summary:Within the confines ofthe scientific seminar "Political Theoryin thetwentiethcentury"students discussmainmethodologicalproblemsof the modern political theory.The workshop providesanswerstomanyquestions.Whatispoliticaltheory? How it relatestopoliticalscienceand politicalphilosophy?Howhas it evolvedthroughout the twentieth century?What are themethodologicalapproachesto the study ofpoliticaltheory, etc.? In addition tomore detailed information abouttraditionalnotions of politicaltheory problematicnotion of"characteristic of the politicalphilosophyof the twentiethcentury -relativism, absolutism, ideology, totalitarianism, post-modernism, feministcriticism, scientismandantistsientizmin politicalscience are discussed.The mainpurposeof the coursewithin theMaster'sprogramisan attempttoquicklyexplain tostudentswhatpoliticaltheory isin general,asithas transformedandevolvedovercenturiesof its existence,andas itistoday.
Electivecourses:
V.Religiontoday
Credits: 3
Lecturer: Knorre Boris, Candidate of Science (Philosophy), Associate Professor
(e-mail: )
ResearchInterests:sociologyandphenomenology ofreligion, Russianphilosophy; church-state relations, art criticism.
Summary:The course is designedin accordance with the integral concept of religion which supposes a description of religion in its multiple manifestations: doctrine, brief history, influence at the culture, social and political dimension as well as a parallel illustration of the interrelation of those levels.
A description of a certain religion is given with a reference to the current situation. On one hand, it supposes an illustration of the influence of basic principles of this religious system at its current state; from the other hand, it demands an illustration of the influence of this religion to the culture connected to it and to the psychological approaches of bearers of this culture.
The goals of the course are:
1) to give an adequate idea about the phenomenon of the contemporary religion as it is and about the place of various religions in the modern world;
2) to show the relation between the primary basic principles of religions and their contemporary states;
3) to give an interpretation of the history and doctrines of the world religions in the context of their influence upon the culture;
4) to train students to analyze cultural phenomena from the point of view of their religious conditionality, to expose religious elements in art, philosophy, politic and other spheres of social life;
5) to train students to work with religious data, to evaluate a specific religious situation in a certain state and society – correspondingly, to introduce the basic religious concepts to students, to define terms accepted in a certain society for characteristic of religious phenomena, such as “religious”, “confessional”, “laic” and “sacred”, as well as “fundamentalism”, “modernism”, “conservatism” and “liberalism” in the context of the religious field.
Religious ideas and traditions are interpreted as a phenomenon of human mentality that is to some extent correlated with the level of development of a certain civilization. We analyze the world religions and their modifications, the most typical for the understanding of the evolution of religious mentality of a society and the influence of religion at culture and civilization in a whole. We touch also upon some new religions and religious-theoretical movements which are characteristic of the whole picture of religion.
We make an emphasis on ideas-generating concepts in the process of describing a certain religious system. After a description and characteristic of them, we show their evolution and their role in the history of culture. Then, we demonstrate manifestations of these concepts in the life of the society where this specific religious system plays a significant role. A particular approach to the analysis of the world religions is in the considering their state in the era of globalization.
At the same time, we spend a significant amount of time analyzing religious concepts in the world culture. In this aspect, we should mention a necessity to show a process of de-sacralization of numerous initially religious concepts, ideas, cliché and phenomena which are disappearing or they are included into a secular discourse. The second case is of a special importance because it proves actuality of studying religion as a cultural factor.
One of the most important tasks of the course is to teach students to understand such topics as a problem of the freedom of conscience, the interrelations of state and religious institutions. On one hand, the course provides the basic formal religious conceptions which reflect inner, “corporative” positions of a certain religious system; on the other hand, there are international legal acts which regulate religious policy of states. Particular attention is paid to the current place of religious communities in Russia. In this case, we are to compare mass stereotypes of interpretation of religion in Russia and to analyze how these stereotypes correlate with Russian legal acts in the sphere of religion.