Introduction to World Philosophy This course will offer a comparative introduction to a number of world philosophical traditions, including those of Europe and America, India, China, and Africa.  We will consider central debates within these traditions, including:  How should we live?  What is the ultimate nature of reality, and how can we come to know it?  What is the nature of the self, and how does it relate to society?  We will also investigate the broader question of whether truth and morality are relative to culture.  Central readings will include works by Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche, Lao Tzu, Confucius, and contemporary African philosophers, as well as Hindu and Buddhist texts.

Senior Independent Research In this course senior philosophy majors will complete an independent research project. The course has two components: (1) a group workshop in which students refine their research skills and develop parts of their projects, and (2) individual meetings with an adviser who is knowledgeable about the student's research topic. Students will engage in research activities such as tutorials and peer reviews. Before the course begins, students’ research topics and advisers will be decided in consultation with members of the department.

Mindfulness and the Mind: Buddhist and Western Perspectives In this team-taught class we will examine the theory and practice of mindfulness from traditional Buddhist and contemporary philosophical perspectives, and consider its implications for our understanding of the mind. We will outline the origins of mindfulness in Asian Buddhism, and its development in the modern West. We then examine philosophical questions raised by studying meditation scientifically: does a 1st person perspective validate the content of our experience? Or must it also by verified by objective, 3rd person perspectives? What does meditation reveal about the nature of consciousness?  If consciousness is reflexive, aware of itself, does this self-awareness undermine the Buddhist doctrine of non-self?  Students will get first-hand experience practicing mindfulness two hours a week, led by a local meditation teacher.  Readings will be from Buddhist and Western philosophical texts and articles.

Self and Identity What is the self? Do we have a permanent, immaterial soul, or is the self constructed by the brain and body? How do we form our identities, and how do these identities relate to social norms? Do we have free will? What is the nature of moral responsibility? These are some of the questions we will address in this course on the nature of the self, personal identity, and social identity. Readings will include works by traditional and contemporary philosophers (Descartes, Locke, Sartre, Parfit); neuroscientific accounts of the self (Damasio, Metzinger); Buddhist critiques of the self and contemporary responses to them; and contemporary debates about social identity (Foucault, Butler, Appiah,Haslanger).

Consciousness In this course we will focus on recent philosophical issues in the study of consciousness:  What is the nature of our conscious subjective experience?  What is the function of conscious states?  Can we find neural correlates of consciousness, and if so, can consciousness simply be reduced to them?  If not, how does consciousness relate to the physical?  Is there something irreducible about the qualitative features of consciousness (qualia)?  Could computers ever be conscious?  Are animals conscious?  We will consider such questions through the writings of contemporary philosophers and neuroscientists such as Dennett, Chalmers, Churchland, Nagel, Damasio, and Searle.  (PHIL 0352 is strongly recommended but not required).

Aesthetics In this course we will investigate the nature of art and aesthetic experience through readings from historical and contemporary philosophers and artists.  Is art essentially rational or non-rational, and can it offer a deeper insight into reality than discursive knowledge can?  What is beauty, and is it essential to art?  What is the relation between art and the ethical, the social, and the political?  We will consider both influential traditional theories of art such as those of Plato, Aristotle, Kant, and Nietzsche, and more recent modern and postmodern critiques of traditional views.  Readings will also include works by artists such as Van Gogh and Kandinsky.

Buddhist Philosophy This course is an introduction to central ideas and debates in the history of Buddhist philosophy, focusing primarily on Indian Buddhism.  We will critically evaluate the philosophical views of a range of texts and schools of Buddhist thought, including early Buddhist sutras and the Abhidharma, Madhyamaka, and Yogācāra schools.  Readings will be from both primary and secondary texts.  Topics addressed will include the Buddhist critique of a permanent self; ultimate and conventional truth; Buddhist approaches to knowledge; the nature of meditation; and Buddhist ethics.  We will also consider the modern appropriation of Buddhist ideas.  The course will include a discussion section in which students will receive training in meditation practices.

Philosophy of Language Speaking a language is a complex form of behavior that plays a rich and varied role in human life. The philosophy of language seeks to give a philosophical account of this phenomenon, focusing on such questions as: How does language gain meaning? How does it differ from animal communication? Is language in some sense innate? Other topics to be addressed include: theories of reference and truth; the relation between language, thought, and reality; and theories of metaphor. Readings from philosophers and linguists will include works by Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Chomsky, and Pinker. (Previous course in philosophy or waiver; PHIL 0180 is also strongly recommended)3 hrs lect.

Philosophy of Mind What is the nature of the mind, and how does it relate to the body and the physical world? Could computers ever think? Do animals have mental and emotional lives? This course will explore several of the major recent philosophical conceptions of the mind. A central focus will be on evaluating various attempts to explain the mind in purely physical terms, including the project of artificial intelligence (AI). Can these theories give us a complete understanding of the mind? Other key questions will include: What is the nature of thought, and how is it capable of representing the world? What is consciousness, and can it be explained physically?

Philosophy of Language Speaking a language is a complex form of behavior that plays a rich and varied role in human life. The philosophy of language seeks to give a philosophical account of this phenomenon, focusing on such questions as: How does language gain meaning?  How does meaning relate to truth and reference?  What is conveyed by different speech acts?  In the Public Humanities Lab component of the course, students will apply their understanding of these themes to case studies involving issues such as free speech, linguistic oppression and silencing, the meaning of terms for gender and race, and truth in political speech.  Readings will include works by Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, and contemporary journal articles.  (Previous course in philosophy or waiver.)  3 hrs lect.

Concepts: The Stuff of Thought Concepts are often regarded as “the stuff of thought”:  they allow us to categorize the world, learn about it, and navigate through it.  But what are they, and how do they relate to reality?  In this course we will examine prominent contemporary philosophical theories of concepts, drawing as well on readings from cognitive science and neuroscience.  Possible topics include:  Is it possible to define concepts?  How are they mentally represented?  Is reality relative to conceptual schemes?  Do concepts give us knowledge of reality or hinder our awareness of it?  Is perception nonconceptual?  Do animals have concepts?

Consciousness	 In this course we will focus on contemporary philosophical issues in the study of consciousness, drawing as well on recent research in neuroscience and psychology, and on the insights of traditional Buddhist accounts of consciousness.  Questions to be addressed include:  What is the nature of our conscious subjective experience, and how does it relate to self-awareness?  Does consciousness create a “grand illusion,” or does it represent the world correctly?  Can we find the neural correlates of consciousness?  Can consciousness be reduced to matter, or must we view it as non-physical?  Readings will be drawn from contemporary philosophers and scientists such as Daniel Dennett, David Chalmers, and Antonio Damasio.

John Spackman

Reviews and ratings for John Spackman at Middlebury College.John Spackman teaches Intro to World Philosophy, Senior Independent Research, Mindfulness and Mind and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is John Spackman good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

There's a LOT of reading so be prepared for that; but lectures cover it well and succinctly. Don't skip out on doing it because of that though, otherwise you'll struggle with the papers. Super fun to do the live like a... challenge, so look forward to that! 

Spackman was an incredible professor. He was extremely accommodating and discussions were very interesting. He does a great job going over the readings during lectures so readings can be skimmed. I would 100% take this course again.

Professor Spackman is incredibly nice. He lives by his own particular philosophy as well, which motivated me to consider the philosophies learned about in class more deeply. The grade is based on in-class SAQ/essay tests and one out-of-class essay.