（一）概述

1．普林斯顿大学哲学系在2002年的布莱克威尔的《哲学评价报告》（The Philosophical Gourmet Report）中，在美国高校中与纽约大学并列居第1位。

2．普林斯顿大学哲学系现职教师21人（含访问教授1人），兼职教授7人，荣誉退休教授4人。

（二）主修要求

1．基本要求

For juniors and seniors, course selections are approved, and course cards and course change forms are signed, by the departmental representative, who can perform some of the functions of an academic advisor--juniors and seniors do not have academic advisors as such--and refer students to other department faculty for further advice if desired. All students are encouraged to see the departmental representative in person at course selection time, and the following are required to do so: Sophomores entering the department; fall seniors selecting spring senior courses; spring seniors dropping departmental courses.

Certain of a student's courses are designated departmentals, and the grades in courses so designated are the course grades used in computing the student's departmental average. The official designation of departmentals occurs during the fall of the senior year when selecting courses for spring of senior year: All designations before this time are provisional; after this time a designation cannot be changed merely in order to improve a student's average. All philosophy courses taken for letter grades junior or senior year must be designated departmentals, as must all courses used to fulfill departmental requirements. Designation of any other philosophy courses is optional.

The departmental course requirement is eight courses. Courses taken before fall semester junior year normally may be counted, including the prerequisite course; and up to two courses may be lower division (200-level or lower). Up to two courses in other departments may be counted as cognates, if approved as contributing significantly to the student's course of study; these must normally be courses completed before spring semester senior year. Further, six out of the eight courses must be so distributed that there are two in each of three out of the four areas (metaphysics; ethics & philosophy of value; logic & philosophy of science; history of philosophy) into which philosophy courses are divided; there is no such restriction on the remaining two out of the eight. The area classification of most courses is listed in the Undergraduate Announcement; for other courses the classification will be made by the departmental representative.

Students doing the senior thesis in certain interdisciplinary fields have the option of replacing the regular requirement of two courses in each of three philosophy areas by an alternative requirement. The political philosophy option involves using the quota of two cognates for courses listed under the Politics department as political theory courses and counting this in place of one philosophy area, and then doing two courses in the ethics & philosophy of value area, and two courses in some one other philosophy area. The philosophy of science option involves using the quota of two cognates for upper division courses in some one relevant science (e.g. mathematics, physics, biology, psychology, linguistics) and counting this in place of one philosophy area, and then doing two courses in the logic & philosophy of science area, and two courses in some one other philosophy area.

For students following the regular requirements, cognates require individual approval. Cognates may not be used for both courses in a distribution area (and standards for approval are generally more liberal for courses that are not used for distribution requirements than for courses that are, and again more liberal for a first cognate than for a second). In general courses considering means other than philosophical argument (e.g. appeal to religious revelation, tradition, authority, faith) have been used to answer questions of a kind considered in philosophy, and courses considering philosophical works from a non-philosophical standpoint (e.g. as literary texts, emphasizing rhetorical style, or as historical documents, emphasizing external influences) are considered valuable supplements but not substitutes for philosophy courses, and hence not suitable as cognates.

Courses that have been routinely approved as cognates in recent years include: all courses listed under the Politics department as courses in political theory; most courses listed under the History department as courses in history of science; and a few courses listed under area studies programs covering those aspects of the intellectual history of certain non-Western civilizations that invite comparison with the history of philosophy in the West. Other courses may be approved on a case-by-case basis.

2．低年级研讨班

Fall semester junior year, independent work normally involves participation in a seminar of up to five students under the supervision of an instructor from the faculty of the department. The junior seminar is intended to provide a transition from course work to fully independent work. A junior seminar meets weekly for an hour or biweekly for two hours to discuss readings selected by the instructor, and each student writes a final paper of at least 5,000 words (about 20 pages) usually on a topic chosen by the student from a list provided by the instructor in the area defined by those readings. The student's grade for fall semester independent work will be mainly based on this paper but is usually partly based also on shorter papers and/or oral presentations in the seminar earlier in the term. (Most commonly the split is about 75%-25%).

A listing of the junior seminar offerings available will be posted by the first day of fall semester. Note that there is no requirement for the junior independent work of a student intending to elect a special option (Philosophy of Science, Political Philosophy) to be on a topic relevant to that area; on the contrary, students are encouraged to do at least one semester's independent work outside that area. While the department undertakes to make a variety of junior seminar topics available each year, it does not undertake to provide one directly relevant to each special option each year.

Students will have a few days to report their preferences among the offerings and their schedules to the departmental representative. By the middle of the first week of classes, the placement of students in seminars will be posted by the departmental representative, and notice of the hour, day, and place (usually the instructor's office) of the first, organizational meeting of each seminar will be posted by the seminar instructors. Since this is when the regular meeting time for the seminar will be fixed, it is important to attend this first meeting, especially if the hour is one that would not be convenient as a regular meeting time.

Final papers for junior seminars are due the second day of reading period. This is a University deadline. Late work cannot be accepted for grading by the department unless permission to do so is granted by the Office of the Dean of the College. There is a grade penalty of 1 point per weekday to a maximum of 10 (= a full letter grade) for lateness, unless a waiver is granted. Waivers require approval of the seminar instructor and the departmental representative.

3．低年级论文

Spring semester junior year, independent work consists of writing a junior paper, an essay on a philosophical topic, normally amounting to at least 5,000 words (about 20 pages), written under the supervision of a faculty advisor.

On the one hand, any member of the department faculty is eligible to advise a junior paper if willing to do so, except that a student may not have the same advisor for both semesters' junior independent work (fall seminar and spring paper). Students may find advisors on their own, by agreement with some member of the faculty. On the other hand, certain faculty are assigned by the chair of the department special responsibility for supervision of undergraduate independent work and constitute the Senior Thesis/Junior Paper Advising Panel. Students who do not find advisors on their own are assigned advisors from this panel by the departmental representative. By the end of the second week of classes spring semester, every junior should submit to the departmental representative either confirmation of an agreement about advising with some one member of the faculty, or else a list of several members of the panel by whom the student would be willing to be advised. Notice of advisor assignments will be posted early the next week of classes.

Junior papers are due the second day of reading period. This is a University deadline. Late work cannot be accepted for grading by the department unless permission to do so is granted by the Office of the Dean of the College. There is a grade penalty of 1 point per weekday to a maximum of 10 (= a full letter grade) for lateness, unless a waiver is granted. Waivers require approval of the seminar instructor and the departmental representative.

4．早期主修与外校学习（Early Concentration and Foreign Study）

A student who has satisfied the prerequisite by the end of fall semester sophomore year may apply to become an early concentrator spring semester and begin independent work then. This option is especially recommended for students planning to be away on foreign study for either or both semesters junior year.

Students who, owing to absence on foreign study or late change of concentration, do not participate in a junior seminar fall semester junior year also make up that semester's junior independent work by writing an additional junior paper, usually over the summer.

5．高年级论文

Senior Theses

Senior year independent work consists of preparation for the departmental examination and writing the senior thesis, an essay or group of related essays on a topic or group of related topics, amounting to at least 10,000 words (about 40 pages), and normally at most twice that, written under the supervision of a faculty advisor. A student electing a special option (Philosophy of Science, Political Philosophy) must write the thesis on a topic appropriate to that area broadly construed.

On the one hand, any member of the department faculty is eligible to advise a senior thesis if willing to do so. (Advising by outside faculty is also possible, subject to approval by the departmental representative.) Students may find advisors on their own, by agreement with some member of the faculty. On the other hand, certain faculty are assigned by the chair of the department special responsibility for supervision of undergraduate independent work, and constitute the Senior Thesis/Junior Paper Advising Panel (as mentioned above). Students who do not find advisors on their own are assigned advisors from this panel by the departmental representative. By the end of the second full week of classes fall semester, every senior should submit to the departmental representative either confirmation of an agreement about advising with some one member of the faculty, or else a list of several members of the panel by whom the student would be willing to be advised. Notice of advisor assignments will be posted early the next week of classes.

A thesis proposal, consisting of a short paragraph describing the thesis project, mentioning several issues that will be pursued and several works that will be discussed, is due immediately after the fall recess. Two copies should be submitted to the Undergraduate Assistant.

A thesis draft, consisting of some 3000 to 4000 words of written material towards the thesis, not necessarily in final form, is due immediately after winter recess, on the first day of reading period. Two copies should be submitted to the Undergraduate Assistant.

The completed thesis itself is due Monday the last week of classes spring semester. Two copies should be submitted to the undergraduate assistant in the department office. One copy, for eventual microfilming by the library, must be unbound (loose pages in a labeled envelope); the other, for eventual return to the student, is usually bound, though it is not required to be. There is a prescribed format for the title page and a copyright page. Samples will be available in the appropriate seniors' folder located in the course boxes.

There is a grade penalty of 1 point per weekday to a maximum of 10 (= a full letter grade) for lateness, unless a waiver is granted. Waivers require approval of the thesis advisor and the departmental representative. Requests for extensions on medical grounds must be supported by a note from University Health Services. Theses late more than one week cannot be accepted for grading by the department unless permission to do so is granted by the Office of the Dean of the College.

The thesis is read and graded by the student's advisor together with the student's departmental examination coordinator. The thesis grade (like the examination grade) is reported to the student, along with oral comments by the readers, and the student's copy of the thesis is returned, immediately after the student's departmental examination. Because of the large number of theses to be graded in a short time, extended written comments should not be expected.

A student who fails to submit a thesis, or who receives a grade of F on the thesis is ineligible for graduation. Information about thesis prizes is provided elsewhere.

6．高级系内考试

Senior year independent work consists of writing the senior thesis and preparing for the departmental examination, a ninety-minute oral examination on an area of philosophy, defined by a syllabus of readings and to which the thesis topic belongs. (A student who feels that an oral examination will not sufficiently reveal his or her knowledge and abilities may take a written examination in addition to, but not instead of, the oral examination.) The examination is conducted by a member of the department faculty assigned as the student's examination coordinator, together with the student's thesis advisor.

Departmental examination coordinators are assigned by the departmental representative during the latter part of fall semester. The coordinator assists the student in developing an acceptable syllabus of readings for the examination. (Usually this involves no more than adding a couple of items to the developing thesis bibliography, so as to broaden the area a bit beyond the immediate focus of the thesis.)

A completed examination syllabus, ready for approval by the examiners, is due immediately after spring recess. Two copies should be submitted to the Undergraduate Assistant.

The examination itself must be held before the last day of the period towards the end of spring semester (just after reading period) set aside in the University calendar for departmental examinations. It is the student's responsibility to confer with both examiners and reach agreement on the hour, day, and place (usually the examination coordinator's office) of the examination. These agreed arrangements are to be reported to the Undergraduate Assistant in the department office by the thesis due date. If arrangements are not completed by the student by that date, the examination coordinator is to confer with the thesis advisor and reach agreement on the hour, day during the period set aside in the University calendar for departmental examinations, and place of the examination, and report these agreed arrangements to the undergraduate assistant in the department office, who will notify the student.

The examination grade (like the thesis grade) is reported to the student, along with oral comments by the readers, immediately after the examination.

A student who fails to submit a thesis, or who receives a grade of F on the thesis is ineligible to take the departmental examination, and receives a grade of I (incomplete) for it. A student who receives a grade of F on the examination after receiving a grade of D on the thesis is ineligible for graduation, unless the department faculty, on consideration of the student's overall academic record, votes to make an exception.

（三）本科课程列表

PHI 200. Philosophy and the Modern Mind

An introduction to modern philosophy, from the Renaissance to the present, with careful study of works by Descartes, Hume, Kant, and others. Emphasis is placed upon the complex relations of philosophy to the development of modern science, the social and political history of the West, and man's continuing attempt to achieve a satisfactory worldview.

PHI 201. Introductory Logic

A study of reasoning and its role in science and everyday life, with special attention to the development of a system of symbolic logic, to probabilistic reasoning, and to problems in decision theory.

PHI 202. Introduction to Moral Philosophy  (also CHV 202)

An introductory survey of ethical thought, covering such topics as the demands that morality makes, the justification of these demands, and our reasons for obeying them. Readings from both the historical and contemporary philosophical literature.

PHI 203. Introduction to Metaphysics and Epistemology

An introduction to some of the central questions of pure philosophy through their treatment by traditional and contemporary writers: questions concerning mind and matter; causation and free will; space and time; meaning, truth, and reality; knowledge, perception, belief, and thought.

PHI 204. Introduction to the Philosophy of Science

An inquiry into the form and function of concepts, laws, and theories, and into the character of explanation and prediction, in the natural and the social sciences; and an examination of some philosophical problems concerning scientific method and scientific knowledge. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

PHI 205. Introduction to Ancient Philosophy  (also CLA 205)

Designed to introduce the student to the Greek contribution to the philosophical and scientific ideas of the Western world through study of works of Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, and Lucretius in English translation. Topics in moral and political philosophy, as well as epistemology and metaphysics, will be included. Attention will be focused on the quality of the arguments presented by the philosophers.

PHI 237. The Psychology and Philosophy of Rationality  (see PSY 237)

PHI 300. Plato and His Predecessors

Readings in translation from pre-Socratic philosophers and from Plato's dialogues, to provide a broad history of Greek philosophy through Plato. Topics covered will include: Socrates' method of dialectic, his conceptions of moral virtue and human knowledge; Plato's theory of knowledge, metaphysics, and moral and political philosophy.

PHI 301. Aristotle and His Successors

Aristotle's most important contributions in the areas of logic, scientific method, philosophy of nature, metaphysics, psychology, ethics, and politics. Several of his major works will be read in translation. Aristotle's successors in the Greco-Roman period will be studied briefly.

PHI 302. British Empiricism

A critical study of the metaphysical and epistemological doctrines of Locke, Berkeley, and Hume. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

PHI 303. Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibniz

Readings in continental philosophy of the early modern period, with intensive study of the works of Descartes, Spinoza, and Leibniz. Topics to be specially considered include: knowledge, understanding, and sense-perception; existence and necessity; the nature of the self and its relation to the physical world.

PHI 304. The Philosophy of Kant

Analysis of the Critique of Pure Reason, with some attention to other aspects of Kant's philosophy, such as his views on ethics, aesthetics, and teleological judgment.

PHI 305. German Idealism

Readings from the works of Hegel, with special attention to Hegel's criticism of Kant's moral philosophy, and to his theory of subjectivity, ethical life, and history. Readings might also include criticisms of German idealism in such figures as Kierkegaard, Feuerbach, and the early Marx.

PHI 306. Nietzsche

An examination of various issues raised in, and by, Nietzsche's writings. Apart from discussing views like the eternal recurrence, the overman, and the will to power, this course considers Nietzsche's ambiguous relationship with philosophy, the literary status of his work, and his influence on contemporary thought. Prerequisite: one philosophy course or equivalent preparation in the history of modern thought or literature.

PHI 307. Systematic Ethics  (also CHV 311)

A study of important ethical theories with special reference to the problem of the objectivity of morality and to the relation between moral reasoning and reasoning about other subjects.

PHI 309. Political Philosophy  (also CHV 309)

A systematic study of problems and concepts connected with political institutions: sovereignty, law, liberty, and political obligation. Topics may include representation, citizenship, power and authority, revolution, civil disobedience, totalitarianism, and legal and political rights.

PHI 312. Intermediate Logic

A development of logic from the mathematical viewpoint, including propositional and predicate calculus, consequence and deduction, truth and satisfaction, the Gödel completeness theorem, the Löwenheim-Skolem theorem, and applications to Boolean algebra, axiomatic theories, and the theory of models as time permits.

PHI 313. Theory of Knowledge

A critical study of important concepts and problems involved in the characterization, analysis, and appraisal of certain types of human knowledge. Such topics as sense perception, knowledge and belief, necessity, memory, and truth will be treated. Writings of contemporary analytic philosophers will be read and discussed.

PHI 314. Philosophy of Mathematics

A study of the nature of mathematics based on a logical and philosophical examination of its fundamental concepts and methods. Two lectures, one preceptorial. Some previous work in mathematics or logic at the college level is highly desirable, but no one particular branch of mathematics is presupposed in the course.

PHI 315. Philosophy of Mind

Investigation of some of the following (or similar) topics: the mind-body problem, personal identity, the unity of consciousness, the unconscious, the problem of other minds, action, intention, and the will. Readings primarily from recent sources.

PHI 317. Philosophy of Language

An examination of the nature of language through the study of such topics as truth, reference, meaning, linguistic structure, how language differs from other symbol systems, relations between thought and language and language and the world, the use of language, and the relevance of theories concerning these to selected philosophical issues.

PHI 318. Metaphysics

An intensive treatment of some of the central problems of metaphysics, such as substance, universals, space and time, causality, and freedom of the will.

PHI 319. Normative Ethics  (also CHV 319)

A detailed examination of different theories concerning how we should live our lives. Special emphasis will be placed on the conflict between consequentialist theories (for example, utilitarianism) and nonconse- quentialist theories (for example, common sense morality).

PHI 320. Philosophy and Literature

A critical study of works of literature in conjunction with philosophical essays, concentrating on two or three philosophical themes, such as the will, self-identity, self-deception, freedom, and time.

PHI 321. Philosophy of Science

An intensive examination of selected problems in the methodological and philosophical foundations of the sciences. Topics covered may include scientific explanation, the role of theories in science, and probability and induction.

PHI 322. Philosophy of the Cognitive Sciences

An examination of philosophical problems arising out of the scientific study of cognition. Possible topics include methodological issues in the cognitive sciences; the nature of theories of reasoning, perception, memory, and language; and the philosophical implications of such theories.

PHI 323. Advanced Logic  (also MAT 313)

This course deals with topics chosen from recursion theory, proof theory, and model theory. In recent years the course has most often given an introduction to recursion theory with applications to formal systems. Two 90-minute classes.

PHI 325. Philosophy of Religion

Critical discussion of religious and antireligious interpretations of experience and the world, the grounds and nature of religious beliefs, and of a variety of theistic and atheistic arguments. Readings from contemporary analytical philosophy of religion, and from historical sources in the Western tradition. Two 90-minute classes.

PHI 326. Philosophy of Art

An examination of concepts involved in the interpretation and evaluation of works of art. Emphasis will be placed on sensuous quality, structure, and expression as aesthetic categories. Illustrative material from music, painting, and literature.

PHI 327. Philosophy of Physics

A discussion of philosophical problems raised by modern physics. Topics will be chosen from the philosophy of relativity theory or more often, quantum mechanics.

PHI 332. Early Modern Philosophy

Detailed study of important concerns shared by some modern pre-Kantian philosophers of different schools. Topics may include identity and distinctness, the theory of ideas, substance, the mind/body problem, time, and causation. Philosophers may include Descartes, Spinoza, Hobbes, Hume, or others.

PHI 333. Recent Continental Philosophy

Analysis of some representative 20th-century works drawn from the French and German traditions. The specific content of the course will vary from year to year, but in each case there will be some attempt to contrast differing philosophical approaches. Figures to be treated might include Sartre, Gadamer, Habermas, and Foucault.

PHI 335. Greek Ethical Theory

The development of moral philosophy in Greece. Intensive study of the moral theories of such philosophers as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, the early Stoics, and Sextus Empiricus.

PHI 337. Relativism

An examination of the alleged threat posed by relativism to the idea that our practices are legitimate. Issues raised will include realism, objectivity, and the place of value in a world of facts. The forms of relativism considered may include relativism about value, scientific theorizing, color, and personal identity.

PHI 338. Philosophical Analysis from 1900 to 1950

An introduction to classics of philosophical analysis from the first half of the twentieth century. Topics include early paradigms of Moore and Russell, logical atomism in Russell and early Wittgenstein, and logical positivism. Changes are traced both in metaphysical, epistemological, and ethical views and in analysis as a philosophical method.

PHI 339. Philosophical Analysis since 1950

A study of philosophical analysis in the second half of the twentieth century. Topics include the later Wittgenstein, the ordinary language school of philosophy, Quine's naturalism in semantics, Davidson's views on truth, and Kripke's reconceptualization of semantic and metaphysical categories.

PHI 380. Explaining Values

The course will consider what types of explanations are possible of ordinary moral views. Students will look at philosophical, scientific, and historical explanations and consider how plausible they are, what sort of evidence might be relevant to them, and what their normative implications might be. Two lectures, one preceptorial. G. Harman

PHI 385.  Practical Ethics  (see CHV 310)

PHI 490.  Perspectives on the Nature and Development of Science  (see HIS 490)