Graduate Program
Graduate Program
Graduate Program
Philosophy | ||
Master of Arts in Philosophy | ||
Fields of Specialization | ||
Contemporary Continental Philosophy Eastern Philosophy Comparative Philosophy Core Faculty Professors Wing-Cheung Chan (Philosophy), Christine Daigle (Philosophy), R. Raj Singh (Philosophy) Associate Professors Michael Berman (Philosophy), Richard S. G. Brown (Philosophy), Rohit Dalvi (Philosophy), Rajiv Kaushik (Philosophy), Brian Lightbody (Philosophy) Assistant Professors Athena Colman (Philosophy)
Graduate Program Director Michael Berman Administrative Assistant Irene Cherrington 905-688-5550, extension 3315 573 Glenridge Ave. Dean Douglas Kneale Faculty of Humanities Associate Dean Carol Merriam Faculty of Humanities
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Program Description | ||
The Master's program focuses on two areas: recent and contemporary European and Asian thought. The program also accommodates the rise in importance of postmodern continental thinkers (mainly French and German philosophers). Such inclusions indicate the type of dynamic rapport the Department wishes to keep with the wider philosophical community. Consequently, the majority of courses offered in any one year will be selected from the following specializations: Contemporary Continental Philosophy (Existentialism, Phenomenology, Hermeneutics): Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Beauvoir, Marcel, Buber, Scheler, Merleau-Ponty, Gadamer, or some contemporary European movement, such as Structuralism, the Frankfurt School, or Postmodernism: Derrida, Levinas, Deleuze, or Bataille. Eastern Philosophy: Indian and Upanishadic Philosophy: texts from the six orthodox schools of Indian philosophy, especially Vedanta, Early Indian Buddhist traditions, especially Madhyamika schools; Bhakti traditions, Gandhi; Chinese Philosophy, especially Confucianism, Taoism, and Chinese Buddhism. Comparative Philosophy: Comparison of Eastern and Western traditions with respect to problems of being, knowledge, person, values, and philosophical method. In addition, from time to time, half-courses and tutorials may be offered on the following topics: Issues in recent Anglo-American (Analytic) Philosophy, Studies in Classical Philosophy (Pre-Socratics, Plato and/or Aristotle), Process Philosophy (Bergson, Whitehead, Hartshorne). These topics fall outside the principal focus of the graduate program, but are represented by individual members of the Department. (If in a given year a half-credit in one of the above happens not to be offered, an individual tutorial therein may be arranged.)
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Admission Requirements | ||
Successful completion of an Honours Bachelor's degree, or equivalent, in Philosophy with an overall average not less than 75%. Applicants must supply a statement of interest. Knowledge of languages other than English may be required as appropriate. The Graduate Admissions Committee will review all applications and recommend admission for a limited number of suitable candidates. Individuals interested in part-time study should consult with the Graduate Program Director.
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Degree Requirements | ||
In order to complete the degree requirements for the Master of Arts in Philosophy, there are two paths from which to choose: the M.A. thesis option, which requires the successful completion of four half-credits in the philosophy program and a thesis, and the major essay option, which requires the successful completion of six half-credits as well as a major essay. Thesis candidates are limited to a maximum of one half-credit directed reading course; major essay candidates may take up to two one half-credit directed reading courses. The Graduate Program Director of the Department must approve the program of any graduate student. The MA program is designed to be normally completed in one year (twelve months) of full-time studies. Residence Regulations The department requires the full-time graduate students' regular presence on campus (with the exception of formally approved absences and leaves). Since most graduate students have teaching assistantships in the regular academic year (Fall/Winter) and need to see their supervisors during the spring and summer terms, most graduate students stay in town for the first twelve months of their program. In any case, the general graduate studies regulations at Brock specify residency requirements, which apply to philosophy students as well. Graduate Studies Regulations All M.A. students are urged to read carefully the sections of the graduate calendar (available on line) setting out university regulations governing M.A. studies at Brock University. The Department of Philosophy is bound by all university-wide academic regulations adopted by the Brock University Senate. While the Graduate Officer is available to assist students and answer their questions, it is the responsibility of the students to ensure that their programs meet all university requirements for the degree sought. The purpose of the present information bulletin is to clarify departmental policy regarding certain matters, which fall under department jurisdiction and are of concern to our graduate students. The Brock Philosophical Society, founded in 1983, aims to establish a philosophical community that promotes an open and free discussion of ideas in symposia and conferences. It is composed primarily of Brock alumni and members of the Niagara community as well as Brock faculty members and students, graduate and undergraduate. The Brock Philosophical Society is a unique blend of academics and community members brought together by their love of philosophy. In addition to hosting several conferences a year, it organizes fund raising events for scholarships in philosophy. To date, the society has donated funds to Brock to establish scholarships with endowments in excess of $160,000. At present, the Society offers twelve scholarships annually. The Brock Philosophy Society has hosted conferences on Wisdom, the Person, Humanism, Allan Bloom, John Updike, Agape or Christian Love, post-modern ethics, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Derrida, Levinas, Kristeva, Irigaray and Deleuze. Participation in these conferences can be an invaluable aspect of graduate life at Brock as many graduate students and alumni of the Brock Masters' Program has read papers at these conferences. Participants and keynote speakers have included: Northrop Frye, John Leavey, Alphonso Lingis, Graeme Nicholson, Martha Nussbaum, Raimundo Pannikkar, Charles Scott, Hugh Silverman, Irving Singer, Tu Wei-Ming, Tina Chanter, Kenneth Schmitz, and Constantin V. Boundas. Philosophy MA Graduate Program Handbook Graduate Studies Home Page Graduate Calendar: Philosophy HTML Forms | ||
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