PHIL 2040 - Metaphysics: Identity, Time and Freedom
North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2023
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General Course Information
Course Details
Course Code PHIL 2040 Course Metaphysics: Identity, Time and Freedom Coordinating Unit Philosophy Term Semester 2 Level Undergraduate Location/s North Terrace Campus Units 3 Contact Up to 3 hours per week Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y Incompatible PHIL 2027 Assumed Knowledge At least 6 units of Level I undergraduate study Assessment Major essay 50%, Shorter Essay 35%, Workshop Preparation activities 15% Course Staff
Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Antony Eagle
Course Timetable
The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .
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Learning Outcomes
Course Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate understanding of some central philosophical debates in contemporary metaphysics.
- Analyse contemporary and historical argumentative texts and extract the relevant views and arguments from them.
- Accurately present philosophical arguments in written form and oral contexts (individual and/or group).
- Evaluate philosophical and scientific arguments about time, identity and freedom, providing appropriate grounds for those evaluations.
- Identify and use relevant evidence to support or criticise metaphysical hypotheses.
- Present a sustained argumentative case in written form, addressing potential counterarguments and objections.
University Graduate Attributes
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:
University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s) Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth
Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.
1, 2, 4 Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving
Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.
1, 4, 5 Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills
Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.
3, 6 Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency
Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.
2 Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.
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Learning Resources
Required Resources
The majority of readings for this course will be available electronically through MyUni. However, the unit on free will focusses on this text:
- van Inwagen, Peter (1983) An Essay on Free Will. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Students will find it important to have unimpeded access to a copy of this book. .
Online Learning
Lecture notes and recordings will be available via MyUni. There will also be a monitored discussion board hosted on MyUni. -
Learning & Teaching Activities
Learning & Teaching Modes
This course is taught by a mixture of online lectures and whole-class workshops. There are about 2 hours worth of lecture recordings per week, broken up typically into 3–5 topic-focussed videos.
The workshop is devoted to discussion of weekly lecture material. Students engage with an online discussion board prior to the workshop, which gives everyone a chance to engage with the material substantively before the class takes place. Participation is assessed based on the pre-class discussion board; attendance at the workshop itself is optional.Workload
The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
Workload Total Hours per semester Structured Learning 2 hour equivalent lecture material per week 24 1 x 1 hour workshop per week 12 Self-directed Learning Required reading (6 hours per week) 72 Discussion forum preparation, 1 hour per week 12 Assignment preparation (3 hours per week) 36 TOTAL 156 Learning Activities Summary
WEEK LECTURE TOPIC 1 Method in Metaphysics and the Paradoxes of Time Travel
Part I: Time 2 The A-Theory, the B-Theory, and Temporal Ontology 3 Passage and the Direction of Time
4 Temporal Experience and the Attitudes
Part II: Identity 5 Personal identity 6 Change and Persistence
7 Parts, Places, and Persistence 8 Relativity and Persistence
Part III: Freedom 9 The Problems of Free Will and Fatalism
10 Incompatibilism and the Consequence Argument 11 Compatibilism and Moral Responsibility 12 Do we have free will? -
Assessment
The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:
- Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
- Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
- Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
- Assessment must maintain academic standards.
Assessment Summary
ASSESSMENT TASK TASK TYPE WEIGHTING COURSE LEARNING OUTCOME(S) Research Essay Summative/Formative 50% 1,2,3,4,5,6 Short Essay Summative/Formative 35% 1,2,3,4 Discussion tasks Formative/Summative 15% 1,2,3,4,5 Assessment Detail
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Assessment Description Weighting Research Essay Essay of ~2500 words covering a topic from the latter part of the course. Essays will be expected to go beyond prescribed course material and will require further research. 50% Short Essay Essay of ~1500 words covering a topic from the first part of the course. Essays will likely focus on prescribed course material. 35% Discussion tasks Students providing a short answer (~150 words) to a prior suggested question through an online discussion board, as the basis for in-class discussion. Evaluated over the course of the semester. Evaluation focussed primarily on participation and development rather than summative achievement. 15%
Submission
All essays and weekly discussion prompt answers must be submitted electronically through MyUni. This semester, I will be trying a new assessment approach, using Cadmus. This is a platform designed to scaffold best practice in assessment design and to encourage and bolster academic integrity. I will be interested to hear your feedback about how effective it is. I will update you during the first few weeks of semester on how to use the platform. It is ultimately your responsibility to submit assessments correctly.
Each individual essay is marked out of 100. Essays submitted late incur a penalty of 2 marks off the individual essay mark for each calendar day or part thereof that the essay is late. So if an essay due on Friday is submitted at 23:15 on the Saturday after the due date, it suffers a 2 mark penalty; if submitted at 3:45 on Sunday, a 4 mark penalty, etc.
Essays submitted more than 7 calendar days late will not be marked.
Essays are marked using an electronic rubric, in line with University grade descriptors. You will be able to access the electronic rubric used for marking from the assignment page, and you should familiarise yourself with the rubric while writing your essay. I will be using
anonymous grading for essays. So please omit your name and other identifying information from the pages of your submitted essays. The
systems in place will assign you a unique identifier which connects with your name. (We will know the identity of students at the conclusion of the assessment process – but not during it.) Note that because of anonymous grading, we will not be able to contact you if there are problems with your essay submission.
Queries about grades should be directed to the course coordinator, unless it is just to clarify a comment on your assignment from one of the markers. The university's assessment grievances policy applies if you wish to request a re-mark. Note that disappointment with your mark is not grounds for a re-mark; see the University's guidance on grounds for assessment grievances for more detail.
In this course, essays will be submitted to the Turnitin database and checked against it.Course Grading
Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:
M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme) Grade Mark Description FNS Fail No Submission F 1-49 Fail P 50-64 Pass C 65-74 Credit D 75-84 Distinction HD 85-100 High Distinction CN Continuing NFE No Formal Examination RP Result Pending Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.
Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.
Final results for this course will be made available through .
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Student Feedback
The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.
SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
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Student Support
- Academic Integrity for Students
- Academic Support with Maths
- Academic Support with writing and study skills
- Careers Services
- Library Services for Students
- LinkedIn Learning
- Student Life Counselling Support - Personal counselling for issues affecting study
- Students with a Disability - Alternative academic arrangements
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Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
- Academic Credit Arrangements Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progress by Coursework Students Policy
- Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy
- Copyright Compliance Policy
- Coursework Academic Programs Policy
- Intellectual Property Policy
- IT Acceptable Use and Security Policy
- Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy
- Reasonable Adjustments to Learning, Teaching & Assessment for Students with a Disability Policy
- Student Experience of Learning and Teaching Policy
- Student Grievance Resolution Process
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Fraud Awareness
Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.
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