Philosophy

A Level Bridging Activities

HOW DO WE TALK ABOUT THE IMPOSSIBLE?

The Course:
This is a two-year course that equips students with a detailed knowledge of the most important doctrines and debates in Western philosophy and
theology, ethics (moral philosophy), and Buddhist philosophy, from the fourth century BC to the present. Students will be expected to engage with
past and contemporary ideas and debates through reading, discussion and debate, essay writing and exam practice. No existing religious or ethical
commitments are expected: students need only to feel that religious and ethical beliefs are worth studying.

Suggested Reading List – you can choose any from the list below.  If we do come back to school for taster sessions I will give you a copy of the Sage Train to read over the summer.  This is our usual course reading done over the summer.  (You could buy your own and read it)

Brief Introductory Reading:
Blackburn, S. Think, OUP 2001
Craig, E. Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction, OUP 2002
Law, S. The Philosophy Files, Orion 2002; The Outer Limits, Orion 2003; The Philosophy Gym, Hodder Headline 2003
Nagel, T. What Does It All Mean?, OUP 1987 (reprinted 2004)
Warburton, N. Philosophy: The Basics (5th ed.), Routledge 2012

Philosophy:
Gaarder, J. ( 1995) Sophie’s World , London : Phoenix House  
Davies, B.  (1993) An Introduction to the Philosophy of Religion, Oxford: Oxford University Press 
Annas, J. (1998) An Introduction to Plato’s Republic, Oxford: Oxford University Press, (particularly Chapters 9-10)
Baggini, J – ‘The Pig That Wants To Be Eaten: And 99 Other Thought Experiments’

        
Ethics: 
Vardy, P.(1999) The Puzzle of Ethics, SCM Press 
Norman, R. (1998) The Moral Philosophers, Oxford: Oxford University Press