General Methodology II

Pre-requisites: None

Course objectives: Student should get familiar with the basic methodological concepts used in philosophy and humanistic disciplines, which should provide student with the ability for understanding and critical evaluation of major trends in philosophy and related disciplines.

Course description: The course is primarily focused on the methodology of philosophy and other humanistic disciplines. The following topics are dealt with during the course: general problems of philosophical method (specificity of philosophical concepts and problems, monism and pluralism of methods), temporality of philosophy (relation of philosophy to its history, convergence and divergence in philosophical thought); then, the course moves on to major methodological directions: analytical philosophy, transcendental method, pragmatism, phenomenology, structuralism, poststructuralism, dialectics; at the end, typological characteristics of directions/methods will be interpreted: (a)historicity, historicism, tendency for transcendental foundation, relativism/absolutism, requirement for rationality or coherence, relation to engagement (practical dimension), determinism, focus on language, systematic character, (anti)traditionalism and so on.

Learning Outcomes: Students are expected to become familiar with the content of the course as it is covered in lectures and exercises, relying on the mandatory and additional literature. For grading, active participation in classes and prepared thematic expositions will be particularly taken into account.