Department: Philosophy, Religion & Classics

Steven Hendley

Professor of Philosophy

Office:

Berte Humanities Building 322

Contact Information:

Birmingham-Southern College
900 Arkadelphia Rd
Birmingham, AL 35254
Office Phone: (205) 226-4793
Office Fax: N/S
E-mail: shendley@bsc.edu

Personal Web Page

Brief Career Background:

Professor of Philosophy, Birmingham-Southern College. 1988 - Present.
Visiting Faculty, West Virginia University. Spring 1988.

Educational Background:

Ph.D. Philosophy, Duquesne University. 1987.
M.A. Psychology, Duquesne University. 1981.
M.A. Philosophy, Vanderbilt University. 1980.
University of Colorado at Boulder. Philosophy. 1978-1979.
B.A., Rhodes College. With Distinction. 1978.

Areas of Academic Interest:

• Contemporary Continental Philosophy - emphasis in Moral-Political Philosophy, Metaphysics, and Epistemology
• Habermas, Levinas, McDowell, Brandom.

Courses Taught:

PL 201 Introduction to Philosophy (1)
Basic problems and forms of inquiry that have shaped the Western philosophical heritage. The course may focus on problems of morality, religion, political philosophy, and theories about the nature and limits of human knowledge. Fall, Spring.

PL 205 Community: Civil Society Today (1)
An interdisciplinary examination of the recent renewal of interest in the importance of community in the modern world understood as the sphere of a civil society distinct from the market and the state. After a brief look at the historical context of contemporary concerns with community we will take up a number of different questions dealing with the vitality (or lack of vitality) of our communal life today, touching on, among other things, issues relating to family life, the nature of civility, the relation of civil society to the state and the market, the role of public work in the life of a community, and the importance of community in developing the moral character of individuals. This course also includes a service-learning component. Also listed as HON 205, this course may be counted by Honors Program students toward fulfillment of their course requirements. Spring.

PL 206 Darwinism and Philosophy (1)
An examination of philosophical questions raised by a Darwinian account of the evolution of life such as the creation-evolution debate, evolutionary accounts of altruism, morality, free will, and human behavior generally.

PL 250 Contemporary Philosophy (1)
An examination of the major themes of philosophy in the twentieth century with particular emphasis on the way skeptical doubts concerning the idea and attainability of truth have issued in an increasingly dominant form of cultural relativism in such diverse arenas as law and literature, anthropology, the history of science, and moral and political theory. Fall.

PL 255 Contemporary Political Philosophy (1)
An examination of some of the major schools and positions in contemporary political philosophy. Central to the course are questions of the nature of justice, the claims of community, and the conditions of democracy in the public life of its citizens. Spring.

PL 302 Existentialism (1)
An examination of major issues and problems arising from the existentialist tradition in philosophy through a treatment of one or two representative figures. Prerequisite: one previous course in PL (except PL 241) or consent.

PL 303 Socialism (1)
An examination of some of the philosophical, political, and economic claims of modern socialists, beginning with and emphasizing Marx, but also moving beyond Marx and Marxism into the work of contemporary socialists who stress the democratic character of socialism and the need for a socialist market economy. Prerequisite: one previous course in PL (except PL 241) or consent.

PL 308 Topics in Metaphysics and Epistemology (1)
An examination of questions in contemporary metaphysics and epistemology concerning the nature of our knowledge of the world and different conceptions of reality which come into play in our idea of what there is in the world. The focus of the course may vary with different questions being highlighted: for example, questions concerning the objectivity of moral values, the dominance of science in our understanding of reality, the identity of consciousness and neuro-physiological processes, the relation of knowledge to experience and reason, and the capacity of truth to transcend our capacity to know it. With the permission of the philosophy faculty, students may enroll more than once for credit, provided that the focus of the course is different. Prerequisite: one previous course in PL (except PL 241) or consent.

PL 361 Topics in Philosophy of Religion (1)
An examination of some issues in the philosophy of religion primarily in the Western tradition. Potential topics include the problem of evil, the nature of God, proofs for God's existence, the nature of faith, and non-traditional concepts of God (e.g., process theology, feminist theology). With the permission of the philosophy faculty, students may enroll more than once for credit, provided that the focus of the course is different. Prerequisite: one previous course in PL (except PL 241) or consent.