Philosophical Problems:

PHILOSOPHY OF ACTION

Philosophy 736-532-001

University of Wisconsin/Milwaukee Spring 2003

Course Description

What differentiates actions, such as raising my arm, from mere happening and body movements, such as the rising of my arm?  In this course, we will investigate the distinction between actions and happenings and why this distinction should matter to us.  We will consider questions about the ontology of action, the explanation of action, the unity of agency, and the differences between animal and human action.  Under the heading of ontology, we will investigate the following issues: the relation between events, bodily movements and actions; whether actions are distinct from other events because they are caused in special ways (e.g., by the agent or by acts of will); the criteria of identity for actions; the determination of the inception, duration and termination of actions; the distinction between positive and negative actions (omissions); the relation between simple-basic actions and more complex ones, and the effects of prosthetic devices on the location of the centers of control and agency.  The central question about the explanation of action is whether the distinctive mode of explaining actions (by appeal to teleological and interpretative concepts) can be reduced to the causal-predictive mode of event explanation. In this context, we will consider the issue of the relation between reasons and causes.  Under the heading of the unity of agency, we will consider the relation between agency and the self, with particular attention to the questions raised by intentions and commitments.  Finally, the differences between the kinds of agency that can be attributed to living organisms, human beings and various human artifacts.  Readings drawn, for the most part, from works of contemporary analytic philosophers.

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SCHEDULE OF TOPICS AND READINGS

 

Date	Lecture	Topic	READINGS Required readings are in boldface (those marked  (G) are required for Graduate Students only) Readings not available on-line are on Reserve in the library Suggested readings are in smaller font	Assignments
1/22	I	Presentation of the course, syllabus and grading policy	G. Wilson Action Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
1/27	II	Action and Agency I	A. Kenny "The Will", The Metaphysics of Mind, Ch. 3 Melden "Action" The Philosophical Review, Vol. 65, No. 4. (Oct., 1956), pp. 523-541.
1/29	III	Action and Agency II	D. Davidson, "Agency", Essays on Action and Events, Ch.3 M. Alvarez & J. Hyman "Agents and their Actions", Philosophy (1998.2) Direct Subscription (G) R. Chisholm "The Agent as Cause" in M. Brand (ed) Action Theory, pp 199-211
2/3	IV	Volitionism	G. Ryle "The Will" The Concept of Mind, Ch. III J. Hornsby, "Acting and Trying to Act", Actions, Ch. III (G) Pritchard "Acting, Willing, Desiring" in Moral Obligation E.J. Lowe, "Action" in Subjects of Experience A. I. Melden "Willing" The Philosophical Review, Vol. 69, No. 4. (Oct., 1960), pp. 475-484 J. Hornsby "Dualism In Action" in O'Hear A. Current Issues in the Philosophy of MInd O'Shaughnessy Trying (As the Mental "Pineal Gland") The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 70, No. 13, On Trying and Intending. (Jul. 19, 1973), pp. 365-386
2/5	V	Agent Causation	same as above
2/10	VI	Explanation of Action I (Reason and Causes)	D. Davidson "Action Reasons and Causes" D. Davidson "Problems in the Explanation of Action" (G) in P.Pettit (ed) Metaphysics and Morality, Ch. 3, pp. 35-49 A. Goldman A Theory of Human Action pp. 72-80 C. McGinn "Action and Its Explanation" F. Dretske "Reasons and Causes" Philosophical Perspectives, Vol. 3, Philosophy of Mind and Action Theory. (1989), pp. 1-15 Von Wright Explanation and Understanding M. Smith, "The Possibility of Philosophy of Action"
2/12	VII	Explanation of Action II	H. Frankfurt "The Problem of Action" in The Importance of What We Care About, Ch 6 G.E.M. Anscombe, "The Causation of Action," in Knowledge and Mind: Philosophical Essays, ed. Carl Ginet and Sydney Shoemaker (1983), 174-90 A. Mele "Goa l-Directed Action" Nous Sup vol. 2000 at www.ingenta.com
2/17	VIII	Explanation of Action III	F. Stoutland, "The Real Reasons" in Bransen and Cuypers, eds., Human Action, Deliberation and Causation (Kluver, 1999). G. Wilson "Reasons as Causes for Action" (G)
2/19	IX	Summary and Review
2/24	X	TEST IN CLASS		TEST IN CLASS
2/26	XI	Basic and Complex Actions	A. Danto, "Basic Actions",  in Care N.S., Readings in the Theory of Action, pp. 93-112 A. Danto "What We Can Do" The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 60, No. 15, Symposium: Human Action. (Jul. 18, 1963), pp. 435-445 A. Baier. "The Search for Basic Actions". American Philosophical Quarterly 1971, 8:161-170	Topics of First Paper distributed
3/3	XII	Intentional Action I	J. L. Austin "A Plea for Excuses", Philosophical Papers E. Anscombe, Intention, sections 1-2, 4-6, 22-26 J. L. Austin "Three Ways of Spilling Ink", The Philosophical Review, Vol. 75.4 (1966), pp. 427-440 and Philosophical Papers, Ch 12, pp 272-287.
3/5	XIII	Intentional Action II	same as above
3/10	XIV	Writing Workshop	See instructions on my homepage	DRAFT OF FIRST PAPER DUE IN CLASS
3/12	XV	Writing Workshop	See instructions on my homepage	COMMENTS ON DRAFT DUE IN CLASS
3/17	----	---------------------	SPRING BREAK	----------------------------
3/19	----	---------------------	SPRING BREAK	----------------------------
3/24	XVI	Intentional Action III	J. Searle, "Intention and Action", Intentionality, Ch. 3 Malcolm, Consciousness and Causality, pp. 79-93	FIRST PAPER DUE IN CLASS
3/26	XVII	Intentional Action IV	same as above
3/31	XVIII	Intentional Action V	Hampshire, Freedom of the Individual Ch. 3 G. Wilson The Intentionality of Human Action (selections TBA)
4/2	XIX	Intentional Action VI	same as above R.K. Sheer, “The Causal Theory of Intentions”, Philosophical Investigations 1994  (G)
4/7	XX	Negative Actions I	Von Wright "Freedom and Determination", Acta Philosophica Fennica 31.1 (1980),  pp. 18-26 G. Ryle, "Negative Actions", On Thinking, Ch. 7 Von Wright Norm and Action, Ch 2,  pp. 17-34  Doing vs. Allowing Harm (Stanford Encyclopedia)	Topics of the second paper distributed
4/9	XXI	Negative Action II	same as above
4/14	XXII	Temporally Extended Actions	G. Ryle "Courses of Action or the Uncatchableness of Mental Acts." Philosophy, 2000, vol. 75, no. 293, pp. 331   Direct Subscription M. Thompson "Naive Action Theory" (ms) P. Collett "Segmenting the Behaviour"
4/16	XXIII	Writing Workshop	See instructions on my homepage	DRAFT OF SECOND PAPER DUE IN CLASS
4/21	XXIV	Writing Workshop	See instructions on my homepage	COMMENTS ON DRAFT DUE IN CLASS
4/23	XXV	Evolution of Agency I	H. Jonas "To Move and To Feel: On the Animal Soul" The Phenomenon of Life, Ch. 5 K. Sterelny "The Evolution of Agency" in Evolution of Agency and Other Essays F. Dretske "Machines, Plants and Animals: The Origins of Agency" Erkenntnis 51 (1999) C. Taylor "What is Human Agency"
4/28	XXVI	Agency and the Self I	Velleman, 'Behavior, Action and Activity"--  Introduction to The Possibility of Practical Reason	SECOND PAPER DUE IN CLASS
4/30	XXVII	Agency and the Self II	C. Korsgaard Self-Constitution: Action, Identity and Integrity -- The John Locke Lectures 2002 (selections tba)	Take home final distributed
5/5	XXVIII	Social Action	A.Baier "Doing Things with Others: The Mental Commons" F.Stoutland "Why are Philosophers of Action so Anti-Social?"
5/7	XXIX	Summary and Review
5/14		TAKE HOME FINAL DUE IN MY MAILBOX by 5:00 p.m.		TAKE HOME FINAL DUE IN MY MAILBOX by 5:00 p.m.

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ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING POLICY

 

Class participation (including quality of peer commentaries in the writing workshop)	10%
Test in class	15%
2 Short Papers (1200-1500 words each -- 1500-1800 words for graduate students)	25% each
Take Home Final	25%

• Attendance to lectures and writing workshops is mandatory
  
• PAPERS MUST BE SUBMITTED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CLASS BY THE DEADLINES indicated above. All late papers will be marked 1 grade down for each day or portion thereof that they are late, including weekends and holidays (for instance, if a paper is due on Tuesday at 2:05 p.m. and it is turned in on Wed at 5.00 p.m., it will be penalized two full grades). The penalty applies BOTH to the first and the final draft of each paper (e.g., if you turn both the first and the final draft one day late, your will be penalized 2 full grades).
  
• In order to pass this course you MUST COMPLETE ALL assignments. You must take the in-class tests, participate in the writing workshops, turn in both papers and take the final exam  

click here to see the GRADING GUIDELINES

Please note that PLAGIARISM is a serious instance of Academic Misconduct

Plagiarism includes:

1. Directly quoting the words of others without using quotation marks or indented format to identify them; or,
2. Using sources of information (published or unpublished) without identifying them; or,
3. Paraphrasing materials or ideas of others without identifying the sources.

UWM Policy concerning Plagiarism is available at http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/OSL/DOS/conduct.html 

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WRITING WORKSHOP

In this class, you are given the opportunity to benefit from the comments of your peers on the first draft of your papers. You must submit the first draft of the papers a few days in advance of the writing workshop. Two other students will be assigned to you as commentators. You will meet with them at the writing workshop and discuss with them how to improve your draft. You then have some more days to revise your draft before submitting the final version for grading (for the exact deadlines, see the schedule above). You will also be commenting on the work of two other students. You will receive their drafts on the day when your draft is due. You will turn in your written comments at the writing workshop.

Please note that the active participation in the writing workshop is REQUIRED in order to pass the class. Detailed instructions about the writing workshop will be distributed during the term and made available on my homepage at http://www.uwm.edu/~ferrero/writing-workshop.htm.

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CLASS REFLECTOR: a class reflector (phil-action@uwm.edu) has been set up up for general announcements. N.B. If you do not use your ePanther/alpha account regularly, it is your responsibility to make sure that your UWM mail is forwarded to your preferred email account (for instructions on UWM ePanther accounts go to http://www.uwm.edu/IMT/ePanther/).

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Academic Misconduct Policy: see http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/OSL/DOS/conduct.html

Drop/Audit Policy: Students will be allowed to drop the course up through the last day permitted by the Registrar. Likewise, students may elect to audit the course up through the last day permitted by the Registrar

Grievance and Appeals Policy: The Department of Philosophy has procedures for handling student grievance and grade-appeals. Information is available in the Department office, 612 Curtin Hall

Special Assistance: If you need special assistance, please contact me the first day of class

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 Last Revised May 7, 2003