Undergraduate Course: Atheism in Debate: Dawkins, his allies and his opponents (DIVI08002)
Course Outline
| School | School of Divinity |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | Divinity |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | This course investigates contemporary atheism and its critics. It considers the great atheists of the past as predecessors to the writings of Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), Daniel Dennett (Breaking the Spell), Sam Harris (The End of Faith) and Christopher Hitchens (God is not Great), together with fierce rebuttals by their opponents. Visiting students are especially welcome. |
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | 80 credits at level 8 |
| Additional Costs | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting Students especially welcome. Students should be in at least second year of study; prior study of religion courses an advantage but not required. |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2014/15 Semester 2, Available to all students (SV1)
|
Learn enabled: Yes |
Quota: None |
|
Web Timetable |
Web Timetable |
| Course Start Date |
12/01/2015 |
| Breakdown of Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 11,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 1,
Revision Session Hours 1,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
161 )
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| Additional Notes |
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| Breakdown of Assessment Methods (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
- understand the main texts set for tutorials, and show an ability to summarise a significant body of material concisely and clearly;
- summarise the principal arguments of the atheists and their critics, identify their strengths and weaknesses, and offer critical analysis of one or more topics in the set texts;
- differentiate the views of the atheists and those of their interpreters, identify key terms and their meanings, and identify challenges in interpreting the primary texts;
- structure an argument, use correct grammar in expressing philosophical ideas, and support claims with reference to specific named primary and secondary texts;
- demonstrate an ability to identify key terms and their meanings;
- demonstrate good judgement about how to judge the relative importance of items on course bibliographies, and of arguments made in individual works, and engage in constructive scholarly discussion and debate with other seminar members.
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Assessment Information
| There will be two essays required, each of 2000 words. The first, due in the middle of the semester, will count for 35%, and will be a book review of one of the primary texts, selected by the student. The second, due during the exam period, will count for 65%, from a selection of set essays published at the start of the course. The difference in weighting will permit formative feedback, and will permit students to build on what they have learned in the previous essay or essays. |
Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
week one Introduction
week two Eighteenth Century France: Voltaire
week three Eighteenth Century Germany: Lessing
week four Eighteenth Century Empiricists: Hume and Mill
week five Nineteenth Century Empiricists: Darwin and Huxley
week six Twentieth Century Empiricists: Ayer and Others
week seven Nineteenth Century Germany: Hegel and Strauss
week eight Nineteenth Century Germany: Feuerbach
week nine Nineteenth Century Germany: Marx
week ten Nineteenth Century Germany: Nietzsche
week eleven Review |
| Transferable skills |
Ability to summarise difficult material;
Ability to structure arguments logically;
Ability to interpret set texts;
Ability to produce a properly referenced essay. |
| Reading list |
Primary Texts:
Richard Dawkins The God Delusion (Black Swan, 2007)
Daniel Dennett Breaking the Spell (Penguin, 2007)
Sam Harris The End of Faith (Free Press, 2006)
Christopher Hitchens God Is Not Great (Atlantic, 2007)
Historical Texts:
Voltaire Candide
Gotthold Lessing On the Proof of the Spirit and of Power
David Hume Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding (Section X)
JS Mill Autobiography
AJ Ayer Language Truth and Logic
GWF Hegel Phenomenology of Spirit
DF Strauss Life of Jesus Critically Examined
Ludwig Feuerbach Essence of Christianity
Karl Marx A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel¿s Philosophy of Right
Friedrich Nietzsche: The Antichrist
Secondary Texts:
David Fergusson Faith and its Critics (OUP, 2011)
David Bentley Hart Atheist Delusions (Yale, 2010)
Terry Eagleton Reason, Faith and Revolution (Yale, 2010)
John Humphrys In God We Doubt (Hodder, 2008)
Alister McGrath The Dawkins Delusion (SPCK, 2007)
Michael Poole The New Atheism (Lion Hudson, 2009)
David Robertson The Dawkins Letters (Christian Focus, 2007)
Jonathan Sacks The Great Partnership (Hodder & Stoughton, 2011)
Keith Ward Why There Almost Certainly Is A God (Lion Hudson, 2008) |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Atheism |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Mark Harris
Tel: (0131 6)50 8914
Email: Mark.Harris@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Katrina Munro
Tel: (0131 6)50 8900
Email: Kate.Munro@ed.ac.uk |
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