PHIL 752 Modern & Contemporary Teleology
This course will consist of an examination of the nature and status of teleology and teleological explanation in the life sciences in the modern and contemporary periods. In particular, the focus will be on (i) early modern critiques of Aristotelian teleology, up to and including Kant's (very partial) defense of natural teleology, and (ii) efforts in post-Darwinian philosophy of biology to make teleology "respectable" again. Questions to be considered are: what kind of unity, if any, does the very notion of 'teleology' possess in the history and philosophy of science?; what counts as a good, scientific explanation of natural phenomena?; how are explanations of living and non-living phenomena different? and, more distantly, to what extent is an Aristotelian ethics founded on biological functions viable today?