PHIL 2194 - Philosophy, Disability, and Society

1 Course Unit(s)
This course will explore the notion of “disability” from a philosophical and social perspective (which is different from the medical understanding of disability). Attending to the experience of disability helps us to think critically about some fundamental assumptions our society makes regarding the human condition. These include the value placed on autonomy over dependence; the relationship between the mind and the body; theories of justice; citizenship; language; health, disease, impairment and mortality; personhood; gender and sexual identities; racism; the authority of medical/social scientific knowledge; and what constitutes “normal.” How have philosophical concepts been used to support “ableist” concepts and institutions? How might philosophy give us the tools to dismantle them?

General Education Requirement(s): Upper-level Liberal Arts
Prerequisite(s): None
Corequisite(s): None
Pre/Corequisite(s): None