Durham University
Programme and Module Handbook
This is an archived handbook for a previous year. The current undergraduate and postgraduate handbooks can be viewed using the links above.

Undergraduate Handbook 2006-2007 (archived)

Module PHIL3161: ONTOLOGY

Department: Philosophy

PHIL3161: ONTOLOGY

TypeLevelCreditsAvailabilityModule CapLocation
Open 3 20 Available in 2006/2007 40 Durham

Pre-requisites

  • At least one of the level 2 modules Metaphysics, Logic, or Modern Philosophy I.

Corequisites

  • None.

Excluded Combinations

  • None.

Aims

  • The aim of this module is to introduce central issues, theories and arguments arising from a study of formal and applied ontology, conceived as an enquiry into the categorical structure of reality and metaphysically significant relations between entities belonging to different ontological categories.

Content

  • The topics to be covered will include:
  • rival conceptions of the nature of substance
  • the distinction between universals and particulars
  • events and facts
  • determinables and determinates
  • the nature of dispositions
  • ontology and information systems
  • gene ontology
  • the ontology of artefacts

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge
  • Have knowledge and understanding of key theories and approaches in formal and applied ontology.
Subject-specific Skills
  • Be able to identify, explain and address philosophical questions arising in formal and applied ontology.
Key Skills
  • Be able to use relevant literature to examine and assess arguments for and against such theories.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

  • Seminars deliver basic module-specific information, and provide a framework for further study. They also provide opportunities for students to test their own understanding of the material studied, and defend and debate different opinions.
  • Guided reading provides a structure within which students exercise and extend their abilities to make use of available learning resources.
  • Formative essays provide the opportunity for students to test their knowledge and understanding of the module content, and their ability to present and defend relevant arguments and theories, uninhabited by the need for summative assessment.
  • The unseen examination tests students' overall knowledge and understanding of the module content at the end of the module, and their ability to bring it to bear on new problems under pressure of time.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

ActivityNumberFrequencyDurationTotal HoursAttendance Monitored
Seminars 22 Weekly 90 mins 33
Preparation and Reading 167
Total 200

Summative Assessment

ComponentComponent WeightingElementLength/DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Two Essays 100% essay 1 3,000 words 50%
essay 2 3,000 words 50%

Formative Assessment

One 2000 word essay, due at the end of the Michaelmas term.

Students who do not attend monitored activities shown under Teaching Methods and Learning Hours, or who fail to complete the summative or formative assessment(s) specified above, may be subject to the Academic Progress procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University.