Universität Wien

180052 KU Bernard Williams: Truth and Truthfulness (2022W)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 18 - Philosophie
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 25 participants
Language: German

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

The first will be an online session in Moodle.

  • Monday 10.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Digital
  • Monday 17.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 24.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 31.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 07.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 14.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 21.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 28.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 05.12. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 12.12. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 09.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 16.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 23.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228
  • Monday 30.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Hörsaal 2i NIG 2.Stock C0228

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

What does it mean to be truthful? What role does truth play in our lives? – In dialogue with Rousseau and Diderot, Thucydides, Herodotus and Homer, Nietzsche, Hume, Plato and Kant, Habermas and Hayden White ... Bernard Williams (1929-2003) develops a genealogical attempt to fathom the value of truth. Against our thoughtless talk of the relativity of truth, Williams shows that we lose essentials when we call subjective interpretations “truths.” His historical-genealogical approach is inspired by Rousseau and Nietzsche and primarily offers new spaces for thought, for a genealogy, according to Williams, is “a narrative that attempts to explain a cultural phenomenon by describing a way in which it came about, or might have come about, or might be imagined to have come about.” (Williams 2002a, 20) - This KU is not about philosophical theories of truth, but about how the concept of truth relates to other concepts of philosophy, the concepts of meaning, reference, and belief.

Assessment and permitted materials

Your attendance is part of your final grade. You will be expected to hand in short written papers and participate in class discussions.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Erasmus students beware: This course is taught in German! You may write your assignments in English or French, but must be prepared to discuss matters in German, since most of your colleagues in the group will be German speakers.

The minimal requirement for completing this course is that you hand in seven assignments which are titled AUFGABE (= assignment/task) in Moodle. You will then be graded based on your submissions and your participation in our weekly class discussions. If you decide to write a BA-paper in this course, the AUFGABEN-assignments will be reduced to four. You will, however, have to hand in a short exposé and a preliminary structure of your BA thesis during term instead.

By registering for this course, you tacitly agree to having all your electronic submissions checked by Turnitin.

You may miss two course units without consequences for your final grade.

Your final grade will consist of the points you acquired in all written assignments (70 %) and your active participation (30 %). Thus you can earn a maximum of 50 credit points a term. Should your achievement be below or equal to 20 points or if you did not fulfill the minimal requirements, you will fail this course.

Examination topics

This is a course (= KUrs), thus no final exam.

Reading list

Secondary literature will be supplied via Moodle. These texts are the primary sources of our discussions:

Williams, Bernard (2002a): Truth and Truthfulness: An Essay in Genealogy. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press.
Williams, Bernard (2002b): Wahrheit und Wahrhaftigkeit. Translated by Joachim Schulte. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp.
Williams, Bernard (2006): „Philosophy as a Humanistic Discipline“ [2000], in: Philosophy as a Humanistic Discipline. Edited by A. W. Moore. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press, 180-199.

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Th 11.05.2023 11:27