Students' Tutorials

Philosophy students who study in a major-programme, have the ability to organize and carry out a student's tutorial. A students' tutorial consits of a reading cricle, who discuss readings on a philosophical topic guided by the organizers.

A students' tutorial can be organized alone or in a group of two. The organizers and the participants receive 3 ECTS for successful completion of the tutorial. The students' tutorial can be booked by philosophy students in a major-programme (BA 120, MA 120 or 90) under "Other Curricular Modules".

Being and Nothingness (in German)
Auch mehr als fünfzig Jahre nach seiner Erstveröffentlichung in Deutschland vermittelt das Hauptwerk des französischen Existentialismus neue Denkimpulse. "Das Sein und das Nichts" stellt eindrucksvoll die unverminderte Aktualität Sartres auch im veränderten geistigen Kontext unter Beweis. Studierende lesen jede Woche einen Auszug aus dem Werk und setzen sich mit den wichtigsten Prämissen Sartres auseinander. Daneben werden auch Vordenker des französischen Existentialismus, etwa Husserl, Bergson, Heidegger oder Hegel behandelt. Als Leistungsnachweis dient ein Essay, oder ein Vortrag.
The tutorial is held on Thursdays, 16:15 to 18:00, and chaired by Pascal Moser. Course Catalogue Link

Hannah Arendt's "Between Past and Future" (in German)
Hannah Arendt is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding political theorists of the 20th century and her writings and thoughts left a lasting impression on political philosophy. Her work has not only shaped our understanding of power and politics, but still provides a basis for critically questioning and analyzing social conditions today. In her collection of essays "Between Past and Future", Arendt takes an in-depth look at the philosophical tradition and sheds light on fundamental political and philosophical concepts such as authority and revolution. The collection of essays is one of the key works for understaning her political philosophy. In the tutorial, we will deal with Arendt's challenging thoughts and ideas and work together on our understanding of some of her essays from "Between Past and Future".
The tutorial is held Mondays, 14:00 to 15:45, and chaired by Lea Huber. Course Catalogue Link

The Philosophy of Language
What is language? What is the meaning of a word? How does language relate to thought? And how does it relate to reality? Questions like these have troubled philosophers and linguists for centuries and are central questions in the philosophy of language. In this class, we will talk about these and other questions regarding the topic and read texts that try to answer them. The class will serve as an introduction to the philosophy of language. We will read and discuss texts by important philosophers in this field such as Strawson, Quine, Searle, Wittgenstein, and many others to gain an understanding of the main problems and questions about the topic, with the focus being on meaning and reference and other topics such as composition or communication being discussed in less detail. The ultimate goal of the class is to create a general overview of the philosophy of language.
The tutorial is scheduled on Thursdays, 12:15 to 13:45. It is organized by Jasmin Rothenfluh and will be held in English. Course Catalogue Link.

General and Applied Nonsense (in German)
Was ist Blödsinn? Was für Blödsinn gibt es? Und wozu ist er da? In unserem Alltag verstehen wir Blödsinn, ohne den Sinn, der hinter ihm steckt. Doch Blödsinn ist viel mehr als Personen zum Lachen zu bringen. In unserem thematischen Tutorat wollen wir den Sinn im Blöden, Absurden, Unsinnigen Entdecken und Blödsinn als Methode verstehen, um abschreckende, schwere und unangenehme Themen besser ansprechen zu können. Aus diesem Grund zerfleischen wir in der allgemeinen Witztheorie Witze in ihre Einzelteile, betrachten Memes als Running Gags, begegnen feministischen Witzen und vergleichen kulturelle Unterschiede des Humors. In Kunst und Literatur, erkunden wir die Geschichte des Dadaismus, steigen ein in Nonsense Poetry und entdecken die absurde Welt. Blödsinn ist auch aktuelles Thema. Deswegen schauen wir an warum Personen Sinn in Verschwörungstheorien sehen, wie wir in Zeiten der Klimakrise und Kriege die Ernsthaftigkeit lockern können und das gehört auch dazu… machen Blödsinn, um den Sinn darin selbst zu erfahren. Ziel des thematischen Tutorats ist es ein Verständnis von bestehendem Blödsinn zu bekommen, einen spielerischen Zugang zu schwierigen Themen zu erfahren, die Trockenheit philosophischer Texte nehmen zu können und den routinierten akademischen Alltag der Universität durch Witz, Humor und Blödsinn sinnvoll verfeinern zu können.
The tutorial is held on Thursdays, 14:00 to 15:45, and chaired by Gino Pirani und Shahrdad Wakili. Course Catalogue Link

Ethics of War
In this course we will learn about and critically examine different postures, arguments and schools of thought that compose contemporary Just War Theory. It will be divided in three topic blocks corresponding to the three main divisions of the field, namely the ethics of resorting to war (jus ad bellum), the ethics of the permissibility of certain actions in war (jus in bello), and the ethics of post-war actions, such as the duties of the victor (jus post bellum). The tutorial will focus on the interpretation of different texts about the relevant topics of the week and on the discussion and critical examination of the relevant ideas and arguments of the topic of the week. We will discuss the works of Michael Walzer, Jeff McMahan, Cécile Fabre, Brian Orend, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Immanuel Kant among others. There will also be a certain emphasis on real politics and events.
This tutorial will be held in English, chaired by Alessandro van Ede, on Thursdays from 10:15 to 12:00. Course Catalogue Link.

Subjektphilosophie zwischen Existenzialismus und (Post-) Strukturalismus

Alexandros Kabbathas has organized a tutorial on the Philosophy of the Subject. It will be held on Wednesdays, 12:15 - 13:45, at KOL-F-116a (Students' Lounge).

This is a master's course, but bachelor students are welcome as well! Bachelor students who already have 120 credits can take the course for credit as an "early master's course".

Find out more in the course catalogue

Bedürfnisphilosophie in der Kritischen Theorie / Frankfurter Schule

Alexander Ouart has organized a tutorial on the philosophy of needs. It will be held on Mondays, 16:15 - 18:00, at GLT-A-03.

Find out more in the course catalogue

In the fall semester 2022, there will be two students' tutorials:

Jenseits von Gut und Böse

Juri Teichgräber and Emmanuel Wyss have organized a tutorial on Nietzsche's "Jenseits von Gut und Böse". It will be held on Mondays, 14:00-15:45, at GLT-A-02.

Find out more in the course catalogue

Zählen Tiere moralisch (nicht)?

Nadine Jabornegg, Anna Niederer, and Jolanda Sutter have organized a tutorial on animal ethics. It will be held on Fridays, 10:15 - 12:00, at RAK-E-7.

Find out more in the course catalogue 

Fascism

Hannes Boos and Armin Mašala have organized a tutorial on the topic of fascism. It takes place on Thursdays, from 18:15 to 20:00 in KOL-F-103. You can find more information in the course catalogue.

Effective Altruism

Eleos Arete Citrini has organized a tutorial on the topic of effective altruism. It takes place on Fridays, 16:15 to 17:45 in KOL-H-320. Find further information in the course catalogue.