Faculty Videos

What are they saying about philosophy?

​​For additional insight into why philosophy needs to be taught in the classroom, read this article in The Guardian​

Hildebrand on Philosophy

Watch video: David Hildebrand - CUDenver Philosophy Dept.

"Philosophy skill is to unpack the questions, unpack the problems, and draw students into discussions and analyses of what's at stake in these questions."

"We see it in our students all the time ... they don't know how closely they are going to get into conversation with people in this department. And when they're done, most of them can't think of a more valuable thing they could have done with their undergraduate degree."​

Shelby on Philosophy

Watch video: Candice Shelby - CU Denver Philosophy Dept.

"It's easy to be a trained cog in a big machine. Whether you're a surgeon or a biomedical researcher or a lawyer, you can be highly trained ... but never reflect for a minute on what it is that you're doing; why you're doing it; whether you think it's right and good. And when you take a philosophy class, you get this chance to step back and ask those kinds of questions."​

Tranzer on Philosophy

Watch video: Mark Tanzer - CU Denver Philosophy Dept. 

​"The way I think of it is, philosophy is concerned with, what I would call, the underlying structure of existence. We're trying to figure out what are the basic principles that make the world what it is; that make it possible for there to be a world; and for the world to be the type of world that it is."

"Studying ethical philosophy allows you to get clarity on the sort of principles you might be using to make ethical judgments, and then you can reevaluate how you make those sorts of judgments."​

Metcalf on Philosophy

Watch video: Rob Metcalf - CU Denver Philosophy Dept.

​"Philosophy trains students in the right sort of intellectual habits that they can use whatever their major, and after they graduate from UCD."

"We do philosophy because the questions themselves that we address in class are sorts of things we ought to think about. We're cheating ourselves if we don't give ourselves the opportunity to think through these things: how ought I to live? How should society be organized to contribute to human happiness? These questions are just part of being a reflective being on the earth."

Philosophical Concepts

Candice Shelby on Perception and Belief

Watch video here:  Perception and Belief​

Mark Tanzer on Hume and Kant

Watch video here:  Hume and Kant​

Rob Metcalf on Plato's Cave

Watch video here:  Plato's Cave​