The philosophy student explores and seeks to understand values and the nature of reality. Through the study of philosophy, questions are asked about existence and experience: What is truth? What is morally right? What kind of life is best? What kind of society? Is there an ultimate reality? Philosophy studies the types of questions that most other subject areas are unable to address fully. There are three different ways these questions are characteristically investigated in the philosophy student at San Diego State University. They are approached historically, by studying the history of philosophy from the ancient Greeks to the present; analytically, by carefully examining the meanings and interrelationships of ideas; and critically, by training students in the art of evaluating various claims and the arguments for and against them. While the analytical and critical approach are part of every course in philosophy, the philosophy curriculum at San Diego State University emphasizes the historical approach. The aim is to provide the philosophy student with a thorough grounding in the development of philosophy so that the student is well prepared to participate in the discussion of contemporary issues.

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