Socrates, the father of philosophy in the West, said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” This course is designed to provide students with tools and questions so that they can profitably reflect on their own lives. It will connect the practice of philosophy from various cultural milieu to concerns that are central to the lives of people today. The quest for a meaningful life is a human universal, although the approaches to this search vary globally. By connecting philosophical inquiry to real life, this course will reveal the life transforming power of philosophical reflection.

CILO-1: Identify and explain some of the ways that philosophy can be used in the pursuit of a meaningful life. CILO-2: Reflect on their own lives, using the tools provided by the course. CILO-3: Recognize the key issues of debate about what counts as a meaningful life within a variety of cultural perspectives. CILO-4: Engage in philosophical dialogue about some of life’s most important questions.