PY4618
Animals, Minds and Language
2018-2019
30
15
SCQF level 10
1
Academic year(s): 2018-2019
SCOTCAT credits : 30
ECTS credits : 15
Level : SCQF level 10
Semester: 1
Availability restrictions: Not automatically available to General Degree students
Planned timetable:
This module will focus on philosophical issues related to the attribution of mental states to non-human animals. Do animals have minds? How can we know about them? In what ways are the mental abilities of animals similar to or different from our own? Topics to be discussed may include: are animals rational? To what extent can beliefs and other mental states be attributed to simple creatures such as insects? Can animals feel pain? Can simple creatures feel pain? How can we know whether they do? Do animals have emotions? Do animals have language and culture, or are these distinctively human capacities?
Weekly contact: 1 x 2-hour lecture and 1 x 1-hour seminar.
Scheduled learning hours: 33
Guided independent study hours: 267
As used by St Andrews: Coursework = 70%, Scheduled Written Examination = 30%
As defined by QAA
Written examinations : 30%
Practical examinations : 0%
Coursework: 70%
Re-assessment: 1 or more essays to a total of 7,000 words