This module provides an introduction to philosophy for Welsh-medium students, through a close engagement with classic texts, and the works of well-known Welsh philosophers. The main aims are to introduce the students to some of the key thinkers and key themes of western philosophy, to familiarize them with reading and analyzing philosophy, and to do so through the close reading of primary philosophical texts (a majority of those being written in or translated into Welsh).  The module will begin one of the Platonic Dialogues, which discuss and question themes such as justice, virtue and the afterlife. The second major text will be Aristotles’ Poetics, which is still regarded today as a canonical analysis of tragedy and its various elements.  The third will be Descartes’ Meditations, a seminal text in western philosophy in which he reflects on the foundations of knowledge. A fourth set of writings will be those of Richard Price, whose Review of the Principal Questions of Morals and political writings illustrate some of the key philosophical debates of the Enlightenment.  The final text will be the book Ffiniau (Philosophical Reflections on Literature) by the Welsh philosopher, D.Z. Phillips, whose oeuvre sits within one of the most important schools of 20^th Century thought – that of Wittgenstein’s philosophy.

Mae'r modiwl hwn yn darparu cyflwyniad i athroniaeth ar gyfer myfyrwyr cyfrwng Cymraeg, drwy ymdriniaeth fanwl o destunau clasurol, a gweithiau athronwyr adnabyddus o Gymru. Y prif nodau yw cyflwyno'r myfyrwyr i rai o feddylwyr a themâu allweddol athroniaeth orllewinol, er mwyn iddynt ymgyfarwyddo gyda darllen a dadansoddi athroniaeth, ac i wneud hynny drwy ddarllen agos o destunau athronyddol sylfaenol (a'r mwyafrif o rheini wedi eu hysgrifennu neu gyfieithu i'r Gymraeg). Bydd y modiwl yn ymdrîn a phynciau megis y bywyd tragwyddol, natur gelfyddyd, seiliau gwybodaeth a moesoldeb, gan orffen gyda thriniaeth DZ Phillips o lenyddiaeth ac awduron o Gymru.  dechrau gyda thestunau clasurol y Deialogau Platonaidd, o Ddyddiau Olaf Socrates, sy'n trafod a chwestiynnu themâu megis cyfiawnder a'r byd a ddaw. Yr ail destun mawr fydd Myfyrdodau Descartes ', testun arloesol mewn athroniaeth orllewinol lle mae'n adlewyrchu ar sylfeini ein gwybodaeth o'r byd. Y trydydd set o ysgrifau fydd rhai Richard Price, a'i Adolygiad o Brif Cwestiynau Moesau, ai ysgrifau gwleidyddol yn enghreifftio rhai o ddadleuon athronyddol allweddol yr Oleuedigaeth. Y testun terfynol fydd y llyfr Ffiniau (Myfyrdodau Athronyddol ar Lenyddiaeth) gan yr athronydd Cymreig, DZ Phillips, a'i holl weithiau yn eistedd o fewn un o'r ysgolion pwysicaf o 20fed Ganrif yn meddwl - sef athroniaeth Wittgenstein.

1. Read and analyze primary philosophical texts.
2. Understand and reconstruct philosophical arguments from the set texts.
3. Demonstrate historical knowledge of the key philosophers studied.
4. Show an understanding of the place of the key texts within the broader history of Western philosophy.
5. Evaluate and construct philosophical arguments.

This 20 credit module will be taught on the basis of ten one hour lectures and twenty one hour seminars. The role of the lectures will be introductory in nature, presenting basic information about the philosopher being studied, their place in relation to the development of western philosophy, as well as a sketch of the texts to be studied. The seminars will be an opportunity to engage with the texts in detail, alternately providing a detailed introduction to some of the key passages that are to be the focus of discussion for the following seminar, and a forum for discussing the key philosophical questions that arise from specific passages in the text. 

The module will be taught as part of the teaching provision of the Coleg Cenedlaethol Cymraeg and therefore resources will be available to students through the interactive teaching platform, Y Porth, which uses the same software as Learning Central. The module will use printed books and journal articles, available on-line, and where books are in short supply, or out of print, the relevant passages will be uploaded to Y Porth. Timetabled sessions will be supplemented with written material to be found in the module handbook, detailing session content, questions for discussion and lists for further reading, whilst the lecture slides will be uploaded to Y Porth.

Intellectual Skills:

The ability to interpret texts and to understand texts in the context of a tradition of thought

The ability to articulate and assess arguments

The ability to reach conclusions with sound reasoning and detailed interpretations of source material

Discipline Specific Skills:

The ability to analyse and construct philosophical arguments

The ability to interpret philosophical texts and to assess their historical and contemporary relevance

The ability to use (and derive value from) a wide range of texts from various historical periods

Transferable Skills:

The ability to analyse arguments

The ability to read texts in a disciplined manner

The ability to communicate clearly and accurately in written work

The ability to present work that has a logical structure

The ability to form their own views and independent positions

Students will develop employability skills which include the ability to synthesise information, operating in group-based discussion involving negotiating ideas and producing clear, informed arguments in a professional manner

The formative assessment for this module will take the form of one essay of 1,000 words, on a specified topic.  This essay should be submitted via Y Porth, by the specified date. Essays will be returned via email.

The summative assessment for this module will include one portfolio essay of a maximum of 3000 words and can be selected from the same questions as the formative essays. It must be written especially for the portfolio, but may be based on the formative essay – although a far more thorough critical discussion will be expected.

Word limits are to include all endnotes and footnotes but exclude the bibliography.

This module is assessed according to the Marking Criteria set out in the Philosophy Undergraduate Student Handbook. There are no academic or competence standards which limit the availability of adjustments or alternative assessments for students with disabilities.

1. Plato: Gorgias
2. Plato: Gorgias
3. Aristoteles: Poetics
4. Aristoteles: Poetics
5. Descartes: Meditations Book I
6. Descartes: Meditations Book II
7. Price: On Hume, Hutcheson & Moral Philosophy
8. Price: On Freedom and Government
9. Phillips: Applied Wittgensteinian Philosophy
10. Phillips: On Philosophy and Literature

Plato: Amddiffyniad Socrates, Cyf. gan D. Emrys Evans, G.P.C. Caerdydd 1936

Plato: Phaedon, Cyf. gan D. Emrys Evans, G.P. C., Caerdydd 1938

Descartes, Y Traethawd a'r Myfyrdodau, Cyf. gan John Fitzgerald, Coleg Prifysgol Aberystwyth, 1982

Richard Price, Cariad at ein Gwlad, Cyf. P.A.L. Jones, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru, 1989

Dewi Z Phillips Ffiniau: Myfyrdod Athronyddol Ar Lenyddiaeth, Dewi Z Phillips (Awdur), Hywel Teifi Edwards (Gol.), (Y Lolfa: Talybont)

Plato: Amddiffyniad Socrates, Cyf. gan D. Emrys Evans, G.P.C. Caerdydd 1936

Plato: Phaedon, Cyf. gan D. Emrys Evans, G.P. C., Caerdydd 1938

Descartes, Y Traethawd a'r Myfyrdodau, Cyf. gan John Fitzgerald, Coleg Prifysgol Aberystwyth, 1982

Richard Price, Cariad at ein Gwlad, Cyf. P.A.L. Jones, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru, 1989

Dewi Z Phillips Ffiniau: Myfyrdod Athronyddol Ar Lenyddiaeth, Dewi Z Phillips (Awdur), Hywel Teifi Edwards (Gol.), (Y Lolfa: Talybont)