| CODE | LAS1038 | |||||||||
| TITLE | From Plato to the Playstation | |||||||||
| UM LEVEL | I - Introductory Level | |||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | |||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | |||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Centre for the Liberal Arts and Sciences | |||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | The aim of the Unit is to show the direct correlation between philosophical enquiry and the use of digital media; namely digital games. The Unit will give an insight at how digital media have recreated some of the classic thought experiments offered by western philosophy. Specific notions and concepts will be explored and these will allow for a better understanding of new digital phenomena. The specific topics include questions like: - What is reality? - Who controls an avatar? Notions of free-will and determinism. - Are humans living in a super computer simulation? Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the Unit the student will: - Be able to relate philosophical inquiry to the understanding of digital games and related interactive media; - Be able to understand some of the basic concepts that are found within the humanistic game studies; - Know about digital media in general, and digital gaming in particular. 2. Skills: By the end of the Unit the student will be able to: - Familiarise themselves with classical philosophical inquiry and thought experiments; - Apply philosophical content to various contemporary realities; - Analyse digital phenomena and related social interaction through the use of appropriate theoretical and analytical tools. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: - Plato. The Republic. Baltimore, MD: Penguin, 1955. Print. - Descartes, René, and Desmond M. Clarke. Meditations. London: Penguin, 2010. Print. - Baudrillard, Jean. Simulacra and Simulation. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1994. Print. - Sicart, Miguel. The Ethics of Computer Games. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2009. Print. - Young, Garry. Ethics in the Virtual World: The Morality and Psychology of Gaming. Durham: Acumen Pub, 2013. Print. - Warburton, Nigel. Philosophy: thte Basics. Routledge, London. 2013. Print. - Juul, Jesper. Half Real. MIT Press: MIT, 2005. Print. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Seminar | |||||||||
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| LECTURER/S | Johnathon Harrington |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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