Postgraduate Course: Medieval Islamic Theology and Philosophy (IMES11028)

Course Outline
School	School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	20	ECTS Credits	10
Summary	This course will consist of two main parts. First, it will provide an introduction to medieval Islamic intellectual history focusing on the traditions of philosophy (falsafa) and rational theology (kalam), and to the state of the contemporary academic field of study specialising in these subjects. It will then take a closer look at the main schools, trends, philosophers and theologians, providing an overview of the nature of their thought and their key doctrines and contributions. Second, the course will cover a balanced and representative selection of key topics and problems, which will comprise some of the following: ethical theory (especially the nature of ethical value, and the problem of evil); psychology and human nature (especially perception); metaphysics (especially the existence and nature of God); and the philosophy of religion (especially theories of prophecy, and the relation between philosophy and religion). Teaching will consist of a combination of lectures and seminars. In the latter, the class will engage in discussions focused around selections of primary texts, translated into English, and secondary texts, as well as sets of discussion questions. No knowledge of any language other than English is required.
Course description	Not entered

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered

Learning Outcomes
1. should have acquired knowledge of the history of medieval Islamic philosophy and theology, 2. should have a good understanding of key philosophical and theological concepts, problems and debates, and of their broader historical and intellectual contexts, 3. should be able to read and understand various types of medieval Arabic intellectual texts in translation, 4. should be able critically to examine and interpret historical materials, and 5. should have competence in analysing medieval intellectual notions and modes of reasoning.