Academic Department

Department of Classics, Humanities and Philosophy

  • School for the Humanities

Navigating worlds across time and place, we bring together disciplines dedicated to critical inquiry and close analysis of texts, ideas, historical artifacts, and material culture.

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About the Department 

Navigating worlds across time and place, the Department of Classics, Humanities and Philosohpy brings together disciplines dedicated to critical inquiry and close analysis of texts, ideas, historical artifacts, and material culture. Drawing from both the humanities and philosophy, the department encourages students to explore enduring questions about human societies, belief systems, ethics, justice, truth and what it means to live thoughtfully in a complex world.

The department provides students with a strong foundation in critical inquiry, textual interpretation, logical reasoning, and analytical communication. Faculty are committed scholars, teachers, and mentors who foster an intellectually vibrant community through research, discussion, and co-curricular programming. Students graduate with adaptable skills that prepare them for careers across the public and private sectors, teaching, civic engagement, and graduate study in Classics and Philosophy as well as other Humanities related fields.

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Classics and Humanities

Our majors and minors examine the ideas, texts, and material culture of the ancient world both in their original time periods and as they have been both appropriated and transformed by later periods. By focusing on critical inquiry into past cultures and modern manifestations of these ideas and values, we guide students to reflect on how we can use the past to inform the present and shape the future.

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Philosophy

Philosophy is the rational inquiry into our most basic beliefs and values. Socrates famously said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” This examination involves seeking answers to questions such as: 

• How should I live? 

• What is truth? 

• How is the mind related to the body? 

• Do we have free will? • What is justice? 

• How should we make ethical judgments when there seems to be no clear right or wrong answer?

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