1. Philosophy of Love and Sex

2. A bit about Me George Belic Background
PhD Candidate (graduating summer 2019) in Philosophy at U of Florida
Masters in Philosophy from University of Alberta
Computer Science (BSc.) from Ryerson!
(primary):
(secondary): SLATE
Office: B588
Office Hours: Thursdays, 1-2pm

3. Course Information SLATE Your Responsibility Accommodations
Syllabus, readings, and assignments
Announcements about deadlines and course changes
Your Responsibility
Attend class and participate
Be courteous and respectful to everyone in class
Hand in all assignments on time
Get in touch with me as soon as possible if there is an emergency
Accommodations
If working with Accessibility Center, get in touch as soon as possible

4. No Cell Phones! No Non-Class Laptop Use!

5. What is Philosophy? 1

6. Philosophical Problems
Example: moral issues: Is it morally wrong/right to …?
Love: Am I treating my partner (wife, boyfriend) wrongly or not?
Abortion: should I abort a pregnancy? Does my partner have any say in the matter?
War: Is my government acting wrongly by going to war?
The Philosophers’ Way of Answering These Questions
First: Understand what friendship, love, or just war are
Second: look at your circumstances and see

7. Many Areas of Philosophy
Ethics
Business Ethics
Medical Ethics
Animals Ethics
Science
Philosophy of Physics
Philosophy of Biology
Others
Philosophy of Art

8. Main Branches of Philosophy
Metaphysics: study of general features of reality.
Epistemology: study of nature of human knowledge.
Ethics: study of morally right/wrong action
Political Philosophy: study of the nature of political systems

9. How is Philosophy Practically Useful?
Skills: thinking clearly and creatively, effective writing and presentation
Preparation for other humanities programs
Preparation for Post-Graduate Exams: GRE (any other graduate program), LSAT (Law school), GMAT (MBA)
Money!: philosophy graduates have higher paying non- academic jobs than most other programs

10. Philosophy of Love and Sex2
With a Disclaimer

11. Central Concepts and Issues
Central Concepts: sex and love
Lust, Perversion
Love: Erotic, Romantic, Friendship
Marriage, Gender
Two Kinds of Central Issues
Ethical: issues about moral right/wrong, good/bad
Ex. under what circumstances is sex morally wrong or bad?
Ex. under what circumstances do we discriminate based on gender?
Metaphysical: issues about the nature of something
Ex. what is love?
Ex. what is gender?

12. Sex and Love are Everywhere
Fantasizing about love, romance
Finding true love is a highlight in anyone’s life
Separation are devastating
Advertising
Cosmetics
Clubbing/Bar-hoping

13. How many sexual partners do we have during our lives?
Global average 3-4 partners during a lifetime
US/Canada average is about 7-9.
Is premarital sex morally wrong? Global views vary widely
Premarital sex is wrong.
Indonesia: 98%
India: 75%
US: 40%
Canada: 20%
France: 2%

14. Two Opposing View on Morality of Sex
Traditional: Premarital sex is morally wrong
Modern: Premarital sex is NOT morally wrong.
Differences of on opinion about
i) How much sex should/shouldn’t one have with one partner
Ii) How many (informed) partners one should/shouldn’t have sex with
Iii) what KINDS of sexual acts are wrong? masturbation, fetishes, etc.

15. Next Week: Plato’s Symposium
Plato ( BC): famous, ancient Greek philosopher
Socrates ( BC): Plato’s teacher
Plato’s views are expressed through Socrates in the dialogue
A symposium is a dinner party: lots of drinking, speeches and often sex
Plato’s Symposium is about love: what is love?
Pederasty = sex with adult males and teenage boys
Although the work centers around love between adult males and boys, it is really about any kind of love relationships