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History and Philosophy BA (V1V5)

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Learn more about our History and Philosophy degree at Warwick

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V1V5

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Bachelor of Arts (BA)

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3 years full-time (4 years full-time with study abroad)

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26 September 2022

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Department of History

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University of Warwick

3a

What sort of knowledge is historical knowledge? How much of what we understand and feel about the world around us is the direct result of the particular history of our own culture? Should we understand philosophical ideas as merely reflecting the world in which they are developed, or do they play a leading role in changing it?

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This course will help you understand the importance of thinking critically about how we know and experience the world, and recognise the importance of linking precision in thought and analysis to a grounded understanding of different historical periods.

You'll learn to consider ideas for their own sake, while recognising that they are developed in particular contexts, for particular purposes, and reflect the conditions under which they are produced.

Students will be offered the opportunity at the start of their second year to apply for an optional Year Abroad. Following the application process, those students who are offered and take up a Year Abroad place transfer to the four-year History and Philosophy (with a Year Abroad) course, with the Year Abroad as the third of the four years.

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Core first-year History modules will introduce you to the study of modern history in a global context and help you develop research skills, while Philosophy modules examine Plato and Descartes and introduce you to symbolic logic. In subsequent years, you will have a wide range of choice from across the curriculum of both Departments, with core modules in your second year on History of Modern Philosophy and Individual, Polis and Society: Philosophical Reflections on History.

Current History options examine topics such as American historical cinema, or gender, madness and conflict. Philosophy options available to current students include History of Scepticism, The Philosophy of Terrorism and Counterterrorism, and Post-Kantian Social and Political Philosophy: Hegel and Marx.

You may complete an optional dissertation in your third year in a topic of your choice related to either subject.

3d

Teaching is delivered through lectures, seminars and tutorials, web forums, podcasts, workshops, presentations, film analysis, group work and field trips.

Our use of surprising and inspiring sources is a feature of all our teaching.

Modules focus on important themes in political, religious, cultural or social history and most explore topics far removed from the usual A level syllabus.

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Seminar groups are small (normally under 16), providing a valuable opportunity for you to work closely with your lecturers and to learn from other students.

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For each Philosophy module students typically have three hours of contact time per week, divided into two hours of lecture and one hour of seminar. First year History modules usually have one or two lectures and an hour-long seminar either weekly or fortnightly. Second year modules have one lecture per week plus weekly seminars or two hour workshop sessions. Final year History modules are taught largely through intensive two-hour weekly seminars.

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You will receive regular feedback throughout your course on developmental assignments and assessed essays, and will sit end-of-year exams. During your third year study is heavily weighted towards seminar teaching and includes an individually supervised 9,000-word dissertation. We consider feedback on written work to be an essential part of our teaching. Throughout the year you will have the opportunity to attend feedback tutorials following the submission of your essays.

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Study abroad

History and Philosophy students have the opportunity to join history students for a term in Venice at the start of year and also to apply for an intercalated year abroad at one of our partner universities. The Student Mobility Team based in the Office for Student Opportunity offers support for these activities, and both Department's dedicated Study Abroad Co-ordinators can provide more specific information and assistance.

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A level typical offer

AAA to include History.

A level contextual offer

We welcome applications from candidates who meet the contextual eligibility criteria and whose predicted grades are close to, or slightly below, the contextual offer level. The typical contextual offer is ABB including grade B in History. See if you're eligible.

General GCSE requirements

Unless specified differently above, you will also need a minimum of GCSE grade 4 or C (or an equivalent qualification) in English Language and either Mathematics or a Science subject. Find out more about our entry requirements and the qualifications we accept. We advise that you also check the English Language requirements for your course which may specify a higher GCSE English requirement. Please find the information about this below.

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IB typical offer

38 with at least a 6 in Higher Level History.

IB contextual offer

We welcome applications from candidates who meet the contextual eligibility criteria and whose predicted grades are close to, or slightly below, the contextual offer level. The typical contextual offer is 34 including 5 in Higher Level History. See if you're eligible.

General GCSE requirements

Unless specified differently above, you will also need a minimum of GCSE grade 4 or C (or an equivalent qualification) in English Language and either Mathematics or a Science subject. Find out more about our entry requirements and the qualifications we accept. We advise that you also check the English Language requirements for your course which may specify a higher GCSE English requirement. Please find the information about this below.

4c

We welcome applications from students taking BTECs alongside one or two A levels, including A level History. Our typical BTEC offers are as follows:

• BTEC Level 3 Extended Certificate plus 2 A levels: D* plus AA including History
• BTEC Level 3 National Diploma plus 1 A level: D*D* plus A in History

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Year One

Making of the Modern World

We live in the here and now. But what got us here? This module studies the string of major social, political, and cultural developments that established our modern world. Radical (and not so radical) ideas from the Enlightenment, the industrial revolution’s structural transformations of how we work, build and buy things, and the struggles and stumbles of imperialism, capitalism and globalisation have gone far to set terms of life in the twenty-first century. The module will also help you develop your critical voice as a historian while asking comparative questions about historical difference across the world.

Logic 1: Introduction to Symbolic Logic

This module teaches you formal logic, covering both propositional and first-order logic. You will learn about a system of natural deduction and understand how to demonstrate that it is both sound and complete. You will learn how to express and understand claims using formal techniques, including multiple quantifiers. Key concepts you will consider are logical validity, truth functionality and formal proof quantification.

Plato and Descartes

What would you do if you had a magic ring that made you invisible? Be an invisible superhero or use your power for ill? Why exactly should we be just and good? In the first half of this module you will study Plato's Republic, a classic work examining questions like these. You will learn about the answers Plato proposed and, by evaluating Plato’s answers, deepen your understanding of the questions and the problems they raise.

Suppose an evil demon causes your experiences now to be radically misleading about the real world. There is no computer, no cup of coffee on the desk, even though it appears there are. In his Meditations on First Philosophy, which you will study in the second half of the module, Descartes uses such exercises to argue that we can find truths about the world independently of the senses, simply through reasoning and reflection.

Year Two

Individual, Polis and Society: Philosophical Reflections in History

In studying closely a range 18th- and early-19th-century texts, you will address philosophical questions relating to the construction of identity, political realism and idealism, and the emerging concept of society. You will combine this with reflections on the changing styles of painting, architecture and fashion of the period. In learning how, as historians, we approach major writings of the period, you will interrogate the importance of historical context in critical readings of such sources, and develop your appreciation and understanding of how different lines of argument interact.

History of Modern Philosophy

You will discover the metaphysical and epistemological ideas of great Empiricist philosophers Locke, Berkeley and Hume on substance, qualities, ideas, causation and perception. You will then explore Kant's ideas, including metaphysics, space, self-awareness, causation, scepticism and freedom. You will develop skills in critical engagement, articulating your own views of the relative strengths and weaknesses of these arguments and interpreting key philosophical ideas.

Year Three

• Pathway 1 (25% History, 75% Philosophy)
• Pathway 2 (75% History, 25% Philosophy)
• Pathway 3 (50% History, 50% Philosophy)

5b

• Aristotle
• Authority and Democracy
• Dissertation (History or Philosophy)
• History of Scepticism
• Knowledge, Nature and Power in Early Modern Europe
• The Philosophy of Terrorism and Counterterrorism
• Post-Kantian Social and Political Philosophy: Hegel and Marx

Explore a full list of Philosophy modules.

For examples of History modules, please see BA History.

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There may be costs associated with other items or services such as academic texts, course notes, and trips associated with your course. Students who choose to complete a work placement or study abroad will pay reduced tuition fees for their third year.