Philosophy is the search for an understanding of how the world as a whole hangs together and of how we are to assume our place in the world. Philosophy pursues its goal first of all historically. It is the trustee of the heritage of great philosophical texts, and it engages those texts in conversation with contemporary problems. Second, philosophy turns to the contemporary world directly and tries to illuminate and advance its concerns with ethics and art, with science and technology, with ecology and feminism, with law and medicine. Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees are offered.The department is particularly strong in environmental philosophy. Our environmental masters track draws on the department's expertise in wilderness issues, Thoreau, critical animal studies, philosophy of technology, philosophy of ecology, literature and environment, the Anthropocene, and climate ethics.