PHIL140 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 10/05/2024	GPA Killer, I took this class last spring, and it was much harder than needed! If you read a lot of these reviews, you notice grades in elms are much lower than final grades in Testudo. This is because exam averages are so low due to her multiple-choice exams sometimes having more than one correct answer. So what she does is improve everyone's grade in Testudo to counteract this. So far, it's the worst class I've taken at UMD, and it's my senior year, I learned nothing!
Lia Curtis Fine PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/08/2024	Lia is great! You get what you put in. It is not a super easy class, but that is because philosophy is tough. Honestly, I loved the class. Lia expects you to contribute a lot but IMO it means she treats you like an adult. She takes time to explain things to you, don't get me wrong, and the lectures are thorough, but you need to do the reading. In my opinion, that is a very fair agreement.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B- Anonymous 07/02/2024	PLEASE AVOID THIS CLASS AT ALL COSTS. This class is absolutely convenient for killing one's GPA. Professor Liberto is a very nice lady, but her lecture slides are incredibly vague, and when she discusses them, she tends to ramble and I lost focus a lot of the time. Your grade for this class relies heavily on the multiple choice and short answer exams, which are EXTREMELY difficult because of the lack of information given to us on the lecture slides; I've overheard people discussing class averages on exams, and they were very low. Also, discussion sections do not feel like discussions at all. They were merely review sessions on the weekly discussion board posts on ELMS and there was not much time to review material from class. I would not recommend this class to anyone.
Lia Curtis Fine PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 06/04/2024	Quite literally the worst lecturer I've had at this university. I'm a stem major and this class had given me more stress then my chem and bio classes. The quizzes are full of mistakes and there's only 2 questions so getting 1 wrong will mess your grade up. Lia has no clue what she is doing and basically freestyles the lectures. The presentations are confusing and at times I want to fall asleep. If there was a 0 star, I would give her that, save yourself a mountain of pointless stress over a 3 credit gen ed and never take this class or any class taught by her.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B- Anonymous 06/03/2024	Professor Liberto is very nice, but her lecture slides are not helpful at all. When she explains stuff, it seems like she rambles and I lost focus as a result. Also, the exams are very difficult and I heard that averages were low. Another bad thing about this class was discussion sections. They did not involve going over class material, but more of what was on the discussion posts on ELMS. Third, the grade you see on ELMS is not your actual grade, you have to wait until the end of the semester on Testudo to see your actual grade. For me, ELMS listed my grade as a 74% (a C), but Testudo has it listed as a B-. On the plus side, she does offer some extra credit for the multiple choice tests; on the last question of the multiple choice tests, you can write two of the question numbers you feel like you got wrong, but keep in mind that if you write down a question you feel like you got wrong but you actually got it correct, she will not award that extra credit. Overall, I feel like I did better than I thought in the class.
Peter Carruthers PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/22/2024	I took this course as a gened. It is a lot more like a psychology course than philosophy. Professor is a cool, chill guy with very interesting lectures and topics that are pretty engaging if you have any sort of minor level of interest in this subject. But, the grading and actual format of the class frustrated me as a student. The biggest thing was that there was an inverse curve on our final grades - made no sense. The three sets of essays (exam grades) that students write throughout the year are graded against each other, not solely on their own. So sometimes students that wrote A level essays didn't receive the grade they deserved. Also, there was very minimal leniancy on missing discussions - you can only miss one unexcused for the entire semester. Again, overall, cool dude, and definitely cool content in the course, but lacks some logic when it comes to grading - caused me some unnecessary stress and it felt like my grade was out of my control.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/16/2024	The class is structured so that there are 6 exams - 3 multiple choice and 3 short answer exams. Each are 15% of your grade (except in the end she will make your two best exams worth 20% and your two worst exams worth 10%). Its essentially 3 rounds of midterms where you take two exams (1 short answer and 1 MC). Discussions are 10%. So you have to do well on the exams to do well in the course. She curves the multiple choice exams pretty generously and she allows you to write about questions you were confused about or thought multiple answers could be right at the end of the MC exams. She also lets you take the MC exams remotely and online. Short answer exams are in person. There's no final - she uses the final exam time to give you a chance to redo any MC exams if you want. If you want to understand anything in this class - go to lecture. She posts slides but they slides don't have much information and are hard to understand, so go to lecture. There are readings you are supposed to do, and they are helpful if you do them, but I generally didn't read for this class because she covers the same info in lecture and the readings are hard to understand. If you miss lecture, I would do the readings and also maybe do some research about the topics so you actually understand them (I asked chatgpt to explain a lot of the concepts to me, and it was helpful most of the time but sometimes they were wrong). During lecture, she explains things pretty well but sometimes she has a tendency to ramble and that can be distracting or make it difficult to understand what's important from her lecture and whats not. I did the best on the last round of exams. For those exams I tried to study more than the other ones - I recommend rewriting your notes as a form of studying and trying to explain the concepts on your own and then cross referencing with your original notes. She provides some study resources for the MC exams - some practices questions she posts on ELMS, but she doesn't let you see the answers until the day before, so if you do the practice questions early you only have 1 day to evaluate what you know and don't know. In general, the course is easy but you definitely have to put in a good amount effort (more effort than i wanted to put for a gen ed). it's also hard to evaluate how youre doing in the course and what grade to expect in the course because theres no assignments and your grade is basically just based on exams. By the time the drop-add period was over, we had only completed the first round of exams (first MC and short answer) and had no other grades, so I thought I was going to end up with a B in the course, but was surprised I did well enough on the last exams and ended up with a 98. I think the later exams are easier than the first, but this could also just be because I put more effort and studied a bit more.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2024	Class was WAY harder than a 100 level philosophy class should be. She doesn’t want students to use critical thinking, but rather regurgitate the thought processes of old irrelevant philosophers. Lecture is somewhat interesting but the exams are awful. Don’t take!
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/12/2024	I have to take this class for my major, but if you don't have to... DON'T. Yeah, Liberto is a nice professor, but the lectures are boring and it's in your best interest to go if you want to do well. She posts class slides but they aren't helpful unless you are there listening to her explain them. The classwork is slight. Discussion board due every other week, and 3 midterms consisting of MC and short answer (third midterm counts as the final). Midterms are a little dumb in my opinion, especially multiple choice since I think the class is subjective, but she does do a lot of partial credit and does drop 5 percent off your lowest exam from your final score and bump up your highest 5 percent. If you don't do well on the exams though, your grade is kinda toast.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B- Anonymous 05/08/2024	Fully based on lectures and multiple choice is so subjective that its actually really hard. I have studied so much but still the multiple choice is really hard in philosophy and sometimes I still don't understand how a specific answer is wrong. This being said FRQ are easy As.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 05/01/2024	Really nice lady, but her lecture slides are confusing and when she explains them, she seems to drone on and on to the point where I lost focus. My TA (Justin) is a really nice guy, but I'm not sure if going to discussion helped me with learning the material. Exams are very difficult.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 04/24/2024	Do not take this class. The professor and the TA are incompetent when it comes to returning grades. The material covered in class vaguely relates to the exam material and the class is based off exam grades mostly. They have a habit of never returning exams so you can see the grade which in my opinion is extremely annoying and doesn't help you learn what you did wrong. I may also be biased because my discussion class had to teach our TA about systemic racism, which should not be happening in a discussion section.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 04/12/2024	DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. The lecture slides aren't helpful at all and the grade for the class heavily relies on exam scores (which are not easy). The grading always comes back late and is never reflective of your real score because they change it so many times. The professor and TAs don't give you feedback for the written portion of the exams. Their technological incompetence is a headache. The discussions are so boring and do not help you further understand the material. I have never dreaded having to go to a class more than this one.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 04/09/2024	GPA KILLER !!! The averages for the exam test are around 60% so I think that tells you all you need to know!
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C Anonymous 04/03/2024	This is the worst class I've taken at UMD. The lecture delivery is abysmal, with slides containing one sentence and the professor talking on for minutes. Test questions are not only incredibly difficult but also unnecessarily lengthy, making them nearly impossible to complete within the 50-minute timeframe. It's baffling how a 100-level class can have such low averages. As if that weren't enough, the discussions offer zero value—they merely regurgitate what's already on ELMS discussions. Overall, I would never recommend this class to anyone, especially Philosophy majors! My advice, take another professor, as I've heard they give study guides and have slides with much more information.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a B Anonymous 03/31/2024	Do not take this class if you are looking for an easy gen ed. Her slides are horrible and her lectures are pretty confusing. The TAs in the discussions do not help with content comprehension at all. Basically, your whole grade is reliant on exam scores which are not easy. She tests on subjective content but grades it objectively. I really disliked this professor which is disappointing because I think the class could be interesting if it was taught by someone else.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 02/07/2024	I think she was great in this class. The readings were kind of hard to understand but she made it clear that you could do the readings after lecture to help you understand them. As long as you show up consistently and listen in discussion the exams aren't very hard. She also does a lot to boost grades. Some people thought her lectures were boring, and yea she does just talk mostly, but I think she makes it interesting since there is probably too much content to talk during lecture. Plus discussion sections can be super interesting.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A+ intiprada 01/25/2024	Professor Pan's passion for Philosophy as well as his genuine concern for student's following along and understanding were always evident in his lectures. He's not a super easy grader necessarily but he grades anonymously and I find that the grades accurately reflect the effort put into the assignments. By no means is he an intentionally hard grader, he just noticed and rewards thought and attention being put into assignments. Some of my classmates disliked the class because of the type of questions Pan asked (devil's advocate questions, often felt really tedious and redundant) however if you just try to participate and make an effort to answer his questions (even if the questions feel silly) the discussions move along and become more interesting (also participation is rewarded). Pan's a great professor, however I wouldn't recommend his class for people who have no interest in philosophy or are not willing to offer their opinions in class discussions.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/26/2023	While Professor Pan is helpful in answering surface-level questions, he could work on giving feedback, class structure and perhaps being more generous. Pan's feedback for essays was difficult to understand. Office hours were not helpful, as he often asked questions in response to your questions. His class was structured as a lecture about the assigned readings and the only assignments were essays and sometimes surprise reflections. The lack of points made the class stressful, as one bad grade tanked the total. I had an A the whole semester until one B on an essay sank me to a B+. Professor Pan was additionally not understanding of my situation and refused to round my 89 to a 90. I took the class to fulfill a gen-ed requirement, however, the whole process was almost more stressful than my major courses.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/25/2023	Shen is honestly a really great professor and has really sparked my interest in philosophy. His lectures can be somewhat complex, but if you are following along and actively engaged you can get a strong grasp of the topics and do well in the class. Grading wise, the final grade is distributed amongst a variety of assignments so doing poorly on one task will not be as devastating as some classes. There are in class reflections (done randomly throughout the semester in class), P-E-E's (done randomly throughout semester online before class, need to check canvas frequently before each lecture), 3 Essays (1st:10%, 2nd:15%, 3rd:20%), and a midterm and final (15% each). The essays are graded somewhat harsh but you can consistently get a B or higher if you put substantial effort into them. Midterm and Finals seem much more daunting then they are. It'll seem like theres way to much information to learn and that you dont have a solid grasp on any of the topics but once you get into the exams they become much more manageable and completable. Overall I really enjoyed Pan's teaching style and enjoyed the class being a smaller setting which allowed for much more open ended discussions during class. Highly recommend.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A edenw29 12/21/2023	Lectures were super boring and honestly teach you nothing but Liberto makes it easy for you to do well in her class. She curves the grades to favor exams that you performed well on and lessens the weight of exams that you did poorly on. You definitely have to attend lectures because her powerpoint slides make no sense by themselves, but as long as you attend lecture you should be fine. Overall pretty good but can't say I would be jumping at the chance to take this course again
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2023	Not a hard class and pretty fun. Readings are long and dense but there aren't many. Grading was messy this semester (for one test a couple students received packets that were missing several questions). Also, for some reason she changed my grade back to what it was before I did a retake?
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/11/2023	I actually enjoyed her class a lot. She's clearly very passionate about the material, and she always had a positive vibe throughout the course. The class has usually 1 or 2 readings per week, and sometimes they can be pretty dense. No homework assignments, 3 multiple choice exams, 2 short answer tests, no final exam. I found the class to be pretty manageable, and the professor was approachable- she even made our last multiple choice online because during the 2nd one there was a printing error that set some people back. If you don't attend lectures, her slides are pretty minimal so you'd definitely need notes from someone else.
Lia Curtis Fine PHIL140 Expecting an A- AnnieElliott 12/08/2023	Honestly loved Lia. She made content easier to understand and explained everything in thorough detail. One thing to note for people looking into taking this class is to pay attention to the readings because there is always a quiz for each paper reviewed in class. Each quiz is worth 2 points, so just getting 1 question wrong can bring down your grade significantly. She makes class enjoyable, and content easily understood so if you just pay attention and take notes you're guaranteed an A. Also, each module is super interesting so I 10/10 recommend it!
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/04/2023	Professor Pan was a really good professor, but I felt overwhelmed and confused by the way he presented his lectures. He used words that I didn't even know existed and graded pretty harshly. He is a really nice guy though.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/01/2023	Professor Pan was a great professor, but I felt overwhelmed by the teaching style that he presented his lectures with. He used words that I didn't even know existed, and was left most classes confused on what he was presenting. Overall he was a kind professor who will give extensions with a good excuse. If you are smart you'll most likely be fine.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/26/2023	Great professor TBH. -Chill, smart, interesting guy -Recorded lectures on Panopto -Easy exams if you put in an oz of effort -Clear/transparent with what his goal is for the course -Extra credit available I cannot rate a 5 because only a small subset of professors can reach such mastery.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/20/2023	I feel like the only people who complain about this class are the people who don’t go to lectures. Yeah, if you don’t want to do the bare minimum and just go to class then this won’t be an easy A, but Prof Liberto is extremely intelligent and explains difficult concepts well if you do go. There are 3 multiple choice exams, 2 written exams, and an optional final which was so nice. I had no Philosophy knowledge going into this class, and I still really enjoyed it. She also offered extra credit opportunities at the end of the semester.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/12/2023	This is an interesting and easy course. Professor Liberto is very interested in everything she lectures about, but try not to miss lectures because her powerpoint slides are undecipherable by themselves. There are not many assignments and the midterms are pretty easy if you get a grasp on the material. The final exam is optional which is nice.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 05/10/2023	Okay please note that all the bad reviews about Liberto and this class are coming from people who don't even attend lecture. Prof Liberto is extremely intelligent and explains difficult concepts well. She curves generously, and on the multiple choice exams there's literally space at the end for you to put questions where you thought there was more than one answer, and she will most likely give you those points back. I knew nothing about philosophy coming into this class, but Liberto and my TA (Lixing Miao) made it so easy and enjoyable. There are two writing exams, and three multiple choice exams and an optional final. Just attend lecture - everybody who attended did well in the class, and everybody who didn't are the ones complaining about the class.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/03/2023	This class is boring. It was meant to be an easy gen ed, but if you don't go to lecture, her slides won't make any sense. She puts the bare minimum on the slides so unless you're in lecture to understand the topic, you won't know what's going on. Her lecture style is odd - I can never manage to stay focused. Your grade will consist of 3 exams, 2 written exams, and an extra assignment in discussion that involves heavy participation. Save yourself the bore. Take a different class.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 04/07/2023	Fyfe is the best professor I have ever had. He is super engaging and loves to converse with students. While some reviews say that the class is challenging and he is an unfair grader, he is more than willing to support you and get the grade that best reflects your work ethic. He is super fun to talk to, chill, and funny in lectures. I would highly recommend him to those that are interested in taking a contemporary philosophy course.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 01/16/2023	fantastic teacher if you like the material in the class. Grading is weird, he often gives grades back late or just gives everyone A's on a test if he forgets to bring the papers in (which happens more than you would think is possible). Incredibly engaging and genuinely interested in the content. I can't speak for every class, but mine was always discussing the topics and unafraid to debate each other, it really was a great class and I would take it again if I could. As long as you don't have a problem with grades coming in slowly, then he's a great professor. (Side note: He's really understanding if you're sick. I was out for 2 weeks and he didn't penalize me for waiting to take an exam, and actually worked around my schedule). Homework is just reading a couple of articles a week. I highly recommend the class.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/24/2022	Absolutely love the way he taught lectures. Very interesting topics and an extremely accommodating teacher (just ask for extensions with a good reason and he'll grant them). Also a very fair grader, but beware that you DO have to write pretty good essays to do well. The tests are easy though.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/18/2022	Shen can guide a discussion like no other teacher. He ensures that students are comfortable during discussions, and he is really dedicated to teaching. The teacher is able to make even those that don't like philosophy to have an interest in it. There are three essays(500,1000,1500 words) and a final that consists of 3-5 short answer questions prior discussed in class. Highly recommend. Great Teacher.
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/16/2022	Super nice human, you don't really actually have to do the readings just go to class and pay attention and you'll pick up enough to do well on the papers and mid-term and final. He's a pretty easy grader and provides really good feedback. Overall this is a guy who really cares about his students and really likes his job.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/08/2022	has a weird obsession with having a low average? Great guy, not so great class. doesn't feel like a 100 level course. very smart and engaging, just weird grading and severity for the level
Charles Barclay PHIL140 Anonymous 12/07/2022	Dr. Barclay listened and cared about what each student had to say during lectures. He is even funny sometimes too. There was study guides for every exam and there wasn't a lot of assignments for the class either. However, Dr. Barclay is a very nice professor and makes sure you understand the material!
Shen Pan PHIL140 Expecting an A krileyy 12/07/2022	Awesome guy and professor I had him for PHIL 140. The required reading could be difficult but he was really good at explaining them throughly during class and inciting discussion to help better understand. Course had about 5 discussion notes throughout the semester which consisted of summarizes a text you read so that others could understand. Three papers which were not too long or difficult. One thing, attendance is not graded but I do recommend going or you will be lost when it comes to midterm, final, and papers. Midterm was only and not difficult and for final he gave us all the questions before hand that he would be pulling from so you can be fully prepared going into the exam. I really just liked him personally because he took the time to learn everyones name and while class could be boring at times, he knew how to keep it interesting
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 10/13/2022	Best class ever! I'm not even interested in philosophy, but he made the course very interesting and engaging. I don't know why he has a few negative reviews, he knows what he is talking about and his class is very interesting.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting a C Anonymous 07/01/2022	He’s a good guy, but this class is a gen ed and it did not feel that way. Look I’ll just say don’t take the class and if you do don’t say I did not warn you
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting a B- Anonymous 05/16/2022	Andrew Fyfe is the worst professor I have ever had when it comes to grading. He treats this gen ed as if everyone is planning on being a philosopher. I had an A before the final but he made it difficult on purpose so people would fail, and it dropped me to a 82. He also teaches his personal philosophies rather than just general philosophy, which is so biased.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/16/2022	The class was way too hard for a GEN-ed look, the guy is cool, but the amount of time this took out of the week was not what a 100-level GEN-ed should take. He treated it as if he was teaching a 300-level class, and that's why I gave it one star. I had an A+ until that last exam, where the average was a 66, which I got to, but he's not curving it. I don't know why he gave us a final that was hard to make the class average go down; it's just a bit weird to me as this is simply a gen-ed, But if you are ok with all of that work and you love PHIL then go ahead and take it. Please don't say I did not warn you tho.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 05/15/2022	He's a great professor, pretty lenient with due dates. But this course was god awful. The exams were open notes but way too difficult, the notes didn't help at all. Also his lecture slides have barely any information on it so copying down the slides don't do much. The papers weren't too bad but the TAs grade too harsh. If you don't have a basic understanding of philosophy I wouldn't recommend taking this class. But he's a good professor.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/11/2022	Enlightening class, great professor 10/10 would recommend. Fyfe is really passionate about philosophy and genuinely cares about his students' concerns. Lenient with due dates. Course material can be difficult but with some time and effort and A is attainable. Course consists of 3 exams and 2 papers.
Aida Roige Mas PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 01/19/2022	Many people would probably say that the reading in this class is too much but the class is pretty easy and as long as you put in good effort you can come out with a good grade. Make sure you do the readings because even though she drops the bottom 4 that won't make up for bad grades on every quiz, and they only have 4 questions each. As long as you look at the review slides and study properly the tests are fair, and she is happy to provide feedback on the final paper if you want to get a good grade. Definitely a gen ed worth taking if you're willing to put in a completely reasonable amount of work for your grade.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/22/2021	Engaging lectures, however, the tests were multiple choice and very confusing. She does employ a curve for the class.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2021	Easy A, but not what I was expecting as a Philosophy major. I wanted to be challenged a bit more, but there were barely any discussions and the weight of the class was on the midterm and final exam. Easy A however and Liberto explained things very well during review sessions. The TA I had however never showed up to class and told us the first day he didn't even like Philosophy which was odd.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 12/15/2021	Only 4 discussion posts, a midterm, and a final. Even if you get full points for all the discussion posts, that mid-term will affect your grade HEAVILY. Discussion isn't really a discussion, basically, the TA is just reviewing the lectures.
Aida Roige Mas PHIL140 Anonymous 12/13/2021	Professor Roige is a good professor, not amazing, but a very kind person. A lot of reading before every class and in class reading quizzes out of four points. She drops your four worst reading quizzes at the end of the semester but that does not mean you should not read. There are multiple extra credit opportunities that will help out your grade on the reading quizzes. One big paper that is due at the end of the semester with two separate drafts due throughout the semester. Very passable class if you read, pay attention, and put in effort.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Anonymous 12/03/2021	Really great professor and a great person overall; he does have some wild life stories though. He has really interesting lectures and you can tell that he is very passionate about Philosophy. There is not too much reading to do for this class -about 3 short articles per week-, there were only two papers and three exams in total. The exams cover a lot of material but they are not too difficult. Grades papers very thoroughly. Overall would highly recommend this class
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a W Anonymous 11/19/2021	don't take this class if you care about your GPA
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 04/22/2021	Really great guy and interesting course material. Great class to take in-person too, lots of good discussions. The essay's were graded a bit harshly, and the exams were quite challenging and encompassed a lot of material, but with a decent time commitment you can definitely get a good grade. Overall great professor who is passionate about what he teaches, and I recommend the class.
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a P Anonymous 01/23/2021	Her teaching is ok its the structure of the class I had a problem with. There was a 50pt quiz, an 100pt exam, an essay, and a final. This was all the points and the exams were nearly impossible given the amount of content that was expected of us to know. I would not recommend this class if you're just looking for an elective
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2020	Because of COVID, the class was asynchronous and I really only interacted with her once before the final. However, her recorded lectures were clear and helpful, and she obviously cares about what she is teaching. The class page on canvas is organized in a way that makes reviewing for tests easy and efficient, and Prof. Liberto is very helpful in answering questions about the material and the content of the class. The one drawback is that there are not a lot of assignments, and the exams are not that easy. She curves them generously, but half of our grade came from the final (which is multiple choice) and the essay, so if you are looking for more security in which class you take, maybe pick a different one.
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Anonymous 11/19/2020	I think he's a great guy, but at least online, he's kinda going insane. The class is schedule to be like 50 mins, twice a week I think. But Fyfe hit the point of uploading 1-2 hour lecture vids (multiple of these), and even just made us watch the Harvard lectures from 11 years ago. The exams were somewhat tricky, not as easy as you'd think for a PHIL class. There were only two papers, which weren't bad. He gave a lot of time and is understanding.
Daniel Blair PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/29/2020	I think his way of teaching is the definition of "fair" (go figure for an ethics professor lol). What everyone else says on here about his course is true. His lectures are boring and it can be sometimes difficult what is happening in the big picture but overall he is a good professor. He comes off as a great guy so it's easy to approach him and he is willing to look over tests for a second time. My experience was overall positive but it was stressful at times.
Aylon Manor PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2019	This class did discuss some interesting subject matter, but I'll admit that the lectures were pretty boring. The class consisted of the professor going through a powerpoint detailing the main points of one of the philosophical readings we were assigned. I tried to go to class consistently, but sometimes slept through since it was a 9 AM and even when I did go to lecture, I occasionally fell asleep during his teaching. The part of this class I really enjoyed were the discussion sections. My TA Samuel Warren did a very good job of leading discussion and encouraging students to respond to each others viewpoints. Assignment wise, we had to summarize and analyze three readings, and submit a thesis paper in the last few weeks of class. We also had discussion questions and comments due at every discussion question. Overall, this class was not very hard, but if you have trouble making yourself go to class, this might not be the place for you.
Daniel Blair PHIL140 Anonymous 12/11/2019	Dan Blair will be your favorite. Show up, take notes, study come the exams, you'll get an easy A. Half the time he either gives you exam questions or spells out what you need to know in review sheets. He's also funny and willing to joke about himself. Anyone who dislikes Dan Blair probably couldn't handle having to put in an ounce of effort.
Kalewold Kalewold PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/24/2019	Great lecturer and interesting yet straightforward material. He has a quiet voice but got a mic midway through the semester and I could hear him just fine after that. Online elms quizzes can be challenging at times but that's probably because I didn't read the articles before I took them (He also drops the 2 lowest quiz grades). Essays were graded pretty fairly and the midterm and final exams were easy.
Daniel Blair PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/06/2019	Dan Blair is the boy, if you get the chance to take him you have to, he makes class very enjoyable and his assignments are fairly easy
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting a C- Anonymous 12/03/2018	If I could give her zero stars I would
Hallie Liberto PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/30/2018	Professor Liberty is one of the best lecturers I’ve ever had in college. She makes complex philosophical issues and ideas clear and easy to grasp. She’s also just a pleasant person in general, and gives fair exams. I highly recommend going to discussion each week because it’s a solid review of lecture material. Overall, awesome and engaging class that’s not hard to get an A in if you go to class and pay attention
Andrew Fyfe PHIL140 Expecting an A- Anonymous 11/24/2018	One of my favorite TA’s ever. His enthusiasm and way of teaching is what got me interested in Philosophy again and I am not changing my major to that. Thank you Fyfe.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 04/22/2015	Great professor and a very interesting class. The course was very easy in my opinion. There was a lot of reading, and I would recommend doing it because it is very interesting. However, if you're not absolutely set on an A, you can definitely get a B without reading anything. Professor Kerstein is very insightful about the subject matter. I wish the course fostered more discussion and asked more for our opinions, but it is too large to do that in lecture and my TA kinda sucked. Overall, I would recommend this course and professor. It's a great way to fulfill a gen ed requirement!
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/01/2014	Great course to take for an easy A. This guy is very organized and knows what he's talking about. I thought his lectures were pretty interesting and I didn't mind going at 8:30AM. My TA sucked which kinda made going to discussions miserably boring but that is only a minor point. Go to lectures, take notes, and this will be a breeze
Peter Carruthers PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/08/2012	Professor Carruthers is seriously the best. He puts all of his slides online but they can be a little confusing if you don't go to class, plus he's just an awesome lecturer. He's British, which is awesome, and he explains things really clearly. There are 3 debates that you have to do in addition to a 7 page (2000 word) paper. The final is 40% of your grade, but he gives you the questions beforehand. It's not that hard of a class but it is REALLY interesting and I always left with something to think about. Also, I got a lot better at arguing. I would definitely, DEFINITELY recommend this class
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/01/2012	I thought this class would be interesting, but Kerstein does a good job of making it dry. It's an easy A, but it could be so much more interesting. He definitely does not care if you do well - he openly states that he wants to trick you and find obscure ways to take off points. He's a pretty arrogant guy and your typical pretentious philosopher, but it is an easy A if you're looking to fulfill a CORE. Discussion isn't necessary unless you need to hand in a paper, and as long as you read the articles and look at his outlines on ELMS, you should be able to do well on the exams without going to every single lecture.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/12/2011	Professor Dwyer was a fantastic teacher. I learned a lot from her and she's very easy to follow. She's also always available for help and encourages students to seek it out. However, Philosophy 140 was the worst course I've taken at Maryland. I signed up for it expecting it to be really enjoyable, but my TA completely ruined it. He taught in an awful, monotone voice and he seemed to hate teaching entirely. I e-mailed him for help several times and I rarely got an e-mail back. For the amount of work I put into this class, I really believe I should have gotten a better grade. This is the easiest class I'm in the semester and it's the class I have the lowest grade in. If you like philosophy, this is a great class. However, I'd recommend you take a different class, especially to fill a CORE. Or, if you're determined to take it, make sure you sign up for a section with a different TA. My experience was awful.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Expecting an A Anonymous 06/09/2011	Professor Dwyer is amazing. She is always available for help whether it be online or at her office hours (online mostly). Make no mistake she never gives you the answers but she helps you find them in very creative and helpful ways to understand the source material. Be aware though this class is not a joke and should be taken seriously. I got an 85 in the class which is ok because she generously curves.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Anonymous 04/28/2011	Professor Dwyer is a kind, helpful instructor. Go to office hours if you need help - she loves interacting with students and will read over your papers and give tons of suggestions. My only issue with this class was the final paper, which during Spring '11 was on abortion. Considering most people, if not everyone, in the class had never taken a philosophy course before, this was an extremely difficult subject to write a first phil paper on.
Elizabeth Picciuto PHIL140 Anonymous 05/19/2010	Very good professor! Elizabeth (she prefers to be called that instead of Professor Picciuto) is a very good lecturer. Most classes are very boring when the professor mumbles and just talks. She made the class interesting by being engaging and knowing the material very well. She never really shared her true feelings to keep the class neutral which I liked. Overall, the class was 2 essays, 6 pop-quizzes, participation and the final. She let the class vote on whether we had easier pop-quizzes or harder announced quizzes. My class voted for easier pop-quizzes. The pop- quizzes were basically 5 or 6 true/false questions that were usually common-sense and you can a 4/5 or 5/6 without reading but reading is definitely encouraged since there's always a few tricky ones in there. The essays aren't too terrible. Understand the directions and make sure your positions are firm and well-explained. If that happens, an A is doable. For the final, she let us vote on an easier closed-note final or a harder open note final. We voted open-note and what made it harder was instead of defining 3 or 4 out of 12 for a few sections we'd have to define 10 out of 12 and some things even if you had notes on it, were hard to explain or understand. Overall, class not too difficult and teacher very engaging. I recommend it.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Anonymous 10/11/2009	Easy A if you go to almost every class and if you are there for all the pop quizzes (which are extremely easy if you use common sense even if you have not done the readings). Discussion takes attendance so if you go it helps your grade as well.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/23/2009	There are pop quizzes but he drops 2 out of 6. Even if you go to class without doing the reading, you can probably get some right because they are T/F. There are two short papers that do not involve much effort. There are two fairly easy exams and the final is just as easy. You should do the reading but if you don't, as long as you read through his notes thoroughly, you should be fine for the exams. Discussions are pretty pointless but you should still go. If I put more effort into this class, I could have easily gotten an A and I regret. But I would definitely recommend this class. It really isn't hard.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Expecting an A jfduque 05/14/2009	She is absolutely entrancing. Philosophy by its very nature makes people think about WHY they believe what they believe......a process that can be very confusing and thought provoking. Professor Dwyer combines just the right amount of intellect, wit, and humor to teach controversial topics effectively. She loves students who regularly voice their opinions and has no problem answering questions. REALLY good class from which you will learn a lot from.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/13/2009	While the class could be interesting, Dwyer's absolutely archaic grading policies take away from it. It could be partially because my T.A. was reluctant to offer any real help, taught in a complete and boring monotone, and seemed to dislike having to teach anything, but still. Dwyer IS an engaging teacher, but her grading policies (like if you have one late assignment=0 for class) take away from it. On the tests, points are taken off for the most random things, and once those points are off, there is no way to get them back. I will be getting a B in the class, even though I tried harder on this class than others where I am getting an A.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Expecting an A kweaving 05/04/2009	As an introductory class in moral philosophy, the class is definitely effective. It isn't the most intellectually challenging due to the course level, and as indicated by the imbecilic comment saying this is the worst class ever. The workload is fairly light, with eight one-page assignments throughout, two exams and two papers. Grades are distributed very fairly, and the lectures are engaging. A worthwhile class to take for those with half a mind for philosophy.
Susan Dwyer PHIL140 Anonymous 04/10/2009	I felt this class was the worst class ever. Not because of her necessarily, but the topic is the most useless information ever. As for Dwyer herself, she tests on the most random information from her slides. Very little grades so if you mess up on just one, then your screwed. End of the day I would not recommend this class or her. P.S I feel she gets off telling information that shocks the class. She once said "imagine yourself enjoying having sex with a 6 year old. have a good day."
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting an A gbunz 01/30/2009	i had an A in this course. Kerstein isn't bad, although a lot of people complained about him being monotonous. To pass hiss class, do the readings ahead of time. No need to read more than once, he'd explain in class and then you'd understand.I had a t.a who went over his lecture slides and so i was good. If you have a good t.a, you should not never miss the discussion class.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting a B Anonymous 01/27/2009	Doesn't seem to have much emotion, very monotonic. His tests and quizzes are easy enough and I got away with not reading many of the articles he gives us. Beware you never express you own views its just a study of these philosophers.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/10/2008	this course is annoying, the teacher is annoying, his monotone dry humor is annoying. the work is not hard but its annoying. you never discuss your own views, just the views of random philosophers .. hell curve if every1 does bad.. but hes just so annoying! not hard if u read, but then if you dont read, just go to discussion and youll be fine..
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting an A kthandler 12/05/2008	This is my easiest class this semester (and I'm a science major so you don't have to be a humanities person to do well). He explains things throughly and as long as you read the materials and listen to his lectures, you'll do well. The point of the class is to understand the arguments made in different pieces. You hardly ever have to come up with your own arguments, just regurgitate what other people said. Plus the topics are fairly interesting.
Samuel Kerstein PHIL140 Expecting a D Anonymous 11/05/2008	do not take this course, extremely hard. unless you like critical reading and abstract thoughts.
Christopher Morris PHIL140 Expecting an A gG 01/18/2008	Although the class can be dreadfully boring at times, Professor Morris knows what he's talking about and teaches well. He tries awfully hard to be funny, but considering that the class is about death and dying, most of his jokes don't shine through. Only two exams, one paper as grades. Disclaimer: exams are ALL written. If you don't enjoy writing/suck at it, don't take the class. If you do, enjoy Morris' antics :)

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
10/05/2024

GPA Killer, I took this class last spring, and it was much harder than needed! If you read a lot of these reviews, you notice grades in elms are much lower than final grades in Testudo. This is because exam averages are so low due to her multiple-choice exams sometimes having more than one correct answer. So what she does is improve everyone's grade in Testudo to counteract this. So far, it's the worst class I've taken at UMD, and it's my senior year, I learned nothing!

Lia Curtis Fine
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/08/2024

Lia is great! You get what you put in. It is not a super easy class, but that is because philosophy is tough. Honestly, I loved the class. Lia expects you to contribute a lot but IMO it means she treats you like an adult. She takes time to explain things to you, don't get me wrong, and the lectures are thorough, but you need to do the reading. In my opinion, that is a very fair agreement.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
07/02/2024

PLEASE AVOID THIS CLASS AT ALL COSTS. This class is absolutely convenient for killing one's GPA. Professor Liberto is a very nice lady, but her lecture slides are incredibly vague, and when she discusses them, she tends to ramble and I lost focus a lot of the time. Your grade for this class relies heavily on the multiple choice and short answer exams, which are EXTREMELY difficult because of the lack of information given to us on the lecture slides; I've overheard people discussing class averages on exams, and they were very low. Also, discussion sections do not feel like discussions at all. They were merely review sessions on the weekly discussion board posts on ELMS and there was not much time to review material from class. I would not recommend this class to anyone.

Lia Curtis Fine
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
06/04/2024

Quite literally the worst lecturer I've had at this university. I'm a stem major and this class had given me more stress then my chem and bio classes. The quizzes are full of mistakes and there's only 2 questions so getting 1 wrong will mess your grade up. Lia has no clue what she is doing and basically freestyles the lectures. The presentations are confusing and at times I want to fall asleep. If there was a 0 star, I would give her that, save yourself a mountain of pointless stress over a 3 credit gen ed and never take this class or any class taught by her.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
06/03/2024

Professor Liberto is very nice, but her lecture slides are not helpful at all. When she explains stuff, it seems like she rambles and I lost focus as a result. Also, the exams are very difficult and I heard that averages were low. Another bad thing about this class was discussion sections. They did not involve going over class material, but more of what was on the discussion posts on ELMS. Third, the grade you see on ELMS is not your actual grade, you have to wait until the end of the semester on Testudo to see your actual grade. For me, ELMS listed my grade as a 74% (a C), but Testudo has it listed as a B-. On the plus side, she does offer some extra credit for the multiple choice tests; on the last question of the multiple choice tests, you can write two of the question numbers you feel like you got wrong, but keep in mind that if you write down a question you feel like you got wrong but you actually got it correct, she will not award that extra credit. Overall, I feel like I did better than I thought in the class.

Peter Carruthers
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
05/22/2024

I took this course as a gened. It is a lot more like a psychology course than philosophy. Professor is a cool, chill guy with very interesting lectures and topics that are pretty engaging if you have any sort of minor level of interest in this subject. But, the grading and actual format of the class frustrated me as a student. The biggest thing was that there was an inverse curve on our final grades - made no sense. The three sets of essays (exam grades) that students write throughout the year are graded against each other, not solely on their own. So sometimes students that wrote A level essays didn't receive the grade they deserved. Also, there was very minimal leniancy on missing discussions - you can only miss one unexcused for the entire semester. Again, overall, cool dude, and definitely cool content in the course, but lacks some logic when it comes to grading - caused me some unnecessary stress and it felt like my grade was out of my control.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/16/2024

The class is structured so that there are 6 exams - 3 multiple choice and 3 short answer exams. Each are 15% of your grade (except in the end she will make your two best exams worth 20% and your two worst exams worth 10%). Its essentially 3 rounds of midterms where you take two exams (1 short answer and 1 MC). Discussions are 10%. So you have to do well on the exams to do well in the course. She curves the multiple choice exams pretty generously and she allows you to write about questions you were confused about or thought multiple answers could be right at the end of the MC exams. She also lets you take the MC exams remotely and online. Short answer exams are in person. There's no final - she uses the final exam time to give you a chance to redo any MC exams if you want. If you want to understand anything in this class - go to lecture. She posts slides but they slides don't have much information and are hard to understand, so go to lecture. There are readings you are supposed to do, and they are helpful if you do them, but I generally didn't read for this class because she covers the same info in lecture and the readings are hard to understand. If you miss lecture, I would do the readings and also maybe do some research about the topics so you actually understand them (I asked chatgpt to explain a lot of the concepts to me, and it was helpful most of the time but sometimes they were wrong). During lecture, she explains things pretty well but sometimes she has a tendency to ramble and that can be distracting or make it difficult to understand what's important from her lecture and whats not. I did the best on the last round of exams. For those exams I tried to study more than the other ones - I recommend rewriting your notes as a form of studying and trying to explain the concepts on your own and then cross referencing with your original notes. She provides some study resources for the MC exams - some practices questions she posts on ELMS, but she doesn't let you see the answers until the day before, so if you do the practice questions early you only have 1 day to evaluate what you know and don't know. In general, the course is easy but you definitely have to put in a good amount effort (more effort than i wanted to put for a gen ed). it's also hard to evaluate how youre doing in the course and what grade to expect in the course because theres no assignments and your grade is basically just based on exams. By the time the drop-add period was over, we had only completed the first round of exams (first MC and short answer) and had no other grades, so I thought I was going to end up with a B in the course, but was surprised I did well enough on the last exams and ended up with a 98. I think the later exams are easier than the first, but this could also just be because I put more effort and studied a bit more.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2024

Class was WAY harder than a 100 level philosophy class should be. She doesn’t want students to use critical thinking, but rather regurgitate the thought processes of old irrelevant philosophers. Lecture is somewhat interesting but the exams are awful. Don’t take!

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/12/2024

I have to take this class for my major, but if you don't have to... DON'T. Yeah, Liberto is a nice professor, but the lectures are boring and it's in your best interest to go if you want to do well. She posts class slides but they aren't helpful unless you are there listening to her explain them. The classwork is slight. Discussion board due every other week, and 3 midterms consisting of MC and short answer (third midterm counts as the final). Midterms are a little dumb in my opinion, especially multiple choice since I think the class is subjective, but she does do a lot of partial credit and does drop 5 percent off your lowest exam from your final score and bump up your highest 5 percent. If you don't do well on the exams though, your grade is kinda toast.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
05/08/2024

Fully based on lectures and multiple choice is so subjective that its actually really hard. I have studied so much but still the multiple choice is really hard in philosophy and sometimes I still don't understand how a specific answer is wrong. This being said FRQ are easy As.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
05/01/2024

Really nice lady, but her lecture slides are confusing and when she explains them, she seems to drone on and on to the point where I lost focus. My TA (Justin) is a really nice guy, but I'm not sure if going to discussion helped me with learning the material. Exams are very difficult.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
04/24/2024

Do not take this class. The professor and the TA are incompetent when it comes to returning grades. The material covered in class vaguely relates to the exam material and the class is based off exam grades mostly. They have a habit of never returning exams so you can see the grade which in my opinion is extremely annoying and doesn't help you learn what you did wrong. I may also be biased because my discussion class had to teach our TA about systemic racism, which should not be happening in a discussion section.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
04/12/2024

DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. The lecture slides aren't helpful at all and the grade for the class heavily relies on exam scores (which are not easy). The grading always comes back late and is never reflective of your real score because they change it so many times. The professor and TAs don't give you feedback for the written portion of the exams. Their technological incompetence is a headache. The discussions are so boring and do not help you further understand the material. I have never dreaded having to go to a class more than this one.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
04/09/2024

GPA KILLER !!! The averages for the exam test are around 60% so I think that tells you all you need to know!

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C
Anonymous
04/03/2024

This is the worst class I've taken at UMD. The lecture delivery is abysmal, with slides containing one sentence and the professor talking on for minutes. Test questions are not only incredibly difficult but also unnecessarily lengthy, making them nearly impossible to complete within the 50-minute timeframe. It's baffling how a 100-level class can have such low averages. As if that weren't enough, the discussions offer zero value—they merely regurgitate what's already on ELMS discussions. Overall, I would never recommend this class to anyone, especially Philosophy majors! My advice, take another professor, as I've heard they give study guides and have slides with much more information.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a B
Anonymous
03/31/2024

Do not take this class if you are looking for an easy gen ed. Her slides are horrible and her lectures are pretty confusing. The TAs in the discussions do not help with content comprehension at all. Basically, your whole grade is reliant on exam scores which are not easy. She tests on subjective content but grades it objectively. I really disliked this professor which is disappointing because I think the class could be interesting if it was taught by someone else.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
02/07/2024

I think she was great in this class. The readings were kind of hard to understand but she made it clear that you could do the readings after lecture to help you understand them. As long as you show up consistently and listen in discussion the exams aren't very hard. She also does a lot to boost grades. Some people thought her lectures were boring, and yea she does just talk mostly, but I think she makes it interesting since there is probably too much content to talk during lecture. Plus discussion sections can be super interesting.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
intiprada
01/25/2024

Professor Pan's passion for Philosophy as well as his genuine concern for student's following along and understanding were always evident in his lectures. He's not a super easy grader necessarily but he grades anonymously and I find that the grades accurately reflect the effort put into the assignments. By no means is he an intentionally hard grader, he just noticed and rewards thought and attention being put into assignments. Some of my classmates disliked the class because of the type of questions Pan asked (devil's advocate questions, often felt really tedious and redundant) however if you just try to participate and make an effort to answer his questions (even if the questions feel silly) the discussions move along and become more interesting (also participation is rewarded). Pan's a great professor, however I wouldn't recommend his class for people who have no interest in philosophy or are not willing to offer their opinions in class discussions.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/26/2023

While Professor Pan is helpful in answering surface-level questions, he could work on giving feedback, class structure and perhaps being more generous. Pan's feedback for essays was difficult to understand. Office hours were not helpful, as he often asked questions in response to your questions. His class was structured as a lecture about the assigned readings and the only assignments were essays and sometimes surprise reflections. The lack of points made the class stressful, as one bad grade tanked the total. I had an A the whole semester until one B on an essay sank me to a B+. Professor Pan was additionally not understanding of my situation and refused to round my 89 to a 90. I took the class to fulfill a gen-ed requirement, however, the whole process was almost more stressful than my major courses.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/25/2023

Shen is honestly a really great professor and has really sparked my interest in philosophy. His lectures can be somewhat complex, but if you are following along and actively engaged you can get a strong grasp of the topics and do well in the class. Grading wise, the final grade is distributed amongst a variety of assignments so doing poorly on one task will not be as devastating as some classes. There are in class reflections (done randomly throughout the semester in class), P-E-E's (done randomly throughout semester online before class, need to check canvas frequently before each lecture), 3 Essays (1st:10%, 2nd:15%, 3rd:20%), and a midterm and final (15% each). The essays are graded somewhat harsh but you can consistently get a B or higher if you put substantial effort into them. Midterm and Finals seem much more daunting then they are. It'll seem like theres way to much information to learn and that you dont have a solid grasp on any of the topics but once you get into the exams they become much more manageable and completable. Overall I really enjoyed Pan's teaching style and enjoyed the class being a smaller setting which allowed for much more open ended discussions during class. Highly recommend.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
edenw29
12/21/2023

Lectures were super boring and honestly teach you nothing but Liberto makes it easy for you to do well in her class. She curves the grades to favor exams that you performed well on and lessens the weight of exams that you did poorly on. You definitely have to attend lectures because her powerpoint slides make no sense by themselves, but as long as you attend lecture you should be fine. Overall pretty good but can't say I would be jumping at the chance to take this course again

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2023

Not a hard class and pretty fun. Readings are long and dense but there aren't many. Grading was messy this semester (for one test a couple students received packets that were missing several questions). Also, for some reason she changed my grade back to what it was before I did a retake?

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/11/2023

I actually enjoyed her class a lot. She's clearly very passionate about the material, and she always had a positive vibe throughout the course. The class has usually 1 or 2 readings per week, and sometimes they can be pretty dense. No homework assignments, 3 multiple choice exams, 2 short answer tests, no final exam. I found the class to be pretty manageable, and the professor was approachable- she even made our last multiple choice online because during the 2nd one there was a printing error that set some people back. If you don't attend lectures, her slides are pretty minimal so you'd definitely need notes from someone else.

Lia Curtis Fine
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
AnnieElliott
12/08/2023

Honestly loved Lia. She made content easier to understand and explained everything in thorough detail. One thing to note for people looking into taking this class is to pay attention to the readings because there is always a quiz for each paper reviewed in class. Each quiz is worth 2 points, so just getting 1 question wrong can bring down your grade significantly. She makes class enjoyable, and content easily understood so if you just pay attention and take notes you're guaranteed an A. Also, each module is super interesting so I 10/10 recommend it!

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/04/2023

Professor Pan was a really good professor, but I felt overwhelmed and confused by the way he presented his lectures. He used words that I didn't even know existed and graded pretty harshly. He is a really nice guy though.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/01/2023

Professor Pan was a great professor, but I felt overwhelmed by the teaching style that he presented his lectures with. He used words that I didn't even know existed, and was left most classes confused on what he was presenting. Overall he was a kind professor who will give extensions with a good excuse. If you are smart you'll most likely be fine.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/26/2023

Great professor TBH. -Chill, smart, interesting guy -Recorded lectures on Panopto -Easy exams if you put in an oz of effort -Clear/transparent with what his goal is for the course -Extra credit available I cannot rate a 5 because only a small subset of professors can reach such mastery.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/20/2023

I feel like the only people who complain about this class are the people who don’t go to lectures. Yeah, if you don’t want to do the bare minimum and just go to class then this won’t be an easy A, but Prof Liberto is extremely intelligent and explains difficult concepts well if you do go. There are 3 multiple choice exams, 2 written exams, and an optional final which was so nice. I had no Philosophy knowledge going into this class, and I still really enjoyed it. She also offered extra credit opportunities at the end of the semester.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/12/2023

This is an interesting and easy course. Professor Liberto is very interested in everything she lectures about, but try not to miss lectures because her powerpoint slides are undecipherable by themselves. There are not many assignments and the midterms are pretty easy if you get a grasp on the material. The final exam is optional which is nice.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
05/10/2023

Okay please note that all the bad reviews about Liberto and this class are coming from people who don't even attend lecture. Prof Liberto is extremely intelligent and explains difficult concepts well. She curves generously, and on the multiple choice exams there's literally space at the end for you to put questions where you thought there was more than one answer, and she will most likely give you those points back. I knew nothing about philosophy coming into this class, but Liberto and my TA (Lixing Miao) made it so easy and enjoyable. There are two writing exams, and three multiple choice exams and an optional final. Just attend lecture - everybody who attended did well in the class, and everybody who didn't are the ones complaining about the class.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/03/2023

This class is boring. It was meant to be an easy gen ed, but if you don't go to lecture, her slides won't make any sense. She puts the bare minimum on the slides so unless you're in lecture to understand the topic, you won't know what's going on. Her lecture style is odd - I can never manage to stay focused. Your grade will consist of 3 exams, 2 written exams, and an extra assignment in discussion that involves heavy participation. Save yourself the bore. Take a different class.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
04/07/2023

Fyfe is the best professor I have ever had. He is super engaging and loves to converse with students. While some reviews say that the class is challenging and he is an unfair grader, he is more than willing to support you and get the grade that best reflects your work ethic. He is super fun to talk to, chill, and funny in lectures. I would highly recommend him to those that are interested in taking a contemporary philosophy course.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
01/16/2023

fantastic teacher if you like the material in the class. Grading is weird, he often gives grades back late or just gives everyone A's on a test if he forgets to bring the papers in (which happens more than you would think is possible). Incredibly engaging and genuinely interested in the content. I can't speak for every class, but mine was always discussing the topics and unafraid to debate each other, it really was a great class and I would take it again if I could. As long as you don't have a problem with grades coming in slowly, then he's a great professor. (Side note: He's really understanding if you're sick. I was out for 2 weeks and he didn't penalize me for waiting to take an exam, and actually worked around my schedule). Homework is just reading a couple of articles a week. I highly recommend the class.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/24/2022

Absolutely love the way he taught lectures. Very interesting topics and an extremely accommodating teacher (just ask for extensions with a good reason and he'll grant them). Also a very fair grader, but beware that you DO have to write pretty good essays to do well. The tests are easy though.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/18/2022

Shen can guide a discussion like no other teacher. He ensures that students are comfortable during discussions, and he is really dedicated to teaching. The teacher is able to make even those that don't like philosophy to have an interest in it. There are three essays(500,1000,1500 words) and a final that consists of 3-5 short answer questions prior discussed in class. Highly recommend. Great Teacher.

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/16/2022

Super nice human, you don't really actually have to do the readings just go to class and pay attention and you'll pick up enough to do well on the papers and mid-term and final. He's a pretty easy grader and provides really good feedback. Overall this is a guy who really cares about his students and really likes his job.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/08/2022

has a weird obsession with having a low average? Great guy, not so great class. doesn't feel like a 100 level course. very smart and engaging, just weird grading and severity for the level

Charles Barclay
PHIL140

Anonymous
12/07/2022

Dr. Barclay listened and cared about what each student had to say during lectures. He is even funny sometimes too. There was study guides for every exam and there wasn't a lot of assignments for the class either. However, Dr. Barclay is a very nice professor and makes sure you understand the material!

Shen Pan
PHIL140

Expecting an A
krileyy
12/07/2022

Awesome guy and professor I had him for PHIL 140. The required reading could be difficult but he was really good at explaining them throughly during class and inciting discussion to help better understand. Course had about 5 discussion notes throughout the semester which consisted of summarizes a text you read so that others could understand. Three papers which were not too long or difficult. One thing, attendance is not graded but I do recommend going or you will be lost when it comes to midterm, final, and papers. Midterm was only and not difficult and for final he gave us all the questions before hand that he would be pulling from so you can be fully prepared going into the exam. I really just liked him personally because he took the time to learn everyones name and while class could be boring at times, he knew how to keep it interesting

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
10/13/2022

Best class ever! I'm not even interested in philosophy, but he made the course very interesting and engaging. I don't know why he has a few negative reviews, he knows what he is talking about and his class is very interesting.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting a C
Anonymous
07/01/2022

He’s a good guy, but this class is a gen ed and it did not feel that way. Look I’ll just say don’t take the class and if you do don’t say I did not warn you

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
05/16/2022

Andrew Fyfe is the worst professor I have ever had when it comes to grading. He treats this gen ed as if everyone is planning on being a philosopher. I had an A before the final but he made it difficult on purpose so people would fail, and it dropped me to a 82. He also teaches his personal philosophies rather than just general philosophy, which is so biased.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
05/16/2022

The class was way too hard for a GEN-ed look, the guy is cool, but the amount of time this took out of the week was not what a 100-level GEN-ed should take. He treated it as if he was teaching a 300-level class, and that's why I gave it one star. I had an A+ until that last exam, where the average was a 66, which I got to, but he's not curving it. I don't know why he gave us a final that was hard to make the class average go down; it's just a bit weird to me as this is simply a gen-ed, But if you are ok with all of that work and you love PHIL then go ahead and take it. Please don't say I did not warn you tho.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
05/15/2022

He's a great professor, pretty lenient with due dates. But this course was god awful. The exams were open notes but way too difficult, the notes didn't help at all. Also his lecture slides have barely any information on it so copying down the slides don't do much. The papers weren't too bad but the TAs grade too harsh. If you don't have a basic understanding of philosophy I wouldn't recommend taking this class. But he's a good professor.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/11/2022

Enlightening class, great professor 10/10 would recommend. Fyfe is really passionate about philosophy and genuinely cares about his students' concerns. Lenient with due dates. Course material can be difficult but with some time and effort and A is attainable. Course consists of 3 exams and 2 papers.

Aida Roige Mas
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
01/19/2022

Many people would probably say that the reading in this class is too much but the class is pretty easy and as long as you put in good effort you can come out with a good grade. Make sure you do the readings because even though she drops the bottom 4 that won't make up for bad grades on every quiz, and they only have 4 questions each. As long as you look at the review slides and study properly the tests are fair, and she is happy to provide feedback on the final paper if you want to get a good grade. Definitely a gen ed worth taking if you're willing to put in a completely reasonable amount of work for your grade.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/22/2021

Engaging lectures, however, the tests were multiple choice and very confusing. She does employ a curve for the class.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2021

Easy A, but not what I was expecting as a Philosophy major. I wanted to be challenged a bit more, but there were barely any discussions and the weight of the class was on the midterm and final exam. Easy A however and Liberto explained things very well during review sessions. The TA I had however never showed up to class and told us the first day he didn't even like Philosophy which was odd.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
12/15/2021

Only 4 discussion posts, a midterm, and a final. Even if you get full points for all the discussion posts, that mid-term will affect your grade HEAVILY. Discussion isn't really a discussion, basically, the TA is just reviewing the lectures.

Aida Roige Mas
PHIL140

Anonymous
12/13/2021

Professor Roige is a good professor, not amazing, but a very kind person. A lot of reading before every class and in class reading quizzes out of four points. She drops your four worst reading quizzes at the end of the semester but that does not mean you should not read. There are multiple extra credit opportunities that will help out your grade on the reading quizzes. One big paper that is due at the end of the semester with two separate drafts due throughout the semester. Very passable class if you read, pay attention, and put in effort.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Anonymous
12/03/2021

Really great professor and a great person overall; he does have some wild life stories though. He has really interesting lectures and you can tell that he is very passionate about Philosophy. There is not too much reading to do for this class -about 3 short articles per week-, there were only two papers and three exams in total. The exams cover a lot of material but they are not too difficult. Grades papers very thoroughly. Overall would highly recommend this class

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a W
Anonymous
11/19/2021

don't take this class if you care about your GPA

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
04/22/2021

Really great guy and interesting course material. Great class to take in-person too, lots of good discussions. The essay's were graded a bit harshly, and the exams were quite challenging and encompassed a lot of material, but with a decent time commitment you can definitely get a good grade. Overall great professor who is passionate about what he teaches, and I recommend the class.

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a P
Anonymous
01/23/2021

Her teaching is ok its the structure of the class I had a problem with. There was a 50pt quiz, an 100pt exam, an essay, and a final. This was all the points and the exams were nearly impossible given the amount of content that was expected of us to know. I would not recommend this class if you're just looking for an elective

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/20/2020

Because of COVID, the class was asynchronous and I really only interacted with her once before the final. However, her recorded lectures were clear and helpful, and she obviously cares about what she is teaching. The class page on canvas is organized in a way that makes reviewing for tests easy and efficient, and Prof. Liberto is very helpful in answering questions about the material and the content of the class. The one drawback is that there are not a lot of assignments, and the exams are not that easy. She curves them generously, but half of our grade came from the final (which is multiple choice) and the essay, so if you are looking for more security in which class you take, maybe pick a different one.

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Anonymous
11/19/2020

I think he's a great guy, but at least online, he's kinda going insane. The class is schedule to be like 50 mins, twice a week I think. But Fyfe hit the point of uploading 1-2 hour lecture vids (multiple of these), and even just made us watch the Harvard lectures from 11 years ago. The exams were somewhat tricky, not as easy as you'd think for a PHIL class. There were only two papers, which weren't bad. He gave a lot of time and is understanding.

Daniel Blair
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/29/2020

I think his way of teaching is the definition of "fair" (go figure for an ethics professor lol). What everyone else says on here about his course is true. His lectures are boring and it can be sometimes difficult what is happening in the big picture but overall he is a good professor. He comes off as a great guy so it's easy to approach him and he is willing to look over tests for a second time. My experience was overall positive but it was stressful at times.

Aylon Manor
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2019

This class did discuss some interesting subject matter, but I'll admit that the lectures were pretty boring. The class consisted of the professor going through a powerpoint detailing the main points of one of the philosophical readings we were assigned. I tried to go to class consistently, but sometimes slept through since it was a 9 AM and even when I did go to lecture, I occasionally fell asleep during his teaching. The part of this class I really enjoyed were the discussion sections. My TA Samuel Warren did a very good job of leading discussion and encouraging students to respond to each others viewpoints. Assignment wise, we had to summarize and analyze three readings, and submit a thesis paper in the last few weeks of class. We also had discussion questions and comments due at every discussion question. Overall, this class was not very hard, but if you have trouble making yourself go to class, this might not be the place for you.

Daniel Blair
PHIL140

Anonymous
12/11/2019

Dan Blair will be your favorite. Show up, take notes, study come the exams, you'll get an easy A. Half the time he either gives you exam questions or spells out what you need to know in review sheets. He's also funny and willing to joke about himself. Anyone who dislikes Dan Blair probably couldn't handle having to put in an ounce of effort.

Kalewold Kalewold
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/24/2019

Great lecturer and interesting yet straightforward material. He has a quiet voice but got a mic midway through the semester and I could hear him just fine after that. Online elms quizzes can be challenging at times but that's probably because I didn't read the articles before I took them (He also drops the 2 lowest quiz grades). Essays were graded pretty fairly and the midterm and final exams were easy.

Daniel Blair
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/06/2019

Dan Blair is the boy, if you get the chance to take him you have to, he makes class very enjoyable and his assignments are fairly easy

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
12/03/2018

If I could give her zero stars I would

Hallie Liberto
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/30/2018

Professor Liberty is one of the best lecturers I’ve ever had in college. She makes complex philosophical issues and ideas clear and easy to grasp. She’s also just a pleasant person in general, and gives fair exams. I highly recommend going to discussion each week because it’s a solid review of lecture material. Overall, awesome and engaging class that’s not hard to get an A in if you go to class and pay attention

Andrew Fyfe
PHIL140

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
11/24/2018

One of my favorite TA’s ever. His enthusiasm and way of teaching is what got me interested in Philosophy again and I am not changing my major to that. Thank you Fyfe.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
04/22/2015

Great professor and a very interesting class. The course was very easy in my opinion. There was a lot of reading, and I would recommend doing it because it is very interesting. However, if you're not absolutely set on an A, you can definitely get a B without reading anything. Professor Kerstein is very insightful about the subject matter. I wish the course fostered more discussion and asked more for our opinions, but it is too large to do that in lecture and my TA kinda sucked. Overall, I would recommend this course and professor. It's a great way to fulfill a gen ed requirement!

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/01/2014

Great course to take for an easy A. This guy is very organized and knows what he's talking about. I thought his lectures were pretty interesting and I didn't mind going at 8:30AM. My TA sucked which kinda made going to discussions miserably boring but that is only a minor point. Go to lectures, take notes, and this will be a breeze

Peter Carruthers
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/08/2012

Professor Carruthers is seriously the best. He puts all of his slides online but they can be a little confusing if you don't go to class, plus he's just an awesome lecturer. He's British, which is awesome, and he explains things really clearly. There are 3 debates that you have to do in addition to a 7 page (2000 word) paper. The final is 40% of your grade, but he gives you the questions beforehand. It's not that hard of a class but it is REALLY interesting and I always left with something to think about. Also, I got a lot better at arguing. I would definitely, DEFINITELY recommend this class

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/01/2012

I thought this class would be interesting, but Kerstein does a good job of making it dry. It's an easy A, but it could be so much more interesting. He definitely does not care if you do well - he openly states that he wants to trick you and find obscure ways to take off points. He's a pretty arrogant guy and your typical pretentious philosopher, but it is an easy A if you're looking to fulfill a CORE. Discussion isn't necessary unless you need to hand in a paper, and as long as you read the articles and look at his outlines on ELMS, you should be able to do well on the exams without going to every single lecture.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/12/2011

Professor Dwyer was a fantastic teacher. I learned a lot from her and she's very easy to follow. She's also always available for help and encourages students to seek it out. However, Philosophy 140 was the worst course I've taken at Maryland. I signed up for it expecting it to be really enjoyable, but my TA completely ruined it. He taught in an awful, monotone voice and he seemed to hate teaching entirely. I e-mailed him for help several times and I rarely got an e-mail back. For the amount of work I put into this class, I really believe I should have gotten a better grade. This is the easiest class I'm in the semester and it's the class I have the lowest grade in. If you like philosophy, this is a great class. However, I'd recommend you take a different class, especially to fill a CORE. Or, if you're determined to take it, make sure you sign up for a section with a different TA. My experience was awful.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Expecting an A
Anonymous
06/09/2011

Professor Dwyer is amazing. She is always available for help whether it be online or at her office hours (online mostly). Make no mistake she never gives you the answers but she helps you find them in very creative and helpful ways to understand the source material. Be aware though this class is not a joke and should be taken seriously. I got an 85 in the class which is ok because she generously curves.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Anonymous
04/28/2011

Professor Dwyer is a kind, helpful instructor. Go to office hours if you need help - she loves interacting with students and will read over your papers and give tons of suggestions. My only issue with this class was the final paper, which during Spring '11 was on abortion. Considering most people, if not everyone, in the class had never taken a philosophy course before, this was an extremely difficult subject to write a first phil paper on.

Elizabeth Picciuto
PHIL140

Anonymous
05/19/2010

Very good professor! Elizabeth (she prefers to be called that instead of Professor Picciuto) is a very good lecturer. Most classes are very boring when the professor mumbles and just talks. She made the class interesting by being engaging and knowing the material very well. She never really shared her true feelings to keep the class neutral which I liked. Overall, the class was 2 essays, 6 pop-quizzes, participation and the final. She let the class vote on whether we had easier pop-quizzes or harder announced quizzes. My class voted for easier pop-quizzes. The pop- quizzes were basically 5 or 6 true/false questions that were usually common-sense and you can a 4/5 or 5/6 without reading but reading is definitely encouraged since there's always a few tricky ones in there. The essays aren't too terrible. Understand the directions and make sure your positions are firm and well-explained. If that happens, an A is doable. For the final, she let us vote on an easier closed-note final or a harder open note final. We voted open-note and what made it harder was instead of defining 3 or 4 out of 12 for a few sections we'd have to define 10 out of 12 and some things even if you had notes on it, were hard to explain or understand. Overall, class not too difficult and teacher very engaging. I recommend it.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Anonymous
10/11/2009

Easy A if you go to almost every class and if you are there for all the pop quizzes (which are extremely easy if you use common sense even if you have not done the readings). Discussion takes attendance so if you go it helps your grade as well.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/23/2009

There are pop quizzes but he drops 2 out of 6. Even if you go to class without doing the reading, you can probably get some right because they are T/F. There are two short papers that do not involve much effort. There are two fairly easy exams and the final is just as easy. You should do the reading but if you don't, as long as you read through his notes thoroughly, you should be fine for the exams. Discussions are pretty pointless but you should still go. If I put more effort into this class, I could have easily gotten an A and I regret. But I would definitely recommend this class. It really isn't hard.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Expecting an A
jfduque
05/14/2009

She is absolutely entrancing. Philosophy by its very nature makes people think about WHY they believe what they believe......a process that can be very confusing and thought provoking. Professor Dwyer combines just the right amount of intellect, wit, and humor to teach controversial topics effectively. She loves students who regularly voice their opinions and has no problem answering questions. REALLY good class from which you will learn a lot from.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/13/2009

While the class could be interesting, Dwyer's absolutely archaic grading policies take away from it. It could be partially because my T.A. was reluctant to offer any real help, taught in a complete and boring monotone, and seemed to dislike having to teach anything, but still. Dwyer IS an engaging teacher, but her grading policies (like if you have one late assignment=0 for class) take away from it. On the tests, points are taken off for the most random things, and once those points are off, there is no way to get them back. I will be getting a B in the class, even though I tried harder on this class than others where I am getting an A.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Expecting an A
kweaving
05/04/2009

As an introductory class in moral philosophy, the class is definitely effective. It isn't the most intellectually challenging due to the course level, and as indicated by the imbecilic comment saying this is the worst class ever. The workload is fairly light, with eight one-page assignments throughout, two exams and two papers. Grades are distributed very fairly, and the lectures are engaging. A worthwhile class to take for those with half a mind for philosophy.

Susan Dwyer
PHIL140

Anonymous
04/10/2009

I felt this class was the worst class ever. Not because of her necessarily, but the topic is the most useless information ever. As for Dwyer herself, she tests on the most random information from her slides. Very little grades so if you mess up on just one, then your screwed. End of the day I would not recommend this class or her. P.S I feel she gets off telling information that shocks the class. She once said "imagine yourself enjoying having sex with a 6 year old. have a good day."

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting an A
gbunz
01/30/2009

i had an A in this course. Kerstein isn't bad, although a lot of people complained about him being monotonous. To pass hiss class, do the readings ahead of time. No need to read more than once, he'd explain in class and then you'd understand.I had a t.a who went over his lecture slides and so i was good. If you have a good t.a, you should not never miss the discussion class.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting a B
Anonymous
01/27/2009

Doesn't seem to have much emotion, very monotonic. His tests and quizzes are easy enough and I got away with not reading many of the articles he gives us. Beware you never express you own views its just a study of these philosophers.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/10/2008

this course is annoying, the teacher is annoying, his monotone dry humor is annoying. the work is not hard but its annoying. you never discuss your own views, just the views of random philosophers .. hell curve if every1 does bad.. but hes just so annoying! not hard if u read, but then if you dont read, just go to discussion and youll be fine..

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting an A
kthandler
12/05/2008

This is my easiest class this semester (and I'm a science major so you don't have to be a humanities person to do well). He explains things throughly and as long as you read the materials and listen to his lectures, you'll do well. The point of the class is to understand the arguments made in different pieces. You hardly ever have to come up with your own arguments, just regurgitate what other people said. Plus the topics are fairly interesting.

Samuel Kerstein
PHIL140

Expecting a D
Anonymous
11/05/2008

do not take this course, extremely hard. unless you like critical reading and abstract thoughts.

Christopher Morris
PHIL140

Expecting an A
gG
01/18/2008

Although the class can be dreadfully boring at times, Professor Morris knows what he's talking about and teaches well. He tries awfully hard to be funny, but considering that the class is about death and dying, most of his jokes don't shine through. Only two exams, one paper as grades. Disclaimer: exams are ALL written. If you don't enjoy writing/suck at it, don't take the class. If you do, enjoy Morris' antics :)

Reviews for PHIL140