PHIL 1740

Professor Stangl is awesome her lecture is very informative and interesting so it’s easy to pay attention, although you really do not need to pay that much attention to do well. I am really only writing this review and giving this class a bad grade to warn everyone to not sign up for TA Gabis discussion. He is by far the worst TA I have ever had here at UVA. This class was originally pretty interesting and I enjoyed going to it but after the first few grades came out I hated it. Gabi is an absurdly hard grader and I do not know anyone who has gotten a higher grade than a B+ on one of his assignments. Not only that but his discussion section each week was chaotic and I got nothing out of it. You are more likely to do better in this class not going to discussion then going at all. Gabi gave such harsh grades, the lowest I’ve ever received at this university, and then would give little to no feedback. He also never responds to emails so good luck getting in touch with him if you need clarification on anything. I’m pretty bummed as this was my first philosophy class at UVA, a subject I used to enjoy, and now I do not plan on ever taking one again.

I do recommend this course but avoid TA Gabi at all costs for any course.

This course was relatively interesting and easy. There wasn't too much reading for a philosophy class (although some of it is dense) and you could definitely get away with skimming it for the final. I think literally 90% of the class didn't ever do the readings and did fine because Professor Stangl will go over the main arguments in lecture. She also posts her slides to Collab which have the arguments laid out, so a lot of people didn't go to lecture either. Lecture wasn't the most riveting, but Professor Stangl was clearly very knowledgeable about bioethics and legal issues in general. As someone who isn't majoring in philosophy or is pre-med, I still found the course material to be very interesting. The workload wasn't overwhelming either: there are three papers that are worth 65% of your grade. The first was only 500 words and the second and third were 1,200-1,500 words. I had Sam as a TA and didn't think he was a tough grader. The only other grades are discussion section (10%) and the final (25%). Professor Stangl released 11 possible essay prompts about a week before the exam, of which four would appear on the final. You could pick three out of the four to answer. The final exam will not be difficult as long as you prepare a few days in advance - I mostly used my lecture notes to reconstruct the main arguments of the readings and added some supplemental details from my own notes and did well.

Prof Stangl & her lectures were pretty interesting (when I went. which was not often). This class seemed like it would be an easy A, but the TAs graded papers harshly and would not help with your drafts. The content itself was for the most part interesting, and while I initially hated discussions, I do feel like they helped me a lot with getting used to philosophical thinking, and now I feel like I could make stronger arguments on certain topics that we studied in class. It felt a bit pointless going to class, but now that I'm trying to prepare for the final, I am very much wishing i both went to class and took notes during the discussion-- definitely do that, and work with your TA as much as possible for the papers (I wish someone had told me that when the semester started).

If you're looking for an easy, pretty interesting philosophy course then this is a great one! Stangl is very sweet and knowledgable about the topic. She assigns readings before each lecture but just reiterates them in the lecture so there is no need to read and attend class, just pick one. The class was all essay based, 3 short papers (1 600 and 2 1000 word essays), and the final was 3 500 word responses. Stangl and the TAs give a lot of suggestions for the paper and as long as you write what they're looking for it's not hard. I didn't like my TA, he reiterated the lecture and expected us to have all of the readings printed out from the week when we are given them in pdf form because he doesn't like computers out in class. As the semester went on he did more small group discussion activities which were kind of a waste of time. It's an interesting class but all the matters is discussion attendance, the papers, and the final so it makes it hard to care about each individual reading or topic. The main topics discussed were abortion, physician assisted suicide, and views on death. Not much memorizing or studying.

Great course that isn't very difficult. Didn't really do readings and had two lectures and a discussion a week. 3 total papers and a final that were <1000 words each. Really interesting topics and Stangl does a great job of mentioning all arguments.

Pretty boring class. Didn't have to pay attention much but could still get and A/A-. Could've been interesting considering the topic but Stangl would stay on one slide the whole lecture and seem to ramble on with little structure. She also showed up late all the time. Discussion was awful and a waste of time because the TA had never been a TA before and didn't know how to do it. Not very hard but not very interesting either.

Professor Stangl is an amazing lecturer! She is super funny and opinionated but she is very intelligent. She seems to know much about other things other than philosophy like Classics and medicine. Before taking this class, I used to think I didn't like philosophy but she makes the class and lectures very entertaining. She has all of the readings on Collab, so you don't have to buy any textbooks! Although she assigns a reading for every class, they are usually less than 20 pages total, so it is very doable. I highly recommend reading them. You don't have to understand everything in these papers because she usually summarizes it during lectures. In the busier times, I just didn't do the readings and I've still been able to keep up in class, especially since she summarizes everyone in class. So the readings are important but they aren't paramount for your grade. As for assignments, there are two turn-in papers throughout the semester with two in-class essays (midterm and final). If you have an easy TA, the grading shouldn't be too hard. I like Nazim Adakli - his discussions can be very boring at times, but he grades easy so just show up to discussion.

Overall, I highly recommend this class. The topics were incredibly eye-opening and interesting. I feel like a much more knowledged person coming out from lecture everytime. The workload isn't too bad. You can survive without doing the readings. I honestly would want to take another Stangl class next semester because she is one of the best lecturers I've had so far.

I'm writing this review in class today. You literally never have to pay attention, all she does in lecture is ramble and get off topic. If you want to have a class to use to do other things in, like online shop or plan your study abroad plans, I highly recommend. However, my TA is literally the weirdest, most incompetent person I have ever met and my discussion is filled with extremely opinionated people who attack you if you disagree with him. I like Professor Stangl but would not take this class again.

I never did the readings for the class but just went to all lectures and turned in outlines for my TA to read for the papers so I could get feedback and got a B+ in the class. The actual material was interesting but the way she presented it was not. If you work hard you'll get a good grade, and she gives all her essay prompts for the midterms a week ahead of time so that was super helpful. Not my favorite class, but did not require much work for a passing grade.

Professor Stangl's an engaging professor, and she always has interesting things to say. Would recommend going to her office hours to get to know her, as well as for help on tests and papers. Good class, learned a lot.

Overall, I would suggest this class if you want an interesting, thought provoking, easy class on the side. There isn't a lot of work, and much of the reading is then covered in class. Professor Stangl is incapable of lecturing without veering off on a tangent, however her tangents are still relevant, and while bubbly, she's an engaging lecturer. Expect to not stay on schedule however.

Ty was an awesome TA. If you can get him, he grades fair and he is super nice. Class was very enjoyable and discussion was probably the best part.

Wouldn't recommend it... 3 papers and 2 exams, boring lectures and while the material sounds interesting, the readings are long and boring.

Great class! I loved it. Stangl is an exciting professor and the topics covered in class are interesting. All slides are put online. 3 papers, a midterm and a final. Can do fine without doing all of the readings. Def take this class!

Class was interesting and not difficult. Brannon was a fantastic TA and would make sure you get him if you are going to take the class, he made the material much more clear and was an awesome and funny TA

Interesting topics. Lecture is alright - nothing special. TA will definitely decide your grade.

This class is very boring. Stangl sputters and stutters as if she has never presented anything in her life. TAs control your grade completely.

The lecture is superrrrrrrrrrr BORING!!! If you do the reading there is no point in going to class, seriously. She is a horrible lecturer. 3 papers which she gives you the topics for and are fairly easy. The midterm and final are like reading quizzes

sweet class

A lot more reading than needed. Only take if required or if you like PHIL. Otherwise find some other class to fulfill your humanities requirement.

Stangl is enjoyable; humor breaks the lectures up occastionally. Classes taught with powerpoints. There can be a lot of weekly reading.

I really enjoyed this class. It gives lots of insight into different, sometimes controversial issues. The professor is young and keeps hte class interesting for the students. The reading is easy, and there are only three papers, a midterm, and a final. I would definitely recommend this class.