PHIL 156
Voula Tsouna
43 reviews

PHIL156 . 2 Years Ago

Second time taking a class by this professor and it's always engaging and interesting. There are a lot of readings but I mostly attended lecture instead of reading everything.

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PHIL156 . 3 Years Ago

I'm an alumnus of UCSB and Voula Tsouna is hands down the most inspirational and brilliant professor I've ever had. You will not succeed if you don't read. She will not be happy if you ask a question whose answer is obvious from the reading. Come to every class prepared to ask questions and raise objections, and you'll be duly rewarded.2 classes

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PHIL156 . 4 Years Ago

Tsouna teaches the tougher subjects of philosophy, but that doesn't make her a hard prof. She is an Athens native, and despite the thick accent, she teaches with passion and is the leading expert in her field, so its definitely worth taking a class with her. If you go to office hours she is more than helpful and only wants to see you do well.

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PHIL156 . 15 Years Ago

nice lady, and an easy class. however, really bad teaching skills. needs to take notes from other phil professors. does not lay out args clearly. does not use board much. just sits around and talks the whole class. very unclear in general. i got an A btw, but im being honest. not a good teacher.

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PHIL156 . 19 Years Ago

nice person but sometimes the lectures get really confusing since the way she talks is a little different that what u might be used to.

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PHIL152 . 3 Years Ago

Professor Tsouna is brilliant. She is competent (not only in Greek philosophy, but also history and culture), accessible, and accommodating. The content was philosophically rigorous, so I recommend attending lecture. Also, there was a good amount of reading, which one may want to tackle strategically.

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PHIL20A . 4 Years Ago

Tsouna is a incredibly knowledgeable of her field and holds students to a high standard because of that. However, she recognizes the difficulty of her class and offers a lot of grade bumps, too. The graded assignments are really just some essays and a final, so make sure you start those in advance and you're fine.

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PHIL120 . 4 Years Ago

This professor is insanely interesting and she is why I switched from a history major to a philosophy major. Really interesting lectures. Sit at the front to be sure you can hear and go to her office hours. She only teaches in the fall I think so get a class first quarter! I heavily recommend this class for anyone if reading isn't a chore.

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PHIL152 . 4 Years Ago

Great professor for an upper div. class. She assigns a lot of primary source reading which can be overwhelming and dense, but lectures help break it down. Her lectures are very interesting and well done and I ended up enjoying the subject more than I thought! 10 ish prompts, choose 1 for paper, and 6 prompts choose 2 essay questions for final.

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PHIL152 . 6 Years Ago

Professor Tsouna is so sweet and kind to her students (if you read and know whats going on) if not she can be dismissive and seem cold. Lectures can be circular so you need to ask questions.

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PHIL20A . 6 Years Ago

Very passionate about philosophy and has lectures well ordered. she is engaging and allows people to ask question in class despite the large size of the class. The papers were tough, but the grades really depended on the TA. The average on the first paper was a C+ and the second a C-. I love philosophy so I've done well so far, but Voula helped.

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PHIL20A . 7 Years Ago

Tsouna was a nice lady and meant well, but it just didn't work out. Lectures always seem disorganized, dry, and it was almost impossible to take notes because she'd just talk in circles. You can find all the textbooks online for free, and the final is open book. I didn't go to lecture or read at all in the second half of the course and got an A-.

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PHIL20A . 8 Years Ago

She made the coursework very interesting but she is a very slow talker (that can be a good thing and a bad thing, I guess). I learned a lot more in section because we broke down the larger concepts she goes through in class.

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20A . 8 Years Ago

Two major essays regarding themes and ideas from readings, so don't forget to read. She's very sweet but can sometimes have hard-to-read handwriting. Don't be scared to ask questions, she's very nice.

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PHIL20A . 9 Years Ago

The class is pretty confusing and even the TA's don't know what is going on at times. Tsouna's accent is thick and takes a while to get used to and she just talks in circles sometimes. It's not a ridiculously hard class, but is not a great one nonetheless. If you want a semi-easy class this one is, but I don't really recommend it.

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PHIL20A . 9 Years Ago

You can pass without going to lecture and just reading the book. Your grade is based off of two essays and a final so you are at the mercy of your TA. Only go to section if you have a good TA otherwise you can do everything on your own. Easy class but it is so boring and not very interactive.

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PHIL153 . 10 Years Ago

She is perfect for Upper Division Phil class. She is engaging, interested in what you have to say, and is willing to explain things in different ways should you get confused. Her accent is somewhat strong but you’ll get used to it. Go to her office hours, she will like you more...

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PHIL20A . 10 Years Ago

Grade is entirely based on three essays, so you're at the mercy of your TA as to what you'll end up with in the class. I found the material interesting, and most of the lectures weren't necessary.

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PHIL20A . 10 Years Ago

Really easy class. Not the most entertaining, but you don't need to read or to attend lecture really. You can get a good grade just by going to section. Even the TA's have no idea what is going on so they grade pretty easily. She has an accent but she is still easier to understand than most.

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PHIL20 . 10 Years Ago

This is a terrible professor, super thick accent and very confusing arguments. She is not clear in what she is talking about. Your grade is based on essays.

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PHIL20A . 11 Years Ago

The class was relatively easy (got an A-) but lectures are unbelievably boring. She is hard to understand with her accent and doesn't bother to get you interested in the subject. Don't bother going to lecture, just do the readings and use your TA.

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PHIL20A . 11 Years Ago

Genuinely ensthusiastic about the topic, seems to have been teaching it for a long time. Grades are based on essays, which boil down to only a few topics for the whole quarter, so most of the reading is unnecessary. Section meetings are very useful for clearing up confusion.

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PHIL20A . 12 Years Ago

She was alright. reading is unnecessary, just go to every lecture& section. She talks in circles & I'd type what she'd say verbatim because it was so confusing, then find she said the same thing 4 times after reviewing. Nail in the coffin was my TA: Nat Tabris. Useless & boring. No lesson plan. Get Janessa or David. Form Study Groups for final.

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PHIL20A . 12 Years Ago

Ugh...not an engaging class at all. The subject matter seems interesting, but she drones on day after day; you have very few assignments...thus a boring class. To her credit, she clearly tries her best in promoting understanding, for example, by using metaphors. She's very nice, too. However, I wish she would make her lectures more exciting.

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