So I'll likely be teaching an undergraduate class on Realism vs. Anti-Realism in the Philosophy of Science next fall. I figured I'd fish for some suggestions on accessible and engaging literature in the area (since I don't doubt that I'm ignorant of many great articles and since my own interests are relatively technical and so some of my favorite papers wouldn't be appropriate). Articles would likely be best, unless there is some exceptionally well written book on the matter that people think would be a good textbook (but even then I'd be hesitant; I like to save my students money by making texts freely available online, and I like to do so without breaking too many copyright laws).
What counts as accessible?
- No requirement of a sophisticated knowledge of science--- nothing beyond what you'd learn in high school. Obviously, examples can be discussed that students might not be familiar with, but I'd like something that is relatively self-contained.
- No requirement of more than an intro class worth of logic. It can go slightly beyond that since I can fill the gaps, but I'd take it that this would rule out things like Putnam's Model Theoretic Argument (against metaphysical realism, strictly speaking, but applicable in a more foundational way to scientific realism).
- Relatively clearly written with a clearly identifiable thesis/argument.
Any suggestions along these lines?