Syllabus: Philosophy 1003

Ethics & Society

University of Minnesota Duluth

Instructor: Dr. Eve A. Browning

307 ABAH ebrownin@d.umn.edu

Course Description:

Ethics is the study of good and bad, right and wrong, as it applies to intentional human behavior. We live in a world that is saturated with ethical decisions, and we make them constantly all day long. Mostly these decisions happen without reflection, through habits and preferences we have developed in the course of our lives. If we stopped to reflect on our choices, would we be able to defend each one of them as “the right thing to do”? What does it mean to describe an action in this way, as right or wrong, good or bad? What criteria do we use in such descriptions? Are there some criteria that are themselves better than others?

When we map our choices onto a world populated with other human beings, and think about larger or social patterns of behavior, the plot thickens. Now we have the concept of a social ethic, the ethics of a society or group. Both individual and social ethics will be of central importance for this course.

The goals of this course are several: (1) To become acquainted with the major ethical theories which have been offered by philosophers down through the ages; (2) To consider these theories critically and explore what it would mean to live by their recommendations; (3) To consider the most important social ethical issues of our day in light of various ethical theories; and (4) To develop and refine a reflective ethical theory of one’s own.

Text: Judith A. Boss, Ethics for Life.

Course Requirements:

1. Attendance and preparedness. These will be evaluated via in-class writing assignments, debates, quizzes, and discussions. 25% of course grade
2. Four exams will be given: three in-term/in-class and one (final) take-home exam. 50% of course grade
3. Position paper: Each student will write a position paper on a major ethical issue of our time. 25% of course grade

Reading Schedule:

Week 1 Introduction. What is ethics? Boss, Chapter 1.

Week 2 Moral Reasoning. Boss, chapter 2.

Week 3 Moral Judgments. No new reading; Exam Friday of this week.

Week 4 Subjectivism. Boss, chapter 3.

Week 5 Relativism. Boss, chapter 4.

Week 6 Film; no new reading. Exam Friday of this week.

Week 7 Morality and Religion. Boss, chapter 5.

Week 8 Stages of Moral Development. Boss, chapter 6.

Week 9 Ethical Egoism. Boss, chapter 7.

Week 10 Film; no new reading. Exam Friday of this week.

Week 11 Rough drafts of papers due. Utilitarianism, Boss chapter 8.

Week 12 Ethics of Duty. Boss, chapter 9.

Week 13 Rights Ethics. Boss, chapter 10. Revised papers due.

Week 14 Virtue Ethics. Boss, chapter 11.

Week 15 Review and Overview. No new reading. Take-home final exam distributed Friday of this week.

Grade Base:

Attendance/participation: 25%

Exams averaged: 50%

Project: 25%