PL222�Ethical Theory
Dr. Coleen Zoller
E-mail: zoller@susqu.edu
Office
Telephone: 570.372.4163
Office:
Bogar 24
�Human
beings are far more complicated and enigmatic and ambiguous than languages or
mathematical concepts, and selfishness operates in a much more devious and
frenzied manner in our relations with them.�
Ignorance, muddle, fear, wishful thinking, lack of tests often make us
feel that moral choice is something arbitrary, a matter for personal will
rather than attentive study.� Our
attachments tend to be selfish and strong, and the transformation of our loves
from selfishness to unselfishness is sometimes hard even to conceive of.� Yet is the situation really so
different?� �The love which brings the
right answer is an exercise of justice and realism and really looking.� --Iris
Murdoch, �The Sovereignty of Good Over Other Concepts�
Course
Description:
Are there objective truths about right
and wrong? Who or what decides what is right and wrong?� Is moral choice �something arbitrary, a
matter for personal will� or is it a matter for �attentive study�? If �really
looking� is required for such things, as Murdoch suggests, where should we
look? Should we look for something that helps us to judge particular actions,
or perhaps particular kinds of actions?�
Or should we look to something that helps us to understand particular
kinds of lives (should we �try to live like� a particular kind of person, and
�try not to live like� some other kind of person?)?� How would such things we might look for �fit�
the way(s) we already live, and the way(s) we expect ourselves and others to
live? If, on the other hand, moral choice is a matter for �personal will� --
then how do we determine what to do?� Is
it simply a matter of �following your feelings�?� (What kind of feelings?)� Should we determine what to do on the basis
of feeling alone?� Wondering about these
questions is not a passive business of simply learning theories.� Instead, philosophizing is an active way of
life.� Practicing this lifestyle, as
Russell said, makes us insightful, sophisticated, and open-minded; the world is
better off when its citizens cultivate these qualities.�
Course
Objectives:
The general aim of a philosophy course
is, as Kant wrote, to �have the courage to use your own mind!�� More specifically,
students in this course should:
1. Exercise
the art of wonder
2. Closely
read and analyze philosophical texts for understanding
3. Critically
read and analyze philosophical texts for evaluation
4. Learn
the basic vocabulary, questions, theories, and problems in ethical theory
5. Utilize
some knowledge acquired in previous philosophy classes
6. Identify
and question what one�s beliefs about law, morality, and society presuppose
7. Understand
the interplay among experiences, meaning, values, and action
8. Recognize
the relevance of ethical theory and apply theory to the practice of real-life
decision-making
9. Debate
effectively (in speaking as well as in writing), including: expositing
positions, organizing thoughts logically, analyzing and evaluating evidence and
arguments, accounting for a variety of viewpoints, and speaking directly to
fellow students in class
Required
Texts:
Simon
Blackburn, Being Good (Oxford)
Kant, Grounding for the
Metaphysics of Morals (Hackett)
Mill, Utilitarianism
(Hackett)
Held, Feminist Morality:
Transforming Culture, Society, and Politics (Chicago)
Aristotle, Nicomachean
Ethics (Peripatetic)
Nietzsche, The Portable
Nietzsche (Viking)
Plato, Meno (Hackett)
Schopenhauer, On the Basis
of Morality (Hackett)
Franz de
Waal, Good Natured: The Origins of Right
and Wrong in Humans and Other Animals (Harvard)
Grading:�������� Quizzes = 20%�
Participation
& Preparation = 20%
Midterm
Paper = 20%�������������
Final
Paper = 20%
����������������������� Final
Exam = 20%
Office
hours: Please take advantage of my office hours to discuss any problems
you have with the reading assignments, discussions in class, meaning of life,
etc.� Do not feel that you must have a
carefully formulated set of questions before you come to see me.� The articulation of the problem is often the
main stumbling block; so if something is an issue for you, don�t hesitate to
talk with me about it.
Course
Requirements:
A.
Active Reading and Critical Thinking in Preparation for Class:� One might mistakenly think if s/he has read
the assigned pages that s/he is prepared for class.� The way to get the most out of your reading
and out of class is to spend time before
class thinking about each
reading so that you will be prepared to answer fact-type questions as well as
evaluation-type questions.� To assist in
your preparation each student must write a brief reflection paper for each
reading.� In these papers you must:
1. State
the main point of the reading (what is the main thing that the author is trying
to say?).
2. Ask a
question about the reading (make sure it is in the form of a question).� This question should be an �unanswered
question� by which I mean that it should be an interesting and difficult question (i.e., one to which
there is no easy or obvious answer).� If,
after stating the question, you can provide a simple, snappy answer to it, then
the question is not a good one.
3. After
asking the question, explain why it is interesting,
difficult, and/or important to YOU
(not to me, not to your classmates, not people in general, not Kant...just
YOU!).� DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ANSWER
YOUR QUESTION IN PLACE OF SUCH AN EXPLANATION.�
Some questions are interesting but they may not be interesting/important
to you.� You should not choose one of these.�
Instead, find something that is causing you to lose sleep (at least
metaphorically...) so that you can explain why it is interesting to you.
These
papers are due at the beginning of every class.�
No late papers will be accepted.�
To do well on these papers, it is important that you follow the
directions strictly. These papers must be typed or word processed, single
spaced with one-inch margins in a standard twelve pitch font. The structure of
these papers should look like the sample below:
1.
The main point of today�s reading is that�.
2.
Question?
3.
This question is important to me personally because�.
B.
Attendance: All students are expected to attend all classes. If you must be absent, you must (1) either call or
e-mail me before class to explain and (2) provide proper documentation of
illness (note from health center), personal or family emergency (note from Dean
of Students), or a required university event (note from coach/instructor).� As detailed in the student handbook, missing
six or more classes shall result in failure of the course.
C.
Class Participation:
1.
Assumptions: �No one knows everything.� Every one of us knows and can contribute
something to our class discussions.�
Questions are just as important as comments.� I know that some of you are shy about
speaking publicly, some don�t believe you can learn from your peers, some who
take more time to ruminate resent students who appear to �shoot their mouths
off�, some prefer to be fed information directly by the professor.� I know that many of you wonder why this and
other courses ask students to participate, wonder what exactly a professor
expects when s/he asks you to participate and how this will be graded.
2.
Why participate? There are two main reasons to participate in your
classes.� First, pedagogical research has
demonstrated that students learn more when they actively participate in class
discussions.� Second, all students
have a civic responsibility to offer their questions and thoughts so that the
entire class can collaboratively learn the course material.� You are citizens (not consumers) at this
university.� Furthermore, participating
in class will help you to have thoughtful conversations outside of class.�
3.
Class format: The
format of this class will vary from day to day, including all of the following:
recitation �lectures�, conversations, debates, seminar. What I mean by
recitation �lectures� is that when presenting new material, my presentation
will include calling on students to elicit information about the readings.� When class takes the form of a conversation I
will ask students to discuss their responses to the texts and the issues they
raise. Frequently there will be smaller group discussions�sometimes these will
involve debating the strengths and weaknesses of theories and ideas, other
times these will involve seminar-style in-depth analysis of the day�s
topic.��
4.
Assistance: As
soon as possible anyone who feels ill at ease should discuss with the
instructor ways of easing oneself into participation.�
5.
Rubric: A
participation grade will be assigned to each student based on which of the
following regularly applied to her/him:
F = not physically present, or severely detracting from classroom
discussion (e.g., sleeping and/or behaving in a manner that is disrespectful)
D = present physically but not mentally
and/or not being prepared, or detracting
from classroom discussion (e.g., being unprepared, not having text and
classroom supplies with you, having side conversations, daydreaming, making
totally irrelevant comments, etc.)
C = present, alert, and prepared for
class (e.g., having read required texts in at least a cursory way, bringing
text and classroom supplies with you to class, reflecting in advance on the
day�s texts, having written a reflection paper, etc.), and adding to the
discussion but in only minimal ways
B = present, alert, prepared for class
(e.g., having read required texts with significant attention, bringing text and
classroom supplies with you to class, reflecting in advance on the day�s texts,
having written a reflection paper, etc.), and contributing to class discussion
(e.g., communicating some understanding of the text, asking related questions,
sharing ideas, maintaining an appropriate balance of talking and listening,
etc.)
A = present, alert, prepared (e.g.,
having read required texts thoroughly, bringing notes, text--with significant
passages marked--and classroom supplies with you to class, reflecting in
advance on the day�s texts, having written a reflection paper as well as some
additional questions to ask to further the conversation, etc.), and making
thoughtful contributions to classroom discussion based on engagement with the
texts (e.g., communicating one�s understanding of the text and the overall
course, posing related questions to both the instructor and fellow students,
sharing ideas and responding to the ideas of others, maintaining an appropriate
balance of talking and listening, applying course material to personal
experience; actively engaging in one�s own learning, etc.)
6.
Self-assessment: I ask students to submit a self-assessment of participation
every week.� The grade that you assign
yourself should be based on the above rubric, and the self-assessment should
give a brief narrative that explains why you believe that you�ve earned the
grade you have assigned to yourself (make sure to cite specific examples of behavior
referred to in the rubric).� I will take
into consideration these self-assessments when calculating participation
grades.�
D.
Quizzes and Exams: There shall be six quizzes throughout the semester. These
will test your understanding of the reading material and what is covered in
class. All quizzes and the exam will be cumulative. A missed quiz or exam earns
a zero (unless permission for an alternative has been granted by the professor
IN ADVANCE�and I am not inclined to grant these requests automatically). The
lowest quiz grade will be dropped.� The
final exam will be proctored during the final exam period scheduled by the
registrar.
E.
Writing:
All students will be required to complete two writing assignments.� Details about these will be announced.� All papers must be submitted BOTH in hardcopy
to me as well as in e-copy to turninin.com.
Policy on Cheating, Plagiarism, and other forms of Academic
Dishonesty:
All forms of plagiarism and cheating are prohibited. I follow the
guidelines and University policy regarding the penalty for those identified as
cheating or plagiarizing on exams and/or other assignments in this class (see
page 118 of student handbook for maximum penalties and the definition of
plagiarism).� Students found to be
cheating on assignments will receive an F for the course. I reserve the right
to have all student written assignments submitted in an electronic format for
the expressed purpose of checking assignments for plagiarism against Internet
sources (including pay-sites for papers) using turnitin.com. If you are in
doubt as to whether or not any of your assignments for this class constitute
cheating or plagiarism as defined by the University Student Handbook, please
discuss this with me BEFORE turning in an assignment.
Students with Disabilities:
If you are seeking an
academic accommodation, it is essential that you have appropriate documentation
on file with the University and present that documentation to me as early as
possible in the semester. If you believe that you have a disability but have no
documentation on file at Susquehanna and wish to discuss what steps can be
taken to determine whether an accommodation is warranted, please contact the
Counseling Center for further information and assistance.� Some additional information is available at
http://www.susqu.edu/counseling/disabilities/.
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