PHI 2600 Section U01 Introduction to Ethics Fall 2018 Dr. Kenneth Henley Office: DM 344B e-mail: henleyk@fiu.edu Phone: 305-348-3346 Office Hours: Tuesday & Thursday 8:15-9:15 and 11:00-12:15.

Website: http://faculty.fiu.edu/~henleyk

This course is an introduction to the philosophical study of Ethics, and it is also a "Gordon Rule" composition/writing course. We will study several of the major theories of normative ethics, which seek to provide an account of what makes conduct morally right and what constitutes a morally good person. We will consider several controversial contemporary moral issues in the light of these normative theories. We will also quickly consider theories in metaethics, which seek to explain the underlying nature of moral thought.

Text: Russ Shafer-Landau, The Ethical Life: Fundamental Readings in Ethics and Contemporary Moral Problems, Fourth Edition, Oxford University Press. ISBN: 9780190631314

Course Objectives: 1. To stimulate philosophical reflection about ethics. 2. To introduce students to some of the skills of philosophical thinking: searching for consistency and coherence of beliefs, clarifying questions, ferreting out presuppositions, weighing reasoning and evidence, and exploring alternative accounts of disputed concepts. 3. To improve writing skills, especially through increasing the ability to structure and organize chains of reasoning.

Requirements: This class is not delivered on-line or by e-mail. Class attendance is required. Class attendance, punctuality, participation and discussion are important, and will make the crucial difference in the course grade if the student's final average is near the borderline between two grades. Students must read the assignment before coming to class. Three four-page papers are required. Dates, topics and guidelines for the papers will be given in class and posted on my website. This is a "Gordon Rule" course, and grades reflect all elements of writing--grammar, punctuation, sentence and paragraph structure, clarity of expression, and essay structure--as well as the quality of the reasoning and philosophical understanding. There will be a comprehensive final examination. Each paper and the final examination will count as 1/4 of the final average for the course. Note that since this is a "Gordon Rule" course, a student cannot pass without completing all required writing. Incompletes will be given only in cases of unforeseeable and severe circumstances beyond the student's control, such as documented illness or injury.

Dates & Assigned Readings

Aug. 21 Introduction

Aug. 23 Utilitarianism Mill pp. 11-20

Aug. 28, 30 Mill pp. 97-106

Sept. 4, 6 Poverty & Hunger Singer pp. 230-237; Libertarian Ethics Narveson pp. 238-251

Sept. 11, 13 Morality & Religion Plato, pp. 75-83; Natural Law Aquinas pp. 84-96

Sept. 18, 20 Contractarian Ethics Hobbes pp. 120-130; The Categorical Imperative Kant pp. 107-116 (through first paragraph)

Sept. 25, 27 continue Kant pp. 116-119; Euthanasia Rachels pp. 252-257

Oct. 2, 4 Abortion Thomson pp. 333-345; Marquis pp. 346-356

Oct. 9, 11 Metaethics Hume pp. 171-180; Mackie pp. 181-189

Oct. 16, 18 Harman pp. 190-198; Gensler pp. 199-207

Oct. 23, 25 The Death Penalty Primoratz pp. 370-379; Nathanson pp. 380-389

Oct. 30, Nov. 1 Guns McMahan pp. 390-395; Huemer pp. 396-410

Nov. 6, 8 The Legacy of Racism Pojman pp. 417-431; Hausman pp. 432-445

Nov. 13, 15 The Moral Status of Animals Norcross pp. 267-282; Frey pp. 283-300

Nov. 20 The Environment Hill pp. 317-332

Nov. 22 Thanksgiving University Closed

Nov. 27 What Will Future Generations Condemn Us For? Appiah pp. 225-229

Nov. 29 Review

Dec. 4 Comprehensive Final Examination: At the officially scheduled time, which will probably be Tuesday, Dec. 4, 12:00-2:00. Students must provide their own blue-books.