APPLIED ETHICS
Lecture/Tutor: Mr. Tang Chak Kin
Email: chakin@gmail.com
Website: applied-ethics.weebly.com
I. COURSE OBJECTIVES
1.
To familiarize you with a variety of western ethical theories.
2.
To develop your ability to apply these ethical theories to the moral problems
that you face in daily life, e.g., Is euthanasia morally acceptable? What
position should we take with respect to the issue of abortion?
II. COURSE STRUCTURE
This course is composed of lectures and tutorials. There will be a lecture (3 hrs) every
week and a tutorial (1.5 hr) every alternate week. That is to say, there are totally 12
lectures and 4 tutorials in a semester.
II. TEXTBOOK
Olen, Jeffrey & Vincent Barry (2015), Applying Ethics (11thed.). Wadsworth.
III. COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Group Presentation & Participation
Individual or Group Paper
Examination
20%
30%
50%
Group Presentation: The number of group members depends on the
class size. Each group will be or assigned a topic covered in this course.
Group presentation will be conducted in tutorial classes.
Term Paper: A paper of about 800-1000 words, either individual or
group-work, has to be submitted to the tutor.
Examination: There will be a 2 hr written final examination.
1
IV. TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
Week
Topics
Readings
1
What is Morality?

Chapter 1, Text
Moral Reasoning

Chapter 2, Text
2
Utilitarianism


John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism (in Chapter 1)
James Rachels, Utilitarianism.
3-4
Kantian Ethics

Immanuel Kant, Respect for Persons (in Chapter 1)
 Onora O’Neill, Kant’s Ethics.
Right-based Ethics
 Joel Feinberg, The Nature and Value of Rights.
4-5
6-7
8-9
10-11
11-12
Abortion
Racism, Sexism &
Affirmative Action
Animal Rights
Euthanasia

Chapter 4, Text


Judith Thomson, A Defense of Abortion
May Anne Warren, On the Moral and Legal Status
of Abortion


Chapter 10, Text
Tom L. Beauchamp, The Justification of Reverse

Discrimination
Lisa Newton, Reverse Discrimination as Unjustified.


Chapter 11, Text
Peter Singer, All Animals Are Equal

Tom Regan, The Radical Egalitarian Case for
Animal Rights


Chapter 5, Text
J. Gay-Williams, The Wrongfulness of Euthanasia

James Rachels, Active and Passive Euthanasia
Distributive Justice 


2
Chapter 9, Text
John Hospers, What Libertarianism Is?
Michael H. Lessnoff, John Rawls: Liberal Justice