Course Form
I. Summary of Proposed Changes
Dept / Program
Davidson Honors College
Course Title
Ways of Knowing II
Prefix and Course #
HC U 122 E
Short Title (max. 26 characters incl. spaces)
Ways of Knowing II
Summarize the change(s) proposed
New course proposal
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete the form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office
Please type / print name Signature
Requestor:
James McKusick
Date
9/24/10
Phone/ email :
Program Chair/Director:
9/24/10
Other affected programs
Dean:
243-2541
James McKusick, Dean
N/A
James McKusick, Dean
9/24/10
Are other departments/programs affected by this
Please obtain signature(s) from the
modification because of
Chair/Director of any such department/ program
(a) required courses incl. prerequisites or corequisites, (above) before submission
(b) perceived overlap in content areas
(c) cross-listing of coursework NO
III: To Add a New Course Syllabus and assessment information is required (paste syllabus into
section V or attach). Course should have internal coherence and clear focus.
YES
NO
Common Course Numbering Review: Does an equivalent course exist
elsewhere in the MUS? Do the proposed abbreviation, number, title and credits
align with existing course(s)? Please indicate equivalent course/campus 
http://msudw.msu.montana.edu:9030/wfez/owa/musxfer.p_CCN_MAIN
Exact entry to appear in the next catalog (Specify course abbreviation, level, number, title, credits,
repeatability (if applicable), frequency of offering, prerequisites, and a brief description.) 
U 122E Ways of Knowing II 3 cr. Offered spring. Prereq., HC 121L or LS 151L or LS 152L.
This course traces the major Western ethical traditions, examines the influence of those
traditions in normative political theory, and provides dramatic illustrations of the moral life.
Justification: How does the course fit with the existing curriculum? Why is it needed?
This course is intended to satisfy the “Ethics and Human Values” General Education
requirement. The course will not be a requirement for all Davidson Honors College students. It
will, however, provide DHC students (and other talented and highly motivated students) with an
engaging and academically rigorous option to satisfy this General Education requirement while
continuing to explore the themes and topics presented in HC 121L, “Ways of Knowing.” The
course will offer an interdisciplinary approach that provides students with a multi-faceted study
of ethical and human values.
Are there curricular adjustments to accommodate teaching this course?
No
Complete for UG courses. (UG courses should be assigned a 400 number).
Describe graduate increment (Reference guidelines: http://www.umt.edu/facultysenate/Grad/UG.htm)
Fees may be requested only for courses meeting specific conditions determined by the
Board of Regents. Please indicate whether this course will be considered for a fee.
If YES, what is the proposed amount of the fee?
Justification:
IV. To Delete or Change an Existing Course – check X all that apply
Deletion
Title
Course Number Change
From:
Level U, UG, G
To:
Description Change
Change in Credits
From:
To:
Prerequisites
1. Current course information at it appears in catalog
(http://www.umt.edu/catalog) 
YES
NO
From:
To:
Repeatability
Cross Listing
(primary program
initiates form)
Is there a fee associated with the course?
2. Full and exact entry (as proposed) 
3. If cross-listed course: secondary program &
course number
4. Is this a course with MUS Common Course Numbering? If yes, then will this change eliminate
the course’s common course status? Please explain below.
5. Graduate increment if level of course is changed
to UG. Reference guidelines at:
http://www.umt.edu/facultysenate/Grad/UG.htm
(syllabus required in section V)
Have you reviewed the graduate increment
guidelines? Please check (X) space provided.
6. Other programs affected by the change
None
7. Justification for proposed change
V. Syllabus/Assessment Information
Required for new courses and course change from U to UG. Paste syllabus in field below or attach and
send digital copy with form.
Syllabus and assessment information is attached (see next page).
VI Department Summary (Required if several forms are submitted) In a separate document list
course number, title, and proposed change for all proposals.
VII Copies and Electronic Submission. After approval, submit original, one copy, summary of
proposals and electronic file to the Faculty Senate Office, UH 221, camie.foos@mso.umt.edu.
Revised 11-2009
HC 122E Ways of Knowing II (3 cr.)
Course Description: This course will unfold as three complementary narratives concerning ethical ways
of knowing: one philosophical, one theoretical, one literary. The first will trace the major ethical theories
in the Western tradition, with some comparative analysis of non-Western ethical traditions; the second
will trace the influence of those theories in normative political theory; while the third will provide literary
and dramatic illustrations of the moral life.
Students will be expected to acquire a working knowledge of the three major ethical traditions:
virtue ethics (Aristotle), deontological ethics (Kant), and utilitarian ethics (Mill). This knowledge will be
demonstrated in three written assignments required during the semester. In these assignments, students
will identify and analyze a contemporary ethical issue from the perspective of each of the ethical theories:
virtue ethics, deontological ethics, and utilitarian ethics.
In a final essay examination, students will be required to do the same for at least one of the
political theories in a critical essay on at least one work of literature. Students will have been prepared for
this exercise throughout the semester by their readings from the classics, together with the lectures and
seminar discussions.
This course is intended to satisfy the “Ethics and Human Values” General Education requirement.
The course will not be a requirement for all Davidson Honors College students. It will, however, provide
DHC students (and other talented and highly motivated students) with an engaging and academically
rigorous option to satisfy this General Education requirement while continuing to explore the themes and
topics presented in HC 121L, “Ways of Knowing.” The course will offer an interdisciplinary approach
that provides students with a multi-faceted study of ethical and human values. Informed by readings,
lectures, and seminar discussions, students will work toward a deeper understanding of their own ethical
ways of knowing.
Prerequisite:
HC 120 Ways of Knowing or HC 151L Introduction to Humanities or LS 152L Introduction to
Humanities
Required texts:
Sophocles, Antigone (Prestwick House, $3.99)
William Shakespeare, King Lear (Signet Classics, $4.95)
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, On the Social Contract (Dover Edition, $2.50)
Thomas Paine, Common Sense, The Rights of Man and Other Essential Writings (Signet, $6.95)
Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (Dover Edition, $3.00)
Confucius, The Analects (Dover Edition, $3.00)
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (Mariner Books, $10.00)
Bill McKibben, The End of Nature (Random House, $14.95)
Skeleton Syllabus:
This course will have a standard “skeleton syllabus” of required reading assignments that appear in all
sections of the course. Instructors are free to devise additional reading and writing assignments for their
own section. All HC 122E instructors are expected to submit their syllabi to the HC 122E Course
Director each semester for review and constructive feedback. HC 122E instructors will meet regularly to
discuss course content, develop shared norms for the evaluation of writing assignments, and to assess
student learning outcomes.
Theology and Morality
Genesis (Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau)
Exodus (The Ten Commandments)
Matthew 5-7 (Sermon on the Mount)
Ethical Theories
Virtue Ethics: Selections from Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics
Deontology: Selections from Kant’s Critique of Practical Reason
Utilitarian Ethics: Selections from J.S. Mill, Utilitarianism
Confucius, The Analects
Justice
Sophocles, Antigone
Shakespeare, King Lear
Excerpts from John Rawls, A Theory of Justice
Excerpts from Michael Walzer, Spheres of Justice
Moral Development
Selections from Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man
Selections from Lawrence Kohlberg, The Psychology of Moral Development
Selections from Carol Gilligan, In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development
Political Values
Selections from Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract
Selections from Thomas Paine, Common Sense, The Rights of Man
Selections from Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France
Selections from Mary Wollstonecraft, Vindication of the Rights of Woman
Selections from J.S. Mill, On Liberty
The Federalist No. 10
Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address
Martin Luther King, Jr., “I have a dream” speech, Letter from a Birmingham Jail
Isaiah Berlin, “Two Concepts of Liberty”
Environmental Ethics
William Blake, London
Samuel T. Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring
Bill McKibben, The End of Nature
Ethics in Literature
Margaret Somerville, The Ethical Imagination: “From Homo Sapiens to Techno Sapiens”
William Wordsworth, Michael
Herman Melville, Billy Budd
Isak Dinesen, “Sorrow Acre”
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Attendance and Active Participation:
Regular attendance and participation in the class is expected. Your attendance is vital to the other students
and the educational process. If you must miss class, notify the Instructor in advance. Unexcused absences
will affect your grade (7 or more unexcused absences result in course failure)
.
Writing Assignments:
Students will be expected to acquire a working knowledge of the three major ethical traditions: virtue
ethics (Aristotle), deontological ethics (Kant), and utilitarian ethics (Mill). This knowledge will be
demonstrated in three written assignments required during the semester, and a final examination essay.
Essay #1 (circa 5 pages): Identify and analyze a contemporary ethical issue from the perspective
of virtue ethics. Use specific examples of actual ethical decisions that have been encountered and
acted upon by real people in current or recent historical times.
Essay #2 (circa 5 pages): Identify and analyze a contemporary ethical issue from the perspective
of deontological ethics. Use specific examples (as stated above).
Essay #3 (circa 5 pages): Identify and analyze a contemporary ethical issue from the perspective
of utilitarian ethics. Use specific examples (as stated above).
Take-Home Final Examination Essay (8-10 pages): Write a critical essay on at least one work
of literature that we have discussed in class, providing analysis of the decisions and ideological
motivations of individual characters from the perspective of at least one of the political theories
we have examined this semester.
This course will meet during the scheduled Final Examination period. Bring your completed Take-Home
Final Examination Essay to the final exam session. Be prepared to spend a few minutes sharing with the
class some of the main points of your essay.
Student Learning Outcomes for Writing Assignments:
 Use writing to learn and synthesize new concepts
 Formulate and express opinions and ideas in writing
 Compose written documents that are appropriate for a given audience or purpose
 Revise written work based on constructive feedback
 Find, evaluate, and use information effectively
 Begin to use discipline-specific writing conventions
 Demonstrate appropriate English language usage
Using Quotations and Outside Sources:
You must properly acknowledge and document any outside sources used in preparing your paper. Direct
quotations must be accompanied by exact page numbers; everything you cite must be included in a list of
“Works Cited.” MLA format is preferred for all citations.
Grades:
Assignments will be given the following values as we determine grades:
1) First Essay–20%
2) Second Essay–25%
3) Third Essay–25%
4) Take-Home Final Exam Essay–30%
If you want to try to improve your grade, you may choose to rewrite any one of the first three
assignments. The final grade on this assignment will be an average of your first and second efforts. The
quality of your writing and the care with which you express yourself will be factors in determining a
grade.
In assigning your final grade for the course, we will be comparing the strength of one student paper in
relation to those of other students. In some cases the final grade may be influenced by the quality of
student participation and noticeable signs of improvement and development over the course of the
semester.
Additional Note on Instructional Faculty and Class Size for HC 122E, Ways of Knowing II
This course will be taught in “paired sections” of 20 students each by well-qualified and highly
experienced regular, adjunct, and emeritus faculty from various departments at UM. Paired sections,
which meet at the same time in adjacent seminar rooms, are also able to meet together in plenary session
(in a 40-seat DHC classroom) at the discretion of the two instructors, thus providing our students with
opportunities to engage in discussion across the disciplines.
The multidisciplinary nature of the course is ideally suited to the assignment of qualified instructors from
a rich variety of academic backgrounds. The course will be initially offered by faculty members who
have previously taught HC 121L, Ways of Knowing, thereby assuring coherence and continuity in the
Honors curriculum. Here are the names of faculty members who have expressed potential interest in
teaching this course: John Glendening (Professor of English), Judith Johnson (English, adjunct),
Robert Pack (English, adjunct), Ron Perrin (Philosophy, emeritus), and Dan Spencer (Associate Professor
of Environmental Studies). We anticipate that additional UM faculty members from various departments
will have the opportunity to teach this course in future semesters.