Philosophy 236: Ethics
Instructor: Dr. Jeff Engelhardt
Office: TBA
Office Hours: by appointment
Telephone: 517.264.7675
E-mail: jjmengelhardt@gmail.com or EngelhaJeffreyM@jccmi.edu
Texts: Russ Shafer-Landau, The Fundamentals of Ethics, 2nd ed.
Russ Shafer-Landau, ed., The Ethical Life, 2nd ed.
A bit about the course
You’ve probably entertained specific ethical questions before: “how ought I end this
relationship?”, “is it wrong that I enjoy hating my enemies so much?”, “what’s so good
about giving to charity?” This course concerns this sort of inquiry, but not these sorts of
questions—at least not directly. As Aristotle understood it, ethical questions ultimately
ask what a good life is, and we should answer the particular questions above in light of
a general theory about what makes for a good life. This is, of course, a matter that
many, many people take very seriously, and since Aristotle’s time, many, many serious
people have developed many, many ethical theories. This course aims to introduce you
to these many theories, highlighting the points on which they agree and disagree. After
considering ‘large scale’ questions about the good life in part I, part II surveys the
sweeping theories of moral evaluations developed since Aristotle and part III ‘steps
back’ to ask what morality is, if it is, and why we should care about it.
Grading
Exams: We will have three exams, each with both short-answer and mini-essay
questions (around a page each). You will be given the essay questions in advance. The
exams make up 80% of your grade.
Quizzes: You will be given short quizzes throughout the semester, usually on topics
announced in advance. These will be graded on a pass/fail basis, and will make up 20%
of your grade. Quizzes cannot be made up, but you can drop one-fifth of your quiz
scores.
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Grading scale:
90% – 4.0
58% – 2.0
82% – 3.5
50% – 1.5
74% – 3.0
42% – 1.0
66% – 2.5
34% – 0.5
Attendance Policy
You are expected to attend all class meetings. Quizzes will be given frequently
throughout the semester, and they cannot be made up. Tests will be held at the dates
shown below, and cannot be made up except in extreme circumstances.
Test Dates:
Test I – Wednesday, February 12
Test II – Wednesday, March 26
Test III – Wednesday, April 30
TENTATIVE READING LIST
Part I: Value Theory
Hedonism 1/22
Fundamentals: Chapter 1, “Hedonism” (pp. 21-29)
Ethical Life: Chapter 1, Epicurus, “Letter to Menoeceus” (pp. 17-26)
Fundamentals: Chapter 2, “Is Happiness All That Matters?” (pp. 30-41)
Ethical Life: Chapter 4, Robert Nozick, “The Experience Machine” (pp. 33-36)
Desire Theory 1/29
Fundamentals: Chapter 3, “Getting What You Want” (pp. 42-48)
Ethical Life: Chapter 5, Richard Taylor, “The Meaning of Life” (pp. 37-48)
Fundamentals: Chapter 4: “Problems for the Desire Theory” (pp. 49-58)
Ethical Life: Chapter 6, Jean Kazez, “Necessities” (pp. 49-60)
Part II: Normative Ethics
Morality and Religion 2/5
Fundamentals: Chapter 5, “Morality and Religion” (pp. 61-73)
Ethical Life: Chapter 7, Plato, “Euthyphro” (pp. 63-71)
Natural Law Theory 2/12
Fundamentals: Chapter 6, “Natural Law” (pp. 74-88)
Ethical Life: Chapter 8, Phillipa Foot, “Natural Goodness” (pp. 72-83)
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Egoism 2/19
Fundamentals: Chapter 7, “Psychological Egoism” (pp. 89-103)
Fundamentals: Chapter 8, “Ethical Egoism” (pp. 104-116)
Ethical Life: Chapter 9, Ayn Rand, “The Ethics of Emergencies” (pp. 84-91)
Consequentialism 2/26
Fundamentals: Chapter 9, “Consequentialism – Its Nature and Attractions” (pp. 117-132)
Fundamentals: Chapter 10, “Consequentialism – Its Difficulties” (pp. 133-153)
Ethical Life: Chapter 10, J.J.C. Smart, “Extreme and Restricted Utilitarianism” (pp. 92-101)
No class 3/5: Mid-semester break
Kantian Ethics 3/12
Fundamentals: Chapter 11, “The Kantian Perspective – Fairness and Justice” (pp. 154-167)
Fundamentals: Chapter 12, “The Kantian Perspective – Autonomy and Respect” (pp. 168-186)
Ethical Life: Chapter 11, Immanuel Kant, “The Good Will and the Categorical Imperative” (pp.
102-114)
Social Contract Theory 3/19
Fundamentals: Chapter 13, “The Social Contract Tradition – The Theory and Its Attractions”
(pp. 187-200)
Ethical Life: Chapter 12, Thomas Hobbes, “Leviathan” (pp. 78-84)
Fundamentals: Chapter 14, “The Social Contract Tradition – Problems and Prospects (pp. 201213)
Ethical Pluralism 3/26
Fundamentals: Chapter 15, “Ethical Pluralism and Absolute Moral Rules” (pp. 214-231)
Fundamentals: Chapter 16, “Ethical Pluralism – Prima Facie Duties and Ethical Particularism”
(pp. 232-251)
Ethical Life: Chapter 13, W.D. Ross, “What Makes Right Acts Right?” (pp. 126-137)
Virtue Ethics 4/2
Fundamentals: Chapter 17, “Virtue Ethics” (pp. 252-271)
Ethical Life: Chapter 14, Aristotle, “Nicomachean Ethics” (pp. 138-149)
Feminist Ethics 4/9
Fundamentals: Chapter 18, “Feminist Ethics” (pp. 272-286)
Ethical Life: Chapter 15, Hilde Lindemann, “What Is Feminist Ethics?” (pp. 150-162)
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Part III: Metaethics
Ethical Relativism 4/16
Fundamentals: Chapter 19, “Ethical Relativism” (pp. 289-305)
Ethical Life: Chapter 16, David Hume, “Moral Distinctions Not Derived from Reason” (pp. 165174)
Ethical Life: Chapter 19, Harry Gensler, “Cultural Relativism” (pp. 198-206)
Moral Nihilism 4/23
Fundamentals: Chapter 20, “Moral Nihilism” (pp. 306-319)
Ethical Life: Chapter 17, A.J. Ayer, “A Critique of Ethics” (pp. 188-197)
Ethical Life: Chapter 18, J.L. Mackie, “The Subjectivity of Values” (pp. 198-206)
Responses to Relativism 4/30
Fundamentals: Chapter 21, “Ten Arguments against Moral Objectivity” (pp. 320-328)
Ethical Life: Chapter 20, Michael Smith, “Realism” (pp. 207-216)
Ethical Life: Chapter 21, Renford Bambrough, “Proof” (pp. 217-226)
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