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Philosophy 101: Contemporary Moral Problems- Winter 2011
Dr. Jackie Ann K. Kegley
jkegley@csub.edu
Office: Faculty Towers 103D- 664-2249 Philosophy Office-664-2291 Fax: 665-6904
Office Hours: M 11-1; Th. 3-5; Friday: 9-11, and by appointment.
Class materials and grades will be posted on Blackboard 9. This includes any lecture materials.
also be important messages posted, so please check Blackboard regularly.
They may
You must register for this course on Blackboard 9- Here are the instructions:
1. Login to blackboard using net ID and password (default is last five digits of your student id)
2. Select "My Courses" tab
3. Browse course catalog (recommendation to browse by last name of instructor)
4. Click submit
5. If it doesn't work, call x 2315 for help.
Required Texts:
1. Rachels, J. & Rachels, S, editors, The Elements of Moral Philosophy 6th Edition, New York: McGraw
Hill, 2010. ISBN: 978-0-07-338671.
2. Rachels, J. & Rachels, S., Editors, The Right Thing to Do 5th Edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2010.
ISBN: 9780-0-07-340740-1.
Course Description: This course provides an overview of historical and recent ethics theory and concepts,
and an examination of contemporary moral issues and dilemmas, such as abortion, euthanasia, capital
punishment, affirmative action, animal rights, and gender relationships. Emphasis is given to the
relationship between theory and practice.
Goals and Objectives
Goal 1: Understand the Experiences and ideas of others
Objective: Discuss the similarities and differences of theories and ideas presented by various
ethicists on a variety of topics.
Goal 2: Understand one’s own culture and community
Objective 1: Discuss the assumptions underlying the theories and their applications on
contemporary moral issues.
Objective 2: Discuss the assumptions underlying your own moral system and principles as you
apply them to contemporary moral issues.
Goal 3: Appreciate and critically evaluate diverse value systems
Objective 1: Distinguish between normative and descriptive claims.
Objective 2: Critically evaluate the assumptions and principles of specific ethical systems.
Objective 3: Use the various ethical theories in evaluating moral issues.
Goal 4: Critically analyze original and secondary texts.
Objective 1: Engage in critical reading of various types of texts.
Objective 2: Critically evaluate the various theories and proposals on moral issues.
Goal 5: Understands changes in viewpoints and human conditions over term.
Objective 1: View the ethical issues and proposed solutions in light of their historical and
cultural context.
Objective 2: Evaluate the notion of moral development.
Requirements: Your progress in this course will be assessed through the following requirements. Required
work is always due on the day of class when the work is listed.
30% Class Participation: This includes the following elements:
1.
12%- Short Reading quizzes- one each week.- You may drop two of these.
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2.
3.
12%- Structured Discussions- These are small group discussions of the topics and readings and will be
graded by you and the instructor. These will be good preparation for the reflective papers.
5%-Attendance- Attendance is a counted in your grade calculation. You are allowed three absencesall other absences must be documented (for illness, family difficulties, required university travel) If
you must miss class for a truly legitimate reason, please contact me ahead of time. Each unexcused
absence warrants a five-percent reduction in the final grade.
Justification: attendance and participation is vital. This is a class is an opportunity to explore together the
fundamental moral issues by means of a variety of ethical approaches and principles. Sharing our ideas, arguments,
and experiences will lead us to greater understanding of very complex, but highly significant questions. Our
classroom should become a “community of intellectual inquiry and sharing” and thus, your attendance and
participation is vital. It is crucial that we share our observations, ideas, and critical reflections. In this process, we
should gain a wider understanding of the philosophical texts and hopefully will learn much from each other.
(Students are expected to spend two hours outside of class on class work for every hour of class.)
Discussion Board- “Ethical Issues”
I have also created a Discussion Board on Blackboard 9. It is entitled “Ethical Issues.” Questions posted there are
related to the structured discussions that we will have in class. Your participation in the Discussion Board can be
used as extra credit toward your overall discussion grade and participation in 6 out of the 8 discussion forums
can be used to make up for a missed discussion session or for one unexcused absence.
70%
Reflective essays- These essays replace any Mid-Term or Final Exams because they will
allow you to bring together and synthesize the course content. The last reflective essay will
contain a summative question- it will be due on the exam date. The first two essays will be
worth 20% each and the final essay will be worth 30%.
I will read and comment on rough drafts of your papers. They can be sent by e-mail.
These should be sent at least two days in advance of the due date of the paper.
This allows time for feedback and re-writing.
These essays are due as follows:
Reflection Paper # 1
February 1
Reflective Paper # 2
February 23
Reflective Paper # 3
March 17th Exam Day- 5-7:30 p.m.
Extra Credit Assignments- There will be three extra credit assignments. These may be used to
supplement your grade at the end of the quarter.
a.
Kegley Lecture- Andrei Codrescu, Poet, Essayist, NPR and PBS Commentator- “Whose
Global Village? Reflections on Power and Imagination in Today’s World.”- Monday,
February 21- 7:00 p.m. in the Dore Theater.- Write up a summary of the lecture and relate it
to discussions and lectures in class.
b.
Write up and analysis of the following two articles:
The Ethics of War and Peace- Questions on these articles may be
discussed and handed in for extra credit.
Douglas P. Lackey, “The Ethics of War and Peace,” The
Right Thing, 161-169; John Rawls, “Fifty Years After
Hiroshima,” The Right Thing, 170-1
There is a handout with the questions- ask for this. It is also on Blackboard 9.
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c.
Note also the participation in the Discussion Board posted on Blackboard entitled
“Ethical Issues.”
Letter grades and their percentage equivalents:
93-100 =A
90-92= A-
87-89= B+
83-86=B
80-82=B-
77-79=C+
73-76=C
70-72=C-
67-69=D+
63-66=D
60-62=D-
Below 60= F
COURSE POLICIES
Make-Ups: Make-ups will not be allowed. However, if you miss a deadline for reasons that are beyond
your control (illness, car accident) you must contact me either before class or as soon as possible
afterwards. The make-up may be granted upon proper documentation, i.e. a doctor’s note, receipt from the
mechanic. Failure to do so will result in a zero grade for the missed assignment.
Office Hours- I am available to discuss with you any aspects of this class as well as other matters if
you wish.
My announced office hours are an indication of when I can usually be found in my office. Occasionally
other commitments will take me away from the office during these times, so for important matters it is best
to set up an appointment in advance. Also, you should not feel restricted to seeing me only during
scheduled office hours. I can meet with you by appointment other than my scheduled office hours at a time
convenient for both of us. You should contact me in advance to cancel the appointment if you cannot honor
the scheduled appointment. You may leave a message on my voice mail or with our department secretary,
or you can email me.
Academic dishonesty (Cheating) is a broad category of actions that involve fraud and deception to
improve a grade or obtain course credit. Academic dishonesty (cheating) is not limited to examination
situations alone, but arises whenever a student attempts to gain an unearned academic advantage.
Plagiarism is a specific form of academic dishonesty which consists of the misuse of published or
unpublished works of another by claiming them as one’s own. Plagiarism may consist of handing in
someone else’s work as one’s own, copying or purchasing a pre-written composition and claiming it as
one’s own, using paragraphs, sentences, phrases, words, or ideas by another without giving appropriate
citation or using data and/or statistics compiled by another, without giving appropriate citation. Another
example of academic dishonesty is the submission of the same, or essentially the same paper or other
assignment for credit in two different courses without receiving prior approval from the instructors of the
affected courses.
If academic dishonesty in any form occurs, I am required to notify the CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator.
A course grade of ‘F’ may be assigned or another grade penalty may be applied. Additional academic
sanctions such a disciplinary probation, suspension or permanent expulsion may be determined by the
student conduct coordinator. I take this matter of betrayal of trust very seriously. If you have
questions about this, please ask.
Special Needs: To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact the Office of
Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible. Their office is located in SA 140, and
they may be reached at 661-654-3360 (voice), or 661-654-6288 (TDD). If you have an
accommodations letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a disability, please present
the letter to me during class or during my office hours as soon as possible so we can discuss the
specific accommodations that you might need in this class. Please do let me know of any special
needs that you might have.
Class Etiquette
Out of self-respect and respect for others I expect that during lectures or class activities you refrain from (1)
private conversations, (2) texting, (3) receiving cell phone calls, (4) leaving the classroom during the
lecture-class session, and (5) starting to pack up your belongings before class is over. Such behavior is
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very disruptive and discourteous to your instructor and classmates. If you need to leave the classroom
during the class session for a serious reason, let me know before the class starts and be seated close to the
door.
Harassment Policy
Written or spoken statements that can be construed as harassment will not be tolerated and will be reported
to the appropriate university office for proper legal investigation and action. This includes, but is not
limited to, comments based on race, ethnic origin, gender, disability, or sexual orientation.
SCHEDULE
Wednesday, January 5
Introduction to the Class- “Mores and Morality”
“A Short Introduction to Moral Philosophy,” The Right
Thing, 1-19.
Monday, January 10
“Autonomy and Beneficence.”
Important Steps in Moral Discussion
“Some Basic Points about Arguments,” The Right Thing,
20-28;
Video, “Old Person’s Friend”
Structured Discussion # 1
Quiz # 1
“Ethical Egoism” Elements, 62-79.
Video: “Family Tree”Guest instructor: Dr. Maria Paleologou
Monday, January 17
NO Class- Martin Luther King Day- Campus Closed
Wednesday, January 19
Quiz # 2
Utilitarianism- “Utilitarianism,” The Right Thing, 29-39; 40-48.
Monday, January 24
Structured Discussion #2
“The Debate Over Utilitarianism,” Elements, 97-198, and 109-123.
Video: “Critical Choice
Wednesday, January 26
Kantian Ethics- “Kant and the Respect for Persons,” Elements, 136145; and “Are There Absolute Moral Rules,”124-135. “The Categorical
Imperative,” The Right Thing, 61-66.
Last Day to withdraw from class with a “W”
Wednesday, January 12
Quiz # 3
Monday, January 31
Quiz # 4
Structured Discussion # 3
Feminism and the Ethics of Care,” Elements, 146-157.
Aristotle, “The Virtues,” The Right Thing, 67-73; “The Ethics of
Virtue,” 154-172.
“A Chronic Problem”
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Wednesday, February 2
Structured Discussion #4
Reflection Paper # 1 Due
“Does Morality Depend on Religion?” Elements, 48-61.
Video: “The Courage of One’s Convictions.”
Monday, February 7
Human Rights
“The Idea of Social Contract,” Elements, 80-96.
Quiz # 5
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Wednesday, February 9
Race
Martin Luther King, “Letter from the Birmingham City
Jail,” The Right Thing, 271-278; Peter Singer, “Is Racial
Discrimination Arbitrary?” The Right Thing, 279-290.
The Tuskegee Affair- Handout- also on Blackboard.
Video: “The Power of an Illusion”-The House we Live In”
Monday, February 14
Race Discussion Continued- Reread the articles by King, and Singer
and the “Tuskegee Affair.”
Quiz # 6
Structured Discussion # 5
Wednesday, February 16
Animal Rights
“Peter Singer,” “All Animals Are Equal,” The Right
Thing, 120-129; Alastair Norcross,” “Torturing Puppies
And Eating Meat: It’s All in Good Taste,” The Right Thing, 130137.
Tibor Machan, “Do Animals Have Rights?”The Right
Thing, 138-150
Video: “The Witness”
Monday, February 21
Animal Rights
“Peter Singer,” “All Animals Are Equal,” The Right
Thing, 120-129; Alastair Norcross,” “Torturing Puppies
And Eating Meat: It’s All in Good Taste,” The Right Thing, 130137.
Tibor Machan, “Do Animals Have Rights?”The Right
Thing, 138-150
Quiz # 7
Structured Discussion # 6
Kegley Lecture- Andrei Cordescu-7 p.m. - Dore Theater
Wednesday, February 23
Reflective Paper # 2 Due
Structured Discussion # 7
The Death Penalty
“Louis P. Pojman, “A Defense of the Death Penalty,”
The Right Thing, 203-210; Stephen P. Bright, “Why the
United States Should Join the Rest of the World in
Abandoning the Death Penalty,” The Right Thing, 211-22.
Video: “Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”
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Monday, February 28
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Quiz # 8
Structured Discussion # 8
Wednesday, March 2
Quiz # 9
Structured Discussion # 9
Monday, March 7
Genetic Technology
Matt, Ridley, “The New Eugenics,” The Right Thing,
321-327.
David Micklos & Elof Carlson, “Engineering American
Society,” Handout.- Also on Blackboard
Video: “Who Should Decide?”
Personhood, Humanity, Life and Rights
Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide
James Rachels, “The Morality of Euthanasia,” The Right
Thing, 306-310; Richard Doerflinger, “Assisted Suicide:
Pro Choice, or Anti-Life?” The Right Thing, 311-327.
“If You Want a Girl Like Me?”
Terrorism
Thomas Nagel, “What is Wrong with Terrorism?” The
Right Thing, 178-188; David Luban, “Liberalism, Torture,
And the Ticking Bomb,” The Right Thing, 189-201.
Structured Discussion # 10
Video: “Happy Birthday”
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Wednesday, March 9
Morality and Abortion- Personhood and Life Again
Don Marquis, “Why Abortion is Immoral?” The Right
Thing, 85-91; Judith Jarvis Thompson, “A Defense of
Abortion,” The Right Thing, 92-109.
Monday, March 14th
Structured Discussion # 11
Review of Life and Death Issues-
Wednesday, March 16th
Reflective Paper # 3- Due- Exam Day- 5-7:30 p.m.