PHL 220H A & B ETHICS
Fall 2013
Dr. James Baillie
Office BC 147
Phone (943) 7298
E-mail baillie@up.edu
Office hours MF 1015-1115, MTWR 1300-1430 and by appointment
Course Purpose
The purpose of this course is to familiarize students with some of the major theories in classical and/or
contemporary moral philosophy, and prepare them for further study in the field. Students can expect
to learn to distinguish and understand the primary sub-areas of ethics, both normative, such as
theories of moral obligation and value; and non-normative, such as meta-ethics and descriptions of
ethical practice. Students can also expect to come to understand and concretely apply normative
theories of moral obligation (e.g., egoism, utilitarianism, deontology) and/or virtue theory (e.g.
Aristotle). By introducing them to some of the major figures, issues, and approaches that have shaped
the sub-discipline of ethics, students will be enabled to enhance their skills of critical reflection by
evaluating these theories, issues, etc., as well as develop and refine their own positions.
Learning Objectives
This course aims to enable the student to:
1. Recognize the limits of relativism and absolutism;
2. Recognize the ethical dimensions of novel problems and situations;
3. Frame an ethical problem (that is, once one has recognized that a situation has ethical implications,
to be able to articulate the ethical problems associated with it);
4. Be able to analyze a problem or situation using various ethical theories;
5. Be able to come to a tentative judgment about an ethical problem that s/he has framed and
analyzed;
6. Be able to distinguish ethics from law and from religion.
University Core Questions
 What is the good life?
 What can we do about injustice and suffering?
University Core Outcome
Develop the knowledge, skills, and commitment for acting ethically in everyday life
Embedded Element
Analytical and Logical Reasoning: students will develop the ability to
 Recognize and follow logical arguments
 Construct valid arguments
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Your grade for the course will be determined by three papers (1200 words) and two tests.
Each item is worth one-fifth of your course grade.
The first paper will be due around week 4.
The first test will be will be before Fall break.
The second paper will be due around week 10
The second test will be around week 14.
The third paper will be due on Finals week.
Participation: I expect you to attend and actively contribute to the class. Before each class, I expect you
to keep up with the course readings so that you can participate in a meaningful manner.
After each section of the course I will put the overhead notes on Moodle.
Classroom etiquette is similar to "movie rules": do not cause any distraction. Treat everyone with
respect. For example, when someone is speaking, give that person your attention. This means no
chatting, texting, surfing the Web, or doing work for other classes. Violations of these rules risk
deductions from your grade.
You must be present on the scheduled date of any test or risk a grade of F for it. If you cannot be
present at the time scheduled, you must make arrangements with me at least three days in advance. If
you are sick on a test day, you must provide a doctor’s note confirming this.
Extra credit will only be given in very special circumstances. Indiscriminate use of extra credit is a
disincentive for people to commit themselves to regular coursework. It also enables them to achieve
an inflated grade that does not reflect their understanding of the course.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
After an introductory overview, the course will begin with some metaethics, on the basis of values and
moral judgments. Students should be able to critically discuss the following issue:
 Can God’s will provide a foundation for ethics?
We then turn to value theory and normative ethics. We start with two modern theories:
Utilitarianism and Kant’s deontology. These theories propose criteria of right action. We then turn to
Aristotle’s virtue theory, which focuses on questions of character and the good life.
Students should be able to describe and critically evaluate
 Consequentialism
 The principle of utility/greatest happiness principle
 Bentham’s and Mill’s versions of hedonism
 The utilitarian theory of justice
 Act- and Rule- Utilitarianism
 Kant’s notion of autonomy
 Kant’s main formulations of the categorical imperative
 The role of teleology in Aristotle
 Aristotle’s notion of eudaimonia
 Aristotle’s theory of virtue as a mean
 Aristotle's influence on Natural Law Theory
We then turn to applied ethics, considering the moral issues around euthanasia/ physician-assisted
suicide, and abortion. Students should be able to critically discuss the following:
 The Doctrine of Doing and Allowing
 The Doctrine of Double Effect
 Concepts of personhood employed in these debates
 Concepts of rights employed in these debates
 Appeal to autonomy and sentience in these debates
 Thomson’s pro-choice argument
 Marquis’s anti-abortion argument
Finally, (if we have time) we return to metaethics. Students should be able to come to informed
judgments on the following issues:
 Do moral judgments have an objective basis, or are they merely matters of opinion?
 Are there universally applicable moral rules, or is morality a variable set of social customs?
READING
Text Russ Shafer-Landau, The Fundamentals of Ethics ‘RSL’ refers to Shafer-Landau.
‘W’ means Word file posted on Moodle.
PDF files will also be posted on Moodle.
‘O’ are online.
Introduction
RSL Introduction
Divine Command Theory
RSL Ch. 5; p. 328-330
Utilitarianism
RSL Chs. 1, 2 (on hedonism); 9, 10 (on consequentialism)
Quotations from Bentham, Mill, Nozick W
Kant
RSL chs. 11, 12
Michael Sandel, “What Matters is the Motive: Immanuel Kant” PDF
Quotations from Kant W
Aristotle
Richard Kraut “Aristotle’s Ethics” http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-ethics/ sections 2, 4, 5 O
RSL Ch. 17
Quotations from Aristotle W
Doing v Allowing; Double Effect
RSL Ch. 15
Euthanasia & Physician Assisted Suicide
Helga Kuhse, “Euthanasia” PDF
Walter Glannon, “Medical Decisions at the End of Life” PDF
Abortion
John Harris and Soren Holm, “Abortion” PDF
Judith Jarvis Thomson “A Defense of Abortion” (excerpts) W
Don Marquis “Why Abortion is Immoral” (excerpts) W
Ethical Relativism and Objectivism
RSL Ch. 19; p. 320-328
Chris Gowans, "Moral Relativism", http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/moral-relativism/ O
Further readings will be assigned for papers.
UNIVERSITY POLICIES AND RESOURCES
University of Portland’s Code of Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is openness and honesty in all scholarly endeavors. The University of Portland is a
scholarly community dedicated to the discovery, investigation, and dissemination of truth, and to the
development of the whole person. Membership in this community is a privilege, requiring each person
to practice academic integrity at its highest level, while expecting and promoting the same in others.
Breaches of academic integrity will not be tolerated and will be addressed by the community with all
due gravity.
Assessment Disclosure Statement
Student work products for this course may be used by the University for educational quality assurance
purposes.
Disabilities Statement
If you have a disability and require an accommodation to fully participate in this class, contact the
Office for Students with Disabilities (OSWD), located in the University Health Center (503-943-7134), as
soon as possible. If you have an OSWD Accommodation Plan, you should make an appointment to
meet with me to discuss your accommodations. Also, you should meet with me if you wish to discuss
emergency medical information or special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated.
The Learning Resource Center
The Learning Resource Center, in Franz 120, houses the Writing Center. The Writing Center is open by
appointment and supports professors and students as they write across the disciplines. Appointments
are made electronically. To schedule an appointment, go http://www.up.edu/lrc/writing/ and click on
‘Appointments’ to sign in and view the schedule.