University of Central Oklahoma, College of Liberal Arts, Department of Humanities and Philosophy
Contemporary Moral Problems: PHIL 1123/19537
Wednesday 4:30-7:15
Fall 2015
Instructor:
Office:
Office Phone:
Email:
Office Hours:
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Josh Rollins
LA 203A
974-3433
jrollins@uco.edu
Tuesdays: 2:30-4:25; Wednesdays: 3:15-4:25
Course Description
This course requires the student to engage in reflective thought about moral problems chiefly by
introducing them to basic issues in moral philosophy by means of readings from the past and
present.
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Course Objectives
In this course students will read classical and contemporary writings on such matters as good and
evil, relativism, happiness, virtue, egoism, moral education, abortion, and social policy. Students will
seek to answer, using critical reasoning, a series of questions about these issues as raised by the
course readings. In addition, students will engage each other in sustained discussion of these issues.
The following are the outcomes a successful student will attain by the end of the course in ethics: (1)
identify and define key philosophical terms studied in the course, (2) distinguish among the moral
theories studied in the course, (3) apply moral theories to specific contemporary moral problems, (4)
identify major points and arguments of an essay in moral philosophy, and (5) critically analyze and
evaluate moral arguments.
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Text
Steven M. Cahn, Exploring Ethics: An Introductory Anthology. Oxford University Press, 2009, ISBN:
978-0-19-994658-7
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Course Requirements
Students will complete four exams over the course of the semester (100 points each).
Grade breakdown:
Exam 1:
100
Exam 2:
100
Exam 3:
100
Exam 4:
100
Total:
400
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A = 360 – 400
B = 359 – 320
C = 280 – 319
D = 240 – 279
F = 0 – 239
Each exam will require students to write essays and respond to short answer questions over the
material covered since the exam before. Students will receive a handout of possible essay questions a
week before the exam. I will place a subset of these possible essay questions on the exam for you to
answer—likely three from which you must answer two (worth 25 points each; 50 points total). The
remainder of the 100 points will consist of your answers to the short answer questions (50 points
total). The exams will not only test your knowledge of the material but also your ability to think
critically about the material.
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Make-Up Policy
Students missing an exam because of an emergency will be permitted to take make-up exams only
when they have documentation of the (e.g., a physician’s note). Make-up exams will involve different
questions from those that appear on the original exam.
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Attendance Policy
There is no official attendance policy in this course. However, students who attend regularly will
likely do better on the exams since some of the material covered in class is fairly difficult. Part of my
task as an instructor is to explain difficult material and generate discussion. If you do not attend
class, you will not benefit from either. I will take attendance so that when it comes time to submit
grades I will have record of those who regularly attended class. Attending class regularly will only
help your grade. I will be more inclined to bump a student’s grade in borderline cases (e.g., from a
high B+ to an A), if the student has faithfully attended class.
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UCO Student Information Sheet
http://www.uco.edu/academic‐affairs/files/aa‐forms/StudentInfoSheet.pdf
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Tentative Reading Schedule
UNIT 1: CHALLENGES TO MORALITY
Wed
8/19
Course Introduction
Wed
8/26
5. “How Not Answer Moral Questions,” Tom Regan
6. “God and Morality,” Steven M. Cahn
7. “The Challenge of Cultural Relativism,” James Rachels
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Wed
9/2
8. “Right and Wrong,” Thomas Nagel
9. “Egoism and Moral Skepticism,” James Rachels
11. “The Nature of Ethical Disagreement,” Charles L. Stevenson
UNIT 2: MORAL THEORIES
Wed
9/9
12. “The Categorical Imperative,” Immanuel Kant
13. “A Simplified Account of Kant’s Ethics,” Onora O’Neill
*EXAM 1*
Wed
9/16
14. “Utilitarianism,” John Stuart Mill
15. “The Strengths and Weaknesses of Utilitarianism,” Louis P. Pojman
Wed
9/23
16. “The Nature of Virtue,” Aristotle
17. “Virtue Ethics,” Bernard Mayo
18. “The Ethics of Care,” Virginia Held
Wed
9/30
19. “The Social Contract,” Thomas Hobbes
20. “A Theory of Justice,” John Locke
*EXAM 2*
UNIT 3: MORAL PROBLEMS, PART 1
Wed
10/7
21. “A Defense of Abortion,” Judith Jarvis Thomson
22. “On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion,” Mary Ann Warren
23. “Why Abortion is Immoral,” Don Marquis
Wed
10/14 25. “Active and Passive Euthanasia,” James Rachels
26. “The Intentional Termination of Life,” Bonnie Steinbock
Wed
10/21 27. “Famine, Affluence, and Morality,” Peter Singer
28. “World Hunger and Moral Obligation: The Case Against Singer,” John Arthur
Wed
10/28 29. “Terrorism,” Michael Walzer
30. “Is Terrorism Distinctively Wrong?,” Lionel K. McPherson
UNIT 4: MORAL PROBLEMS, PART 2
Wed
11/4
Wed
11/11 33. “The Morality of Capital Punishment,” Walter Berns
34. “The Death Penalty as a Symbolic Issue,” Stephen Nathanson
Wed
11/18 35. “The Case for Animal Rights,” Tom Regan
31. “Torture,” Henry Shue
32. “Ticking Bombs, Torture, and the Analogy of Self-Defense,” Daniel J. Hill
*EXAM 3*
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36. “Why Animals Have No Rights,” Carl Cohen
37. “Speaking of Animal Rights,” Mary Ann Warren
Wed
11/25 NO CLASS, THANSKGIVING BREAK
Wed
12/2
Wed
12/9
38. “We are What We Eat,” Tom Regan
39. “Philosophical Problems for Environmentalism,” Elliott Sober
*EXAM 4* (Exam time: 5:30-7:20)
Transformational Learning Outcomes
University of Central Oklahoma is a learning-centered organization committed to transformative education through active engagement in the teachinglearning interchange, scholarly and creative pursuits, leadership, global competency, healthy lifestyles, and service to others. This course addresses two
of the university’s transformative learning goals: leadership and scholarly and creative pursuits.
UCO subscribes to the Turnitin.com plagiarism prevention service. Students agree that by taking this course, all required assignments may be subject
to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted assignments will be included as source
documents in the Turnitin.com restricted access reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such assignments. Use of Turnitin.com
service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of use posted on the Turnitin.com website. Turnitin.com is just one of various plagiarism prevention
tools and methods which may be utilized by your faculty instructor during the terms of the semesters. In the UCO Student Handbook there is a
process for contesting any plagiarism allegations against you.
CORE CURRICULUM COURSE: This course is a Critical Inquiry Core Course and fulfills one of the core curriculum requirements of the
university. It emphasizes ethical and critical thinking skills necessary for interpreting the self in relation to culture and society. This course will
introduce students to the major moral theories; seminal ideas that have shaped our world. This course stresses the teaching of intellectual inquiry
concerning moral issues as a way of knowing how to live in an expanding world community. This course addresses a philosophic study of the major
moral theories, their application to contemporary moral problems, and includes the study of both inductive and deductive reasoning as well as logical
fallacies.
Plagiarism Statement: UCO subscribes to the Turnitin.com prevention service. Students agree that by taking this course, all required subject
assignments may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to the Turnitin.com restricted access reference database for the purpose of
detecting plagiarism of such assignments. Use of Turnitin.com service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of use posted on the Turnitin.com
website. Turnitin.com is just one of various plagiarism prevention tools and methods which may be utilized by your faculty instructor during the terms
of the semesters. In the UCO Handbook there is a process for contesting any plagiarism allegations against you.
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