Instructor: Brian Carver
Email: bwcarver at earthlink dot net
Course Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~bwcarver/
Instant Message me at: AIM: thelogicdude
MSN, Yahoo!, and Jabber: brianwcarver
REQUIRED TEXTS: Pojman, Louis P. Life and Death: A Reader in Moral Problems. 2nd Edition. Wadsworth Publishing (2000) ISBN:0-534-50825-1.
Various additional texts are on reserve at the LBCC Library or online.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
(1) Exam #1 on Ethical Theories (25%): Monday, June 17.
(2) Exam #2 on Abortion (25%): Monday, July 1.
(3) Exam #3 on Animal Rights (25%): Monday, July 15.
(4) Exam #4 on War (25%): Thursday, July 25.
Exams will be based on the readings and lectures and will typically consist of 50 multiple-choice questions. True/False, Short Answer, Fill-in-the-blank, Matching, and Essay questions may also appear. My multiple-choice tests are challenging. Hence, if the class average on an exam is under 75%, I will curve the grades up to make the class average 75%. I do not curve downwards.
Make-up Work: Make-up exams will not be given. If you know you must miss an exam, you should arrange with me to take it in advance. No work of any kind will be accepted after the final exam date.
Attendance: Attendance is expected. Quality class participation and an excellent attendance record may be used to resolve borderline cases.
Drop Policy: The college has determined the last day to drop without a "W" and the last day to drop with a "W". Check with Admissions to determine these dates. I will only add students who are present on the first day of class, and only if space permits.
Academic Honesty: I assume you are familiar with the College's policies on Academic Honesty. I consider it my responsibility in cases of academic dishonesty to respond with the most severe penalty.
Students with disabilities: Students with disabilities who may need accommodations for any sort of disability are invited to make an appointment to see me.
Changes to this Syllabus: It is my intention to follow this syllabus as closely as possible. If a change is necessary this will be discussed in class. For this reason, if you are absent, it is your responsibility to contact me or a fellow student to stay abreast of the class/exam schedule.
Schedule
Introduction
6/3 M: Introduction and Reading Philosophy
Ethical Theories
6/4 T: Plato – Euthyphro (Online/On Reserve)
6/5 W: William H. Shaw – Relativism in Ethics (Handout/On Reserve)
6/6 R: Louis Pojman – A Defense of Ethical Objectivism (43)
6/10 M: John Stuart Mill – Utilitarianism (18)
6/11 T: James Rachels – The Debate over Utilitarianism (On Reserve)
6/12 W: Thomas Hobbes – Contractual Ethics (25)
6/13 R: Onora O'Neill – A Simplified Account of Kant's Ethics (On Reserve)
6/17 M: EXAM 1 on Ethical Theories
Abortion
6/18 T: The U.S. Supreme Court – Excerpts from Roe v. Wade (1973) (On Reserve)
6/19 W: John T. Noonan, Jr. – Abortion Is Morally Wrong (235)
6/20 R: Judith Jarvis Thomson – A Defense of Abortion (240)
6/24 M: Baruch Brody – Against an Absolute Right to Abortion (252)
6/25 T: Mary Anne Warren – The Personhood Argument in Favor of Abortion (261)
6/26 W: Don Marquis – Why Abortion is Immoral (279)
6/27 R: Gerald H. Paske – Abortion and the Neo-natal Right to Life... (293)
7/1 M: EXAM 2 on Abortion
Animal Rights
7/2 T: Immanuel Kant – We Have Only Indirect Duties to Animals (398)
7/3 W: Peter Singer – All Animals Are Equal (400)
7/4 R NO CLASS
7/8 M: R. G. Frey – A Utilitarian Critique of Animal Rights (411)
7/9 T: Tom Regan – The Radical Egalitarian Case for Animal Rights (422)
7/10 W: Mary Anne Warren - Difficulties with the Strong Animal Rights Position (445)
7/11 R: James Rachels – Vegetarianism and “The Other Weight Problem” (457)
7/15 M: EXAM 3 on Animal Rights
War
7/16 T: Robert Phillips – Just War Theory (472)
7/17 W: Various Authors – What We're Fighting For: A Letter From America (Online)
7/18 R: Jan Narveson – A Critique of Pacifism (479)
7/22 M: Cheyney Ryan – A Defense of Pacifism (489)
7/23 T: US Catholic Bishops – Against the Use of Nuclear Weapons (493)
7/24 W: Charles Krauthammer – On Nuclear Morality (499)
7/25 R: EXAM 4 on War