Moral Responsibility
PHIL 306-01 | ID 11274 | MR 12:30-1:50 | Alger 106 | Fall 2012
Course Syllabus
Instructor: Dr. Aaron Smuts | asmuts@ric.edu | office hours: 219 Alger Hall, 12:15-1:45 T
Description
http://tinyurl.com/moralresp12
Many think that it's appropriate to punish criminals because they deserve it. "They've got it coming to them." In contrast, we don't think that it's appropriate to retributively punish non-human animals. You don't lock a dog in a cage until it has paid for its sin. No, you condition animals. They aren't responsible in the same way. Unlike dogs, we think that humans can be moral responsible for their actions.
In this class, we will explore the nature of moral responsibility and look at several related puzzles. We will spend a few classes on free will. But this is not our focus. We will look at the major compatibilist contenders and how they approach questions such as the following:
1. What is moral responsibility? Is there just one kind of moral responsibility?
2. What must something have to be morally responsible? Does moral responsibility require control or the ability to do otherwise?
3. What is the significance of moral luck? (Why is an unlucky drunk driver any more responsible than a lucky drunk who makes it home safely?)
4. Does normative ignorance excuse the wrongdoer? Are we blameworthy for doing what we think is right? (Does a dedicated, well-meaning Nazi deserve blame?)
5. Conversely, should we sometimes act against our best judgment? (Is Huck Finn praiseworthy for not turning in Jim?)
6. Are we responsible for our attitudes, emotions, and concerns?
7. What distinguishes the moral responsibility of animals from that of normal adult humans? Should we retributively punish animals? What about children?
8. Are psychopaths morally responsible for their actions?
This course presupposes no background in free will, though students will be expected to familiarize themselves with the area once the semester begins. I recommend reading the first few chapters of Kane's short introductory book on free will this summer.
Texts
There are two required texts for this course:
Gary Watson, ed. Free Will (Oxford Readings in Philosophy) (Oxford UP, 2003). ISBN-10: 019925494X. [GWFW] [buy]
Derk Pereboom, ed. Free Will. Hackett, 2009. ISBN-10: 1603841296. [DPFW] [buy]
There is one recommended book for background:
Robert Kane. A Contemporary Introduction to Free Will (Oxford UP, 2005). ISBN-10: 019514970X. [CI] [buy]
I will post numerous additional readings on Blackboard. [BB]
Coursework
There will be (a) fifteen 1 pagers, (b) some simple quizzes, (c) two take-home exams, and (d) a term paper. (a) The 1 pagers will typically be due at the start of class on Thursday. These merely ask you to present an argument in no more than a page. You should define the key terms and formalize the important arguments in the reading. I don't need paragraphs. Do not evaluate the arguments here. (b) On Mondays we will have a simple quiz on the assigned reading. (c) The take-home exams ask you to explain arguments and objections. An explanation provides background details that a mere presentation does not. The exams will help you develop fundamental skills of exposition and competency with the subject. (d) The term paper is your chance to go deeper into a problem. If should defend a clear thesis. It must take a stand on an issue. You should be working on your paper from the beginning of the semester. Start thinking about a topic now. You must turn in an abstract and an outline one month before (W: 11/14) the paper is due (S: 12/15).
20% = First Take-home Exam
25% = Second Take-home Exam
15% = 15 (out of 15 possible) 1 Page Formalizations (for readings marked " 1 Pager")
5% = 10 (out of 14 possible) Monday quizzes
5% = Term Paper abstract and outline [due W: 11/14]
30% = Term Paper (13-15 pages; 4,000-4500 words) [due S: 12/15]
Attendance Policy
If you miss 6 or more classes, you will receive a 0 for your quiz grade. If you miss 12 or more classes, you will receive an F for the course. (There are no excused or unexcused absences. But please talk to me if something major comes up that will dramatically affect your attendance.)
Laptop Policy
Laptop use is prohibited. The same goes for tablet computers. Consider this rehab for Facebook addiction. You should print the articles posted on Blackboard and bring them to class.
Academic Honesty
Plagiarism—claiming someone else’s ideas or written work as your own—will not be tolerated. The tests are not collaborative. All sources must be cited. Outside research is not forbidden, but none of the assignments ask for sources outside the assigned readings. Anyone caught cheating will be given a failing grade in the course. I will also report you to the Vice President of Academic Affairs.
Class Schedule
Topic I: A Quick Introduction to Free Will and Moral Responsibility
Week 1
C01 (M: 8/27) Overview
{Background: Kane, A Contemporary Introduction, chs.1-4 [CI]}
C02 (R: 8/30) Libertarianism
Campbell, "Has the Self 'Free Will'?" (excerpt from On Selfhood and Godhood) [BB] à 1 Pager (#1)
Chisholm, "Human Freedom and the Self" [BB]
{Background: Kane, ch.4 "Libertarianism, Indeterminism, and Chance" [CI]}
{Background: Kane, ch. 5 "Minds, Selves, and Agent Causes" [CI]}
{Optional: O'Connor, "Agent Causation" [GWFW]}
{Optional: Reid, selections [BB]}
{Optional: Kane, "Free Will: New Directions for an Ancient Problem" [BB]}
Week 2
CXX (M: 9/3) *NO CLASS: Labor Day
C03 (R: 9/6) Free Will Skepticism
Galen Strawson, "The Impossibility of Moral Responsibility" à 1 Pager (#2)
{Background: Kane, ch.7 "Hard Determinists and Other Skeptics" [CI]}
{Optional: Robert Audi, "Responsible Action and Virtuous Character" [BB]}
Week 3
C04 (M: 9/10) Incompatibilism
Van Inwagen, "The Incompatiblity of Free Will and Determinism" [GWFW]
{Background: Kane, ch. 3 "Incompatibilism" [CI]}
Topic II: Contemporary Compatibilisms
C05 (R: 9/13) Alternative Possibilities
Hume, selections [DPFW]
Frankfurt, "Alternate Possibilities and Moral Responsibility" [GWFW] à 1 Pager (#3)
{Background: Kane, ch. 8 "Moral Responsibility and Alternative Possibilities" [CI]}
Week 4
C06 (M: 9/17) Frankfurt-Style Compatibilism
Frankfurt, "Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person" [GWFW]
{Optional: Charles Taylor, "Self-Interpreting Animals" [BB]}
C07 (R: 9/20) Real Self Views
Watson, "Free Agency" [GWFW] à 1 Pager (#4)
Week 5
C08 (M: 9/25) Criticism of Real Self Views
Wolf, "Sanity and the Metaphysics of Responsibility" [GWFW] à 1 Pager (#5)
CXX (R: 9/27) *NO CLASS
David Shoemaker, "Care, Identification, and Agency" [BB]
Week 6
C09 (M: 10/1) Reactive Attitudes
Peter Strawson, "Freedom and Resentment" [DPFW]
{Background: Kane, Ch. 10 "Reactive Attitude Theories" [CI]}
C10 (R: 10/4) The Objective Attitude
Watson, "Responsibility and the Limits of Evil" [BB] à 1 Pager (#6)
{Optional: Sommers, "The Objective Attitude" [BB]}
Week 7
CXX (M: 10/8) Columbus Day: No Class (meets Tuesday)
C11 (T: 10/9) Semi-Compatibilism
Fischer, "Frankfurt Style Compatibilism"
Fischer, "Moderate Reasons Responsiveness" [BB]
{Optional: Fischer, "Responsiveness and Moral Responsibility" [BB]}
C12 (R: 10/11) The Four Case Argument
Pereboom, "Determinism Al Dente" à 1 Pager (#7)
{Optional: Kane, The Significance of Free Will, Ch.6 "Significance" [BB]}
Week 8
C13 (M: 10/15) Reasons and Attributionism
Nomy Arpaly, UnPrincipled Virtue, Ch.3 "Moral Worth" [BB]
C14 (R: 10/18) Aretaic Appraisal
Watson, "Two Faces of Responsibility" [BB] à 1 Pager (#8)
{Optional: Adams, "Involuntary Sins" [BB]}
{Optional: Beardsley, Determinism [BB]}
Week 9
C15 (M: 10/22) Responsibility for Attitudes
Angela M. Smith, "Responsibility for Attitudes" [BB]
C16 (R: 10/25) Caring and Volitional Necessity
Frankfurt, "On Caring" [BB] à 1 Pager (#9)
{Optional: Justin Oakley, "Responsibility of Person for Their Emotions" [BB]}
{Optional: Shoeman, "The Problem of Induced Desires" [BB]}
{Optional: Sankowski, "Love and Moral Obligation" [BB]}
{Optional: Eugene Schlossberger, "Why We Are Responsible for Our Emotions" [BB]}
{Optional: Blum, "Will, Self, and Emotion" [BB]}
Week 10
C17 (M: 10/29) Attributability, Answerability, and Accountability
David Shoemaker, "Attributability, Answerability, and Accountability" [BB]
{Optional: Angela M. Smith, " Attributability, Answerability, and Accountability: In Defense of a Unified Account" [BB]}
{Optional: Christine Tappolet, "Autonomy and the Emotions" [BB]}
{Optional: Smuts, "Love and Free Will" [BB]}
Topic III: Luck and Ignorance
C18 (R: 11/1) The Philosopher
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Book III [BB] à 1 Pager (#10)
Week 11
C19 (M: 11/5) Moral Luck
Nagel, "Moral Luck" [BB]
{Optional: Williams, "Moral Luck" [BB]}
C20 (R: 11/8) Culpable Ignorance
Holly Smith, "Culpable Ignorance" [BB] à 1 Pager (#11)
{Optional: Beardsley, "Blaming" [BB]}
Week 12
CXX (M: 11/12) *NO CLASS (meets Wednesday)
C21 (W: 11/14) Ignorance and Skepticism
Gideon Rosen, "Culpability and Ignorance" [BB]
http://philosophybites.com/2010/11/gideon-rosen-on-moral-responsibility.html
*DUE: TERM PAPER ABSTRACT AND OUTLINE
C22 (R: 11/15) Culpable Ignorance
William FitzPatrick, "Moral Responsibility and Normative Ignorance" [BB] à 1 Pager (#12)
Week 13
C23 (M: 11/20) Culpable Ignorance
Elizabeth Harman, “Does Moral Ignorance Exculpate?” [BB] à 1 Pager (#13)
CXX (R: 11/22) - Thanksgiving Break: No Class
Topic IV: Akrasia
Week 14
C24 (M: 11/27) Akrasia
Richard Holton, "Intention and Weakness of Will" [BB]
{Optional: Davidson, "How Is Weakness of the Will Possible?" [BB]}
{Optional: Plato, Protagoras [BB] }
C25 (R: 11/29) Akrasia
Alfred Mele, "Weakness of the Will and Akrasia" [BB] à 1 Pager (#14)
Week 15
C26 (M: 12/3) Huck Finn, Himmler, and Brimstone
Jonathan Bennett, "The Conscience of Huckleberry Finn" [BB]
Nomy Arpaly, Unprincipled Virtue, Ch.1 "The Complexity of Moral Psychology" [BB]
C27 (R: 12/8) Inverse Akrasia
Nomy Arpaly, Unprincipled Virtue, Ch.2 "On Acting Rationally against One's Best Judgment" [BB] à 1 Pager (#15)
(S: 12/15) *DUE: TERM PAPER