Ethics (PHIL 1100)
Course Description
This course will introduce students to ethics and morality. We will discuss both ethical theory and applied ethics. Some questions we will explore are what (if any) the correct moral theory is, how we can apply ethical theory to contemporary societal issues, whether death is a harm, and whether we can harm someone who is dead.
Units
1. Introduction to Ethics and Logic.
2. Normative Theories, Value Theories, and Applied Ethics.
3. Life and Death.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
· Explain the key arguments, theories, and positions involved in ethics.
· Critically evaluate the above (assess the arguments, identify errors in reasoning, develop and respond to objections).
· Apply ethical theory to contemporary issues such as abortion, environmental concerns, physician assisted suicide, etc.
· Develop their own views and arguments and be able to subject them to critical evaluation.
· Understand how logic (i.e. valid and sound argumentation/reasoning) relates to ethical thinking and one’s own moral views about the world and our place in it.
· Write a good philosophy paper.
Materials/Readings
There is no required textbook for the course. All readings will be posted on Canvas. The readings will typically be fairly short but dense, so it is important to give yourself ample time to read each one. Most readings will be academic philosophy articles, but some will online articles from various sources.
Assignments/Grades
1. Reading assessments (20 percent)
We will have readings assigned for every Tuesday class session. You are required to do the reading before coming to class. Each time we have an assigned reading, we will have a reading assessment (the one exception will be for 3/23 since that is during the University’s spring pause week). The reading assessments will be due by midnight on Canvas the evening before the day the reading is assigned for. These will be fairly short and require a minimal time commitment if you’ve done the assigned reading. These will be graded as pass/fail. You will be allowed to miss two reading assessments without negatively impacting your grade (unless there are extenuating circumstances, in which case we will work out a way to accommodate this).
2. Papers (40 percent)
There will be two short papers over the course of the semester. Each paper should be about 3-4 double-spaced pages in length or about 1000 words. I will allow students to submit drafts in advance of when each paper is due, and we will spend a significant amount of time going over how to write a successful philosophy paper.
3. Attendance/participation (20 percent)
This course will be primarily discussion-based so it is important that you show up to class ready to participate and engage with the material. Attendance will be taken during every class session. You will be allowed 3 unexcused absences before your attendance/participation grade is negatively impacted. Of course, in the event of extenuating circumstances, we can work together to figure something out so your grade will not be negatively impacted.
4. Homework (20 percent)
We will have three homeworks over the course of the semester. These will be a combination of multiple-choice questions and short answer questions about the material covered over the weeks leading up to when the homework is due.
Submission Policies
All assignments should be submitted on Canvas. All assignments will be graded within a week of their due date. You will receive substantial comments on each of your papers and reading assessments.
Students are forbidden from using AI software such as ChatGPT for generating any kind of text for assignments. I will run student work through an AI software detector and may open an academic dishonesty investigation if an assignment comes back as highly likely to be AI-generated. If you are found to have used this software, you will receive a zero on the assignment. If this happens on multiple occasions, you will fail the course.
Classroom Behavior
Both students and faculty are responsible for maintaining an appropriate learning environment in all instructional settings, whether in person, remote or online. Those who fail to adhere to such behavioral standards may be subject to discipline. Professional courtesy and sensitivity are especially important with respect to individuals and topics dealing with race, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, political affiliation or political philosophy. For more information, see the policies on classroom behavior and the Student Code of Conduct.
Accommodation for Disabilities
If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit your accommodation letter from Disability Services to your faculty member in a timely manner so that your needs can be addressed. Disability Services determines accommodations based on documented disabilities in the academic environment. Information on requesting accommodations is located on the Disability Services website. Contact Disability Services at 303-492-8671 or dsinfo@colorado.edu for further assistance. If you have a temporary medical condition, see Temporary Medical Conditions on the Disability Services website.
Preferred Student Names and Pronouns
CU Boulder recognizes that students' legal information doesn't always align with how they identify. Students may update their preferred names and pronouns via the student portal; those preferred names and pronouns are listed on instructors' class rosters. In the absence of such updates, the name that appears on the class roster is the student's legal name.
Honor Code
All students enrolled in a University of Colorado Boulder course are responsible for knowing and adhering to the Honor Code. Violations of the policy may include: plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, lying, bribery, threat, unauthorized access to academic materials, clicker fraud, submitting the same or similar work in more than one course without permission from all course instructors involved, and aiding academic dishonesty. All incidents of academic misconduct will be reported to the Honor Code (honor@colorado.edu); 303-492-5550). Students found responsible for violating the academic integrity policy will be subject to nonacademic sanctions from the Honor Code as well as academic sanctions from the faculty member. Additional information regarding the Honor Code academic integrity policy can be found at the Honor Code Office website.
Sexual Misconduct, Discrimination, Harassment and/or Related Retaliation
The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) is committed to fostering an inclusive and welcoming learning, working, and living environment. CU Boulder will not tolerate acts of sexual misconduct (harassment, exploitation, and assault), intimate partner violence (dating or domestic violence), stalking, or protected-class discrimination or harassment by members of our community. Individuals who believe they have been subject to misconduct or retaliatory actions for reporting a concern should contact the Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance (OIEC) at 303-492-2127 or cureport@colorado.edu. Information about the OIEC, university policies, anonymous reportingLinks to an external site., and the campus resources can be found on the OIEC website.
Please know that faculty and graduate instructors have a responsibility to inform OIEC when made aware of incidents of sexual misconduct, dating and domestic violence, stalking, discrimination, harassment and/or related retaliation, to ensure that individuals impacted receive information about options for reporting and support resources for a variety of concerns, visit Don't Ignore It.
Religious Holidays
Campus policy regarding religious observances requires that faculty make every effort to deal reasonably and fairly with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments or required attendance. In this class, please contact me at least one week in advance if you are planning to miss class due to a religious observance.
See the campus policy regarding religious observances for full details.
Assignment and Reading Schedule
*All readings will be uploaded to Canvas or linked in the syllabus unless otherwise noted. If a reading is not linked in the syllabus, it will be under the files tab on Canvas.
Week 1 (Start of Unit 1: Introduction to Ethics and Logic)
Thursday 1/14:
No reading
Week 2
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 1/18**
Tuesday 1/19:
Chhanda Chakraborti “Introducing Ethics”
Thursday 1/21:
No reading
Week 3
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 1/25**
Tuesday 1/26:
James Rachels “Some Basic Points about Arguments”
Chhanda Chakraborti "What is Applied Ethics?"
Thursday 1/28:
No reading
Week 4
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 2/1**
Tuesday 2/2:
Walter Sinnott-Armstrong “Refutation”
Thursday 2/4:
No reading
Homework #1 due by midnight
Week 5 ( Start of Unit 2: Normative Theories, Value Theories, and Applied Ethics)
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 2/8**
Tuesday 2/9:
James Rachels “Ethical Egoism”
Peter Singer “Famine Affluence and Morality”
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 2/8**
Thursday 2/11:
No reading
Week 6
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 2/15**
Tuesday 2/16:
Chhanda Chakraborti “Classical Utilitarianism”
Robert Nozick “The Experience Machine”
Thursday 2/18:
No reading
Homework #2 due by midnight
Week 7
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 2/22**
Tuesday 2/23:
Louis Pojman “In Defense of the Death Penalty”
Jeffrey Reiman “Against the Death Penalty”
Thursday 2/25:
No reading
Week 8
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 3/1**
Tuesday 3/2:
James Rachels “The Social Contract Theory”
Chhanda Chakraborti “Virtue Ethics Aristotle”
Thursday 3/4:
No reading
Week 9
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 3/8**
Tuesday 3/9:
Chhanda Chakraborti “Ethics of Care”
Lisa Cassidy “That Many of Us Should Not Parent”
Thursday 3/11:
No reading
Homework #3 due by midnight
Week 10
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 3/15**
Tuesday 3/16:
Jessica Isserow “On Having Bad Persons as Friends”
Thursday 3/18:
No reading
Week 11
**NO READING ASSESSMENT**
Tuesday 3/23:
Onora O’Neill “A Simplified Account of Kant’s Ethics”
Thursday 3/25:
NO CLASS (University Wellness Day)
Week 12
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 3/29**
Tuesday 3/30:
Don Marquis “Why Abortion is Immoral”
Judith Thomson “A Defense of Abortion”
Thursday 4/1:
No reading
Week 13
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 4/5**
Tuesday 4/6:
Christine Korsgaard “Fellow Creatures: Kantian Ethics and Our Duties to Animals”
Peter Singer “All Animals are Equal”
Last day to submit paper #1 draft (by midnight)
Thursday 4/8:
No reading
Paper #1 due by midnight
Week 14
Tuesday 4/13:
John Harris “Consent and End of Life Decisions”
Sandra Woien “Conflicting Preferences and Advance Directives”
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 4/12**
Thursday 4/15:
No reading
Week 15 (Start of Unit 3: Life and Death)
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 4/19**
Tuesday 4/20:
George Pitcher “The Misfortunes of the Dead”
Thursday 4/22:
No reading
Week 16
**Reading Assessment due by midnight on 4/26**
Tuesday 4/27:
Thomas Nagel “Death”
David Suits “Why Death is Not Bad for the One Who Dies”
Thursday 4/29:
No reading
Last day to submit paper #2 draft (by midnight)
Tuesday 5/4:
Paper #2 due by midnight