INSTRUCTORS AND OFFICE INFORMATION: Stefan Sencerz, Ph.D.; FC 261; x2392; hours: MTW 11:57-1:27 and BA. E-mail: sencerz@falcon.tamucc.edu web: http://falcon.tamucc.edu/~sencerz/stefan.htm

TEXTS:  Tom Regan, Matters of Life and Death (3rd edition, 1993). Additional texts and outlines may be distributed in class or posted on line (some are password protected -- "hobbes"). Outlines for professional ethics: http://falcon.tamucc.edu/~sencerz/foundat_sum.htm (link)
Please remember that notes and outlines provided online are intended primarily as aids to the understanding of the lectures and readings. They do not cover all of the material on which you may be tested, and they do not contain complete accounts of the topics that are covered in lectures and readings. Merely memorizing the handouts will not enable you to pass the course.. If you miss a class, you are responsible for making sure that you have copies of any additional handout distributed in the class.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:  We will begin by studying the nature of philosophy and ethics. The main kinds of ethical theory will then be discussed. In the remainder of the course, we will put this background to use in an exploration of various ethical issues which arise in professional life (e.g., issues related to deception and paternalism, the morality of suicide and euthanasia, the abortion debate, social and environmental responsibilities of professionals, obligations to animals, etc.).

COURSE ORGANIZATION: Class meetings will consist of both lectures and discussions. I will make an honest effort to involve students in class. Questions, discussions, disagreements and arguments are expected and strongly encouraged at any time. Thus, we will allow ourselves to spend more time on an issue if we think it deserves the attention. Please check website for the changes in schedule.

OBJECTIVES

• Content: you should acquire some level of understanding of a variety of issues in moral theory and various moral problems that arise in professional practice and life.
• Skill: The course should develop a degree of proficiency in recognizing, evaluating and constructing moral arguments on more than one side of a moral issue.
• Motivation: We hope that you will acquire an interest in moral thought, which will lead you to continue thinking about ethical issues, and develop your own views on moral issues.

WHAT  YOU  WILL NEED TO DO TO SUCCEED IN THIS COURSE:

• Complete the assigned readings before the class for which they are assigned; complete all graded assignments.
• Attend the lectures, as well as the discussion-sections meetings. As a matter of courtesy and good etiquette, please arrive to class on time and remain in class until it is over.
• Listen actively, take notes. If something is unclear ask for the explanation. Review for all quizzes and exams. Many of the assignments will involve material covered only in the lectures (and not in the texts posted on the web), so lecture attendance is likely to have a significant impact on students' grades.
• Contribute to class discussion. Questions, disagreements and arguments are expected and strongly encouraged at any time.

GRADED ASSIGNMENTS AND ATTENDANCE

• 10% -- quiz (tentatively scheduled June 08)
• 20% -- the first test (June 15)
• 25% -- the final test (June 29)
• 15% -- attendance / in class work
• 30% -- a number of short assignments to be determined by the lecturer (these assignments may include quizzes, reading summaries, homework, case studies, etc.)
• Grading will be on the standard 90-100% = A, 80-89% = B, etc.

Attendance policy: 15% of your grade will be determined by the work you do in class. Sometimes this work will include a short exercise or case study. It may also include a short pop quiz verifying your preparation for the class. You can miss 1 of these assignments without penalty.

MAKE-UP TESTS AND INCOMPLETES: Make-up exams will be permitted at the discretion of the instructor (in general, the student must have a good verifiable reason for the request). Make-up test should be taken few days after the original test, at a time arranged with the instructor. Incompletes for the course will be given at the discretion of the instructor and will only be considered in cases where course work is nearly complete, and the student has a good excuse for not completing the course work by the end of the semester.

PLAGIARISM AND ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: As a student at TAMU-CC, you are bound by the student code of conduct. Cheating, plagiarism or any other form of academic dishonesty is grounds for failing the course

WEEK 1 (05/30-06/01)

• T Organization and general introduction; What Does It Mean To Prove an Ethical Point?; Parts and Structure of Ethical Inquiry
• W 2nd International Conference on Youth and Education for the 21st Century (UC): http://21stcenturyconference.tamucc.edu/2006ConferencePreliminaryProgram.pdf
  Last day to receive 80% refund on tuition and fees
• R Moral Philosophy: morality and other normative systems (e.g., law, religion)
  What does it mean to prove an Ethical Point
  • Readings: Shaw, The Nature of Morality ( suggested additional reading -- Feldman, "Morality and Ethics")
  • Introduction to Moral Philosophy (Ethics as a part of philosophy)
  • Rationality and Morality (Standards for evaluating ethical judgments, how can we reason about morality)
  • The Structure of Ethical Theory,

WEEK 2 (06/05-08)

• M Challenge of Relativism (continued)
  • Regan, Ethical Thinking and Theory (part on consistency of principles);  William Graham Sumner: Folkways (excerpt)
  • Ethical relativism, universalism, and absolutism
• T Normative Theories of Ethics -- Consequentialism
  • Regan , Introduction (Part I)
  • Plato, The Myth of Gyges; Rand: The Virtue of Selfishness; Mill, Mill, Utilitarianism
  • NORMATIVE ETHICS (I) (The Structure of Ethical Theory, Consequentialism, Classical Utilitarianism)
• W Normative Theories of Ethics -- Deontology
  • Regan, Introduction (Part II)
  • Kant, "Good Will, Duty..." ( The Categorical Imperative)
• R Normative Ethics (continued)
  • Quiz

WEEK 3 (06/12-15)  EUTHANASIA AND (ASSISTED) SUICIDE

• M The Concept of Euthanasia
  • (Read: Rachels, "Euthanasia" (Ch. 2, sections 1-3) ; Beauchamp "Suicide" (Ch. 3, Sec. I)
• T Arguments Supporting the Morality of Active Euthanasia (Ch. 2:4)
• W Arguments Opposing the Morality of Euthanasia (Ch 2:5)
• R Test

WEEK 4 (06/19-22)  THE ABORTION DEBATE

• M The Problem of Abortion, The Status of the Fetus
  • Joel Feinberg, "The Status of the Fetus" (chapter 6, sec. I)
• T The Status of Fetus Continued
• W The Problem of Conflict of Claims 
  • Feinberg, Chapter 6 (the rest)
• R TBA

WEEK 5 (06/26-06/30) ANIMALS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS

• M Extensionism
  • Peter Singer, All Animals Are Equal
  • Tom Regan, The Case for Animal Rights Sand 10 Reasons FOR and AGAINSTAnimal Rights and Their Explanation
• T Animal Rights Debate (The Problems with Extensionism; The Value of Animal Life)
  • Singer, Animals and the Value of Life (Ch 8)
  • Callicott, "The Search for an Environmental Ethics" (Ch. 9, especially sec. 3)
• W The Search For Environmental Ethics
  •  Callicott, "The Search for an Environmental Ethics" (Ch. 9)
• R -- THE FINAL TEST
• F - TBA

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