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University of Waterloo

Department of Philosophy

Philosophy 110B: Ethics

and Value Theory

Winter 2014 (Section 002)Monday, Wednesday and Friday

11:30-12:20, Arts Lecture Hall 124

Instructor and Teaching Assistant Information Instructor: Benjamin Nelson

Office: Hagey Hall 360

Office Hours: Tuesday 2 PM

Email: bsnelson@uwaterloo.ca

Teaching Assistant: Peter Blouw Sara Weaver

Email pblouw@uwaterloo.ca sweaver@uwaterloo.ca

Office Hagey Hall 361 Hagey Hall 362

Office Hours TBA TBA

Course Description

“What is the good life? What is evil? What is the right thing to do? Is there an objective difference

between right and wrong?”

These are some of the questions that belong to ethics, value theory, and moral theory. This course is

about ethics in the Western philosophical tradition, which involves the study of virtue, goodness,

morality, and their inter relations. Most weeks will be dedicated to a new question. We will be looking at

the following topics: virtue ethics; moral psychology; value theory; consequentialism; deontology;

contractarianism; particularism; the ethics of care; the ethics of belief; and moral standing.

The aim of the course is to understand what makes each theory salient to everyday life, and to

understand the logical and practical consequences you might face once you adopt a given outlook.

Serious philosophical discussion of ethical quandaries will be peppered throughout the course, possibly

including the ethics of slavery, torture, euthanasia, terrorism, sexism, world poverty, animal ethics,

abortion, and civil disobedience.

Course Goals and Learning Outcomes

The main thing you’ll get out of this course is a knowledge of ethical philosophy. Secondary emphasis will

be on developing the ability to write concisely, argue effectively, and listen carefully. Students will need

to complete five assignments in the course: two blogging reports, two quizzes, and a final exam.

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

A. Argue in a concise and logical way. Two blog-style essays.

B. Articulate the main issues and problems in ethical theory. Readings and quizzes.

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C. Listen and read effectively. In-class participation. Readings.

Required Text

Ethical Theory: An Anthology, Second Edition (ed. Russ Shafer-Landau), Wiley-Blackwell

Available at the Bookstore, but reasonably priced used copies are also online through Amazon.ca.

You may use other versions of the material we are covering, but it is your job to make sure that you are

reading the correct parts, and to borrow a fellow student’s text (if need be) to ensure that’s the case.

DO NOT ASK THE PROFESSOR TO DO THIS FOR YOU!

iClickerThis course will take advantage of iClicker technology starting in week 2. Students must have an iClicker and bring it to class in order to receive their 15% participation grade. Please note that impersonation (i.e., using absent friend’s device to record their answers) is a serious infraction and can result in a suspension penalty.

Course Requirements and Assessment

Assessment Date of Evaluation (if known) WeightingQuiz 1 Week 3 10%Blog 1 Week 5 10%Quiz 2 Week 7 15%Blog 2 Week 9 20%Exam Finals Week 30%Participation N/A 15 %Total - 100%We will go over the ins and outs of the assignments in more detail as we get along in the term.

Quiz 1 Knowledge of Philosophy, moral motivation, virtue ethics

Blog 1Essay.

Quiz 2 Knowledge of value theory, consequentialism, rules and integrity

Blog 2Essay.

Final exam Knowledge of all course material

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Course Outline

Week Date Topic Readings Due

1 January Introduction to Ethics & Moral Philosophy None

2 January Moral motivation Plato (pages 127-137) Feinberg (pages 167-177)

3 January Virtue ethics & rational authority Aristotle (pages 620-9) Annas (pages 676-84)

4 January Value theory Mill (page 258-263) Nozick (pages 264-5) Parfit (pages 294-8) Ross (pages 299-302)

5 February Consequentialism Mill (pages 417-422) Smart (pages 423-7) Hare (pages 458-465)

6 February Rules and integrity Thomson (pages 543-552) Hooker (pages 428-39)

7 February Deontology Kant (pages 485-498) Foot (pages 536-542)

8 March The ethics of care Noddings (pages 699-712) Baier (pages 721-8) Frye (pages 729-34)

9 March Contractarianism Gauthier (pages 571-580) Scanlon (pages 593-608)

10 March Moral standing KantSingerFeinberg

11 March Particularism Ross (pages 756-762) Little (pages 776-784)

12 March-April Objectivity and moral reasoning SmithHarmanBrink

Late Work

All assignments are due at the beginning of lecture on the indicated due dates. Late submissions will be

penalized 10% PER DAY (including weekends). Students submitting late work must send Prof. Nelson an

e-mail with the submission as an attachment (functioning as a “time stamp”), and coordinate with him

the submission of the paper copy of the assignment.

Electronic Device Policy

LEARN is the main mode of communication for this course after lecture and e-mail. Prof. Nelson will be

posting notes, announcements, any possible changes to the reading schedule, and grades via LEARN. In

addition, quizzes will take place over LEARN. Students may also use the Discussion Boards to ask

questions about the readings or the assignments, and to coordinate study groups, etc. Because the

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LEARN site is so important, students are strongly encouraged to regularly access the site so as not to fall

behind.

Attendance Policy

Attendance is required in order to receive a participation grade (15%). iClicker is required to register

attendance.

Institutional-required statements for undergraduate course outlines approved by

Senate Undergraduate Council, April 14, 2009

Cross-listed course Please note that a cross-listed course will count in all respective averages no matter under which rubric it has been taken. For example, a PHIL/PSCI cross-list will count in a Philosophy major average, even if the course was taken under the Political Science rubric.

Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity: In order to maintain a culture of academic integrity, members of the University of Waterloo are expected to promote honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.

Discipline: A student is expected to know what constitutes academic integrity, to avoid committing academic offences, and to take responsibility for his/her actions. A student who is unsure whether an action constitutes an offence, or who needs help in learning how to avoid offences (e.g., plagiarism, cheating) or about “rules” for group work/collaboration should seek guidance from the course professor, academic advisor, or the Undergraduate Associate Dean. When misconduct has been found to have occurred, disciplinary penalties will be imposed under Policy 71 – Student Discipline. For information on categories of offenses and types of penalties, students should refer to Policy 71 - Student Discipline.

Grievance: A student who believes that a decision affecting some aspect of his/her university life has been unfair or unreasonable may have grounds for initiating a grievance. Read Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances, Section 4.

Appeals: A student may appeal the finding and/or penalty in a decision made under Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances (other than regarding a petition) or Policy 71 - Student Discipline if a ground for an appeal can be established. Read Policy 72 - Student Appeals.

Other sources of information for students Academic integrity (Arts) Academic Integrity Office (uWaterloo)

THE WRITING CENTRE There is a Writing Centre on campus that offers help to students who want to improve their writing skills: Writing Centre help

Accommodation for Students with Disabilities

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Note for students with disabilities: The AccessAbility Services office, located in Needles Hall Room 1132, collaborates with all academic departments to arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with the AS office at the beginning of each academic term.