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ETHICSOC 20: Introduction to Moral Philosophy (PHIL 2)

A survey of moral philosophy in the Western tradition. What makes right actions right and wrong actions wrong? What is it to have a virtuous rather than a vicious character? What is the basis of these distinctions? Why should we care about morality at all? Our aim is to understand how some of the most influential philosophers (including Aristotle, Kant, and Mill) have addressed these questions, and by so doing, to better formulate our own views. No prior familiarity with philosophy required. Fulfills the Ethical Reasoning requirement.
Terms: Win | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-A-II, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 10SC: The Meaning of Life: Moral and Spiritual Inquiry through Literature

Short novels and plays will provide the basis for reflection on ethical values and the purpose of life. Some of the works to be studied are F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, George Bernard Shaw's Major Barbara, Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha, Jane Smiley's Good Will, Robert Bolt's A Man for All Seasons, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, and Nadine Gordimer's None to Accompany Me. We will read for plot, setting, character, and theme using a two-text method; looking at the narrative of the literary work and students' own lives, rather than either deconstructing the literature or relating it to the author's biography and psychology. The questions we will ask have many answers. Why are we here? How do we find meaningful work? What can death teach us about life? What is the meaning of success? What is the nature of true love? How can one find balance between work and personal life? How free are we to seek our own destiny? What obligations do we have to others? We will draw from literature set in the United States and elsewhere; secular and religious world views from a variety of traditions will be considered. The authors chosen are able to hold people up as jewels to the light, turning them around to show all of their facets, both blemished and pure, while at the same time pointing to any internal glow beneath the surface. Classes will be taught in a Socratic, discussion-based style. Study questions will accompany each reading and provide a foundation for class discussion. Grading will be based 50 percent on class participation, 25 percent on one-page reflection papers on reading assignments, and 25 percent on a four-page final paper due on September 15. Field trips will include an overnight camping experience.
| Units: 2

ETHICSOC 131S: Modern Political Thought (POLISCI 131L)

This course offers an introduction to the history of Western political thought from the late fifteenth through the nineteenth centuries. We will consider the development of ideas like individual rights, government by consent, and the protection of private property. We will also explore the ways in which these ideas continue to animate contemporary political debates. Thinkers covered will include: Niccolò Machiavelli, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Edmund Burke, John Stuart Mill, and Karl Marx.
Terms: Spr | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-ER
Instructors: ; McQueen, A. (PI)

ETHICSOC 136R: Introduction to Global Justice (INTNLREL 136R, PHIL 76, POLISCI 336)

Recent work in political theory on global justice. Topics include global poverty, human rights, fair trade, immigration, climate change. Do developed countries have a duty to aid developing countries? Do rich countries have the right to close their borders to economic immigrants? When is humanitarian intervention justified? Readings include Charles Beitz, Thomas Pogge, John Rawls.
Last offered: Spring 2012 | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 170: Ethical Theory (PHIL 170, PHIL 270)

A more demanding version of Phil. 2. Designed for juniors, seniors, and first-year graduate students who are new to moral philosophy. May be appropriate for some freshmen and sophomores (contact professor). Fulfills the Ethical Reasoning requirement.
Terms: Spr | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-A-II, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 171: Justice (IPS 208, PHIL 171, PHIL 271, POLISCI 3P, POLISCI 136S, POLISCI 336S, PUBLPOL 103C, PUBLPOL 307)

Focus is on the ideal of a just society, and the place of liberty and equality in it, in light of contemporary theories of justice and political controversies. Topics include financing schools and elections, regulating markets, discriminating against people with disabilities, and enforcing sexual morality. Counts as Writing in the Major for PoliSci majors.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4-5 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 174A: Moral Limits of the Market (PHIL 174A, PHIL 274A, POLISCI 135P)

Morally controversial uses of markets and market reasoning in areas such as organ sales, procreation, education, and child labor. Would a market for organ donation make saving lives more efficient; if it did, would it thereby be justified? Should a nation be permitted to buy the right to pollute? Readings include Walzer, Arrow, Rawls, Sen, Frey, Titmuss, and empirical cases.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-A-II, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 178M: Introduction to Environmental Ethics (ETHICSOC 278M, PHIL 178M, PHIL 278M, POLISCI 134L)

This course examines the following ethical questions about the environment: (1) how we ought morally to relate to animals; (2) attempts to expand the circle of moral concern beyond animals to other parts of nature; (3) economic approaches to environmental problems (e.g. cost-benefit analysis) and the justification of the precautionary principle; and (4) our moral obligations to future people. The class will conclude by considering whether the theoretical tools that we have examined help to address the problems of climate change, one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time.
Terms: Win | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-ER
Instructors: ; Kim, H. (PI)

ETHICSOC 180M: Collective Action: Ethics and Policy (PHIL 73, PUBLPOL 304A)

Individually rational actions can give rise to results that are collectively irrational. For example, the collective result of our consumption decisions is to warm the planet, destroy the world's fisheries, and increase reliance on factory farming; at the same time, the decisions of a single individual seem to have no tangible effect on such things. In light of this, what (if anything) are you as an individual required to do in these and other collective action situations, especially when others are not doing their part to prevent things from getting out of control? For example, are you required to reduce your carbon footprint and avoid products that are produced in ethically objectionable ways? Do you have a duty to vote? Is free-riding always ethically objectionable? Can you be required to 'cooperate' in a situation where you know that most others will 'defect'? Finally, from a real-world policy perspective, how can we bring about the best solutions to these and other collective action problems? Is the best policy response always a straightforward function of the variable features of each case? Interdisciplinary readings from authors in philosophy, politics, economics, and law such as Elinor Ostrom, Peter Singer, and Cass Sunstein.
Terms: Win | Units: 2-4 | UG Reqs: WAY-ER
Instructors: ; Budolfson, M. (PI)

ETHICSOC 182M: Business Ethics (PHIL 74)

What do people mean when they say, "it's just business"? Do they mean that there are no moral norms in business or do they mean that there are special moral norms in business that differ from those of personal relationships and other spheres of social activity? In this class we will examine ethical questions that arise in the domain of business. We will ask, for example: What does the market reward and what should it reward? What are the moral responsibilities of a business owner in a competitive environment? Is it acceptable to employ ¿sweatshop labor¿? How do the moral responsibilities of a business owner differ from that of a policy maker? What information does a seller (or buyer) have a moral duty to disclose? In real estate, is a strategic default morally wrong? How much government regulation of Wall Street is morally justified? We will use the writings of Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, J. S. Mill, Marx, Jevons and Menger, Hayek, Walzer, and Sandel, among others, to help us answer these questions. We will see, for example, what Aristotle thought about day trading.
Terms: Spr | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-ER
Instructors: ; Braynen, W. (PI)

ETHICSOC 183M: Family, Friends, and Groups: The Ethics of Association (POLISCI 132C)

The practice of associating with others is a fundamental part of human existence. We cultivate friendships, we grow up in families, we work for nonprofit associations or businesses, we join social movements and sport clubs, and we participate in political associations with our fellow citizens. This seminar explores the ethical dimensions of association. What grounds a right to freedom of association? Do we have, beyond a right, also a duty to participate in associational life? Do we have special obligations towards our friends, family members, or fellow-citizens that we do not have toward strangers? To what extent should the internal life of private associations, such as families or churches, be regulated by the state? Should the state support, through tax-exemptions and subsidies, the nonprofit associations of civil society? Can a state exclude non-citizens, such as immigrants, in the same way in which a private club excludes non-members? These questions have wide-ranging implications for contemporary political and legal debates.
Terms: Spr | Units: 4
Instructors: ; Cordelli, C. (PI)

ETHICSOC 185M: Contemporary Moral Problems (PHIL 72, POLISCI 134P)

As individuals and as members of societies, we make choices that can be assessed from the moral point of view. What choices should we make, and how should we make them? Topics will include: Is it ok to buy iThings when others lack basic nutrition? Does a preference for the taste of meat justify killing and eating animals? Under what circumstances, if any, is abortion morally permissible? Should employers and schools be allowed to favor minority candidates? Is a ban on trans fat morally impermissible paternalism? Readings for these and other topics will be drawn from contemporary philosophers such as Frances Kamm, Jeff McMahan, Robert Nozick, Debra Satz, Tommie Shelby, Peter Singer, and Judith Jarvis Thomson.
Terms: Spr | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: GER:EC-EthicReas, WAY-ER

ETHICSOC 190: Ethics in Society Honors Seminar (PHIL 178)

For students planning honors in Ethics in Society. Methods of research. Students present issues of public and personal morality; topics chosen with advice of instructor.
Terms: Win | Units: 3
Instructors: ; Reich, R. (PI)

ETHICSOC 199: Independent Studies in Ethics in Society

May be repeated for credit.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr | Units: 1-15 | Repeatable for credit

ETHICSOC 200A: Ethics in Society Honors Thesis

Limited to Ethics in Society honors students, who must enroll once in A and once in B.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr, Sum | Units: 1-5

ETHICSOC 200B: Ethics in Society Honors Thesis

Limited to Ethics in Society honors students, who must enroll once in A and once in B.
Terms: Aut, Win, Spr, Sum | Units: 1-5

ETHICSOC 201R: The Ethics of Storytelling: The Autobiographical Monologue in Theory, in Practice, and in the World (TAPS 158L, TAPS 358L)

Recently a theatrical monologuist gained notoriety when it was revealed that key aspects of one of his "autobiographical" stories had been fabricated. In this class another autobiographical monologuist -- who has himself lied many times in his theater pieces, without ever getting caught -- will examine the ethics of telling our life stories onstage. Does theatrical "truth" trump factual truth? We will interrogate several autobiographical works, and then -- through autobiographical pieces created in class -- we will interrogate ourselves.
Terms: Win | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: WAY-CE
Instructors: ; Kornbluth, J. (PI)

ETHICSOC 202R: Ethics and Politics (POLISCI 223F)

A discussion of critical ethical issues faced by American and other national leaders. Case studies of 20th- and 21st-century decisions, including those involved with violence (e.g., the use of drone missiles or torture to extract information from enemies), whistle-blowing in government (e.g., decisions to expose what was known about 9/11 in advance), disobedience of those in authority (e.g., Daniel Ellsberg's release of the Pentagon Papers), policies on distributing scarce goods in society (e.g. rationing health care), policies involving justice and equal treatment (e.g. affirmative action or gay marriage), policies regarding life and death (e.g., abortion and euthanasia laws), and others. Students will debate some of the key issues, relying on ethical principles that will be discussed each week, and develop their own case studies.
Terms: Win | Units: 5
Instructors: ; Maisel, L. (PI)

ETHICSOC 232T: Theories of Civil Society, Philanthropy, and the Nonprofit Sector (POLISCI 236, POLISCI 236S)

What is the basis of private action for the public good? How are charitablenndollars distributed and what role do nonprofit organizations andnnphilanthropic dollars play in a modern democracy? How do nongovernmental nnorganizations operate domestically and globally? The historical developmentnnand modern structure of civil society emphasizing philanthropy and thennnonprofit sector. Readings in political philosophy, political sociology, andnnpublic policy. WIM for PoliSci students who enroll in PoliSci 236S.
Terms: Spr | Units: 5
Instructors: ; Sievers, B. (PI)

ETHICSOC 237M: Politics and Evil (POLISCI 237M)

In the aftermath of the Second World War, the political theorist Hannah Arendt wrote that ¿the problem of evil will be the fundamental question of postwar intellectual life in Europe.¿ This question remains fundamental today. The acts to which the word ¿evil¿ might apply¿genocide, terrorism, torture, human trafficking, etc.¿persist. The rhetoric of evil also remains central to American political discourse, both as a means of condemning such acts and of justifying preventive and punitive measures intended to combat them. In this advanced undergraduate seminar, we will examine the intersection of politics and evil by considering works by philosophers and political theorists, with occasional forays into film and media. The thinkers covered will include: Hannah Arendt, Immanuel Kant, Niccolò Machiavelli, Friedrich Nietzche, and Michael Walzer.
Terms: Spr | Units: 5 | UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-ER
Instructors: ; McQueen, A. (PI)

ETHICSOC 278M: Introduction to Environmental Ethics (ETHICSOC 178M, PHIL 178M, PHIL 278M, POLISCI 134L)

This course examines the following ethical questions about the environment: (1) how we ought morally to relate to animals; (2) attempts to expand the circle of moral concern beyond animals to other parts of nature; (3) economic approaches to environmental problems (e.g. cost-benefit analysis) and the justification of the precautionary principle; and (4) our moral obligations to future people. The class will conclude by considering whether the theoretical tools that we have examined help to address the problems of climate change, one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time.
Terms: Win | Units: 5
Instructors: ; Kim, H. (PI)

ETHICSOC 280: Transitional Justice, International Criminal Tribunals, and the International Criminal Court (INTNLREL 180A, IPS 280)

Historical backdrop of the Nuremberg and Tokyo Tribunals. The creation and operation of the Yugoslav and Rwanda Tribunals (ICTY and ICTR). The development of hybrid tribunals in East Timor, Sierra Leone, and Cambodia, including evaluation of their success in addressing perceived shortcomings of the ICTY and ICTR. Examination of the role of the International Criminal Court and the extent to which it will succeed in supplanting all other ad hoc international justice mechanisms and fulfill its goals. Analysis focuses on the politics of creating such courts, their interaction with the states in which the conflicts took place, the process of establishing prosecutorial priorities, the body of law they have produced, and their effectiveness in addressing the needs of victims in post-conflict societies.
Terms: Spr | Units: 3-5
Instructors: ; Cohen, D. (PI)

ETHICSOC 301: Conflicts, Ethics, and the Academy

(Same as LAW 684) This experimental course looks at conflicts of interest and ethical issues as they arise within academic work. The participants will be drawn from schools and departments across the University in the hope that they will offer different examples of, and perspectives on, the issues we discuss. Topics will include the conflicts that arise from sponsored research, including choices of topics, shaping of conclusions, and nondisclosure agreements; issues of informed consent with respect to human subjects research, and the special issues raised by research conducted outside the United States; the ethics of the classroom and conflicts of interest implicating professor-student relationships. Representative readings will likely include Marcia Angell's work, Drug Companies and Doctors: A Story of Corruption, N.Y. Rev. Books, Jan. 15, 2009, and Is Academic Medicine for Sale? 342 N. Engl. J. Med. 1516 (2000) (and responses); William R. Freudenburg, Seeding Science, Courting Conclusions: Reexamining the Intersection of Science, Corporate Cash, and the Law, 20 Sociological Forum 3 (2005); Max Weber, Science as a Vocation; legal cases; the movie "Inside Job"; and conflict of interest policies adopted by various universities and professional organizations.nnnThe course will include an informal dinner. The goal of the course is to have students across disciplines think about the ethical issues they will confront in an academic or research career. Non-law students should enroll in ETHICSOC 301.
Terms: Spr | Units: 1-3

ETHICSOC 184M: Population Ethics (PHIL 71)

This course examines the ethical issues that surround the decision to have a child. These issues are both private and public. For example, should we even have children knowing the environmental impacts of doing so? What kinds of population policies can the state legitimately enforce? Can it legitimately forbid parents from having more than one child? Can it adopt policies to promote a larger population? Other questions the course will consider include: Is the genetic engineering of children acceptable? Can it be permissible to use abortion as a means of sex selection? If one does have children, who ought pay the costs of supporting them?
| Units: 4
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