GLST/PHIL 210.2 - Values Analysis

Dr. Charles Ess
Office: Burnham 215
Campus phone: 7230
e-mail: cmess@lib.drury.edu
Office hours: MWF 9:00-11:00
or by appointment

Required Texts:

Judith Boss. Ethics for Life: An Interdisciplinary and Multicultural Introduction.

Arthur, John. Morality and Moral Controversies, 4th ed.

Optional Text:

Judith Boss. Perspectives on Ethics.

Reference (Olin Library Reference section)

The Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics (4 vols) - REF BJ 63 E44 1998

Web site:

http://www.drury.edu/faculty/ess/values/phil210.html

Web resource:

Ethics Updates (Lawrence Hinman, University of Southern California):

<http://ethics.acusd.edu/index.html>

CD-ROM resources (from Center for the Advancement of Applied Ethics, Carnegie Mellon University):

a right to die? the case of Dax Cowart

The Issue of Abortion in America

Allwyn Hall (conflict resolution)
 

What is moral philosophy?

"Moral philosophy arises when, like Socrates, we pass beyond the stage in which we are directed by traditional rules

and even beyond the stage in which these rules are so internalized that we can be said to be inner-directed,

to the stage in which we think for ourselves in critical and general terms (as the Greeks were beginning to do in Socrates' day) and achieve a kind of autonomy as moral agents." -- William Frankena

What is Values Analysis?

Outcomes: Values Analysis seeks to:

(1) develop an understanding of and ability to apply diverse models of ethical decision making;

(2) develop a commonly shared language and set of conceptual skills, including logical and critical thinking abilities for analyzing values issues;

(3) help students recognize the validity of diverse approaches to ethical decision-making;

(4) help students assume personal responsibility for their own value system, and

(5) help students make explicit the relationship between personal responsibility and participation in a democratic society.

logic and critical thinking;

ethical relativism, dogmatism, and pluralism;

at least three ethical theories representative of Western traditions; and at least one alternative theoretical approach (feminism, non-Western approaches, etc.).

Pedagogy: Values Analysis is writing-intensive; both formal and informal writing serve as the primary medium in which students will explore, reflect, and draw conclusions regarding values questions.

In addition, we will make use of computer-based resources, including the World Wide Web. (You will need an Internet account if you do not already have one: go to Computer Services, Burnham 202, for this.)

Does it work?

"I like knowing about what people think about things and why they think about things like they do. That's where I think philosophy will really help. I learned a lot in my philosophy class about how people think and why they think the way they do."

"I am a fairly conservative person, and for a long time, I believed in what I thought so strongly that I didn't want to admit that anyone else could be right. But during the past year, I have become a lot more open-minded. I stileve the way I do about abortion - I don't think it's right in any situation, and I am entitled to believe that. But, in this country, I am entitled to impose my view on anyone else.

"It was really hard for me to accept that. But once I accepted it, it opened a lot of doors - a lot of communication with others, where you can respect one another's opinions."

"In high school I did not like writing. But now, in college, I would rather sit down and write a paper than anything else. Dr. Charlie Ess, my philosophy teacher, told us the first day in class that you never know what you think about something until you write about it."

"Just sit down and write about something - and see it after you have written it - is a real sense of accomplishment. It's a thrill to read it and say, 'Yes, that is really what I believe and what I think.' And then to have others read it, it's almost like opening a window into your life for them."

Beyond helping to clarify your own understanding of who you are, what you really believe, and how you make ethical decisions -is this course of any value to you in "the real world"?

In addition to the student comments above, consider the following:

a) We constantly receive comments from graduates - including graduates who majored in other, more vocationally oriented programs - along these lines:

"When I first went to work in the ______ Office, I didn't think anything I'd learned in college had any application to my job. As I've progressed up the ladder - I now think the single most helpful class I took was the philosophy/religion course that taught me how to understand people's different perspectives and beliefs."

b) According to The New York Times, Dec. 26, 1997, Business Section: philosophy majors do better in the job market than most other majors in the arts and sciences: "Apparently people in the real world think philosophy majors are well trained. They are trained to think, to analyze. They express themselves well. They write."

While I do not intend for this course to turn you into a philosophy major - I do intend in this course to help you learn precisely these very practical philosophical skills.

1. Attendance: hard experience suggests that most of the time, you will be able to clarify those points which are unclear to you only if you come to class.

Accordingly, regular attendance is required. Every absence - for whatever reason - will result in the deduction of 1 percentage point from your final grade.

You can make up the work for a missed class in one of several ways: a writing exercise on the day's topics, a contribution to the class Web site, a report on an extra-curricular activity which helps us better understand an ethical theory, issue, etc. - or some alternative work which you and I will agree upon.

In my view, this class is (part of) your job. Employers do not pay employees for not showing up.

2. Essay/Writing assignments. The primary purpose of this course is to aid you in developing your ability to think about ethical issues. My own experience is that this thinking is best done through writing. Much of the homework in this class consists of writing assignments.

In addition to the formal essay assignments, there will be very frequent (more or less daily) informal writing assignments, including in-class "pre-writes" at the beginning of class, and occasional "post-writes" towards the end of class. "Pre-writes" will be used to help you focus on the ideas you will have read about for the day, so as to help get your thinking and class discussion started. "Post-writes" will be used to help you summarize class discussion.

Informal writing exercises will be graded quickly on a "check-plus-minus" basis. A check will indicate an average piece, i.e. a "C" or 75%. A plus will indicate an excellent, first-rate piece, calculated as an "A" or 95%. A minus will indicate a below-average piece, calculated as either 50%, 25%, or 0% (e.g., in the event that a piece is not turned in). These grades will be averaged together over the course of the semester: as a sum, they will constitute 20% of your final grade.

Formal essay assignments will be graded in light of content and minimal requirements for formal writing. These include: correct spelling and sentence structure; correct documentation of sources; good paragraph/paper organization. Excessive problems with formal writing requirements will result in the assignment being returned for rewriting before it is graded.

To get an initial idea of what I expect in writing, see the "Checklist for Assessing Student Writing," and the "Abbreviations used in writing assignment grading," attached to the Departmental policy statement on grading.

I grade each formal assignment on a 100 point scale (90-100 = A; 80-89 = B; 70-79 = C; 60-69 = D; below 60 = F). Usually I assign a letter grade, e.g., B+ (= 87.5), C (= 75), A- (= 92.5), etc. In addition, each assignment is given a certain "weight" -- i.e., a percentage figure which reflects its importance in the course. For example, the first writing assignment may count as 5% of your total grade. Your grade on that assignment is then multiplied by the percentage figure, resulting in a certain number of points.

For example, if you get a "B" (= 85) on the first writing assignment, and if that assignment is worth 5%, the point total would be (85 X .05) = 4.25.

If you are not satisfied with a grade on a writing assignment or exam, please discuss it with me. On the first and second writing assignment ONLY, you are welcome to improve your grade by rewriting an assignment. Rewrites of writing assignments must be turned in within one (1) week of the date the original assignment was returned to you.

Taken as a whole, your writing assignments will constitute 60% of your grade.

PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is defined in one source as "the presentation of someone else's ideas or words as your own." Examples of plagiarism include:

copying more than three words from someone else's writing and presenting it as your own;

summarizing or paraphrasing another person's idea/s -- but without acknowledging that person as the source of the idea/s

While you may not intend to plagiarize, you do so when you neglect to use quote marks and/or to document the original sources of idea/s you have summarized or paraphrased.

Plagiarism on a written assignment will result in an "F" for that assignment and require that you redo the assignment. Repeated instances of plagiarism will result in an "F" for the course and may be grounds for dismissal from Drury University.

To avoid plagiarism, pay careful attention to the requirements for documentation: see the Checklist, attached to the Departmental policy statement.

3. In-class presentations and class participation. About 20% of your final grade will depend on your participation in group work and class discussion.

Group work. You will work in a group of other students to develop summaries and critical observations of the many short selections we will read (see Approximate Syllabus, below). I will look for frequent comments, observations, and willingness to present group work in class discussion.

Class discussion includes asking questions, commenting on current topics, and becoming involved in discussion. Discussion will carefully follow the "Guidelines for Discussion," as posted on the Web site.

I keep a running record of your grades, and it is easy to calculate your current average. Please feel free to ask me about your current grade average at any point through the semester. As well, as a way of keeping you informed regarding your grade, I will pass out grade slips to you two or three times through the course of the semester. These should give you a very accurate idea of your progress in the class. 

(NOTE: this is a possible outline: but it is subject to change as determined by the instructor in consultation with the class, should interest in other topics and case studies warrant modifications.)

Date	Topic/s	Assignment	(Notes)
Jan. 15	Introduction to class		Terminology:  ontology/ metaphysics  epistemology
Jan. 19  Martin Luther King, Jr. Day	Is racism morally wrong?  Is Affirmative Action the Solution to Racism?	See Assignment, below
Jan. 20-22	Ethics and Philosophy:  What can we say about racism?  What ought we say about racism?	Boss, ch. 1, "Ethics: An Overview"	Case: *
Jan. 27-29	Logic and Argument	Boss, ch. 2, "Moral Reasoning"	Case: *

 

Feb. 3-5	Ethical Relativism	Boss, ch. 3, "Ethical Subjectivism"	Case: *
Feb. 10-12	Is "morality" entirely determined by cultural patterns?	Boss, ch. 4, "Cultural Relativism..."	Case: *
Feb. 17-19	Religion and morality;  various religious conceptions of morality;  does morality require religious commitments?	Boss, ch. 5, "Is Morality Grounded in Religion?"	Case: Thoreau, King, and Civil Disobedience  [--> Arthur, ch. 12]
Feb.24-26	Is "conscience" a reliable guide to moral judgments?	Boss, ch. 6, "Conscience and Moral Development"	Case: *
March 3-5	Morality as Universal  Ethical Egoism: Morality as self interest	Boss, ch. 7	Case: *
March 10-12  no classes - spring break
March 17-19	Utilitarianism: the good of the many outweigh the good of the few (Spock)	Boss, ch. 8  Arthur, ch. 6	Case: Euthanasia
March 24-26	Deontology: the ethics of duty	Boss, ch. 9	Case: *
March 31-April 2	Rights Ethics	Boss, ch. 10;  Arthur, ch. 4, "Relativism and Human Rights"	Case: *
April 7-9	Case A *		Case: *
April 14-16	Theory reconsidered: Virtue Ethics	Boss, ch. 11	Case: What is "the good life" for human beings?
April 21-23	Case B *
April 28-30	Environmental Ethics	Arthur, ch. 5, plus additional readings t.b.a.
May 4-9  Finals Week			* Cases for discussion will be determined on the basis of Boss's examples and individual / group interest

Read:

Boss, ch. 1

Martin Luther King, Jr., "Letter from the Birmingham Jail," Alpha Seminar Reader, Fall semester, pp. 41-49 - Reserve, Olin Library

<http://www.drury.edu/faculty/Ess/Values/mlking.html>

I. a) Identify what you believe to be two or three of the most central claims or moral positions which King argues for in the Letter.

b) Identify at least two of King's arguments supporting these claims (here you may find the Web document especially helpful).

Summarize these arguments briefly.

c) Identify whatever philosophical assumptions you see operating in King's letter, including assumptions about

what is really real (metaphysics) - God? rights? moral obligations? etc.?

how we know these things to be true - because of religious revelation? moral reason? experience? etc.

Keynote Speaker, Dr. Muriel W. Battle -

Wilhoit Theater (Breech), 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.

Video Sessions, 5:00-7:00 p.m. - in Breech Lounge or FSC

b) Identify at least two of the arguments offered by the speaker(s) supporting these claims.

Summarize these arguments briefly.

c) Identify whatever philosophical assumptions you see made by the speaker(s), including assumptions about

what is really real (metaphysics) - God? rights? the nature of justice? moral obligations? etc.?

how we know these things to be true - because of religious revelation? moral reason? experience? etc.

a) articulate your position regarding one of the moral issues raised by the speaker(s).

b) what arguments do you have to support your claims?

Express these arguments as clearly and completely as you can.

c) Identify whatever philosophical assumptions you make in your claims and arguments, including assumptions about

what is really real (metaphysics) - God? rights? the nature of justice? moral obligations? etc.?

how we know these things to be true - because of religious revelation? moral reason? experience? etc.