(in Polish) Ethics B 3800-ISP-ETB
This course presents modern theoretical ethics, with references to historical ethical theories. The main topics are: the structure of normative thinking, methods of argumentation in ethics, value judgments, the problem of truth and cognition in ethics, justification of moral judgments, the debates between cognitivism and non-cognitivism, realism and anti-realism, as well as internalism and externalism about reasons.
Type of course
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Having completed the course, the student knows and understands
- the role of philosophical reflection in cultural processes.
- the relations between the principal domains of philosophy, as well as the main currents within these domains.
- the methods of interpreting philosophical texts.
Having completed the course, the student is able to
- read and interpret philosophical texts.
- analyze philosophical arguments, identify their principal theses and premises and the relations between them.
- apply basic logical methods, as well as typical strategies of argumentation.
- identify and analyze the principal theses of a given philosophical text.
Having completed the course, the student is ready to
- accept new ideas and change his or her opinions in the light of new data and arguments.
- confront the ethical problems of taking responsibility for the quality of philosophical inquiry and debate.
Assessment criteria
Active participation in group discussions.
Written essay on a topic related to the program of the course.
Oral exam.
Acceptable number of missed classes without formal explanation: 2
Bibliography
Ethical Theory. Classic and Contemporary Readings, fourth edition, Louis P. Pojman, (ed.), Wadsworth 2002.
A. J. Ayer, “Emotivism”, ET 419-424.
R.M. Hare, “Prescriptivism: The Structure of Ethics and Morals”, ET 425-432.
G. Harman, The Nature of Morality: An Introduction to Ethics, OUP 1977, chapter 1 & 2 or
“Ethics and Observation” and “Moral Relativism Defended” in ET 31-43.
B. Williams, “Internal and External Reasons”, in Moral Luck, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981, 101–13.
J. Mackie, “The Subjectivity of Values”, ET 22-30.
N. Sturgeon, “Moral Explanations”, ET 474-485.
J. Rawls, A Theory of Justice, Cambridge, Mass., Belknap Press of Harvard University
Press, Cambridge, Mass. 1971; sections 1-11.
S. Street, "Constructivism about Reasons". Oxford Studies in Metaethics, 2008.
GEM Anscombe, „Modern Moral Philosophy,” Philosophy. The Journal of the
Royal Institute of Philosophy 124 (1958): 1-19.
P. Foot, “Moral Beliefs”, Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society, 59(1): 83–104, 1959.
I. Murdoch, The Sovereignty of Good, Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1970 (fragments).
D. Davidson, “How is Weakness of the Will Possible?”, in Essays on Actions and Events, Oxford: Clarendon Press.
T. Nagel, “Moral Luck”, in Mortal Questions, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1979.
W. Quinn, “Actions, Intentions, and Consequences: The Doctrine of Double Effect”, ET 3018-327.
Additional information
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