Contemporary Moral Problems

PHIL 2325: Contemporary Moral Problems
Spring 2002
Section 2523, MWF 12 - 12:50, State 102
Section 2524, MWF 2 - 2:50, Irby 312

Instructor: Prof. Peter J. Mehl
Office: Irby 120 Office phone: 450-5282
The best way to meet with me is by appointment
Virtual office hours: Almost always between 8am and 4:45 pm.
Web Page: http://faculty.uca.edu/~peterm/ From my web page choose Contemporary Moral Problems under Spring 2002 courses.

UCA adheres to the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you need an accommodation under this Act due to a disability, contact the Office of Disability Support Services at 450-3135.

Course Description and Objectives
This course is a general education course that fulfills the Humanities area requirement. As a Humanities course it must fulfill certain general objectives. These objectives are:

familiarity with some of the classic works of human culture;
better understand and appreciate the nature of human expression and its roles in human culture;
better understand that a work of human culture exists within social, historical, and linguistic settings that affect its meaning;
better understand that meaning is always mediated by interpretation and that a work of human culture may have multiple interpretations;
increased ability to employ the skills of critical thinking, reading, writing, speaking, and listening to interpret a work of human culture.

Contemporary moral problems also aims to fulfill the general education skills and attitudes objectives in the areas of writing, critical thinking, information technology, and values. For more information on the general education program see General Education.

Contemporary Moral Problems fulfills the above objectives through increasing your ability to engage in moral discernment and deliberation. Doing this involves a number of dimensions. We will study moral reasoning, ethical theory, examine some critical moral principles, and learn to apply these to selected contemporary moral issues, such as abortion and euthanasia, by studying philosophical analyses of these issues and actual cases. In our study we will gain some understanding of the complexity of moral matters and come to a deeper understanding of the moral dimension of the human condition We will work to increase our practical reasoning skills in the examination concrete cases and issues. The course delivery and assignments will require some use of information technology.

REQUIREMENTS

Required Readings
Selections from James E. White, Contemporary Moral Problems, 6th edition, Wadsworth Publishers, 2000.

Any additional handouts, most of which are found as links on my Internet syllabus.

Participation in Threaded Discussions on the Course Web Site
For our threaded discussions, etc. go to the main UCA web page and under the QuickLinks Menu click on "WebCT server." For help logging on, click here for brief summary, or click on "Need help deciding what to do?"
You can self-register for this course. Go to the PHIL listing and pick your section of Contemporary Moral Problems: 12 pm section is #2523 and the 2 pm section is #2524. Do this within the first full week of classes.

Go to my web page and read this: Participating in Threaded Discussions

“Muddiest Point” Requirement
When we start a new reading I will ask you (sometimes) to email me a sentence or two about a point or issue that you think needs more clarity. These will be due at least 2 hours before the class; late submissions will not receive credit. This helps me focus class-time on what students discover is least well understood. Always come prepared. Read the assigned readings.

Class Attendance is Required
I take roll randomly but regularly. Participation counts and you cannot participate if you are not here. More than 2 unexcused absences will lower your grade by 10 pts, more than 3 by 10 more and so on. I do not drop students.

Oral Communication Activities
Throughout the semester there will be many opportunities to discuss morality and moral issues. Indeed, much of our class time will be spent with careful discussion of moral matters. I encourage you to ask questions and participate in the discussion. Sometimes I will structure our discussion so that students will be randomly chosen to orally summarize an argument found in our text. This will be done from your chair. Other times we will break into groups to discuss an issue or case, and I will ask for an oral summary of the group discussion.

Exams
Although tentative dates are provided below, because we tend to get behind in the schedule, I will announce the final dates of the exams and papers. There will be two exams with multiple choice, definitions, and short essay questions based on the readings/videos and on the class lectures/discussions. If you must miss an exam because of a sickness or emergency, you must notify me before the exam to take a make up exam.

Papers
The case analyses, and article reviews are due as noted in the schedule below. They should be computer-generated, double-spaced and stapled together. They should be three (3) to four (4) pages. These papers are not research papers. They are designed to test your understanding of the material we have read and discussed, and to improve your critical moral thinking and writing. I will provide guidelines for writing these.

Drafts and Submitting Papers Electronically: You can submit One draft of TWO of your papers; choose wisely. If you would like to submit a draft of a paper, it must be submitted 72 hours (3 days) before the announced due date. I prefer that you submit it electronically as an email attachment in Microsoft Word. Please label your file with your last name. I will return it to you by email 24 hours before the final version is due. As an alternative you can simply send the draft as an email, that is “paste” it into your email to me. You may also submit your final version as an email attachment. Final versions must be email attachments, and please label your file with your last name. If you do not use Microsoft Word or Wordperfect, save your file as an rtf file and send it to me.

Plagiarism is not a wise idea; it could result in a failing grade. Other relevant academic policies can be found in the Student Handbook.

2 Exams                                                                                              200 pts (100 pts each)
2 Case Analyses (3 - 4 pages)                                                           200 pts (100 pts each)
2 Critical Article Reviews (3 - 4 pages)                                              200 pts (100 pts each)
Course Participation                                                                           100 pts
Course participation points will be equally divided between:
1) Class discussions, oral summaries, quick writes and other in class activities (50 pts);
2) Participation in the treaded discussion and the “muddiest point” requirement, and other extra-class activities (50 pts).

Course Grade Scale: Total points divided by 7 and calculated against the standard grade scale.

Grading papers
Minimal and purely perfunctory responses; guidelines not followed. Grade D
Adequate responses, guidelines followed but begging for development. Grade C
Good responses from a mind seriously engaged with the material; guidelines followed and readings well integrated. Grade B
Insightful connections with other material covered in class and/or brought in from personal experience but pertinent to the material under consideration. Readings very well integrated; Issues explored in a critical, creative and comprehensive manner. Grade A
Late papers Each class period late after the due date takes the grade down a letter.
Rewrites: I reserve the right to ask you to rewrite a paper if I judge that your writing needs work. I will ask you to go to the writing center in Thompson Hall and work with a writing tutor to improve your writing. Then you will turn in the rewrite along with the original paper.

Extra Credit: Extra credit assignments will be available as events on campus and in the community appear. I will announce these opportunities in class and by email. Maximum of 10 points added to total points for each extra credit assignment. I will ask you to write a one-page summary with your critical evaluation of the event. Due by the next class period.

In Class Rules: No eating in class; drinking is okay. Please silence phones and pagers.

Recommended Resources
WWW sites of interest: Ethics Updates
Religious Tolerance Site
The Allan Guttmacher Institute
Email me relevant web sites you discover.

Class Schedule (tentative)
Jan. 14: Introduction to the course: syllabus, moral analysis and evaluation, critical thinking and reading, case analysis.
"Doctor's Dilemma"
Guidelines for Case Analysis

Jan. 21: No Class: M.L. King Jr. Holiday

A Set of Moral Principles

Good Reasoning, Moral Reasoning

Jan 28: Morality, Moral Principles and Moral Theories
From chapter one READ: Introduction, pp. 3 - 9; Although the introductions are required and helpful reading, the class lectures/discussions will focus on the primary readings. READ: John Arthur, “Religion, Morality and Conscience;” J. S. Mill, “Utilitarianism;” Kant, “The Categorical Imperative;” John Rawls, “A Theory of Justice;” Annette Baier, “The Need for More Than Justice.”
Lecture on “Rights Language"

Handouts:
Applying Ethical Theory
Rights Language

REVISED: Feb. 20: Exam

FEB. 22: NO CLASS: Read the excerpts from Roe v. Wade and send me a question or an issue that you think needs more clarity, per the Muddiest Point requirement.

Feb. 22: Abortion
From chapter two READ: Introduction, The Supreme Court, “Roe v. Wade;” John Noonan, "An Almost Absolute Value in History;" Mary Ann Warren, "On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion;" Don Marquis "Why Abortion is Immoral.”
March 8th: First Critical Article Review Due on Part II, of Warren's essay but read the whole essay.

Autonomy vs. Justified Paternalism in Medicine
Lecture on Types of Autonomy
READ: J. S. Mill, "On Liberty," 342 - 346.
Video: Ethics in America: "Does Doctor Know Best?"

March: First case analysis due. I will provide cases and guidelines for writing the case analysis.

Euthanasia and Sustaining Life
From chapter three READ: Introduction; James Rachels, "Active and Passive Euthanasia;" Peter Singer, “Justifying Voluntary Euthanasia.”

Video: "Dr. Kevorkian and Active Euthanasia."

April 17: Critical Article Review Due: Handout: Schall, “Faith in Author of Life.”

Medical Directives

April 22: Exam

Capital Punishment
From chapter four READ: Introduction, The Supreme Court, “Gregg v. Georgia;” Kant, “The Retributive Theory of Punishment;” Anthony Amsterdam, “Capital Punishment.”

Animal Rights
From chapter eight READ: Introduction, Kant, “Our Duties to Animals,” Peter Singer, "All Animals are Equal.”

World Hunger
Handout on Peter Singer's essay, "Rich and Poor.”

Final Exam