Syllabus
ETH 200: Moral Reasoning (D1)
Instructor: Edward Abplanalp
Email: philosophered@cox.net
Room: Admin 113
Meeting Time: WF 1:00 – 2:15 p.m.
Office Hours: See me to set up an appointment.
Course Objectives: The objectives of this course are: (1) to raise the student's understanding of the complex nature of certain prevalent ethical problems, (2) to provide students with a historical background for many of the ethical traditions within Western philosophy, (3) to enable students to communicate in an intelligent manner on issues regarding morality, (4) to increase the student's adeptness in critiquing an ethical position, and (5) to have students refine their own ethical positions.
Required Text: The text we will use for this class is Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues (4th ed.) by Barbara MacKinnon, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2004.
Declaration of Open Discourse: In the spirit of intellectual inquiry, The College of Saint Mary is committed to the exchange of diverse ideas and viewpoints. In this environment, honest discourse is valued; demeaning remarks are not tolerated. Each member of the campus is encouraged to:
Academic Honesty: All work submitted for this class is expected to be your own original work. Any idea that is not your own must be documented (i.e. the source must be cited). Any cheating or plagiarizing will result in an F.
Paper Requirement: In order to pass this class you will need to write a satisfactory ethics paper of about 5-6 pages in length. The final version of your paper is due at the beginning of class on November 18, 2005. The topic for your paper will be discussed and announced in class.
Exams: Exams will consist of short answer questions and your choice of several essay questions. More specific information regarding the questions asked on the exam will be provided as the time of the exam nears. Materials asked on each exam are discussed thoroughly in class lectures. No make up exams will be given unless prior permission of the instructor has been granted. If an exam has been missed due to an illness, then documentation of the illness must be presented. Do not assume that a missed exam can be made up in the LRC. The final exam is comprehensive.
Students with Special Needs: If you have a certifiable learning or physical disability and require special accommodations please call and make an appointment with Thomas Allison, Student ADA Accommodations at 399-2485, Library SW Corner. As considerable lead-time is required for some accommodations it is important that the request is received within the first two weeks of the semester. YOUR REQUEST WILL BE HANDLED CONFIDENTIALLY.
Grading Policy: Provided that you write a satisfactory ethics paper, grades for this class will be calculated as follows:
100-98 A+
97-93 A
92-90 A-
89-88 B+
87-83 B
82-80 B-
79-78 C+
77-73 C
72-70 C-
69-68 D+
67-63 D
62-60 D-
Exam #1: 15 points
Exam #2: 15 points
Exam #3: 15 points
Exam #4: 15 points
Final Exam: 25 points
Paper: 15 points
Attendance: Students are expected to attend each class. If
you miss a class, please do not ask me if you missed anything important. You
are expected to make up any missed work. Students
who are unable to attend class are expected to bear the burden of understanding
the material on their own.
Tentative Schedule
Introduction to Moral
Reasoning
Does
Morality Depend on God?