Moral Philosophy and Value Theory - JPB158

• Title: Moral Philosophy and Value Theory
• Guaranteed by: Department of Political Science (23-KP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2024 to 2024
• Semester: winter
• E-Credits: 6
• Examination process: winter s.:
• Hours per week, examination: winter s.:2/1, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: 30 / unlimited (90)
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment; priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: Janusz Salamon, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): Janusz Salamon, Ph.D.
• Class: Courses not for incoming students
• Incompatibility : JPM768
• Is incompatible with: JPM768

Syllabus

Moral Philosophy and Value Theory - JPB158

Institute of Political Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague

 

ETCS: 6 credits

Prerequisites: None

Taught in WINTER Semester

 

LECTURER: Dr Janusz Salamon

 

TIME: TUESDAY, 9.30-10.50 [SEMINAR - see details below] + 11:00-12:20 [LECTURE for ALL] + 12:30-13:50 [SEMINAR - see details below]
 

PLACE: Jinonice, classroom C122 (LECTURE at 11:00) & classroom B218 (Seminars at 9:30) & classroom C520 (Seminars at 12:30) [see details below]

 

CONTACTS:

Email: janusz.salamon at fsv.cuni.cz

Office hours: Monday, 17.00-18.20 & Tuesday, 14:00-15:20 in office 514 (Floor 5) in Jinonice. Also at other times ONLINE after appointment.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

This course will introduce students to methods and problems of contemporary moral philosophy. Its primary focus is on the development of moral reasoning skills and the application of those skills to contemporary moral issues. We will read and discuss major classical and contemporary works of philosophical ethics and will debate controversial moral dilemmas, taking into account the contemporary pluralistic and global context of moral thinking.

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

· Comprehend and have a clear understanding of the main philosophical attempts to conceptualize our fundamental ethical intuitions

· Outline, analyze and criticize the arguments put forward by the greatest moral thinkers of humanity

. Apply critical thinking to social problems with a moral component

 

COURSE OUTLINE

Week 1:  Religious milieu of traditional moralities and the relation between religious and philosophical ethical thinking. [ONLY LECTURE at 11:00 for everyone]

Week 2: Sources of Moral Sense: Introducing Metaethics [+ SEMINAR 1 for Group 1 at 9:30, SEMINAR 1 for Group 2 at 12:30]

Week 3: Utilitarianism as an example of Consequentialist Ethics [+ SEMINAR 1 for Group 3 at 9:30, SEMINAR 1 for Group 4 at 12:30]

Week 4: Deontology or an Ethics of Duty (to respect persons) [+ SEMINAR 2 for Group 1 at 9:30, SEMINAR 2 for Group 2 at 12:30]

Week 5: Virtue Ethics of Aristotle and Confucius (grounded in 'Nature') [+ SEMINAR 2 for Group 3 at 9:30, SEMINAR 2 for Group 4 at 12:30]

Week 6: Contractarian Ethics [+ SEMINAR 3 for Group 1 at 9:30, SEMINAR 3 for Group 2 at 12:30]

Week 7: MID-TERM In-Class Written TEST (11:00-12:20) [The test will cover the material of Class readings 1-5 and Seminar readings 1-2]

Week 8 (19 November): Gender and Ethics [+ SEMINAR 3 for Group 3 at 9:30, SEMINAR 3 for Group 4 at 12:30]

Week 9 (26 November): Applied Ethics I: TERRORISM and WAR [+ SEMINAR 4 for Group 1 at 9:30, SEMINAR 4 for Group 2 at 12:30]

Week 10 (3 December): Applied Ethics II: SEXUAL HARASSMENT [+ SEMINAR 4 for Group 3 at 9:30, SEMINAR 4 for Group 4 at 12:30]

Week 11 (10 December): Applied Ethics III: PRIVACY [+ SEMINAR 5 for Group 1 at 9:30, SEMINAR 2 for Group 4 at 12:30]

Week 12 (17 December): Applied Ethics IV: [+ SEMINAR 5 for Group 3 at 9:30, SEMINAR 5 for Group 4 at 12:30]

 

FINAL WRITTEN EXAM (3 exam dates will be published in the SIS in due course)

 

COURSE READINGS.

All readings will be available for download in electronic format from THIS course website (in the SIS).

Principal readings will be drawn from the following books:

G. Marino (ed.), Ethics: The Essential Writings, Modern Library, 2010.

J. Baggini, Peter S. Fosl, The Ethics Toolkit: A Compendium of Ethical Concepts and Methods, Blackwell Publishing, 2007.

S. M. Cahn, P. Markie, Ethics: History, Theory, and Contemporary Issues, Oxford University Press, 1998.

G. Jones, D. Cardinal, J. Hayward, Moral Philosophy: A Guide to Ethical Theory, Hodder, 2010.

L. Pojman, J. Fieser, Ethics: Discovering Right and Wrong, Wadsworth, 2012.

COURSE GRADING:

Quality participation in the SEMINAR + Final SEMINAR Essay =  30%

Mid-term In-Class Written Test                                                30%

Final Written Exam                                                                 40%

Total                                                                                    100%

SEMINAR INSTRUCTION

The seminar is mandatory. As indicated in the Syllabus (above), the seminar will be taught in 4 groups. Each student will be informed during Week 1 to which group they belong. Each student must do the relevant seminar reading in advance (familiarity with the seminar reading will be tested through quizzes at the beginning of each seminar, therefore students who arrive late and will not take the quiz, will lose the points awarded for the quizzes (2, 1 or 0 points for a single quiz).

The "seminar readings" are uploaded below (in the SIS, not Moodle). The seminars will consist of a discussion of the philosophical arguments introduced in the "seminar readings"

The Final Seminar Essay will be due 48 hours before the final exam (and it will be up to the student to choose from among three final exam DATES published in the SIS in due course).

The Final Seminar Essay instruction will be discussed during seminar 4 (i.e., after the mid-term exam) since the students need to accumulate enough knowledge to be able to work efficiently on the essay.

 

SEMINAR ESSAY INSTRUCTION

DEADLINE: 48 hours before YOUR written exam

LENGTH: 1500-1600 words

TOPIC: PPE is primarily about understanding how human beings function in societies, especially in the political and economic spheres. The goal of our Seminar Essay is to give you a chance to ask yourself how your study of moral philosophy might contribute to your thinking critically and creatively about moral dilemmas faced by citizens as participants in political and economic life. With this aim in mind, choose TWO MORAL DILEMMAS (preferably very different) which might call for STATE REGULATIONS to prevent evil/harm and protect/promote the good/wellbeing of citizens and outline the arguments you would present in each case to the legislators who will vote on the matters should you be in charge of preparing the relevant legislation. (Needless to say, you will wish to use EXHAUSTIVELY your excellent grasp of all our ethical theories as tools for ethical decision-making.)

STYLE: I grade only the quality/plausibility of your IDEAS and ARGUMENTS, so avoid sentences void of philosophical weight

MODE OF SUBMISSION:
PDF sent to me via email. (I will scan each PDF with our anti-plagiarism software capable of detecting whether the essay has been written using AI services.)

EXAM INSTRUCTION

The course includes a mid-term written test/exam and a final written exam. The exams will include TWO types of assignments: (a) writing essays devoted to the topics selected by the students from a list of topics covering the reading material of "CLASS READINGS"; (b) shorter explanations of "seminar ARGUMENTS" or "CASE studies". In both cases, the point of the exam will be to test the understanding of the MAIN philosophical issues explored at BOTH the lectures AND the seminars.

NB: The MID-TERM TEST will cover ONLY the material of classes 1-5 and Seminars 1-2, while the Final Exam will cover the material explored in the REMAINING lectures and seminars.

GRADING SCALE:

• A = 91-100 % – excellent
• B = 81-90 % – very good
• C = 71-80 % – good
• D = 61-70 % – satisfactory
• E = 51-60 % – minimal pass
• F = 0-50 % – fail

Last update: Salamon Janusz, Ph.D. (05.12.2024)