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Ethics Odyssey.
A good way to see the first stage of the ethics Odyssey assignment is
to see it as asking you to prepare a paper that genuinely provides an
effective logical defense of a well thought out position on some
ethical question. To do this, you must first study a particular issue,
pick out as many relevant facts as you can, and then apply logical
thinking to those facts to figure out, as best you can, what overall
logical conclusion is best supported by those facts. That conclusion
should form the thesis of your paper.
Here is one way you could organize your paper.
The paper should only written out after you've thought through the issue well enough to have a very good idea of what you're going to say. If you don't already have specific things you intend to say in each paragraph, don't start writing. Instead, finish your thinking, and then write.
When you are thinking about what to say in that last
paragraph,
remember that what you say there must specifically address the specific
points made in that third paragraph. If you just repeat things you said
in your second paragraph, you will be failing to write a proper last
paragraph, and your grade will suffer.
You can organize your paper in any way that makes your reasoning clear.
If you can't think of how to organize your paper, don't organize it!
Just write down all the ideas and arguments you can think of, say
whatever you can think of to say about those ideas and arguments, and
turn it in as your paper.
Your assignment is to make some ethical claim about some aspect of some
ethical question. (I prefer that you pick a topic from the list below
but, if you specifically check with me first, giving me your tentative
thesis, and your intended argument, and get my permission, you may, at
your own risk do a topic that is not in this text.) You may write about
the issues that the authors in our text most care about, or you may
write about some small, but important, point mentioned in one of the
readings.
One way to choose a topic would be to find someone in the text who is
wrong about something, and explain as best you can just why they are
wrong.
Another way to choose a topic is to pick an issue you are interested
in, and say whatever you can about the various ideas different people
say about it. And then do what you can to come to an overall conclusion.
The most important thing to remember is that you have to look carefully
and honestly at the arguments against your position. The one sure way
to do badly at this assignment is to ignore, distort or otherwise
disrespect the arguments against your position.
1. Text Challenge: Find something in the text (or the study guide) that you disagee with, or which you think someone might rationally disagree, and write a paper logically analyzing this possible disagreement. Before you start writing, create a set of notes in which you: 1. Write out exactly what you think the book is saying on this issue. 2. Write out the opposing view to what the book says. 3. Write out any arguments you can think of for this opposing view. 4. Write out any arguments you can think of for the book view. 5. Write out any problems you can see with the arguments for the opposing view. 6. Write out any problems you can see with the arguments for the book view. Then think all this struff through from all angles, come to some kind of overall conclusion about whether the opposing view is logically supported or not, and then write a paper stating that conclusion and explaining every aspect of the thinking process by which you came to that conclusion.
2. Feminist Ethics: Follow this link for instructions regarding Feminist Ethics
3. The Gensler text says that emotivism seems to destroy the objectivity of the scientific method. In your considered opinion, is it really true that, if emotivism is true, the scientific method is not objective? Fully explain your answer.
4. The Gensler text says that Logical Positivism is "self refuting." In your considered opinion, is that really true that Logical Positivism is self refuting? Fully explain your answer.
4. Divine Command Theory: Follow this link for instructions regarding the Divine Command Theory
5. Moral Egoism: Follow this link for instructions regarding Moral Egoism
7. Animal Rights: Follow this link for instructions regarding Animal Rights8. Utilitarianism and promise keeping: Sometimes it's okay to break a promise. Sometimes it's wrong to keep a promise. Does act-untilitariainism actually entail morally unacceptable forms of promise breaking?
9. Emotivism. Follow this link for instructions regarding Emotivism
10.
11. Off-List Topic: If you want to do another ethical topic, send me an email in which you name your topic, give a pro argument, give a con argument, and promise that you will think through both sides before coming to any conclusion, and I might give you permission to do your preferred topic. If you do a new topic without actually receiving my actual permission, you will get zero points for your paper.
12. Undeveloped topics. Following are some topics I thought of when I didn't have time to write up a proper prompt.
12b. Utilitarianism and Dr. X, Ms. Y, Mr. 7 Deeply analyze one of these scenarios. Is it really plausible? What if this was the one time in human history in which the actor could be assured of absolute secrecy? (Is that plausible?) Is "play it safe" a practical principle that these actors should follow to make sure they avoid moral wrong? Does this save utilitarinanism as a moral theory? Do we get the right answer using only utilitarianism as our moral theory, or do we need to add in another theory as well as utilitarianism to make these scenarios work out right?
12c. How Do We Ultimately Judge a Moral Theory?
12d. Moral Anthropology. Imagine (or find) a group of people who we think make perfect moral considered moral judgements. Then think about how these people make their judgments. Whatever thinking they use, wouldn't that be the way we should make moral judgements?
Here's some reading about moral theories that might help.A
In any paper you write, you
must fully discuss both
sides of your issue, using the same critical standards for both sides.
If you can't find arguments on one side, or if you can't easily present
the arguments for the other side, choose a different topic. If
you pick an issue that is too easy you will not be able to do enough
critical thinking to earn a good grade.
If you are so passionate about some issue that you that you cannot bear
to present the other side's arguments, don't do that topic.
Copyright © 2015 by Martin C. Young