Ethics (ETHC)

This philosophy course covers ethical issues in biological research, medical research, the practice of medicine, the allocation of medical resources, public health policy, and related issues. Students will gain fluency in the basic language and tools of philosophy and will study several theories of ethical decision-making. This course can be counted towards the Health Humanities concentration.

This course provides an introduction to moral philosophy. We focus on normative ethics (the study of what theory provides the best account of right and wrong) and applied ethics (application of ethical theories to particular cases). We will also cover a few topics in metaethics (the study of the ultimate nature of moral concepts, values, and language). The course will always provide extensive coverage of the three most important ethical theories: utilitarianism, deontology, and virtue ethics. The remaining topics will vary by semester and according to student interest. Honors Program membership required.

This course will cover contemporary topics in environmental ethics from a philosophical perspective. Students will gain fluency in the basic language and tools of philosophy. We will study several theories of ethical decision-making and apply them to real world situations, with a focus on issues in in environmental ethics (including professional ethics, civic responsibility, and public policy). This course can be counted towards the Environmental Humanities concentration.

The Ethics of Apocalypse: Dystopian Film & Literature This course studies ethical issues of human social interaction in literature, culture, and film. The concepts of utopia and dystopia - from planned society to zombies - offers a range of topics like civilization and liberty, social control, technology and human relationships. Students will investigate social life using key philosophical concepts as a basis for study. The course emphasizes evaluation of assumptions and reasoning behind solutions and the impacts of world belief systems on moral values and behavior. Students will reflect on their own personal ethics, and apply ethical reasoning to realworld problems.

This course covers various philosophical topics in design with a primary focus on ethics. We study two of the most important theories of ethical decision-making and apply them to problems in design ethics. The course also covers issues in the metaphysics, epistemology, and aesthetics of design. Depending on the semester, we may investigate applied ethics problems in architectural ethics, urban planning and infrastructure, engineering ethics, biodesign, user interface design, graphic design, product design, or other related topics. This course can be counted towards the Design Humanities certification.

A study of evil and good in art, literature, religion and philosophy, with attention to actual issues of evil and good in human social life. Concepts of evil and good in both Western and non-Western cultures will be surveyed. The course will also introduce strategies for ethical decision-making.

This course will cover some of the main ethical theories (utilitarianism, deontology, and/or virtue ethics) with special focus on their role in political philosophy. Topics covered may include social contract theory, inequality, political obligations, individual rights, political emotions, freedom, and justice. Students will apply these theoretical concepts on contemporary practical problems such as immigration, global poverty, right to health-care, and gender issues.