PHIL 7034: Methods of Applied Ethics
The core course for the AEP Programme, to be taken by all participants in the Programme in the first semester. It serves as an introduction to some basic philosophical concepts and some fundamentals of ethical theory. It also explores basic matters such as moral reasoning and argument, and will typically introduce participants to philosophical approaches to applied ethics through study of some prominent examples of work in the area.
Elective Courses
PHIL 7033: Cultural Pluralism and Ethics
An examination of ethical issues arising from the fact of cultural pluralism. Possible topics may include moral relativism, duties to minorities and rights of majorities in multicultural states, cross-cultural tolerance, the alleged value of cultural pluralism, and liberal and non-liberal approaches to the fact of cultural pluralism.
PHIL 7032: Ethical Theory
An inquiry into some central theoretical questions in ethics with an eye to their bearing on practical issues. Builds upon some of the introductory theory in the ''Methods of Applied Ethics'' course, as well as introducing other theoretical approaches to ethical inquiry. Issues may include consequentialism, deontology, virtue, moral motivation, the codifiability of ethics, and the possibility of moral knowledge.
PHIL 7031: Ethics and the Environment
An examination of a range of ethical issues surrounding the environment and its relationship to human activity. Topics may include such theoretical questions as: Whether wholes such as ecosystems or relationships, and not merely individuals, can have moral status, as well as more specific issues about land and resource use, the ethics of pollution and environmental degradation, and the rights of future generations to environmental integrity.
PHIL 7043: Ethics and International Affairs
An examination of topics such as the following: terrorism and the response to it; war more generally and its justice, as well as the justice of conduct within war; the use of torture as a means of preventing attacks; poverty and the duties of rich countries and their citizens to alleviate it; the ethics of international aid more generally; globalization, colonialism and imperialism; and more abstract issues about the place of ethical considerations in international affairs at all.
PHIL 7030: Information and Privacy
A potentially diverse exploration of moral issues concerning the use of and accessibility of information, and their effects on privacy. Topics may include the nature and value of privacy, issues in media ethics, computer/information ethics, the ethics of professional-client relationships, and the ethics of information accessible to businesses and government agencies.
PHIL 7029: Issues in Biomedical Ethics
An examination of moral issues arising in the contexts of health care and biomedical research. Could cover both micro health-care issues such as informed consent, and the rights of patients (and health care workers), or macro issues such as resource allocation. Other topics could include research issues such as the ethical treatment of human subjects and the social consequences of certain research programmes, such as stem-cell research and genetic engineering.
PHIL 7028: Morality and the Law
An inquiry into the relationship between law and morality and/or moral issues surrounding the use of law as a social instrument. Topics may include the moral underpinnings, if any, of law, the use of law to promote morality, paternalistic legislation, the general ethics of legal coercion, and the moral significance of the Constitution.
PHIL 7027: Morality and the Marketplace
A potentially diverse exploration of ethical issues in business and market-oriented social policy. Could include discussions of micro-issues such as morality vs. profit, the rights (and responsibilities) of share-holders, secrecy and honesty in business contexts, the ethics of whistle-blowing and the rights of, and relationships between, workers and their employers. Could also include such macro-issues as the morality of market-capitalism, and social tinkering with it such as BEE programmes.
PHIL 7026: Social Justice
An inquiry into theories of, and issues concerning, social, and particularly, economic justice. Topics could include prominent theories of distributive justice such as those of Rawls and Nozick, as well as narrower issues such as the role and ethics of affirmative action, compensation for past injustices, progressive taxation, and alleged rights to a basic income.
PHIL 7035: The Value of Life
An exploration of life's alleged value and/or particular issues that bear upon it. Topics may include theories of the wrongness of killing normal, adult human beings, and issues such as abortion, euthanasia, stem-cell research and animal rights.
Research Report
PHIL 7004 & 7005: Applied Ethics Research Report (PT1) and (PT2)
Guidance on research report proposals and individual supervised work on research reports.