Undergraduate Course: Moral Philosophy (LLLI07005)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | This is a for-credit course offered by the Office of Lifelong Learning (OLL); only students registered with OLL should be enrolled. A historical survey of the key moral thinkers and their theories, from the ancient Greeks to the present day. Extracts from classic texts will be studied, and placed in their historical and philosophical contexts. |
| Course description |
Content of course
1. Introduction - what is moral theory, and how did it begin?
2. Virtue ethics - Aristotle¿s Nicomachean Ethics.
3. Egoism - Hobbes¿ Leviathan.
4. Egoism ¿ Hume¿s response.
5. Utilitarianism ¿ Bentham and Mill
6. Deontology ¿ Kant¿s Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals.
7. Intuitionism ¿ Ross: The Right and the Good.
8. Justice ¿ Rawls.
9. Rights ¿ Nozick: Anarchy State and Utopia.
10. Relativism.
|
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
¿ Read and critically evaluate a philosopher¿s argument;
¿ Explain the central elements in a range of moral theoretical positions;
¿ Identify the historical and philosophical significance of these positions.
|
Reading List
Essential
Singer, P., ed., 1993. A Companion to Ethics. Oxford: Blackwell.
Recommended
Rachels, J., 2007. The Elements of Moral Philosophy. 5th ed. Boston; London: McGraw Hill.
Benn, P., 2002. Ethics. London: Routledge.
Web sources
John Gordon¿s website: http://www.glaucon.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk
Class handouts
Handouts will be made available on a weekly basis.
|
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Mr James Mooney
Tel: (0131 6)50 3077
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Sabine Murdoch
Tel: (0131 6)51 1855
Email: |
|
|
University Homepage