Instructor: Dr. Daniel Skubik, PhD JD MDiv
Voice: 951.343.4288 / Fax: 951.343.4520
Web: http://www.calbaptist.edu/dskubik
E-Mail: dskubik@calbaptist.edu
History of Ethics
HIS
400B (Special Topics, Main Campus)
Tue/Thr, 12:30am - 1:50pm, YC B251
California Baptist University
Fall Semester, 2004
This course is designed to cover the history of ethics in the western world, with additional attention to the comparative development of ethical inquiry in the east.
By the end of the semester, students should grasp the fundamentals of ethical inquiry; understand the development and use of ethical and moral categories, west and east; and be able to demonstrate how to identify and analyze the presence or absence of ethical discourse in snippets of academic and everyday discourse, past and present, west and east.
Required Texts
Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue 2nd edition (Notre Dame, 1984/2002) {M}
Bina Gupta (ed.), Ethical Questions: East and
West (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002) {G}
Oliver Johnson & Andrew Reath (eds.), Ethics:
Selections from Classical & Contemporary Writers 9th edition
(Thomson/Wadsworth, 2004) {JR}
Copies are available through the CBU Bookstore, and are also available through Internet shops such as Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.
Web pages
will likewise be referenced throughout the term, contents of which you also
will be responsible.
Class Readings & Discussion Schedule
|
Week #1 |
Introduction to course: scope, methods, procedures, expectations |
|
Week #2 |
M, 1-3 Moral
Disagreement and Emotivism |
|
Week #3 |
Web and email discussions only |
|
Week #4 |
M, 4-5 Enlightenment
Project to Justify Morality |
|
Week #5 |
M, 6-7 Consequences
and Terms of Consequence |
|
Week #6 |
M, 8-9 Social
Science Generalizations |
|
Week #7 |
M, 10-11 Virtues:
Ancient |
|
Week #8 |
Midterm exam (26th) |
|
Week #9 |
M, 12-13 Virtues:
Medieval |
|
Weeks #10 |
M, 14-15 Virtues:
Modern |
|
Week #11 |
Web and email discussions only |
|
Week # 12 |
23 – Excursus: G, 5.3c-e
Eastern ‘Freedom’ |
|
Week #13 |
M, 16-18 Virtue,
not Virtues and After Virtue |
|
Week #14 |
Review Sessions in preparation for Final Exam |
|
Final Exam |
|
Caveat
This syllabus is composed in good faith, with a schedule of readings, assignments and discussions that will guide us throughout the term. Still, the instructor reserves the right to make adjustments to this schedule as necessary for the overall enterprise of the course. Any changes will be communicated as far in advance as feasible, and you are responsible for knowing if and when any changes have been made.
Assessment & Grading Scale
|
Quizzes = 20% (4 of 5 @ 5% each) |
90 - 100 = A range (90-94 = A-) |
|
Midterm Examination = 20% |
80 - 89 = B range (80-83 = B- / 87-89 = B+) |
|
Final Examination = 25% |
70 - 79 = C range (70-73 = C- / 77-79 = C+) |
|
Research Paper = 20% |
60 - 69 = D range (60-63 = D- / 67-69 = D+) |
|
Participation on Web = 15% |
0 - 59 = F |
Quizzes
Five (5) quizzes will be given during the semester, four (4) of which will be computed as worth 5% each towards the final course grade, totaling 20% together. (That is, your best 4 will be used to compute your grade; the fifth will be dropped.) The quizzes will be objective in nature (true/false, multiple choice, fill in blanks, etc) and cover material discussed during the two (2) immediately preceding class periods. Quizzes will be given during the week indicated in the schedule, typically at the beginning of a class period, and can come on Tuesdays or Thursdays, with or without prior announcement.
Midterm Examination
There will be a midterm examination, as noted in the schedule, comprising 20% of your final grade for the course. The exam will cover all the topics nominated from the beginning of the semester, and will include objective and short essay questions. The exam is closed book, open notes. Meaning of “open notes”: You are permitted to bring 1 (one) 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper with notes written on it for use during the exam. The notes may be in your own handwriting, or produced by a computer printer, of any size writing or font, front and back, without regard for margins.
Final Examination
There will be a final examination, as noted in the schedule, comprising 25% of your final grade for the course. The exam will include objective, and long essay questions. Coverage is cumulative, though the principal focus of the questions will be on post-midterm materials. The exam is closed book, open notes. Meaning of “open notes”: You are permitted to bring 1 (one) 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper with notes written on it for use during the exam. The notes may be in your own handwriting, or produced by a computer printer, of any size writing or font, front and back, without regard for margins.
Research Paper
Each student will prepare a research paper, running ~5000 words in length. This paper is worth 20% of the final course grade, and is due as an electronic submission no later than midnight, Thursday, Dec 9 (our last day of class). The person/topic for the paper should be chosen in consultation with the instructor, and initially will focus upon one (1) of the major figures in philosophical ethics from the sixteen Contemporary Era authors/readings in JR (selections 16-31, Moore to Nussbaum). Duplication of persons/papers is strongly discouraged, so first selections are likely to stand against later requests. The paper is to provide at least the following information and analyses: personal and intellectual biography of the figure chosen; annotated bibliography of that author’s main works; historical and intellectual positioning of that figure’s corpus; and concluding interpretive analyses of the figure’s key works. In short, this is first and foremost a piece grounded in intellectual history. Papers will then be submitted through Turnitin.com for my review and marking. [The Turnitin Account ID for this course is 1164097 and the join password is ethicsfa04. Students are strongly encouraged to take the Turnitin tutorial before creating an account and submitting a paper for this class. Go to http://www.turnitin.com for details.]
Participation on Web
During the two weeks we will not be meeting face-to-face, you are expected to read and discuss the assigned readings online. We will use the Jenzabar system if it is operational, or a designated alternative site as necessary. Active web participation will constitute 15% of your final grade: 5% for each week’s readings while we are not meeting face-to-face, and an additional 5% for online contributions during the remainder of the semester. “Active” means reading others’ contributions and submitting your own thoughts and replies at least 3 times during each of the nominated weeks, and 3 additional times during the other periods of the term.
Make-Ups
Midterm Examination – you must arrange a make-up with me before the examination is given, not after. No exceptions.
Final Examination – no make-ups will be arranged for the final exam. No exceptions.
Research Paper – late papers will be accepted through the Turnitin service until midnight, Wednesday, Dec 15. But late papers can earn no more than half-credit maximum.