Ethics A

General data

Course ID:	3501-WISIP-ETA
Erasmus code / ISCED:	08.1 Kod klasyfikacyjny przedmiotu składa się z trzech do pięciu cyfr, przy czym trzy pierwsze oznaczają klasyfikację dziedziny wg. Listy kodów dziedzin obowiązującej w programie Socrates/Erasmus, czwarta (dotąd na ogół 0) – ewentualne uszczegółowienie informacji o dyscyplinie, piąta – stopień zaawansowania przedmiotu ustalony na podstawie roku studiów, dla którego przedmiot jest przeznaczony. / (0223) Philosophy and ethics The ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) code has been designed by UNESCO.
Course title:	Ethics A
Name in Polish:	Ethics A
Organizational unit:	Institute of Philosophy
Course groups:
ECTS credit allocation (and other scores):	(not available) Basic information on ECTS credits allocation principles: the annual hourly workload of the student’s work required to achieve the expected learning outcomes for a given stage is 1500-1800h, corresponding to 60 ECTS; the student’s weekly hourly workload is 45 h; 1 ECTS point corresponds to 25-30 hours of student work needed to achieve the assumed learning outcomes; weekly student workload necessary to achieve the assumed learning outcomes allows to obtain 1.5 ECTS; work required to pass the course, which has been assigned 3 ECTS, constitutes 10% of the semester student load. view allocation of credits
Language:	English
Type of course:	obligatory courses
Mode:	Classroom
Short description:	After defining the fundamental ethical categories, the course will present the principal normative systems: classical theories of virtue, Christian ethics, ethical theories of the Enlightenment, utilitarianism, phenomenology, contemporary liberalism, communitarianism and the theory of rights, as well as an outline of the Polish ethical thought.
Full description:	After defining the fundamental ethical categories (value, norm, duty, good, virtue, moral sense, moral law, etc.), the course will present the principal normative systems of the past: classical theories of virtue, Christian ethics, ethical theories of the Enlightenment, especially Kantianism and David Hume’s moral philosophy, utilitarianism and moral phenomenology. We will then move on to the approaches of the 20th and 21 century: contemporary liberalism, virtue ethics, communitarianism and the theory of rights. An outline of the Polish ethical thought will also be presented.
Bibliography:	Ethical Theory. Classic and Contemporary Readings, fourth edition, Louis P. Polman, (ed.), Wadsworth 2002. B. Williams, „Socrates’ Question”, in: Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy, Fontana Press 1985. E. O. Wilson, “Sociobiology and Ethics”, ET 644-647. M. Ruse, Evolution and Ethics: The Sociobiological Approach, ET 647-662. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, book I, II and VII; many editions. G. E. Moore, Principia Ethica, Cambridge, At the University Press, 1903, sections 1-10 (or “Non- Naturalism”, ET 412-418). D. Hume, A Treatise of Human Nature, Book III, Part I, Sections I-II, many editions. A. MacIntyre, After Virtue, chapter 14 or ET 363-376. W. Frankena, A Critique of Virtue-Based Ethics, ET 350-355. Aquinas, “Objectivism: Natural Law”, ET 20-33. R. Nozick, Experience Machine, ET 118-119. F. Nietzsche, The Transvaluation of Values, ET 127-133. D. Parfit, What Makes Someone’s Life Go Best”, ET 134-140. T. Nagel, Value: The View from Nowhere, ET 141-149. I. Kant, Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals, chapters I and II; many editions. W.D. Ross, What Makes a Right Act Right?”, ET 275-283. O. O’Neill, Kantian Formula of the End in Itself and World Hunger, ET 284-293. D. Hume, An Inquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals, Chapter I & V, Appendix I, many editions and A Treatise of Human Nature, Book III, Part I, Sections I-II, many editions. J. S. Mill, Utilitarianism, many editions. J.J.C Smart, “Extreme and restricted utilitarianism”, ET 177-182. S. Scheffler, Agent-Centered Restrictions, Rationality, and the Virtues, ET 224-232. T. Czeżowski, “Ethics as an Empirical Science” Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 14 (1953): 163-171. T. Kotarbiński, Principles of the Autonomous Ethics (Zasady etyki niezależnej); tanslation will be provided. H. Elzenberg, The Ideal of Salvation in Pure Ethics (Ideał zbawienia na gruncie etyki czystej); tanslation will be provided.
Learning outcomes:	Having completed the course, the student knows and understands - the role of philosophical reflection in cultural processes. - the relations between the principal domains of philosophy, as well as the main currents within these domains. - the methods of interpreting philosophical texts. Having completed the course, the students is able to - analyze philosophical arguments, identify their principal theses and premises and the relations between them. - apply basic logical methods, as well as typical strategies of argumentation. - identify and analyze the principal theses of a given philosophical text. Having completed the course, the student is ready to - accept new ideas and change his or her opinions in the light of new data and arguments. - confront the ethical problems of taking responsibility for the quality of philosophical inquiry and debate.
Assessment methods and assessment criteria:	Active participation in group discussions. Written essay on a topic related to the program of the course. Oral exam. Permissible number of absences: 2

This course is not currently offered.

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