PHIL 157 Moral Issues

Fall 2011

Instructor: Office: Office Hours: Course Website: E-mail:

Kijin Sung Watson Hall 310 Mondays 3:30-4:30 and Tuesdays 2:30-4:30, or by appointment http://www.kijinsung.com/courses/phil-157/ kijin.sung@queensu.ca

Introduction
This course offers an introduction to ethics, through a survey of contemporary moral controversies. We will practice thinking critically about several such issues, by examining the strengths and weaknesses of various arguments pro and con. We may also get a glimpse of some of moral philosophys major traditions and concepts, insofar as they relate to current issues.

Readings
You will be required to read 2-3 articles per week, with a total length of 20-40 pages per week. All readings are available online. Internet addresses are provided in this syllabus, as well as on the course website. If you use the library or any other computer that is connected to the campus network, you will not need to pay any fees to access the readings. In order to access them from off campus, you should use the librarys Connect from Off Campus service at http://proxy.queensu.ca/

Evaluation
You will be required to write a short paper on each of the 6 topics that are covered in this course. The length of the papers will range from 2 pages to 3-4 pages, double-spaced. The best 5 papers will count toward your final grade, at 20% each. There will be no midterm or final exam. Participation is expected but not graded. Papers are to be submitted no later than the beginning of class on their respective due dates, and no earlier than two weeks prior. Early papers may be submitted in class, during my office hours, or using the Philosophy Departments drop box at Watson Hall 311. Electronic submissions will not be accepted; please use actual sheets of paper. Late papers will not be accepted. Remember that you have an opportunity to skip one paper; use it wisely. Medical and family emergencies are normally the only situations where an alternative arrangement will be made. Please contact me as soon as possible in the event of such an emergency. Appropriate documentation will need to be supplied in a timely manner.

Grading Scheme
In accordance with the new grading scheme introduced by the Faculty of Arts and Science, your final grade for the course will be a letter grade. Each assignment will also be given a letter grade. Letter grades correspond to the old percent scale as follows: Letter Grade Grade Point Old Scale A+ 4.3 90-100 A 4.0 85-89 A3.7 80-84 B+ 3.3 77-79 B 3.0 73-76 B2.7 70-72 C+ 2.3 67-69 C 2.0 63-66 C1.7 60-63 D+ 1.3 57-59 D 1.0 53-56 D0.7 50-52 F 0 < 50 For more information, see http://www.queensu.ca/artsci/academics/undergraduate/current/new-grading-scheme

Statement on Academic Integrity

http://www.queensu.ca/artsci/academics/undergraduate/academic-integrity /instructors/statement-on-academic-integrity Academic integrity is constituted by the five core fundamental values of honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility (see http://www.academicintegrity.org). These values are central to the building, nurturing and sustaining of an academic community in which all members of the community will thrive. Adherence to the values expressed through academic integrity forms a foundation for the freedom of inquiry and exchange of ideas essential to the intellectual life of the University (see the Senate Report on Principles and Priorities). Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the regulations concerning academic integrity and for ensuring that their assignments conform to the principles of academic integrity. Information on academic integrity is available in the Arts and Science Calendar (see Academic Regulation 1), on the Arts and Science website (see http://www.queensu.ca/calendars/artsci/ Regulation_1____Academic_Integrity.html), and from the instructor of this course. Departures from academic integrity include plagiarism, use of unauthorized materials, facilitation, forgery and falsification, and are antithetical to the development of an academic community at Queen's. Given the seriousness of these matters, actions which contravene the regulation on academic integrity carry sanctions that can range from a warning or the loss of grades on an assignment to the failure of a course to a requirement to withdraw from the university.

Topic 1: Euthanasia and the Right (or Duty) to Die

Week 1: September 12, 13, 15 Daniel Callahan, When Self-Determination Runs Amok
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3562566

James Rachels, Active and Passive Euthanasia

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM197501092920206

Week 2: September 19, 20, 22 Winston Nesbitt: Is Killing No Worse than Letting Die?
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-5930.1995.tb00124.x/pdf

John Harris, The Survival Lottery

http://www.jstor.org/stable/3749647

John Hardwig, Is There a Duty to Die?

http://www.jstor.org/stable/3527626

First Assignment Pick one of the readings from Topic 1. Carefully explain the authors position, and the arguments that he or she produces to support that position. Do not attempt to praise or criticize the author. Just explain, as clearly as possible, what the author is trying to say. Your thesis statement should express the authors position: for example, Rachels argues that Do not use direct quotes from the reading. Do not refer to any external source. Do not waste words on lengthy introductions. Follow all instructions on page 1 of this syllabus, and remember to put your name and student number on your paper. Length: 2 pages, or 450-650 words. Due: Monday, September 26, by the beginning of class.

Topic 2: Drugs and Addiction

Week 3: September 26, 27, 29 Thomas Szasz, The Ethics of Addiction

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/128/5/541.pdf

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Speaking Out Against Drug Legalization Only read the web page, not the PDF. (The PDF is over 180 pages long!)
http://www.justice.gov/dea/demand/speakout/index.html

Peter De Marneffe, Against the Legalization of Heroin

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=10600509&site=ehost-live

Week 4: October 3, 4, 6 Daniel Shapiro, Individual Rights, Drug Policy, and the Worst-Case Scenario
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=10600512&site=ehost-live

Douglas Husak, Four Points about Decriminalization

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=10600497&site=ehost-live

George Sher, On the Decriminalization of Drugs

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=10600504&site=ehost-live

Second Assignment Same as the first assignment, but pick one of the readings from Topic 2. Length: 2 pages, or 450-650 words. Due: Thursday, October 6, by the beginning of class.

Topic 3: Same-Sex Marriage

Week 5: October 13

No class on Monday the 10th (Thanksgiving Day) and Tuesday the 11th

Maggie Gallagher, The Stakes: Why We Need Marriage

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=11235123&site=ehost-live

Jeff Jordan, Is It Wrong to Discriminate on the Basis of Homosexuality?

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9833.1995.tb00056.x/pdf

Week 6: October 17, 18, 20 David Boonin, Same-Sex Marriage and the Argument from Public Disagreement
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/0047-2786.00016/pdf

Ralph Wedgwood, The Fundamental Argument for Same-Sex Marriage

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9760.00075/pdf

Claudia Card, Gay Divorce: Thoughts on the Legal Regulation of Marriage

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1527-2001.2007.tb01147.x/pdf

Third Assignment Pick one of the readings from Topic 3. Carefully explain the authors position, and the arguments that he or she produces to support that position. Also state whether or not you agree with the author, and explain why. Your essay should have a clear thesis statement which expresses your position with respect to the authors view: for example, Jordan is wrong because Do not use direct quotes from the reading. Do not refer to any external source, except to provide supporting data (which is not required). Do not waste words on lengthy introductions. Follow all instructions on page 1 of this syllabus, and remember to put your name and student number on your paper. Length: 3 pages, or 700-1000 words. Due: Monday, October 24, by the beginning of class.

Topic 4: Animal Rights

Week 7: October 24, 25, 27 Peter Singer, All Animals Are Equal
http://www.animal-rights-library.com/texts-m/singer02.htm

Tom Regan, The Rights of Humans and Other Animals

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=7314304&site=ehost-live

Mary Anne Warren, Difficulties with the Strong Animal Rights Position
http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/bts/vol2/iss4/1/

Week 8: October 31, November 1, 3 Carl Cohen, The Case for the Use of Animals in Biomedical Research
http://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJM198610023151405

Keith Burgess-Jackson, Doing Right by our Animal Companions

http://www.jstor.org/stable/25115576

Clare Palmer, Placing Animals in Urban Environmental Ethics

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9833.00165/pdf

Fourth Assignment Same as the third assignment, but pick one of the readings from Topic 4. Length: 3 pages, or 700-1000 words. Due: Monday, November 7, by the beginning of class.

Topic 5: Pornography, Free Speech, and Censorship

Week 9: November 7, 8, 10 Catharine A. MacKinnon, Pornography, Civil Rights, and Speech Only read Section I (p. 8-20) In the PDF file, it is p. 9-21.
http://www.heinonline.org/HOL/Print?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/hcrcl20&id=9

Judith M. Hill, Pornography and Degradation

http://www.jstor.org/stable/3810015

Ronald Dworkin, Is There a Right to Pornography? Only read Section II (p. 194-199)
http://www.jstor.org/stable/764457

Week 10: November 14, 15, 17 Nadine Strossen, Do We Have to Choose Between Freedom of Speech and Equality?
http://www.heinonline.org/HOL/Print?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/cwrlrv46&id=463

John Horton, Self-Censorship

http://resolver.scholarsportal.info/resolve/13564765/v17i0001/91_s

Fifth Assignment Pick TWO readings from Topic 5. Carefully explain each authors position, and the arguments that each author produces to support his or her position. Also state whose position you think is better, and explain why. Your essay should have a clear thesis statement which expresses your position: for example, MacKinnons view is more convincing than Dworkins, because Quoting is permitted, but excessive quoting may count against your grade. Do not refer to any external source, except to provide supporting data (which is not required). Do not waste words on lengthy introductions. Follow all instructions on page 1 of this syllabus, and remember to put your name and student number on your paper. Length: 3-4 pages, or 800-1200 words. Due: Monday, November 21, by the beginning of class.

Topic 6: War and Terrorism

Week 11: November 21, 22, 24 Jan Narveson, Pacifism: A Philosophical Analysis
http://www.jstor.org/stable/2379723

James Schall, When War Must Be the Answer

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA126927391&v=2.1&u=queensulaw&it=r&p=ITOF&sw=w

Laurie Calhoun, The Terrorists Tacit Message

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=6311486&site=ehost-live

Week 12: November 28, 29, December 1 Claudia Card, Questions Regarding a War on Terrorism
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1527-2001.2003.tb00785.x/pdf

Russell Hardin, Civil Liberties in the Era of Mass Terrorism

http://www.jstor.org/stable/25115782

Sixth Assignment Same as the fifth assignment, but pick two readings from Topic 6. Length: 3-4 pages, or 800-1200 words. Due: Monday, December 5 by 3:30 p.m. Please submit your paper at the Philosophy Departments drop box at Watson Hall 311. Make sure that your name, student number, and the course number appear on the first page, because this box is shared by many courses!