Ethical Theory & Moral Practice

Is it wrong for deaf parents to choose to have deaf children? Should researchers be permitted to experiment on animals? Under what circumstances, if any, is it justified to wage wars? How should individuals act in the face of widespread global poverty? Difficult real-life moral questions typically do not have ‘easy answers’, but are rather open to on-going debate between various views. In this course, we aim to identify and understand a number of prominent philosophical approaches that are meant to aid us in dealing with such moral problems. These approaches are sometimes regarded as theories, sometimes as methods, but this distinction itself is up for discussion. We will conceive of them as tools. The lectures will discuss a number of philosophical approaches. In the seminars, we will assess, by discussing practical applications, in what ways such philosophical approaches are actually beneficial or not. 

This course is not an introductory course; prior knowledge of philosophical ethics is presupposed. The course emphatically also aims to help students improve their writing skills. In doing so, it is assumed that students already have some experience with philosophical writing.