Spring 2010

ETH 2050 - 001 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33360
MWF from 08:30 am to 09:20 am Instructors: Geoffrey G Karabin (P) This course is meant as an introductory journey through ethical thinking.  We will begin by examining some of Western humanity’s most influential and profound ethical theories.  The principles upon which these theories rest and the code of ethics derivative from them will be our focus.  Lewis Vaughn’s Doing Ethics will lead us through these theories.  The second section of this course will explore the question of why is it that we act or do not ethically.  Descartes’ “Letter to the Sorbonne,” Pascal’s “Wager,” Unamuno’s Tragic Sense of Life, Foucault’s Discipline and Punish, and Augustine’s On the Free Choice of the Will, along with the movie Lord of the Flies, will help guide us through such questions.  In the third and final section of this class we will look at how ethical theories are applied to concrete problems.  Lewis Vaughn’s book will address issues of Pornography and Terrorism, we will also explore the debate surrounding gay marriage and question whether ethical norms apply to celebrities.
ETH 2050 - 002 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33361
MWF from 09:30 am to 10:20 am  Instructors: Sally J. Scholz (P) Ethical Traditions and Contemporary Life is an exploration of some of the major ethical theories in western philosophy as well as an examination of their application in current personal and social moral problems.  Emphasis is on our social obligations, personal decision making, and the morally good life.  Throughout the course, students will be challenged to examine issues from different social, cultural, and economic perspectives.  Course methodology is designed to provide an environment that fosters cooperative learning thereby allowing students the opportunity to develop personal skills in critical thinking and evaluation, and respectful dialogue concerning difficult moral issues.
ETH 2050 - 003 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33362
MWF from 10:30 am to 11:20 am  Instructors: Sally J. Scholz (P)  Ethical Traditions and Contemporary Life is an exploration of some of the major ethical theories in western philosophy as well as an examination of their application in current personal and social moral problems.  Emphasis is on our social obligations, personal decision making, and the morally good life.  Throughout the course, students will be challenged to examine issues from different social, cultural, and economic perspectives.  Course methodology is designed to provide an environment that fosters cooperative learning thereby allowing students the opportunity to develop personal skills in critical thinking and evaluation, and respectful dialogue concerning difficult moral issues.
ETH 2050 - 004 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33363
MWF from 11:30 am to 12:20 pm  Instructors: Raoni Pascoal Padui (P)  The main goal of this course will be to introduce students to the history and practice of ethical thought. We will investigate the origin and history of questions about how one should live one’s life, what one ought to do, and what makes an action correct or just. In addition to an investigation of the major theories in the discipline, with special attention to the Western and Christian ethical tradition, we will also learn to apply such theories to contemporary questions and debates that bear directly upon our everyday lives.
ETH 2050 - 005 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33364
MWF from 12:30 pm to 01:20 pm  Instructors: Raoni Pascoal Padui (P)  The main goal of this course will be to introduce students to the history and practice of ethical thought. We will investigate the origin and history of questions about how one should live one’s life, what one ought to do, and what makes an action correct or just. In addition to an investigation of the major theories in the discipline, with special attention to the Western and Christian ethical tradition, we will also learn to apply such theories to contemporary questions and debates that bear directly upon our everyday lives
ETH 2050 - 006 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33366
MW from 01:30 pm to 02:45 pm  Instructors: Mark E. Graham
ETH 2050 - 007 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33367
MW from 03:00 pm to 04:15 pm  Instructors: Mark E. Graham
ETH 2050 - 008 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33368
MW from 03:00 pm to 04:15 pm  Instructors: Brett T. Wilmot (P)  This course will introduce you to classic and contemporary sources in ethics, including primary sources from thinkers such as Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, Immanuel Kant, John Stuart Mill, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, and John Rawls. In addition, we will be reading a range of contemporary essays that show these primary authors and their theories in contemporary application. We will be discussing sexual ethics, business ethics, and ethics related to health care. The main objectives are to promote a more sophisticated grasp of the moral dimensions of human life and an increased awareness of our continued participation in a complex, living tradition of critical reflection on the moral life
ETH 2050 - 009 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33370
MW from 01:30 pm to 02:45 pm  Instructors: Brett T. Wilmot (P)  This course will introduce you to classic and contemporary sources in ethics, including primary sources from thinkers such as Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, Immanuel Kant, John Stuart Mill, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, and John Rawls. In addition, we will be reading a range of contemporary essays that show these primary authors and their theories in contemporary application. We will be discussing sexual ethics, business ethics, and ethics related to health care. The main objectives are to promote a more sophisticated grasp of the moral dimensions of human life and an increased awareness of our continued participation in a complex, living tradition of critical reflection on the moral life
ETH 2050 - 010 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33371
TR from 08:30 am to 09:45 am  Instructors: Michael Moreland This course is an introduction to ethics in the Western philosophical and theological tradition. Among the questions we will explore are: What does it mean to live a moral life? Why be moral? What makes an act moral? What aspects of human activity are within the scope of morality? The course will also explore how one’s “big picture” beliefs shape one’s moral life: Is there a God? What are people really all about? The course will attempt to engage these questions through an extended treatment of the virtues as understood in the Christian tradition.
ETH 2050 - 011 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33372
TR from 08:30 am to 09:45 am  Instructors: Kathryn A. Getek (P)   In this course we will consider together some of the major western ethical traditions and apply them to contemporary ethical problems such as lying, poverty, euthanasia, and capital punishment.  As we discuss what constitutes right action, the good life, and a just community, we will examine Christian ethical approaches and investigate what distinctive resources and challenges they may offer.  At the end of this course, students should be able to articulate their ethical views with sufficient supporting argumentation and with the ability to fairly portray alternative positions.
ETH 2050 - 012 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33374
TR from 10:00 am to 11:15 am INSTRUCTOR: Jules van Schaijik
ETH 2050 - 013 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33376
TR from 10:00 am to 11:15 am  Instructors: Kathryn A. Getek (P)   In this course we will consider together some of the major western ethical traditions and apply them to contemporary ethical problems such as lying, poverty, euthanasia, and capital punishment.  As we discuss what constitutes right action, the good life, and a just community, we will examine Christian ethical approaches and investigate what distinctive resources and challenges they may offer.  At the end of this course, students should be able to articulate their ethical views with sufficient supporting argumentation and with the ability to fairly portray alternative positions.
ETH 2050 - 014 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33377
TR from 11:30 am to 12:45 pm  Instructors: Jesse D. Couenhoven In this introductory course we will draw on interdisciplinary sources (philosophical, theological, literary, legal, and medical) to examine a range of moral questions. Against the background of competing views of human personhood and disagreements about the place of religious views in the public square, we will explore the complexities of debates about just war and pacifism, the environment, free speech, sexuality, and drug use, from both Christian and secular perspectives. Special attention will be paid to helping students see how one moves from intuitions about what is right or good to being able to develop consistent and thoughtful opinions about moral issues.
ETH 2050 - 015 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33379
TR from 11:30 am to 12:45 pm Instructors: Mark Andrew Wilson (P)  This course is designed to introduce students to the theory and practice of moral reasoning from both philosophical and religious perspectives.  We will begin by examining basic methods and theories in ethics and then will spend the majority of the semester exploring a range of contemporary issues in medicine, international relations, business, the environment, and social justice.  Utilizing real-world cases to frame our study, we will probe the challenges and tensions in applied moral reasoning.  Through this course one should grow to understand the complexity of these topics and to appreciate how religious and philosophical thought inform public discourse in the United States today.  Along the way, we will ask whether individuals or groups have a responsibility to protect the interests of vulnerable populations: fetuses, political communities under attack, sick and dying patients, and the culturally marginalized.  Students should come away from the course better able to contemplate and critically analyze issues of great importance for their personal, professional, and civic lives
ETH 2050 - 016 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33381
TR from 01:00 pm to 02:15 pm  Instructors: William Werpehowski (P)  This course is an introduction to 1) important Western approaches to moral reflection, 2) significant issues in social, political and medical ethics, and 3) the relation of the first to the second. While Christian ethical traditions stand as a prominent theme, this is so as a point of departure for critical thinking about the nature of a good human life. That thinking can and should include a conversation engaging the various moral visions and ideas we will consider
ETH 2050 - 017 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33383
TR from 01:00 pm to 02:15 pm  Instructors: Mark Andrew Wilson (P)  This course is designed to introduce students to the theory and practice of moral reasoning from both philosophical and religious perspectives.  We will begin by examining basic methods and theories in ethics and then will spend the majority of the semester exploring a range of contemporary issues in medicine, international relations, business, the environment, and social justice.  Utilizing real-world cases to frame our study, we will probe the challenges and tensions in applied moral reasoning.  Through this course one should grow to understand the complexity of these topics and to appreciate how religious and philosophical thought inform public discourse in the United States today.  Along the way, we will ask whether individuals or groups have a responsibility to protect the interests of vulnerable populations: fetuses, political communities under attack, sick and dying patients, and the culturally marginalized.  Students should come away from the course better able to contemplate and critically analyze issues of great importance for their personal, professional, and civic lives
ETH 2050 - 018 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33385
TR from 02:30 pm to 03:45 pm  Instructors: Michael H. Prosch (P)  An introduction to ethics through key ethical theories and their practical applications to contemporary moral issues. First, we’ll focus on the more philosophical groundings for ethics by taking a close look at various theories proposed especially, virtue ethics (Aristotle), utilitarian ethics (Bentham & Mill), and Kantian deontological ethics (Kant), together with a treatment of how a Christian ethic can utilize these theories (as well as be utilized by them) yet expects something more of us. After a quick overview of how the social context plays a role (mill and Marx), we’ll then shift to seeing how these ethical viewpoints can be of help in working through various moral issues and dilemmas, including sex/love/commitment, animal liberation, euthanasia, what we ought to and/or can do about third world poverty, drug use, and abuse, and more. Readings are taken from basic philosophical texts, literature, and contemporary discussions. Several short papers on the reading will be required, plus a longer paper on a specific issue and the normal exams.
ETH 2050 - 019 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33386
TR from 02:30 pm to 03:45 pm  Instructors: Julie Ragatz (P)  There are two principle components of this class; increasing knowledge and developing skills. The knowledge component of the course consists in learning what traditional  ethical theories have to tell us about ethical reasoning. The skill component focuses on developing the ability to become more effective moral agents. These two dimensions reflect the fact that ethics is both an academic discipline and a “life skill”. Not only do we need to know and understand the different forms of ethical reasoning and the alternative justifications of ethical principles, we also need to be able to apply these principles in our everyday lives
ETH 2050 - 020 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33388
TR from 04:00 pm to 05:15 pm  Instructors: Michael H. Prosch (P)  An introduction to  ethics through key ethical theories and their practical applications to contemporary moral issues. First, we’ll focus on the more philosophical groundings for ethics by taking a close look at various theories proposed especially, virtue ethics (Aristotle), utilitarian ethics (Bentham & Mill), and Kantian deontological ethics (Kant), together with a treatment of how a Christian ethic can utilize these theories (as well as be utilized by them) yet expects something more of us. After a quick overview of how the social context plays a role (mill and Marx), we’ll then shift to seeing how these ethical viewpoints can be of help in working through various moral issues and dilemmas, including sex/love/commitment, animal liberation, euthanasia, what we ought to and/or can do about third world poverty, drug use, and abuse, and more. Readings are taken from basic philosophical texts, literature, and contemporary discussions. Several short papers on the reading will be required, plus a longer paper on a specific issue and the normal exams.
ETH 2050 - 021 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33390
TR from 04:00 pm to 05:15 pm  Instructors: Julie Ragatz (P) There are two principle components of this class; increasing knowledge and developing skills. The knowledge component of the course consists in learning what traditional  ethical theories have to tell us about ethical reasoning. The skill component focuses on developing the ability to become more effective moral agents. These two dimensions reflect the fact that ethics is both an academic discipline and a “life skill”. Not only do we need to know and understand the different forms of ethical reasoning and the alternative justifications of ethical principles, we also need to be able to apply these principles in our everyday lives
ETH 2050 - 100 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33392
W from 06:10 pm to 08:50 pm  Instructor: Gregory Getek Soltis Comment: Full-time A&S students require Dean's permission to register for this section.
ETH 2050 - 101 Eth Trad & Contemp Life CRN: 33395
R from 06:00 pm to 09:30 pm  Instructors: Laura Victoria Papish (P) Attributes: Fast Forward Course, Writing Enriched Requirement Comment: FastForward 3; Course Dates: 1/14/10 - 2/25/10; Restricted to Part-Time Studies students. The goal of this course is to introduce you to several moral theories within the history of philosophy that hold the greatest promise for illuminating many of the ethical questions we currently struggle with.  Paying special attention to Western philosophy and Christian perspectives, we will ask of each historical view we examine questions such as: How does it explain what makes an act right or wrong?  Can it explain why we should care about what’s right and wrong in the first place?  What possible criticisms might it encounter? Once we have our answers to these questions, we will then apply them to debates relevant to our everyday lives.
ETH 3010 - 001 TOP: Tragedy & Moral  Responsibility  CRN: 33397
MW from 01:30 pm to 02:45 pm  Instructors: Mark Andrew Wilson (P) Contemporary philosophers have questioned whether morality, especially in its Kantian guise, can countenance a more robust vision of the self, one that accounts for the significance of luck, emotions, integrity, and interpersonal commitments.  At stake in these inquiries are fundamental questions of agency, responsibility, and the scope and limits of morality itself.  Do we need good luck to achieve the good life?  Is morality immune to luck?  Do we rightly praise and blame those who experience triumph or tragedy through luck or misfortune?  What do emotions like guilt, regret, and shame tell us about our experience of responsibility? Combining elements of moral philosophy and psychology as well as theological ethics, this course will explore these questions through recent debates about moral luck and tragedy.  Focusing on the way that experiences of misfortune often confound our received notions of autonomy, freedom, and accountability, we will examine the strengths and weaknesses of Kantian and Aristotelian approaches.  Of special interest will be the way that Christian conceptions of human agency provide an alternative to and potential corrective for philosophical models of responsibility. Pre=requisite : ETH 2050
ETH 4000 - 001 Integrating Seminar CRN: 33399
Instructors: Mark J. Doorley (P) Attributes: Writing Intensive Requirement Restrictions: Must be enrolled in one of the following Levels: Undergraduate Must be enrolled in one of the following Fields of Study (Major, Minor, or Concentration): Ethics Must be enrolled in one of the following Classifications: Senior
ETH 4975 - 001 Independent Study in Ethics CRN: 33401
Instructor: Dr. Mark Doorley Permission of the Director, The Ethics Program required.
PJ 5000 - 002 Theology, Eth & Crim Just CRN: 33927
TR 11:30 am to 12:45 pm Instructors: Kathryn A. Getek (P)   THL, ETH, and SOC attributes Includes an optional service-learning component with the literacy program at Graterford Prison.   What does it mean to do justice? In this course we will explore 1) the justice of God and theological accounts of punishment, 2) contemporary ethical models of justice and punishment, and 3) realities of criminal justice in America and the implications that revised understandings of justice might have for how we define and regulate crime and, particularly, for current practices in sentencing and corrections.  How can theological and ethical accounts shed new light on our concept of justice and the manner in which that justice is done in our courts and prisons?
HUM 2900 - 001 Freedom, Merit & Punishment CRN: 34239
TR from 01:00 pm to 02:15 pm Instructors: Jesse D. Couenhoven Most people agree that we should only punish (or reward) those who merit it. When we punish our pets, though, we tend to have a different theory of punishment in mind than when we punish other people. That is mainly because we think persons have free will, while cats do not. But aren’t cats and dogs (and even goldfish) free in some respects? This class draws on legal, philosophical, psychological, and theological texts and stories to explore what it means to be free, and what that means for our everyday lives. We will discuss political freedoms, personal freedoms, and which kinds of freedom are most worth having. We will also explore how people and pets can merit rewards or punishments, praise and blame. Finally, we will consider whether there is a place for grace in our thinking about blame and responsibility.