Statement of the Competency: to think critically about ethical issues. Students who successfully complete the APPLIED ETHICS course in Humanities should be able to:
The APPLIED ETHICS course is designed to provide students with the basic ideas and skills of moral reasoning so that they can identify and analyze various issues, including program related ones, from an ethical perspective. Students become acquainted with a number of ethical theories and learn how to analyze and evaluate ethical arguments.
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| 345-BXH-DW |
"Doing Ethics in Media"? |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
The discussions in this course will build specifically on the Humanities skills of critical thinking about knowledge processes and worldviews. We are constantly engaging the world around us consciously and unconsciously through ethical frameworks that shape, in part, our understanding and relationship to various media in our lives. In this Ethics course, we will examine our roles in society as media users. The course and texbook are organized around core questions in media ethics. The questions encourage students to articulate the issues; apply frameworks; sort through conflicting values; and integrate philosophic principles. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Applied Ethical Issues with New School |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
New School offers a different way of doing your Ethics course. A Critical Humanistic approach is undertaken by New School in regards to learning: an approach based on the principles of Critical Pedagogy and Humanistic Education. We believe that people learn best when they have a say in what and how they will learn. In smaller learning groups, we give students a greater role in shaping the content of their courses and designing how they will study their subjects. This Ethics course will deepen your critical thinking around various ethical frameworks: how we make decisions about what is right and good or fair in our lives. In facilitating greater discussions between each other, our students are encouraged to relate their studies to their personal and social lives, and constantly link the personal to the political. Visit the New School homepage for more information on pre-registration. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Applied Ethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The Applied Ethics course is designed to provide students with the basic ideas and skills of moral reasoning so that they can identify and analyze various issues, including program related ones, from an ethical perspective. Students become acquainted with a number of ethical theories and learn how to analyze and evaluate ethical arguments. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Being Happy and Being Good |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to ethics, the branch of philosophy that examines how we ought to live. The course is organized around two basic ethical questions: how one ought to live in order to be happy, and how one ought to live in order to be good. With regard to the first question, two of the issues we will consider are what it means to be happy and the role of pleasure in a happy, fulfilling life. With regard to the second question, we will study the main ethical theories on what makes an action right or wrong. We will also consider the relation between happiness and goodness, i.e. whether and to what extent our interest in living fulfilling lives and our interest in being good people are in tension or in harmony. By examining these issues, students will learn the basic ideas and skills of moral reasoning so that they can identify and analyze various issues, including program-related ones, from an ethical perspective. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Choosing Wisely: The Art of Happiness |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
What does it means to be a happy person? Are happiness and being good compatible? We will begin by examining what it means to be autonomous, a necessary condition for making wise ethical choices. We will then study several moral theories such as utilitarianism, Kantian deontological theory, ethics of care and compassion, and Nietzschean and Sartrean ethics. Drawing on what we learned, we will then examine several case studies of ethical issues, applying and discussing the theories we have covered in class. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Consumer Culture |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
In this course we see how the manners in which we act as individuals and in society, are linked to people and locations overseas. We attempt to understand the many ways that our choices and the culture in which these choices make sense, impact our own daily lives, and how these can be used to develop scaffolding for an ethical human rights perspective. There is disagreement about the value of our interventions in other countries. In this class we consider how we each intervene every day in others’ lives when we partake in the culture of consumption in manifold ways. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Consumer Culture, Development and Ethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Consumer culture is the context in which we live our lives, and usually we don’t think of the impacts of consumer choices in the same way we think about political and social commitments. But these are interconnected, and affect ethical decisions. When government and corporations intervene or employ people overseas, this influences our thoughts, actions, and ethical choices. So there is controversy about the effectiveness of rights and development work, company practices, military intervention, and humanitarian work. There is an even more basic controversy about legitimacy of consumer culture interests and actions. This course links world market with world culture, considering ethical positions about globalisation. The social, political, and economic contexts of cases are examined through media sources and academic critiques. Students analyse the conditions in which certain realities have formed, understand different perspectives, and take an ethical position about consumer culture. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Contemporary Ethical Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course aims to identify the social, scientific, legal and political implications of major contemporary ethical issues, and their historical and theoretical background as well as to explain the main principles and theories that have been generated by moral philosophy and their application to concrete issues, such as: Kantian ethics, utilitarianism/consequentialism, ethical relativism, natural law and natural rights, virtue ethics, and the ethics of care. This course will examine these theories through researching and critically assessing clashing views on such major ethical issues as: euthanasia, abortion, sexual morality, pornography and censorship, equality and discrimination, affirmative action, economic justice, legal punishment, freedom of speech, stem-cell research, cloning (therapeutic and reproductive), genetic engineering, animal rights, environmental ethics, global inequalities, violence, terrorism and war. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Contemporary Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course deals with the ethical and moral issues on international development in the developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. The developing countries are frequently characterized by poverty, hunger, malnutrition, overpopulation, political instability, etc. Their economies are "underdeveloped" due to lack of capital, technology, skill manpower, and so on. This course will examine the causes and effects of the problems facing the developing countries and the remedial actions to overcome them. It will also examine the manifest injustices that exist in the present system of relationship between the developed and less developed countries. Students will be able to engage in theoretical discourse on the ethical issues of the Third World development, compare and contrast the ethical issues of different cultures, contextualize the subject, describe, analyze, synthesize, evaluate, and debate ethical issues in a multidisciplinary context. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Contemporary Moral Dilemmas |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Cosmopolitanism: Citizenship in a Globalizing World |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
In this course, you will examine ethical questions raised by globalization. As international trade breaks down national borders, major conflicts have erupted over the treatment of workers, environmental degradation, and threats to traditional cultures. What are the ethical problems raised by globalization? What are the most appropriate ways to resolve them? In confronting these questions, you will learn to apply ethical theories, identify competing ideological approaches, and make your own informed judgments on problems of global significance. In this course, you will learn to understand the major ethical theories. In addition, you will learn to recognize the basic political theories particularly in their relationship to the concept of “cosmopolitanism.” Finally, you will apply the learning you have completed over the course of the semester by writing a policy statement on an ethical issue related to your major field of study at Dawson College. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Choices |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course will examine the ethical dimensions of the choices we make as we go through life in a busy, often complicated world. Modern life is characterized, perhaps more than anything else, by the unprecedented volume and freedom of choice we are confronted with: from major life decisions and dilemmas, to mundane options and daily habits, we are constantly making choices that affect and shape both our selves and the world around us. In this course, we will examine the values that are intrinsic to or reflected in our everyday actions and options—and inquire into the evaluative mechanisms we employ to decide which choices are good or bad, right or wrong, moral or immoral. We will study various theoretical attempts to explain how we make ethical choices—theories that have been discussed by the great historical thinkers of moral philosophy—and then we will attempt to apply these theories to our own choices. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Iss. 3rd World Dev. |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Iss. Privacy & Information |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course introduces students to some of the most influential ethical theories and concepts. It relates these general theories and concepts to specific ethical issues and debates, and it familiarizes students with key controversies in the history of ethics. By the end of the term, students will be able to identify and compare some of the central beliefs and concepts in the history of ethics. They will be able to relate these beliefs and concepts to many current debates surrounding moral issues. They will also be able to analyze various influential arguments and texts in the history of ethics. Students who complete this course successfully will also improve their reading, writing, speaking, and critical thinking skills. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues and Political Obligation |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
The overall objective of this course is to examine the structure of ethical arguments related to fundamental issues involved in political obligation. Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to do the following: 1. Describe the nature and structure of ethical arguments by identifying the appropriate vocabulary, primary concepts, criteria of ethical judgments and the nature of arguments and experiential data used for supporting or opposing a claim in ethical judgments in different situations. 2. Critically apply the framework above to analyze selected ethical arguments dealing with a citizen's political obligations and with related issues of political power. 3. Apply the framework and applications discussed above to an analysis of a contemporary issue dealing with political obligation. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues and Privacy and Access to Information |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
The objectives of this course are for students to learn and to apply the often competing ethical values behind the protection of the individual rights to privacy and the right of access to information. The course will focus on different perspectives on privacy and access to information in the context of freedom of expression, of security concerns post Sept. 11, 2001, of ownership and control over the human body and of corporate ownership and control of culture and information. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues in Canadian Culture and Society |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course examines ethical issues and theories that apply to the individual and society. It also provides an introduction to traditional ethical theory as well as modern viewpoints on ethics and cultural diversity. You will be able to think critically on ethical issues such as: the nature of morality, virtue ethics, reward and punishment, abortion, euthanasia, marriage and human sexuality. Students will be able to recognize personal and universal ethical issues and will be able to argue a reasoned response within the framework of this course and within their program of study. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues in Greek Myth |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
In this course we will study the stories of popular Greek heroes and heroines and examine how these mythical figures were used to instruct their Greek audience about wider ethical issues. We will consider Greek mythology in its historical and social settings in order to see how the Greeks used myths to explore certain fundamental problems of individual psychology, social organization and larger existential problems. We will also look at how ancient Greek myths express lasting truths about the human being, his experience within society and his wider relationship with the natural world. We will establish some parallels between our own ‘modern myths' and Greek mythology in order to explore and elucidate some of the perennial problems of the human condition. The texts that we will be reading in this class are Homer's Odyssey, Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, and Euripides' Medea. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues in Leadership |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues in Third World Development |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course deals with the ethical issues of development in the Third World. In the West, development has been perceived as the panacea for such problems. Do the rich nations in the developed world have a moral duty to promote development in the Third World? Is development assistance an obstacle to the process of development in developing countries? This course will examine the leading issues of development, of “underdevelopment,” explore the causes and effects of the problems facing the Third World nations, and suggest remedial actions to overcome them. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues of Freedom, Justice and Democracy |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course seeks to enable students to recognize and understand the significance of ethical issues of freedom, justice and democracy occurring in contemporary society and politics, to gain knowledge of the chief competing views regarding these issues and to compare and evaluate these views with the aim of developing their own reasoned positions on these issues. Such issues will include, for example, what limits can the state rightly impose on individuals' freedom? Does justice require that governments make members of society equal? Does the democratic character of government increase our obligation to obey it? And can disobedience or resistance to government in a liberal democracy ever be justified? |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Issues, Privacy and Information |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
The objectives of this course are for students to learn and to apply the often competing ethical values behind the protection of the individual rights to privacy and the right of access to information. The course will focus on different perspectives on privacy and access to information in the context of freedom of information (including consideration of information in the age of Anonymous and Wikileaks); whether torture is an ethical way to gain information, whether security concerns justify secret trials, the meaning of privacy in a surveillance society, and ownership and control over the human body. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Questions in Medicine and Health |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
The objective of this course is to enable students to think, speak and write intelligently about ethical questions that arise in connection with health care. The course examines a number of ethical systems and considers how they might be applied to medicine and health. Among the issues considered are the autonomy of patients, the relationship between doctor and patient, informed consent, euthanasia, abortion and the distribution of health care. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethical Questions Medicine & Health |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics & Politics: Classical Approaches to Contemporary Issu |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics (Reflections) |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics and Literature |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Students will examine the major ethical theories and the issues which arise when these theories come into conflict. Literary texts, in conjunction with philosophical and sociological texts, will help students apply ethical thinking to various realms of life. Literary works can powerfully illustrate the ramifications of various ethical positions. They can also dramatize the struggle entailed in settling upon a course of action when no option seems satisfactory from a moral standpoint. Students will read works, taken from different historical periods, which demonstrate how ethical values have altered over time but also how some central concerns have remained the same. In addition, they will debate the ethics involved in contemporary issues, such as animal rights and euthanasia, and analyze ethical issues within their own field. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics and PolEthics & Politics: Classical Approaches to Con |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics and Resistance |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics and the Body |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course will examine contemporary ethical debates around the body in North America. Particular attention will be given to issues that arise around sexuality and sexual identity, representations of masculinity and femininity (and the outcomes of these representations), beauty standards and ownership of the body. Students will reflect on societal values and norms, attitudes and beliefs, practices, laws, and institutions that govern personal and collective perceptions and behaviours. Using classical ethical theory and critical reasoning skills, students will identify and evaluate positive and negative sexual values, norms, policies and laws in Canadian society. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics and the Other |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Beginning with an examination of how we relate to others, this course turns to ethical questions about how we should relate to others. With this in mind, the first part of the course examines the philosophical problem of inter-subjectivity, the modern/urban encounter with strangers, as well as various forms of discrimination and how they work; (namely racism, sexism, ageism etc.). The second part of the course examines some traditional attempts to answer ethical questions about justice, social justice and human rights. The principle of utility and Kant's notion of the categorical imperative are introduced in the context of student-led debates about the ethics of abortion, capital punishment, the treatment of animals and the environment, pornography, euthanasia and affirmative action. The course concludes with a look at the primacy of ethics as an irreducible responsibility (for the Other) and a fundamental capacity to care. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics for Modern Life |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course will take a multi-disciplinary approach to ethics, including a consideration of works from philosophy, political science and current public policy ethical issues. Students will be educated about some of the main ethical approaches including the Categorical Imperative, Utilitarianism, Ethical Egoism, Relativism and the Ethic of Care. This will give students the tools to critically assess some current ethical public policy debates. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics of Debt |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course introduces students to a variety of ethical perspectives, with particular emphasis on Kantian morality, utilitarianism and virtue ethics. These theories are taught in the context of an ongoing conversation on several aspects of the ethics of debt, each of which constitutes one unit in the course. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics with New School |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course is an attempt to address the ethics and politics of getting involved, examining basic concepts and moral beliefs about intervention. Do human beings need certain basic conditions to flourish? In an era of increasing globalization when we know about what is going on elsewhere, we cannot plead the defense of ignorance. So we practice empathy, compassion, solidarity; we exhibit a politics of pity, consume pornography of suffering, or suggest a maelstrom of military and socioeconomic policy meant to alleviate others’ suffering alongside our own. But can we mitigate suffering? When do we choose to wade in, and when do we give in to widespread public indifference? What types of promises do and should we make? |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: Classical Approaches to Contemporary Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: History,Theories and Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: Theories, History and Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to the history, theories and issues of ethics. We will study the important ethical systems in the history of ethics: virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism. Also, we will explore the insightful theories on moral subjectivism, cultural relativism, etc. Finally, we will investigate contemporary ethical issues such as abortion, environment, international aid, etc. by studying this course, students will acquire knowledge and skills that will help them make ethical decisions in both personal and professional life. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: Theory History & Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: Theory, History & Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Ethics: Theory, History and Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to the history, theories and issues of ethics. We will study the important ethical systems in the history of ethics: virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism. Also, we will explore the insightful theories on moral subjectivism, cultural relativism, etc. Finally, we will investigate contemporary ethical issues such as abortion, environment, international aid, etc. By the end of this course, students will acquire knowledge and skills that will help them make ethical decisions in both personal and professional life. |
|
| 345-BXH-DW |
Existential Horror |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course introduces students to some of the most influential ethical theories and concepts in relation to cinematic and literary works of existentialist horror and gothic modernism. The course relates these general theories and concepts to specific ethical debates to familiarize students with key controversies in the history of ethics. Theories around the aesthetics of horror—including concepts such as catharsis, the uncanny, the abject, the sublime, dread and the grotesque—will help us to locate what might be termed a “horror ethics.” The course also will help students to develop the skills necessary for research, writing, and rigorous critical analysis, and to relate the ethical questions concerning and arising from horror to their own programs of study. |
|
| 345-BXH-DW |
From Cruelty to Forgiveness |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course addresses two extremes of human behavior by examining our responses, both individual and collective, to human brutality – our desire for vengeance and punishment, our search for acknowledgment and justice, and the possibility for remorse, forgiveness and reconciliation. Students will be asked to consider their ethical responsibilities towards both victims and perpetrators, to righting old wrongs, and to reflect on how a concern with human suffering is relevant to their own field of study. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Global Issues |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Applied ethics is a branch of moral philosophy that uses ethical theory (relativism, divine command theory, egoism, utilitarianism, and Kantian morality) as way of helping us to understand and resolve moral conflict. This course seeks to analyze the relationship between individual moral responsibility and global issues, in particular as it applies to markets, property and the global economy; world hunger and poverty; migration and multiculturalism. Additional emphasis will be placed on environmental ethics and animal rights. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Happily Ever After |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will critically evaluate ethical theories and theories of happiness. Students will combine their abilities from their knowledge and world views courses and gain the ability to reason well and get themselves through ethical problems they might encounter. The course will investigate happiness. It will follow two parallel tracks through ethical theories and theories of happiness. The ethical theories dealt with will be Consequentialism, Deontology and the Categorical Imperative. Happiness will be viewed as pleasure, reward and finally, the contemplative life. Students will read classics in philosophy and literature in order to gain an understanding of these theories. Students will end the course by applying what they have learned to their area of study. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
How Can That Be Legal? |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course encourages students to explore the connection between law and ethics as expressed in legal theories. Students will study legal theory and legal reasoning as a way to analyze ethical issues from within a field of professional knowledge. The goal is to understand legal reasoning as one among many possible ways to ask questions and argue about moral issues. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Individual and State |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course we will examine both the ethics of how individual human beings should act towards one another, and what sort of rules and behaviour citizens of a state (in this case, Canada) should agree to follow and impose on each other. We will begin by examining different ethical theories, including but not limited to the Divine Command Theory, the Social Contract Theory, the Categorical Imperative, Utilitarianism and Relativism. After studying, understanding and critiquing these different approaches to ethics, we will apply our knowledge to an issue of perpetual importance: the balance between individual liberties and group security. This part of the course will include readings and discussions of issues such as online surveillance and data collection, torture and the imposition of the War Measures Act during the October Crisis of 1970. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Introduction to Ethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course aims to explore three interrelated questions: (i) What is ethics? (ii) What ethical theories are available to us for distinguishing good from bad, and right from wrong? (iii) How can ethical theories help us to examine and resolve debated ethical issues in our society and everyday moral dilemmas in our own lives? We will begin by considering the nature of ethics itself, defining the language and basic concepts of ethics as they apply to our everyday lives and the society we live in. We will then explore four major ethical theories in the history of ethics: (i) divine command ethics; (ii) virtue ethics; (iii) deontological ethics; and (iv) utilitarianism. In the final part of the course, we will apply these ethical theories to reflections on current ethical issues such as: abortion, euthanasia, the acceptable limits of scientific research, animal rights, feminism, moral relativism, and environmental issues. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Introduction to Ethics: Theory and Application |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will introduce students to the study of ethics. It will introduce two of the main ethical theories in the western philosophical traditions and examine a number of applied ethical issues in light of those theories. We will begin by considering the relationship between ethics and religion and then examine the claim that in ethics, everything is relative to one's culture or personal views. Next, we will consider the ethical theories of utilitarianism and Kantian ethics in some detail. With this foundation, we will examine a number of issues of a controversial nature. This study will proceed by examining philosophical discussions on both sides of the various issues and via consideration of those issues in light of the theories that we have examined. The list of controversial issues that we explore will be determined in consultation with the class; it may include abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Introduction to Moral Philosophy |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 345-BXH-DW |
Issues in Bioethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines the social and ethical dimension of medical and biological research, practice and technology. This includes controversial issues such as health care, abortion, euthanasia, reproductive technology, surrogacy, “test tube babies”, genetic testing and genetic manipulation of plants and animals, including human beings. Through the examination of a number of bioethical issues, this course helps students acquire the knowledge and sensitivity necessary for ethical deliberation and action in the public sphere and in personal life. This course introduces students to the basic vocabulary used in bioethical discourse, and situates various bioethical issues in their historical and philosophical contexts, underlining both their local and global importance while helping students articulate their own personal ethical outlook. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Issues in Ethics and Leadership |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Leaders are everywhere, in every sphere of life, so are their followers. This introductory course on ethics will deal with the various theories of ethics relevant to the understanding of leadership issues. It will also recognize questions, concepts and vocabularies dealing with ethics and leadership. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Media Ethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 345-BXH-DW |
Medical Ethics |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will explore alternate ethical approaches to issues in medicine, health care, and biotechnology. It will introduce students to traditional ethical theories, as well as to theories and concepts that are central to the discussion of bioethical issues. Students will gain a working knowledge of these theories and how they may be used to address the ethical questions that arise within the field of medicine, their program of study, and their own lives. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Modern Myth: Understanding Human Values through a Comic Book |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Societies throughout history have established, questioned and expressed their values and identities through various disciplines, especially mythology. Much as the epic tales of mythical champions served to examine what a virtuous life should look like, so do the superhuman stories of modern heroes. This course will examine different models of the virtuous life through the contemporary mythology of the superhero genre. Students will learn to appreciate classical moral ethics theories through a popular and contemporary vehicle: learning about the philosophy of Aristotle, Plato, Kant, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche through the actions of familiar heroes such as Batman, Superman and the Watchmen. The students will adopt a critical approach to studying ethical theories. Using comparison, students will witness ethics in action through the narratives of the superhero characters. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Modern Mythology: Human Values Through a Comic Book Panel |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Societies throughout history have established, questioned and expressed their values and identities through various disciplines, especially mythology. Much as the epic tales of mythical champions served to examine what a virtuous life should look like, so do the superhuman stories of modern heroes. This course will examine different models of the virtuous life through the contemporary mythology of the superhero genre. Students will learn to appreciate classical moral ethics theories through a popular and contemporary vehicle: learning about the philosophy of Aristotle, Plato, Kant, Kierkegaard and Nietzsche through the actions of familiar heroes such as Batman, Superman and the Watchmen. The students will adopt a critical approach to studying ethical theories. Using comparison, students will witness ethics in action through the narratives of the superhero characters. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Moral Choices in Literature |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course examines the intersection of ethical theory and literary artistry. When philosophers write about ways for us to address our moral failings, they appeal to our minds – but when writers of fiction or poetry write on the same subject, they seek to move our hearts as well. Literature presents one of the best test cases for understanding how an ethical theory may be put into practice, since it fully imagines and depicts all the possible consequences of a given moral choice. In other words, literature brings ethical theory to life: fictional characters can often teach us as much as the moral philosophers, if not more. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Moral Issues in Law |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course encourages students to explore the connection between law and ethics as expressed in legal theories. We will relate these theories to elements of the world views which gave rise to them. Students will study legal reasoning as a way to analyze ethical issues from within a field of professional knowledge. The goal is to understand legal reasoning as one among many possible ways to ask questions and argue about moral issues. In this course, we will: 1. Critically examine the relationship between law and morality. 2. Identify ethical issues in the making and application of law. 3. Defend an opinion on an ethical issue using legal reasoning – and explain the limits of that reasoning. 4. Situate legal concepts such as individual rights and the rule of law in world views and fields of knowledge. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Plato's Republic |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Ethics of Debt |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Ethics of Image: How Ethics Function in a Culture of Ima |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Ethics of Rebellion |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
When mass protest, civil disobedience and public demonstrations are used as a political tool, the people in the streets always face the same ethical dilemma - how hard do we push in the pursuit of social justice? When state security forces are deployed, and tensions escalate to the point of violence, is it morally or ethically justifiable for protestors to use violence in self-defense? And what about so-called acts of "creative destruction," the destruction of private property as a piece of political theatre? Or the disruptions of everyday city operations like traffic flow, business transactions, and class attendance by students? Students will learn a history of ethical issues that have arisen in times of public protest and how those issues relate to their own contemporary moment. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Ethics of What We Eat |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course is designed to equip students with the necessary tools for the normative analysis of a controversial ethical issue in contemporary society: the way food is produced in North America. During the first part of this course, students will be introduced to the fields of meta-ethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics. They will become acquainted with (at least) two of the dominant approaches in normative ethics: deontology and teleology. In the second part of this course, students will learn many of the core facts about the way food is produced in North America. The ethical implications of the industrial techniques of food production will be examined. Students will learn to critically analyze, from the main ethical perspectives, the problems associated with this issue. Specifically, concerns relating to public health, the environment and animal welfare will be addressed. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Individual and State |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
In this course we will examine both the ethics of how individual human beings should act towards one another, and what sort of rules and behaviour citizens of a state (in this case, Canada) should agree to follow and impose on each other. We will begin by examining different ethical theories, including but not limited to the Divine Command Theory, the Social Contract Theory, the Categorical Imperative, Utilitarianism and Relativism. After studying, understanding and critiquing these different approaches to ethics, we will apply our knowledge to an issue of perpetual importance: the balance between individual liberties and group security. This part of the course will include readings and discussions of issues such as online surveillance and data collection, torture and the imposition of the War Measures Act during the October Crisis of 1970. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Individual and the State |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Descriptions for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Sorcerer's Feast |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Globalization is considered by some to be the defining social process of our time. The goal of this course is to look at the phenomenon of globalization and the ethical issues at stake in the process. Is this process as pervasive as some claim? If it is, what benefits or drawbacks can we distinguish in this seemingly imminent progression of events? Once we do this, we can examine topics associated with globalization, such as the changing relationship between individual and the state, the market and public policy decisions, issues pertaining to terrorism, political protest and dissent, culture and international development. Philosophical issues to be thought about critically are historicism, modernity, human development and democracy, among others. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
The Universe on Your Plate |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Many of us do not consider that we are making an ethical choice at every meal. We do not often realize that our food decisions have enormous consequences for the environment, the people who grow and process our food, and our health. All of these factors are important to consider if we want to determine the most ethical way to eat. This course is designed to give you a basis for making ethical choices at your dinner (and lunch, and breakfast) table. During the first part of the course, we will examine several ethical theories, including utilitarianism, deontology, and Buddhist ethics. We will also consider whether our understanding of the universe, specifically that the atoms in our food and our bodies were forged in the bellies of exploding stars, could inform our ethical choices. In the second part of the course, we will go over many of the facts about the industrial food system, and apply the ethical theories we’ve learned. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Thinking Modern Technology |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
In the 21st century our individual and collective lives are increasingly permeated and sustained by the wonders of modern technology in ways that are clearly novel in human history. How has this situation emerged, and what new ethical challenges does it present? In this course we will examine the phenomenon of modern technology from its beginnings, in relation to politics, morality and practical decision-making. Contrasting a variety of critical approaches -- including cautious enthusiasts, optimistic reformers, resigned determinists, and apocalyptic detractors -- we will clarify the stakes of our ethical relation to technology and shed light on our possibilities moving forward. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Tolstoy's War and Peace |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace asks some of the most profound questions about history and ethics. In this paired humanities and history seminar, we will examine the novel from multiple perspectives, frequently relating it back to our own society. The book will allow us to consider the relationship between masses and individuals, liberalism and nationalism, reform and revolution, fate and free will. Ethical concepts are also central. Whether in the streets of Moscow, the drawing rooms of St. Petersburg, or on the battlefields of Austerlitz, the characters in War and Peace struggle to live meaningfully. Does leading an ethical life mean fighting for social reform? Or should it involve changing oneself? Does ethics require religious faith? Or can it be secular? Is morality universal or dependent on culture? Throughout the semester, we will examine these questions as they affect characters in the book, but also how they relate to ourselves. |
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| 345-BXH-DW |
Victorian Values |
3 - 0 - 3 |
45 |
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| Description for Course: |
This course is designed to provide students with an introduction to the value system of the Victorian era (1837-1901). Students will learn to identify the major values of Victorian society (e.g. progress, religion, innovation, industrialism, elitism, sexism, imperialism) and to discern the conflicts and contradictions inherent in these values. Students will also learn how the changing moral standards were both a cause and effect of social progress. Following an exploration of Victorian values, this course will also examine contemporary criticism of these values and provide a comparison with our current value systems |
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