An Introduction to Ethics and Natural Law (AP8200C)

Content

What is the good? Why should we act according to it? How do we determine what is ethically good? This unit introduces students to the foundations of ethics by a study of the major approaches to ethics in the Western philosophical tradition – including Socratic ethics, virtue ethics, deontology and utilitarianism. It also studies natural law theory by introducing the natural law positions of Thomas Aquinas. By drawing on key texts from both ancient and contemporary thinkers, the unit gives a foundation for understanding basic ethical concepts such as virtue, conscience, moral responsibility, moral norms, and the common good. It provides a solid grounding for advanced studies in ethics and moral theology.

Learning outcomes

Pedagogy

Lectures, seminars and tutorials

Indicative Bibliography

• Aquinas, St. Thomas. Summa Theologica.
• Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics. Translation and Historical Introduction by Christopher Rowe. Philosophical Introduction and Commentary by Sarah Broadie. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
• Cunningham, Stanley B. Reclaiming Moral Agency: The Moral Philosophy of Albert the Great. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2008.
• Deigh, John. An Introduction to Ethics. Cambridge Introductions to Philosophy. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
• Epicurus. Letter to Menoeceus.
• ———. Principal Doctrines.
• Irwin, Terence. The Development of Ethics. Vols. 1–3. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007–2009.
• Kant, Immanuel. Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. In Practical Philosophy. Translated and edited by Mary J. Gregor. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
• Mill, John S. Utilitarianism.
• Singer, Peter. How are We to Live? Ethics in an Age of Self-Interest. Melbourne: Text, 1993.
• Uleman, Jennifer K. An Introduction to Kant's Moral Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010.

Assessment