Ashford PHI 208 Ethics and Moral Reasoning

Ashford
PHI 208 Ethics and Moral Reasoning

Week 1 Discussion 1:
What is Philosophy
Most people have views that are
strongly influenced and informed by philosophy, often without realizing it.
Identify a view you have—whether on politics, religion, science, culture, or
even the media and entertainment—that might be regarded as being related to
philosophy. What kind of reasons do you have for holding that belief? What
figure from the history of philosophy section do you think might have some
views that are similar, or at least relevant, to your own? Explain why you
chose that particular figure.

Week 1 Discussion 2:
Justifying Beliefs
Many philosophers insist that our
most strongly held beliefs should be examined and critically evaluated. Using
the required text and outside sources, explain what philosophers mean when they
say that beliefs need justification? What is the importance of subjecting our
beliefs to critical scrutiny? What are the advantages of believing something
without examining it? What are the disadvantages? Identify a specific belief
you have that you think is worth defending, and then explain your reasons for
holding that belief. Be sure to include logical reasoning as well as factual
evidence in all your arguments.

Week 2 Assignment: Famine, Affluence
and Morality
Please read the article “Famine,
Affluence, and Morality,” by Peter Singer and complete the following tasks:
Explain Singer’s goal in this
article, and then present his argument in relation to this issue. Explain three
counter-arguments to Singer’s position that he addresses in his article, and
then indicate Singer’s responses to those counter-arguments. Define Singer’s
concept of marginal utility and identify how it relates to his argument.
Compare how the ideas of duty and charity change in Singer’s proposed world?
Finally, present your personal response to Singer (this should be no more than
one page of the entire assignment). Provide an argument either in support of
Singer’s position, against his position, or somewhere in the middle of his
position. Remember that when you present your own positions you need to support
those positions with as much logical reasoning and factual evidence as
possible. The paper must be at least three pages in length, formatted
according to APA style, and include a title and a reference page (which does
not count towards the page length). Support your point with examples from the
text and at least two sources, which can be found in the Ashford Online
Library. For information regarding APA samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford
Writing Center, within the Learning Resources tab on the left navigation
toolbar.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to
evaluate your assignment.

Week 2 Discussion 1: Ethics and
Relativism
Our text discusses the challenge
relativism presents to various ethical and religious viewpoints. Consider a
specific moral question which might make it difficult to accept the
relativist’s response. State the moral issue involved, and provide an explanation
as to why you think a relativist might have a problem giving a justified
response to it. In addition, use one of the positive ethical theories from the
text to interpret the issue and how one should respond to this issue.

Week 2 Discussion 2: Animal Rights
Do human beings have any obligations
to animals in terms of their treatment? If it is wrong to treat animals
cruelly, why is it not wrong to eat them? Explain if, and how, you think humans
can find a balance between treating animals ethically while also raising them
for food and for other reasons, such as the testing of pharmaceuticals.

Week 3 Assignment: Euthyphro – Plato

In the Euthyphro, Socrates and Euthyphro discuss the concept of piety/holiness.
This essay will not only test your ability to recognize and engage
philosophical concepts and analysis, but also brings you into the dialogue as a
participant, asking you to create your own definition of holiness.

Read the Euthyphro, and write a paper in which you do the following:
Explain how the concept of holiness
emerges in the dialogue and why it takes a prominent position in the
conversation between Socrates and Euthyphro. Present the three definitions that
Euthyphro uses in his response to Socrates, and then explain how Socrates
refutes each of Euthyphro’s definitions. Formulate your own argument as to what
you think Socrates’s goal is in this dialogue. How do you know that is his
goal? What features of the dialogue align with your interpretation of his goal?
Provide your own definition of piety/holiness and then create a Socratic
response/critique of your definition. After you present your definition, take
on the role of Socrates and respond to your own definition as you think he
would. The paper must be at least three pages in length, formatted according to
APA style, and include a title and a reference page (which does not count
towards the page length). For information regarding APA samples and tutorials,
visit the Ashford Writing Center, within the Learning Resources tab on the left
navigation toolbar.

Week 3 Discussion 1: The Limits of Skepticism
Can a person be skeptical about
everything, or are there limits? Is it possible to doubt everything or almost
everything? Does a person have an obligation to use ethical and moral reasoning
when examining ones beliefs. Are there beliefs you possess that cannot be
challenged or shown to be false? How might the skeptic respond to your claim
that such a belief cannot be doubted? Identify one such specific belief and
present your response to the skeptic. (If you don’t have such a belief, explain
how one could live while not accepting any claim as true.)

Week 3 Discussion 2: Truth and the
Limits of Knowledge
Explain the epistemological
perspective from the text (or outside sources) that most coincides with your
view of truth and the way that the human mind grasps reality. Explain why you
find it to be the best explanation of the way that the human mind is able to
understand its world. Finally, present your views on whether humans can
actually know the truth about objects or ideas in the world. If you believe
they can, explain why. If you do not think they can, explain why not. Feel free
to consult outside academic sources in order to explain more of the details of
the theory that you describe here.

Week 4 Discussion 1: Proof of God’s Existence
After reading about the various
proofs of the existence of God, identify which of these arguments seems to be
the best, and explain why you think so. If you find none of them convincing,
present your best argument against one of these proofs and why it fails to
accomplish its task. Complete your response by reflecting on why philosophers
have sought for thousands of years to provide such proofs, and whether it is
necessary to do so.

Week 4 Discussion 2: The Turing Test
Present three specific questions
that you would ask in the Turing Test to determine if something is real or
artificial intelligence. Explain why you think these questions would be the
type to reveal the computer to be a computer? Why would these responses have to
be given by a human being? (If you don’t think there are such questions,
explain how the three questions you chose would fail to determine which one of
the respondents was a computer and which was an actual human.)

Week 5 Final Argumentative Paper

Three important sub-disciplines of philosophy are addressed in this course:
ethics, epistemology, and religion. For this paper, you will develop an
argument that includes your own view on one specific topic relating to one of
these sub-disciplines. Below is a list of topics from which you must choose.
Feel free to combine topics that seem to fit with one another. It is
recommended that you choose a topic that interests you or that you have thought
about previously.

In philosophical papers, it is always best to present both sides of the issue
(remember that there are usually more than two sides to any issue), and then to
present the side that you find the most convincing. Remember to back up your
position with logical reasoning and factual evidence. In addition, be sure to
utilize the philosophical content and ideas that you have encountered in this
course.
Identify the specific issue. Make
clear one basic dispute over this issue. Clarify the arguments on multiple
sides of the issue. Structure an argument that supports the side of the issue
you find to be better defended. Explain why you find that side of the debate
superior. State your own view, and defend it with an argument. Provide at least
two references for each side of the debate. Utilize the philosophical theories
and ideas that you have encountered in this course as much as possible. In
order to write a strong paper, you will need to clearly and specifically
present both sides of the debate using at least five academic sources in addition
to the course text, three of which can be found in the Ashford Online Library.

Select a topic from the following sub-disciplines:
Ethics What is the most convincing ethical system? Why? Is it necessary to have
universal ethical principles? What are the fundamental principles of ethics?
What is the good life and how does one achieve it? Is ethics natural or learned
behavior? What is an ethically bad life? How do we know? How do humans
differentiate between good and bad in the realm of ethics? Do ethical actions
have value apart from the outcomes of those actions? Are humans free or
determined, and how does this perspective relate to human responsibility?

Epistemology What can humans know for certain and how can they justify that
they actually know what they think they know? What are the limits of human
perception and cognition? What is the relationship between scientific knowledge
and other types of knowledge? What are the limits of skepticism? What are the
differences between the mind and the brain? Is radical relativism defensible?
What is the best epistemological argument and explanation of how humans
perceive their worlds? How did human consciousness emerge and where is it
headed?

Religion Is proof for the existence of God necessary? Which argument for the
existence of God is strongest? Why? What are the foundations of the universe
and from where did the universe emerge? Can one be moral and not believe in
God? Can God and real evil be reconciled? Are science and religion in conflict?
Can God’s omniscience and human free will be reconciled? Is there a rational
argument for atheism? The paper must be six to eight pages in length, formatted
according to APA style, and include a title and a reference page (which does
not count towards the page length). Support your point with examples from the
text and at least five sources, three of which can be found in the Ashford
Online Library. For information regarding APA samples and tutorials, visit the
Ashford Writing Center, within the Learning Resources tab on the left
navigation toolbar.

Writing the Final Argumentative Paper
The Final Paper: Must be six to eight double-spaced pages in length, and
formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
Must include a title page with the following: Title of paper Student’s name
Course name and number Instructor’s name Date submitted Must begin with an
introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement. Must address the
topic of the paper with critical thought. Must end with a conclusion that
reaffirms your thesis. Must use at least five scholarly sources, including a
minimum of three from the Ashford Online Library. Must document all sources in
APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Must include a separate
reference page, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford
Writing Center. Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will
be used to evaluate your assignment.

Week 5 DQ1 The Meaning of Life
Chapter 5 is focused on the meaning
of human life. Present your view on the ultimate meaning of life. Be sure to
back up your view with logical reasoning and as much evidence as you can. What
gives human life meaning? How do you know? How should one act in the world once
one realizes this meaning? Connect your ideas on the essential meaning of life
to the views of at least one philosopher. This philosopher can be someone
whom we studied or can come from an outside source. You might connect your
ideas in a harmonious or contradictory way. Utilize the academic resources
aligned with this course to find a philosopher that coincides with or
contradicts your own ideas.

Week 5 DQ2 Philosophy and Society
After watching Relationship of
Philosophy to Other Fields, reflect on the relationship of philosophy to your
life in terms of your future education and career goals. What value does
philosophy have? How can people benefit from thinking more philosophically? How
does philosophy affect ethical issues? What significance does thinking and
reasoning critically play in society, and in human flourishing?