Philosophy 355/455 Fall 1999
Contemporary Moral Problems:
Moral Sameness and Difference
TTh 10-11, Angell Auditorium
Stephen Darwall
2227 Angell Hall
763-3493
Office hours: F 10-12
sdarwall@umich.edu
www.umich.edu/~sdarwall
Texts. Copies of the textbook—Daniel Bonevac (ed.), Today’s Moral Issues, 3rd edition
[listed as B in the schedule below]—are available at Shaman Drum Bookshop (313 S.
State St.). A coursepack [listed as CP] is available at Dollar Bill Copying (611 Church
St.) Copies of the text and the coursepack have also been placed on reserve at the
University Reserve Service (Shapiro Library). Two readings will be placed on electronic
reserve through the University Reserve Service [listed as ER]. The URL for electronic
reserves, which can be accessed from the Shapiro or an University Computing Site, is: .
Links to this site can also be found on the web pages for the course.
Course web pages. There are two web pages for the course. The main page for
Philosophy 355 (www.umich.edu/~sdarwall/Phil355.html) is also accessible through
my home page (www.umich.edu/~sdarwall). It contains links to a wealth of web
resources relating to the topics we will be studying. These are no substitute for the
assigned readings, but you will find them very useful in widening and deepening your
knowledge of these areas and, as well, relating them to issues of the current moment. A
“course materials page,” which is linked to this page, will include, in addition to the
course syllabus, all assignments, handouts, and lecture outlines. You can access it
directly at www.umich.edu/~sdarwall/Phil355a.html.
Course requirements. Attendance and participation in discussion section and in the
Moral Conversation Project is considered a course requirement. Your papers and exams
will be graded by your section leader. All students must complete the following
requirements to receive credit for the course:
1. Participate actively in discussion section, including the Moral Conversation
Project. (15% of grade)
2. Three papers (1000 to 1500 words), one of which is a development of work
begun in the Moral Conversation Project. (60% of grade)
3. Final examination, December 16, 4-6 p.m., Angell Hall Aud A (25% of grade)
Schedule of readings and assignments. This schedule is tentative. Any changes will be
announced in lecture. Please note that pages of reading in the coursepack (CP) are given
in coursepack pages, not pages of the article being reprinted.
I. Introductory Matters
September 9: The nature of moral issues and moral thought (B: 1-13)
September 14: Moral argument and moral theory
September 16: Consequentialism/Utilitarianism
Jeremy Bentham, Introduction to the Principles of Morals and
Legislation (B: 43-49)
John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism (B: 50-58)
September 21: Natural rights theory
John Locke, Second Treatise of Government (B: 348-354)
John Hospers, “What Libertarianism Is,” (B: 581-586)
September 23: Contractualism
John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (B: 59-65)
II. Humans, Animals, and the Environment
September 28: Animals and moral standing: the case for
“Universal Declaration of the Rights of Animals” (B: 100-101)
Peter Singer, Animal Liberation (B: 102-109)
Tom Regan, “The Case for Animal Rights” (B: 110-117)
September 30: The case against
Carl Cohen, “The Case for the Use of Animals in Biomedical Research”
(B: 118-124)
“David” (actually, Peter) Carruthers, The Animals Issue (B: 125-134)
October 5: Environmental ethics
Bill Devall and George Sessions, “Deep Ecology,” (B: 85-90)
William F. Baxter, “People or Penguins” (B: 91-97)
III. Distant and Close Peoples: World Hunger
October 7: The case for a strong duty to provide aid
Peter Singer, Practical Ethics (B: 682-691)
October 12: The case against
Garrett Hardin, “The Case Against Helping the Poor” (B: 675-681)
IV. The Beginning and End of Life
Abortion
October 14: Abortion: the case for its immorality
John T. Noonan, Jr., “An Almost Absolute Value in History” (B: 382-386)
Don Marquis, “Why Abortion is Immoral” (B: 414-425)
October 19: Abortion: the case against its immorality
Judith Jarvis Thomson, “A Defense of Abortion” (B: 387-396)
Mary Anne Warren, “On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion” (B: 397-407)
Jane English, “Abortion and the Concept of a Person,” (B: 408-413)
October 21: Abortion and the law
Justice Harry Blackmun, Roe v. Wade, (B: 376-381)
Euthanasia
October 26: The moral issue of euthanasia
J. Gay Williams, “The Wrongfulness of Euthanasia” (B: 453-455)
James Rachels, “The Morality of Euthanasia” (B: 456-462)
October 28: Euthanasia and the law I
“Matter of Quinlan” (B: 428-432)
Cruzan v. Harmon (B: 433-436)
Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Majority Opinion (B: 437-444)
Justice John Paul Stevens, Dissenting Opinion (B: 445-452)
November 2: Euthanasia and the law II
Glucksberg v. Washington, Vacco v. Quill
Ronald Dworkin, et al, Brief of the Amici Curiae (B: 463-469)
Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Majority Opinions(B: 470-480)
V. Race and Inequality, Discrimination and Fairness
November 4: What is race?
Conrad Kottak, “Biological Diversity and Race,” (CP: 2-12)
November 9: Race, genes, culture, and intelligence I
Jared Diamond, "Yali's Question, from Guns, Germs, and Steel” (CP: 97-107)
Charles Murray and Richard J. Herrnstein, “Race, Genes and I.Q.” (CP:
23-33)
November 11: Race, genes, culture, and intelligence II
Thomas Sowell, “Race and Intelligence” (CP: 37-51)
Robert Hughes, “The Fatal Shore” (CP: 55-57)
“Intelligence: Knowns and Unknowns) (CP: 59-83)
November 16: Affirmative action, race, and the law
Justice Lewis Powell, Majority Opinion in Bakke (B: 619-627)
Hopwood v. Texas (B: 628-640)
November 18: The case for affirmative action
Bernard R. Boxill, “Blacks and Social Justice,” (B: 647-657)
November 23: The case against affirmative action
Antonin Scalia, “The Disease as a Cure,” (B: 641-646)
Thomas Sowell, “’Affirmative Action’: A Worldwide Disaster” (B: 658-
673
November 30: Refocusing the debate?
Claude Steele, “Race and the Schooling of Black Americans,” (CP: 85-96)
VI. Gender and Sexual Orientation
December 2: What is gender?
Conrad Kottak, “Gender,” (CP: 13-22)
December 7: Gender and justice
Susan Okin, “Justice and Gender,” (ER)
Warren Farrell, “Is Male Power Really a Myth?” (ER)
December 9: Sexual orientation and the law
Justice Byron White, Majority Opinion in Bowers v. Hardwick (B: 310-312)
Justice Harry Blackmun, Dissenting Opinion in Bowers v. Hardwick (B:
313-317)
