This course examines the main Western ethical theories and their application to contemporary moral concerns. Theoretical issues may include rights, duties, virtue, hedonism, egoism, the relation between ethics and theology, the fact-value distinction, relativism, and pluralism. Students discuss current topics such as global economic justice, euthanasia, the death penalty, animal rights, censorship, racism, privacy rights versus public safety, reproductive ethics, and environmental ethics. Prerequisite: completion of BTS-T or permission of instructor. Offered annually. Counts toward biomedical studies concentration.

Texts:  

Fundamentals of Ethics, 2nd Edition. Shafer-Landau, Oxford University Press,

The Ethical Life: Fundamental Readings in Ethics and Moral Problems, 2nd Edition, Edited by Shafer-Landau, Oxford University Press.