Class: PHL205 Ethics
Professor: Craig DeLancey
Office: CC212A
Email: craig.delancey@oswego.edu


Past Assignments

28 January
Read before class "The Euthyphro." This is the first dialogue in our book called Five Dialogues. It is pages 2-20. Not bad, right? You can read 18 pages!

Practice: before class, answer the questions about the reading that are on BlackBoard.

An online version is here. Better to have the book, though. It has a better translation and we can refer together to the pages.
31 January
Read "The Apology" before class on Wednesday. It's in the Plato selections I've put in the bookstore for us, but also here's a fair translation: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/apology.html .
1 February
My apologies, I have appointments all day! I will have office hour 7-9 pm for anyone who wants help with anything. They'll be at: https://meet.google.com/qqk-xrvh-sjn. I hope that works for everyone.
2 February
Read "The Apology" before class. It's in the Plato selections I've put in the bookstore for us, but also here's a fair translation: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/apology.html .

Answer the questions about The Apology that are on BlackBoard (these will be available till just before class on Friday).
7 February
Read "The Crito" before class. Here's an OK online version: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/crito.html. You're tough, you can do it!
8 February
Apologies! I have conflicts today and will have to move my office hours to Wednesday (which will then at least be in person!). I hope that's OK! Email me if you want to talk today, though, and I can make some time between appointments!
9 February
Optional Extra-Credit Problem: answer the short The Crito essay question due before class.

Reading: our last reading by Plato! (You're over the hump for our readings now: most of the readings from now on will be much shorter than our Plato readings!) Read The Phaedo before class.

I had mentioned that Dr. Cornell West has given many passionate talks about the example of Socrates's death. Here in the first five minutes or so he discusses Plato (and other philosophers): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfD3X3f5C_w. It's a bit unusual because it's from a film where they followed philosophers around and questioned them. So this part is in a car on a noisy day in NY!

Office Hours: I will have office hours in my office from 3:00 - 4:30. First in-person hours! Sorry I have too many meetings.
10 February
Office hours 9-11 are at: https://meet.google.com/xzq-htrs-wns.
11 & 14 February
Reading: Before class, read book 1 and book 2 of The Nicomachean Ethics.

Practice: Take the quiz on the methods of philosophy! On BlackBoard. In class, we'll start discussing Aristotle.
15 February
Office hours 9-11 am at meet.google.com/wrr-mtao-tvx .
16 February
Practice: On BlackBoard there are two questions. First, an assignment to consider a virtue and describe it as Aristotle might. Second, a practice to attempt Aristotle's analysis of purposes.

In class, we will consider some challenges for virtue ethics. We may introduce Kant if we have time.

A few of you asked me about BlackBoard grades. Don't pay attention to those. BlackBoard generates a letter grade but it has nothing to do with our class grade.
21 February
Practice: On BlackBoard a short quiz about Aristotle and Plato, due by midnight Wednesday.

Reading: the Second Section of The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals is rather long. Read page 19-32 before this class.
23 February
Reading: read the rest of the Second Section of The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals before class.

Practice: answer the question on BlackBoard, which is practice with the First Form of the Categorical Imperative.

I'll have office hours from 3:00 - 4:30 pm in my office in MCC212A.
24 February
Office hours 2-4 pm at https://meet.google.com/xfk-oxhs-eqi.

Please check your email tonight and tomorrow morning. The forecast is for a big storm, so I might move us online.
25 February
Reading: read the third Section of The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals before class.

Practice: answer the question on BlackBoard, which is practice with the Second Form of Categorical Imperative.
28 February
Reading: read "What is Enlightenment?" before class. Here is an easy-to-read version.

Practice: answer the few questions on BlackBoard about "What is Enlightenment?"

A reminder: generally questions are due before class, because we may go over the answers in class.
2 March
Reading: chapters 1 and 2 of "Utilitarianism."

Practice: answer the questions on BlackBoard about Mill. These will be available until 1:50 pm on Friday.
4 March
Reading: chapters 3 and 4 of "Utilitarianism." Online versions include: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/11224/11224-h/11224-h.htm

View: before class watch this video from TED, where the most famous utilitarian of our time argues for a life of altruism according to the principles of (a revised) utilitarianism.

PS: a question independent of this class: are you interested in cryptocurrencies? I am thinking of putting together a discussion group on philosophy and crypto. Email me if you are interested.
7 March
Reading: before class read chapter 5 of "Utilitarianism."

View: before class watch this video from TED, where the most famous utilitarian of our time argues for a life of altruism according to the principles of (a revised) utilitarianism.

9 March
Kant and some Mill quiz, in class. You can use your books (Plato, Kant, Mill).

Some study questions:
  • What is the good, according to Kant? Give an example.
  • Apply the first form of the categorical imperative to an immoral action and identify why the action cannot be universal.
  • Apply the second form of the categorical imperative to an immoral action and identify why the action treats someone solely as a means.
  • What is the good, according to Mill? Give an example.
  • What is consequentialism? Give an example of reasoning in this way.
11 March
Reading: the 2-page summary by Thomson of Foot's Trolley Problem(s). This is on BlackBoard.

Practice: answer the question on BlackBoard about the Trolley problem.

In class, we will discuss the problems. Then we will discuss the challenges to evaluating our theories; and also our next topic (contract theory!).
21 March
Reading: the short selection from Hobbes's great book Leviathan and also the selection from Locke's Treatise on Government. These are on BlackBoard and are only a few pages long.

Practice/Homework: before class, answer the questions about Contract Theory that are on BlackBoard.
March 23
Reading: "The Original Affluent Society," by Marshall Sahlins.

Practice: answer the questions on BlackBoard about this reading from Sahlins.

Optional reading: the short selection from Rousseaus's great book The Social Contract. This is on BlackBoard and is only a few pages long.
March 24
Office hours today must start and end an hour earlier. Sorry for the inconvenience. Here is the link: https://meet.google.com/krz-sqbj-dse.
March 25
Reading: the short selection from John Rawls. This is on BlackBoard.
March 28
In class: we might discuss Locke, and then in preparation for Marx, I'll tell you a little about Hegel!

Reading: Start reading The Communist Manifesto. This is both on BlackBoard and here. Read the preamble, part I, and Part II.

Rawls: I will distribute our Rawls extra-credit points evenly to all those who participated in our Original Position experiment on Friday.

Last quiz: regarding the quiz before break, two people had excuses before the test and I allowed them to take it online. We've now handed the test back and we've reviewed it; I won't be allowing people to take it after our class.

Our polls: at the end of some study questions I polled you about our how I can improve and about applied topics. Some of you asked for handouts of definitions, and also more applied topics. I'll try to do both! As for our applied topics, there were great suggestions, but most of them got just one vote. There were many people who said they liked my suggested topics, so barring any uprising of opposing sentiment, we'll do those in our last weeks:
  • Environmental ethics
  • Global warming
  • Limits of markets
  • Just war theory
29 March
I'll have office hours in my office (MCC212A) from 11:30 am -2:30 pm.
30 March
Reading: "The Communist Manifesto" before class. Skip the preface(s); read the preamble and parts I and II. I recommend also the short section IV. An online version can be found at https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/ . There is also a copy of the reading on BlackBoard.

Practice: answer the questions on BlackBoard about The Communist Manifesto.

Extra-Credit: this is relevant to a topic we will turn to next, the issue of free speech. Nadine Strosson, former head of the ACLU, is speaking tonight at RIT at 7:00 pm. You can watch is on Zoom. You get the link by registering here. Extra-credit is you watch the speech and then answer the question on BlackBoard.
1 April
Reading: "On Liberty" chapter 2 before class. (Chapter 1 is important but not required. I recommend reading however the paragraph that starts at the bottom of page 12: that summarizes the main point of the whole essay.) This should be in your copy of Mill, but it's also available at: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34901/34901-h/34901-h.htm .
4 April
Reading: "On Liberty" chapter 4 before class. This should be in your copy of Mill, but it's also available at: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/34901/34901-h/34901-h.htm .

Practice: answer the questions on BlackBoard before the beginning of class.
5 April
Office hours 9:00-11:00 am at https://meet.google.com/zka-ydbx-xpx .
6 April
Quest.

I will have in-person office house in MCC212A from 1-3 pm. This will be instead of my Thursday office hours.
11 April
Reading: On BlackBoard are some selections from Joseph Fornieri's fine book, Free Speech: Core Court Cases. Our first reading is the following:
  • Read all of the material for Schenck v. United States
  • Read the introductory summary, and Justice Holmes's dissenting opinion in Abrams v. United States (I recommend you read it all, if you have time).
  • Read the introductory summary, and Justice Brandeis's opinion for Whitney v. California
Practice: answer the questions on BlackBoard about this reading and the next reading.
12 April
My office hours need to be later today, sorry. They're 11:00 am - 12:30 pm at: https://meet.google.com/wtz-vbrn-oyf .
13 April
In class we will discuss the material for Texas v. Johnson. We may turn to the topic: understanding forms of government.
14 April
Office hours 2-4 at: https://meet.google.com/uza-dokd-hic?authuser=0&pli=1.

The philosophy club will meet at 5:30pm to watch an episode of Black Mirror called "Nosedive" in MCC room 242. The episode focuses on what social media and the quest for popularity and social acceptance can do to people. Room TBA.
18-22 April
I'll be in Arizona giving a talk and attending talks at a conference. We'll have some asynchronous online classes this week! Our topic will be Democracy and its critics. This might be a good time for some review also, before we start our applied topics.
18 April
Take the survey on Democracy that is on BlackBoard. Answer the question about Democracy. These are easy to answer if you google around, but don't! You're not being graded for your answers (but rather just for doing it), so please just answer them to the best of your ability without using the net. I'll gather the data anonymously.
20 April
Watch the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bj-vM1C1C5Y and answer the questions on BlackBoard.

Note: Brennan is cagey in this video about what "epistocracy," rule of the knowing, is. In his book he suggests other possible models:
  1. Value-only voting. We vote on the goals, but experts are in charge of how we achieve those goals.
  2. Restricted voting. Only those who pass an exam can vote; or only those who pass the exam can vote for free and the rest have to pay some fee to vote.
  3. Lottery and training. Pick people by lottery and then train them in politics, and then they get to vote.
  4. Epistocratic veto. Everyone gets to vote, but those who pass an exam have a veto over votes.
22 April
Read the speech by Frederick Douglass (delivered in nearby Canandaigua, NY) that is available here. Answer the questions on BlackBoard. I may post a lecture video on this issue.

Note: the quote Douglass gives is from a poem he liked, by Lord Byron. Byron fought with the Greeks to oppose their occupation by the Ottoman Empire. The poem is long but here is the stanza:
Hereditary bondsmen! know ye not,
Who would be free themselves must strike the blow?
By their right arms the conquest must be wrought?
Will Gaul or Muscovite redress ye? No!
True, they may lay your proud despoilers low,
But not for you will Freedom’s altars flame.
Shades of the Helots! triumph o’er your foe!
Greece! change thy lords, thy state is still the same;
Thy glorious day is o’er, but not thy years of shame!
25 April
We'll discuss democracy. Then, we can turn to our first applied topic:

Applied Topic 1: Environmental ethics

Watch: Peter Singer (our effective altruist utilitarian) has a talk on this here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgRoZVT6kYc&t=256s . Watch the video before class. We'll discuss alternative views.

I'll have office hours in my office MCC212A from 3:00 -- 4:00 pm.
26 April
Office hours online 9-11 am at: https://meet.google.com/uee-tgfz-odd .
27 April
Watch: Peter Singer (our effective altruist utilitarian) has a talk on this here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgRoZVT6kYc&t=256s . Watch the video before class. We'll discuss alternative views.

NOTE: I've made past assignments visible for study. However, this means at this point I won't be taking late assignments.
28 April
DeLancey office hours 3-5 pm at https://meet.google.com/arc-pevy-uny.
29 April
Applied Topic 2: global warming.

Here as promised is a link to the newer GapMinder test: https://www.gapminder.org/tests/.

I mentioned in class the "Clever Hans Phenomenon" -- here's an explanation https://www.britannica.com/topic/Clever-Hans.
2 May
Applied Topic 3: what kind of limits to markets should we have?

Before class, watch this video with philosopher Michael Sandel discussing this question: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nsoN-LS8RQ.

Of interest based on our discussion is this article: Meet the Dream Team Suing the Biden Administration Over Your Right To Sell Your Kidney.
6 May
Let's summarize the whole class, quickly! And we can review our material together with a few concrete examples.

Did we make any progress in moral theory? I'm going to make a pitch that we have. You can be my skeptics.

An extra-credit assignment on BlackBoard is due by midnight. Answer one of the following with a short essay (2-3 pages should be appropriate). If you want advice of good essay format, here's a guide: https://classicsu.org/html/PhilPaperFormat.html.
  1. What do you think Kant's theory suggests about global warming? Does it entail that we should act in any way with respect to emissions, for example? Explain by explicitly applying Kant's theory. What does Mill's utilitarianism suggests about global warming? Does it entail that we should act in any way with respect to emissions, for example? Explain by explicitly applying Mill's theory. Do their recommendations differ in this case?
  2. Should we discount future moral harms? Explain why or why not. Along with discounting, consider the claim that problems tend to get easier to solve. Should that make us worry less about the future? You may pick global warming or another problem like that as your test example.
  3. Twitter closed Donald Trump's account because they said he violated their community guidelines. Was that an infringement of the First Amendment? Was it an infringement of free speech as Mill describes free speech? Explain why or why not in each case. What is your view about whether it was appropriate? If you disagree with Mill's defense of free speech because you think there should be more limits, defend your view and explain why you think Mill was wrong. Quote from "On Liberty" to defend your account of Mill.