Studying at York
Advanced Topics in Ethics - PHI00084M
Module summary
Discussion of advanced topics in meta-ethics/normative ethics. Topics covered: the possibility of altruism, internal reasons, moral realism, error theory, expressivism, consequentialism, deontology, consequentialism, hybrid ethical theory, particularism, demandingness of morality, saving the one or the many.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Spring Term 2022-23 |
Module aims
The aim of the module is to explore key themes about our ordinary notion of a reason for action, how that relates to the idea of right action, and how rightness is related to the idea of the value of an outcome. Specifically, on this module we will be reading, discussing and writing about:
Key themes in meta-ethics about reasons and the objectivity of morality;
Theories of the nature of moral language;
The main positions in normative ethics and how they are shaped by prior meta-ethical commitments.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of this module students should be able to engage in independent research on advanced topics in ethics informed by their knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of the key views in both meta-ethics and normative ethics.
Students will be able to read and critically engage with cutting edge research in these fields and further to have developed their skills in philosophical discussion and writing.
Module content
This module builds on previous ethics modules to develop an advanced understanding of key themes in meta-ethics and normative ethics and their systematic interconnection. Themes such as the nature of reasons, agent-relativity and agent-neutrality about reasons in meta-ethics will be used to structure the different positions assessed in normative ethics – consequentialism, virtue ethics and hybrid ethical theory. An underlying theme is the connection between our ordinary notion of a reason and theoretical accounts of rightness, and the connection between whatever makes an action right and the idea of the intrinsic value of an outcome.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Additional assessment information
The formative essay is due on Friday, Week 4 of the Spring Term.
The formative essay plan is due on Friday, Week 7 of the Spring Term.
The summative essay is due by 12 noon on Monday, Week 2 of the Summer Term.
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
Students will receive feedback on formative work before the end of the term in which the module is taught.
Students will receive feedback on the 4000-word summative assessment and re-assessment four weeks after they submit it.
Indicative reading
Christine Korsgaard, The Sources of Normativity (Cambridge University Press, 1996);
Thomas Nagel, The Possibility of Altruism (Oxford University Press, 1979);
Christian Seidel (ed.) Consequentialism: New Directions New Problems (Oxford University Press, 2019);
Judith Jarvis Thomson, Normativity, (Open Court, 2008);
Bernard Williams, Ethics and the Limits of Philosophy, (Fontana, 1985).