Interdisciplinary Seminar 301: Morality & JusticeCourse Description: When we talk about morality, we are also talking about justice. We are talking about rights, duties, and mutually-agreed principles based on trust. We will explore how and why we should live moral and just lives through an interdisciplinary study of philosophical ethics, social and political psychology, evolutionary biology, and theology to create a framework for an understanding of morality and justice. We will examine and discuss such essential questions as “Why does morality serve an important function in our lives as individuals and in our community? What is the path that maximizes both our own well-being and the well-being of others? What do we claim are moral rights? Is it possible we could arrive at a set of ethical principles that would reconcile self-interest with the common good, promote personal integrity and respect for legitimate rights, and apply to all of us at all times?...” In this class, we will also discuss problems in ethics through an understanding of several ethical theories: Normative Ethics (Ethical Hedonism, Ethical Pluralism), Meta-ethical Relativism and Subjectivism, Utilitarianism, and Meta-ethical Theories (Naturalism, Intuitionism, and Non-cognitivism), to name just a few. We will also examine historical theories from Greek, medieval, early Modern, 19th century deontological and teleological ethics and their relevance to contemporary ethical thought.
