General Course Information

• Syllabus

Outside Lectures & Films (Optional unless otherwise indicated)

Lectures

Upcoming

Tuesday, 10 November, 12:00–1:15, JRC Auditorium (JRC 126): Dr. Robert Kennedy (UST), "Is There a Right to Health Care?"

Thursday, 19 November, 12-1, JRC 126: Professor Gregory Coulter (UST), Topic to be Announced

Past

Tuesday, 6 October, 12-1, OEC 101B: Professor Thomas Sullivan (UST), “How to Become a Better Philosopher: Tips from Aristotle (I of II)”

Friday, October 9, 2009, 7 P.M., Cowles Auditorium, Humphrey Institute, University of Minnesota. J. Budziszewski (University of Texas at Austin), “Kicking Against the Goad: Why the Natural Law is Real, Good, and Usually Detested.” (For further details email maclaurin@maclaurin.org or call the McLaurin Institute at 612-378-1935.)

Wednesday, 21 October, 4–6 P.M., Frey Moot Courtroom, School of Law. University of St. Thomas. Dr. Robert George (Princeton), “Natural Law, God and Human Dignity”

Wednesday, 21 October, 7:30 P.M., Sundin Music Hall, Hamline University. Professor Larry May (Vanderbilt University), "Collective and Individual Intent in the Crime of Genocide."

Thursday, 22 October, 11:30 A.M., Sundin Music Hall, Hamline University. Professor Larry May (Vanderbilt University), "Complicity and the Rwandan Genocide."

Thursday, 22 October, 12-1, OEC 101B: Professor Thomas Sullivan (UST), “How to Become a Better Philosopher: Tips from Aristotle (II of II)”

Thursday, 22 October, 7 P.M., McNeely 100. Dr. Mathew Lu (Philosophy, UST) and Dr. Paul Wojda (Theology, UST), “Whether execution is a legitimate form of punishment” This will be a disputation on this topic and will be at least in part theological in method.

Two film versions of Sophocles' Antigone are available at the Media Resources Center at the O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library:

One of them (the BBC TV version) tries to stay close to the Greek approach to drama, e.g., no change of setting and the "chorus" parts recited by a group of men saying the lines together. Although some of the minor characters are particularly well-acted, I think that their interpretation of Creon misunderstands the play.

The other uses the full resources of film (e.g., different scenes in different locations, which it does well), but also takes some liberties with the text. This film is in (Modern) Greek with subtitles.

Examinations

First Examination—rescheduled for 13 October

To cite the chapter by W. D. Ross in your essay, put: W. D. Ross, The Right & the Good (Oxford, 1930), Ch. 2, “What Makes Right Acts Right?”

Second Examination—now scheduled for 12 November

Structure of the Examination
Advice on writing the examination

Final Examinations

Section 16 (morning section) at 10:30 on Thursday, 17 December
Section 17 (afternoon section) at 10:30 on Friday, 18 December

Study Aids

Handouts:

Logic Review
How to Read Philosophy

Aids to Reading

Mill, Utilitarianism (Ch. 2) (Ch. 5)
Sophocles

Tutoring Schedule

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Assignments

Reading Links & Lecture Notes

Part I. Modern Approaches to a Theory of Duty

Date	Topic	Required Reading	Supplementary Readings	Lecture Notes
10 Sep	Introduction			L1
15 Sep	Theories of Duty Utilitarianism	Bentham, “Of the Principle of Utility” Mill, Utilitarianism, ch. 1-2		L2 Mill
17 Sep	Utilitarianism & Justice	Mill, Utilitarianism, ch. 5		L3a Justice L3b Justice
22 Sep	Presumptivism	Ross, “What Makes Right Acts Right?”		L4 Ross
24 Sep	Absolutism Issue: Morality & War Nihilism Pacifism	Lewis, “Why I Am Not a Pacifist” in The Weight of Glory		L5 Absolutism L6 Nihilism L7 Pacifism
29 Sep	Just-War Theory	Aquinas, “On War” (article 1 only) Childress, “Just-War Theories”		L8 Just-War Theory
1 Oct	Non-Combatant Immunity	Walzer, “Supreme Emergency” Murphy, “The Killing of the Innocent”	BBC News retrospective on the bombing of Dresden	L9 Supreme Emergency L10 Non-Combatant Immunity

Part II. Aristotle on Happiness & Virtue

Date	Topic	Required Reading	Supplementary Readings	Lecture Notes
6 Oct	The Enlightenment Project of Justifying Morality & its Problems			L11a L11b
8 & 15 Oct	The Classical Approach to Justifying Morality	Sophocles, Antigone & Philoctetes Plato, Euthyphro & Apology		L12
20 Oct	Aristotle: Happiness	Aristotle, Ethics Bk I (exc. ch. 6) & X.1-5		L13 Happiness
22 Oct	Moral Virtue	Aristotle, Ethics Bks II & III.6-12	Recent Recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor Senators discussed in Profiles in Courage	L14 Moral Virtues
27 Oct	Justice: Distributive	Aristotle, Ethics Bk V.1-5 Walter Blum & Harry Kalven, jr., “The Anatomy of Justice in Taxation”		L15 Justice
29 Oct	Punitive Commercial	Robert G. Kennedy, “The Practice of Just Compensation”	Prosecuting Nazi War Criminals: Pro & Con
3 Nov	[No Class; Attend Kennedy lecture on 10 November]
5 Nov	Friendship & Politics Intellectual Virtues & Contemplation Work	Aristotle, Ethics Bk VIII. 1-6 & IX.9-12 Aristotle, Ethics Bk VI.1-2 & X.6-9 John Paul II, Laborem Exercens 38-41 & 112-117	Michael Crawford, "Shop Class as Soulcraft"	L16 Ultimate Human Goods
10 Nov

Part III. St. Thomas Aquinas on Goodness & Badness in Human Action

Date	Topic	Required Reading	Supplementary Readings	Lecture Notes
10 Nov	Goodness & Badness in Human Actions	St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, IaIIæ, Q. 18, articles 1-4 & 8–10

 

Created: 17 August 2009
Last Modified: 6 November 2009