There is one required text, available for purchase at the University Book Store: Daniel Bonevac, Today's Moral Issues (2nd Edition) referred to as "Text" below. Reading assignments should be completed by the first lecture at which they are to be discussed.

Week #1

Sept. 30, Oct. 2 and 4: Introduction

Reading Assignment: (1) Handout on Logical Analysis

(2) Bonevac, "First Principles" [Text pp. 149-153].

Week #2

Oct. 7, 9, and 11: Speech Codes

Reading Assignment: (1) Excerpts from J.S. Mill, On Liberty, Intro., Chaps. 1 and 2 [Text pp. 29-35].

(2) Bonevac, "Offensive Speech and Behavior" [Text pp. 106-107].

(3) Excerpts from Collin v. Smith [Text pp. 108-116].

(4) Stanley Fish, "There's No Such Thing as Free Speech, and It's a Good Thing, Too" [Text pp. 126-134].

(5) Jonathan Rauch, "The Humanitarian Threat" [Text pp. 135-147].

Optional Reading: Excerpt from John Milton's Areopagitica [Text pp. 13-22].

Week #3

Oct. 14, 16, and 18: Drug Prohibition

Reading Assignment: (1) Excerpts from J.S. Mill, On Liberty, Chapters 3, 4, and 5 [Text pp. 35-42].

(2) Bonevac, "Drug Legalization" [Text pp. 43-44].

(3) Milton Friedman, "An Open Letter to Bill Bennett" and "Flashback" [Text pp. 45-47].

(4) William J. Bennett, "A Response to Milton Friedman" [Text pp. 50].

(5) Ethan A. Nadelman, "The Case for Legalization" [Text pp. 51-62].

(6) James Q. Wilson, "Against the Legalization of Drugs" [Text pp. 63-72].

Week #4

Oct. 21, 23, and 25: Environmental Ethics

[Midterm Exam Review Questions Handed Out in Lecture on Friday, Oct. 25.]

Reading Assignment: (1) Bonevac, "The Environment" [Text pp. 181-185].

(2) Paul R. Ehrlich and Anne H. Ehrlich, "Risks, Costs, and Benefits" [Text pp. 186-194].

(3) Excerpt from Bill Devall and George Sessions, Deep Ecology [Text pp. 195-200].

(4) Excerpt from William F. Baxter, People or Penguins [Text pp. 201-207].

Week #5

Oct. 28: The Endangered Species Act: Pro and Con

Guests: Gordon Orians, Emeritus Professor of Zoology, and Mark Plummer, Senior Fellow, Discovery Institute.

Oct. 30: Summary and Review for Midterm Exam

Nov. 1: Midterm Exam

Week #6

Nov. 4, 6, and 8: World Hunger and Overpopulation

Reading Assignment: (1) Bonevac, "Justice" [Text pp. 407-409].

(2) Bonevac, "World Hunger" [Text pp. 467-468].

(3) Garrett Hardin, "The Case Against Helping the Poor" [Text pp. 469-476].

(4) Excerpt from Peter Singer, Practical Ethics [Text pp. 477-487].

(5) Excerpt from Frances M. Lappe and Joseph Collins, World Hunger: Twelve Myths [Text pp. 488-495].

(6) Kim R. Holmes, "In Search of Free Markets" [Text pp. 496-498].

Week #7

Nov. 11: No Class (Veterans' Day)

Nov. 13 : Sexuality and Morality

Reading Assignment: (1) Bonevac, "Sexual Behavior" [Text pp. 238-239].

(2) Vincent C. Punzo, "Morality and Human Sexuality" [Text pp. 240-244].

(3) Thomas A. Mappes, "Sexual Morality and the Concept of Using Another Person" [Text pp. 245-251].

(4) Andrea Dworkin, "Occupation/Collaboration" [Text pp. 259-263].

(5) Sidney Callahan, "Abortion and the Sexual Agenda" [Text pp. 264-267].

Nov. 15: Discussion: Should Prostitution Be Illegal?

Week #8

Nov. 18: Heterosexuality and Homosexuality

Reading Assignment: (1) Richard D. Mohr, "Civil Rights" [Text pp. 268-271].

(2) The Ramsey Colloquium, "Morality and Homosexuality" [Text pp. 272-274].

Nov. 20: Discussion of the Defense of Marriage Act

Nov. 22: Abortion

Guest: Dr. Deborah Oyer, Planned Parenthood

Reading Assignment: (1) Bonevac, "Abortion" [Text pp. 308-309].

(2) Excerpt from Majority Opinion in Roe v. Wade [Text pp. 310-316].

Week #9

Nov. 25 and 27: Abortion Continued

Reading Assignment: (1) Judith J. Thomson, "A Defense of Abortion" [Text pp. 317-327].

(2) Jane English, "Abortion and the Concept of a Person" [Text pp. 328-334].

(3) Don Marquis, "Why Abortion is Immoral" [Text pp. 335-347].

There will be a guest speaker on either Nov. 25 or Nov. 27.

Nov. 29: No class (Thanksgiving Holiday)

Week #10

Dec. 2: Abortion Concluded

Dec. 4 and 6: Euthanasia

Reading Assignment: (1) Bonevac, "Euthanasia" [Text pp. 348-349]

(2) Excerpts from Matter of Quinlan [Text pp. 350-354].

(3) Excerpts from Cruzan v. Harmon [Text pp. 355-358].

(4) J. Gay-Williams, "The Wrongness of Euthanasia" [Text pp. 359-361].

(5) James Rachels, "The Morality of Euthanasia" [Text pp. 362-368].

(6) Carlos Gomez, "From Public Theory to Private Practice" [Text pp. 369-378].

Week #11

Dec. 9: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide

Guest: Dr. Thomas Preston, Professor of Cardiology

[Final Exam Review Questions Handed Out in Lecture on Monday, Dec. 9.]

Dec. 11: Conclusion and Course Evaluation

Final Exam: 2:30 pm, Tuesday, Dec. 17, in CMU 120. A Final Exam review session will be scheduled for Monday, Dec. 16, at a place and time to be announced.