Philosophy, Morality and Society
PHI110
Overview
Warning: Mature Content
This unit contains mature content including Adult Themes and may not be suitable for some students. Any student under the age of 16 who would like to enrol in this unit must first complete a Parental Consent Form.
Level of study: What does Undergraduate Level 1 mean?
Undergraduate Level 1
EFTSL: What does EFTSL mean?
0.125
Delivery Method: What does delivery method mean?
Fully Online
Prerequisites: What are the prerequisites?
Duration:
13 weeks
Government loans available:
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Domestic student fee:
$750.00 (AUD)
International student fee:
$975.00 (AUD)
Description
This unit provides an introduction to major topics in ethics, moral theory and contemporary political philosophy.
There are three broad sections, with a number of different topics within each section. The first section, 'Ethics and the Good Life', focuses on the nature of happiness. Is pleasure essential to happiness? Or does the pursuit of pleasure harm our chances of lasting fulfilment? Must we be virtuous in order to be happy? What is the relationship between happiness and moral duty?
The second section, 'Foundations of Morality', explores the sources of morality, the objectivity of moral judgment, and the nature of two major moral theories: Kantianism and Utilitarianism. We consider questions like: Is morality based ultimately in self-interest? Are there moral principles that everyone is bound by reason to recognise? Or is the validity of moral standards relative to specific societies and cultures?
In the third section, 'Issues in Applied Ethics and Social Philosophy', we turn to an exploration of ethical issues facing the modern world, including animal welfare, and issues of national and global justice such as the rights of immigrants, refugees and Indigenous peoples.
Prerequisites
If you have no prior university experience, you should complete SSK12 or SSK13 before starting this unit.
Assessment
- Assignment 1 — Reading exercise (20%)
- Essay 1 (35%)
- Essay 2 (35%)
- Online Discussion (10%)
Learning Outcomes
In this unit, you will develop the following discipline-based skills:
- you will be introduced to a number of different philosophical theories concerning: a. the good life; b. the nature of morality; c. what our moral obligations are; and d. the nature of justice.
- you will learn about the advantages of different social and ethical theories, along with some of the famous objections to them.
- you will learn how these theories and ideas have been applied to practical cases and real-life situations.
You will learn the following generic skills:
- comprehension skills: Learning to understand the ideas and arguments presented in texts and discussions.
- critical thinking skills: Learning how to analyse and evaluate arguments.
- problem-solving skills: Learning how to apply theories and knowledge to the real world.
- communication skills: Learning how to express and present ideas clearly and logically.
- creative-thinking skills: Learning how to develop new ideas and theories and how to construct arguments.
Topics
This unit addresses the following topics.
| Number | Topic |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ethics and the good life |
| 2 | Foundations of morality |
| 3 | Issues in applied ethics and social philosophy |
Study Resources
This unit is delivered using the following methods and materials:
Instructional Methods
- Discussion Forum/Discussion Board
Print based materials
- Welcome Letter
Online materials
- Printable format materials
- Quizzes
- Resources and Links
Textbook information for this unit is currently being updated and will be available soon. Please check back regularly for updates. Alternatively, visit the Unibooks website and enter the unit details to search for available textbooks.
Relevant Courses
This unit is part of a major, minor, stream or specialisation in the following courses:
This unit may be eligible for credit towards other courses:
- Many undergraduate courses on offer through OUA include 'open elective' where any OUA unit can be credited to the course. You need to check the Award Requirements on the course page for the number of allowed open electives and any level limitations.
- In other cases, the content of this unit might be relevant to a course on offer through OUA or elsewhere. In order to receive credit for this unit in the course you will need to supply the provider institution with a copy of the Unit Profile in the approved format, which you can download here. Note that the Unit Profile is set at the start of the year, and if textbooks change this may not match the Unibooks textbook list.
