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Practical Ethics
Undergraduate | MAQ-PHIX2042 | 2020
Previously MAQ-PHIX242
Course information for 2020 intake
Probe philosophical theories about ethics in today's world. Look at euthanasia, abortion and marriage from conflicting angles. Discuss poverty and the environment. Examine what happens in the event of war when moral relations break down.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 18 weeks
HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Practical Ethics
About this subject
On successful completion of this subject , you will be able to:
- recognise and describe key issues, questions and theories in practical and philosophical ethics
- apply ethical theories to the ethical issues discussed in class and beyond
- develop well defended ethical arguments , rather than relying on intuitions or emotional reactions
- identify and evaluate the relative merits of competing ethical values, whilst appreciating that ethical conflicts are often inevitable and sometimes insoluble
- reflect on and critically interrogate the values you have and how they influence you as a person, student, and future professional
- PART ONE: ETHICS IN THE PERSONAL SPHERE - LIFE, LOVE, DEATH.
- Part 1: Introduction to course and ethical reasoning
- Part 1: Abortion
- Part 1: Marriage, family, parenting
- Part 1: Death: (a) Suicide (b) Euthanasia
- PART TWO: EXPANDING THE CIRCLE OF MORAL CONCERN
- Part 2: What we owe to those less fortunate: (a) Poverty (b) Refugees and asylum seekers
- Part 2: Non-human animals
- Part 2: The environment
- PART THREE: WHEN MORAL RELATIONS BREAK DOWN
- Part 3: War and Humanitarian Intervention
- Part 3: Torture
- Part 3: Punishment and capital punishment
This subject was previously known as PHI210 Practical Ethics.
This subject focuses on a range of topics in applied ethics, starting with ethics in the personal sphere and expanding the sphere of moral concern outwards to include those with whom we are not in a personal relationship and also non-human animals and the environment. We consider ethical questions to do with abortion, marriage, children's rights, suicide and euthanasia; questions of what we owe to those less well off than ourselves (e.g. those in poverty, refugees and asylum seekers); and ethical issues in the breakdown of moral relations (e.g. war, terrorism, torture and punishment). Discussion of the different topics is structured around key concepts, themes and questions including personhood, harm, and justice.
The subject aims to encourage deep intellectual and also personal reflection on the complex ethical issues raised by such questions and to introduce students to the different positions and arguments within the relevant philosophical debates.
- Essay (30%)
- Short paper (20%)
- Participation (20%)
- Reflective Task (30%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
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- 10
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- 10
Entry requirements
Equivalent subjects
You should not enrol in this subject if you have successfully completed any of the following subject(s) because they are considered academically equivalent:
MAQ-PHI210 (Not currently available)
MAQ-PHIX242-Practical Ethics (no longer available)
Others
You must complete some Level 1 studies before starting this subject. Prior study in Philosophy is recommended.
Additional requirements
- Other requirements -
Students who have an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion under Macquarie University's Academic Progression Policy are not permitted to enrol in OUA units offered by Macquarie University. Students with an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion who have enrolled in units through OUA will be withdrawn.
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
UndergraduateMAQ-ART-DEG
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