What makes an action right or wrong? And do we know whether an action is right or wrong? In this course, we will survey the major traditions in moral philosophy: consequentialism, Kantian ethics, virtue theory, and feminist and care ethics. We will put each theory to work with real-life moral dilemmas. We will also assess whether and how socio-political questions related to gender, race, class, and disability bear on moral theory, which tends to focus on interpersonal relationships. Questions include: Who gets the ventilator at the hospital when there are not enough? May a state torture someone to avert a catastrophe? When is sexual desire an impermissible form of objectification? Is anger a vice, or the fitting response to injustice? Who should do the work of caring, and who should pay for it? What, if anything, is owed for a historical injustice inflicted on previous generations?
5 units · Letter or Credit/No Credit · GER: WAY-A-II, WAY-ER
What makes an action right or wrong? And do we know whether an action is right or wrong? In this course, we will survey the major traditions in moral philosophy: consequentialism, Kantian ethics, virtue theory, and feminist and care ethics. We will put each theory to work with real-life moral dilemmas. We will also assess whether and how socio-political questions related to gender, race, class, and disability bear on moral theory, which tends to focus on interpersonal relationships. Questions include: Who gets the ventilator at the hospital when there are not enough? May a state torture someone to avert a catastrophe? When is sexual desire an impermissible form of objectification? Is anger a vice, or the fitting response to injustice? Who should do the work of caring, and who should pay for it? What, if anything, is owed for a historical injustice inflicted on previous generations?
Offered in Autumn 2026, Spring 2027 at Stanford University.