Unit information: Ethics & Autonomy in 2010/11

Unit name	Ethics & Autonomy
Unit code	PHIL30907
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Goulder
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	Department of Philosophy
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

Questions about the nature and ethical significance of autonomy are some of the most vexed in philosophy. The autonomous agent is self-governed, or free. But what exactly does this involve, and what kinds of demands or privileges does it confer? In this course we will investigate by way of a series of prominent disputes. What distinguishes our agency from that of other animals? What kinds of authority do we have, in an environment that includes the reactions or demands of others? Does the Mafioso have a reason to reform? Is it irrational for a self-governed agent to feel shame? Can there be moral luck? Students on this course will gain a critical understanding of advanced topics in the philosophy of action and ethics, and engage with work of the most important current figures in the field. They will also acquire an ability to situate their knowledge in the wider philosophical context.

Students on this course will:

• Gain critical understanding of advanced topics in the philosophy of action and ethics, with special focus on relations between autonomy and ethical responsibility.

• Engage with work of important current figures in the field, including Frankfurt, Korsgaard, Nagel, Williams, and Wolf.

• Acquire ability to situate their knowledge in the wider philosophical context.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will be critically engaged with advanced debates in contemporary ethics and action, and positions advanced by the most significant philosophers in the field. They will be able to outline and evaluate these positions and understand their wider implications. They will also have an understanding of how these debates and positions are situated with respect to relevant historical figures.

Teaching Information

x10 weekly lectures

x10 weekly seminars

Assessment Information

Formative: One 2,500 Word Essay. One Seminar Presentation.

Summative: 3hr Summer Examination.

Reading and References

• Cullity, G. and Gaut, B. eds. Ethics and Practical Reason (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997)

• Frankfurt, Harry G. Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person Journal of Philosophy (1971)

• Korsgaard, Christine M. et al. The Sources of Normativity (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996)

• Moran, Richard: Authority and Estrangement. (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2001)

• Statman, D. ed. Moral Luck (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1993).

• Strawson, P.F 'Freedom and Resentment' in Freedom and Resentment and Other Essays (London: Methuen, 1974)

• Watson, Gary Free Will (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003)

• Wolf, Susan Sanity and the Metaphysics of Responsibility in F. Schoeman ed. Responsibility, Character and the Emotions (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987).