1. Recognizing Ethical Decisions: Ethics and Critical Thinking
What are ethics and what is ethical?
To what types of things or beings should we limit the discussion of ethics?
What is the difference between morals and ethics?
What are values?
Why is critical thinking fundamental to ethics?
Ethics Checkup: Too Much Nintendo
Can morality be taught?
What is moral relativism?
How can we choose what to believe and how to act ethically?
Ethics in Books: The World According to Mr. Rogers
Ethics in the Movies: The Emperor's Club
Critical Thinking Exercises
1.1 Teenagers and Drug Sniffing Dogs
1.2 Sentenced to the Newspaper
1.3 Brewing Up a Storm
1.4 Internet Predator Sting
2. Virtue Ethics: Seeking the Good
The Roles of Socrates and Plato
Nichomachean ethics of Aristotle
A hierarchy of "goods"
The ultimate good
Stoicism and Hedonism
Ethics Checkup: ATM Trouble
Moral virtue
Achieving moral virtue
The habit of moral virtue
Evaluating ethical dilemmas
Ethics in Books: Why Can't We Be Good?
Ethics in the Movies: Return to Paradise
Critical Thinking Exercises
2.1 A Parole Fugitive at Princeton
2.2.Misrepresentation at MIT
2.3 Presidential Exit Ethics
2.4 A Large Contribution
3. Formalism: Carrying Out Obligation and Duty
Kantian ethics
The categorical imperative
The practical imperative
Ethics Checkup: Punishment for Lying
Lying & Criticisms
Comparing Formalism and Virtue Ethics
Ethics in Books: Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in a World of Strangers
Ethics in the Movies: Hotel Rwanda
Critical Thinking Exercises
3.1 Lying to the Sick and Dying
3.2 Lies of Public Officials
3.3 Is a Good Deed Required?
3.4 Raising Awareness, Committing Crimes
4. Utilitarianism: Measuring Consequences
John Stuart Mill and utility
Pain, pleasure, and happiness
Motivation versus consequences
Ethics Checkup: Martha Stewart an Example?
Criticisms of utilitarianism
Summarizing ethical theories
Ethics in Books: The Good, the Bad & the Difference
Ethics in the Movies: Quiz Show
Critical Thinking Exercises
4.1 A Flexible Expense Account
4.2 The Bad Samaritan
4.3 The Ring of Gyges
4.4 CSI Effect on Offenders?
5. Crime and Law: Which Behaviors Ought to be Crimes?
The outer limits of morality
Choosing what to criminalize
Violating laws on moral grounds
Ethics Checkup: Beeper Ban The ethics of criminals
An ethical explanation of crime
Ethics laws
Ethics in Books: Ethics for the New Millennium
Ethics in the Movies: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
Critical Thinking Exercises
5.1 A Boat Ride with Some Close Friends
5.2 It Fell Off a Truck
5.3 Prostitution: Just a Business?
5.4 `24' and Depictions of Torture
6. Police: How Should the Law be Enforced?
The scope of police decisions
Investigation and surveillance
Curtailing liberty: and stop and frisk
Placing in custody: arrest and search
Police Corruption
Ethics Checkup: Dirty Harry
Questioning: interrogation of suspects
Lies in court
Codes of ethics
Ethics in Books: On Bullshit
Ethics in the Movies: Minority Report
Critical Thinking Exercises
6.1 Suicide by Cop
6.2 Abusive Speed Traps?
6.3 The Informants Among Us
6.4 FBI Spy Powers Challenged
7. Courts: How Ought a Case be Adjudicated?
Doing justice
Prosecutor misconduct
Defense misconduct
Issues at trial
Ethics Checkup: Justice versus Mercy
Deciding cases without trial
Judicial decisions
Ethics in Books: Me to We: Finding Meaning in a Material World
Ethics in the Movies: A Civil Action
Critical Thinking Exercises
7.1 Butt Charge
7.2 Attorney Confidentiality of a Client's Criminal Plans?
7.3 A Judge's Relations
7.4 The Duke Lacrosse Case
8. Punishment and Corrections: What Should Be Done with Offenders?
The ethics of punishment
The problems of sentencing
Ethics Checkup: Punishment by Electric Shock
Corporal punishment
Innovative penalties
Capital punishment
Life imprisonment more severe than death?
Ethics in Books: The Prince
Ethics in the Movies: Dead Man Walking
Critical Thinking Exercises
8.1 Ethics of Sniping and Negotiating
8.2 Ethics and Mandatory Minimums
8.3 Lawyer-Assisted Suicide
8.4 Predisposed to Re-offend?
9. Liability: What Should Be the Consequence of Unethical Conduct?
Civil remedies for ethical misconduct
Individual misconduct
Ethics Checkup: Employee E-mail Surveillance
Corporate misconduct
Government misconduct
Ethics in Books: Do Unto Others: Extraordinary Acts of Ordinary People
Ethics in the Movies: Shattered Glass
Critical Thinking Exercises
9.1 The Scarlet Driver's License
9.2 Paying for Legislative Results?
9.3 Would You Do it for $1 Million?
9.4 Bananas and Terrorism
10. The Future: Will we be More or Less Ethical?
Recognizing ethical decisions when they arise
Is the bar rising?
Finding defining moments in life
Ethics Checkup: A Bathrobe Bonus
Being ethical when no one is looking
Ethics in Books: The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil
Ethics in the Movies: Gattaca
Critical Thinking Exercises 10.1 Both Sides of Genetic Testing
10.2 Transplant or Prosecute?
10.3 A Marriage Proposal
10.4 Good Warrant, Wrong House
