1. INTRODUCTION Congratulations, for many of you, this is probably your first serious, in-depth taste of the academic world of philosophy. None of you are majoring in philosophy, and the subject is rarely ever taught in pre-college classes. The reason why you are taking it today is because of the fact that philosophy steps over into the means of thinking for every major. Unlike topics such as science or poetic literature, which rarely find cause to interact, philosophy deals with how we think, make decisions, and act regardless of major or place of employment. And of course, ethics shows up in every field ~ Is it ethical to make up a story in journalism? Is it ethical to give a patient the wrong medicine? Is it ethical to steal company secrets in exchange for money? No matter where you go in the future, this course has the potential to be very important to you and your career path.

2. THE DISCIPLINE OF PHILOSOPHY One of the oldest academic disciplines both in the East and the West stretching back to 500 BCE: Buddha, Confucius, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Provisional Definitions: Philosophy is: The love of wisdom FHSU definition: “The unbounded pursuit of a meaningful life through rational inquiry”

3. KEY TERMS Love ~ Philosophers are after not just a love of truth, but a love of knowledge. This is affective (meaning that philosophers really embrace knowledge) ~ they care deeply about pursuing knowledge that will lead to living a better life. Wisdom ~ Action/Application of Knowledge (“Good Living”) Different from Knowledge ~ Facts “Wisdom begins with Wonder” Unbounded ~ This means that philosophy covers everything: is 2 + 2 really 4? Is the sky really blue? Is a certain scientific fact really a fact? Meaningful ~ Goal is to lead a meaningful life, this definition of “meaningful can change” Rational ~ Philosophers have seen the pursuit of wisdom as a rational study ~ meaning you think about the concept and use reason.

4. SOME KEY AIMS OF PHILOSOPHY Critical scrutiny of our current beliefs Bringing to life hidden assumptions Improving critical and higher order thinking skills Posing of questions not directly dealt with in other disciplines, sciences Quest for a meaningful life

5. TYPES OF PHILOSOPHICAL QUESTIONS Metaphysics: what is ultimately real? Epistemology: what can we know? How do separate truth from falsity? Value Theory: what should we value? Are there universal ethical rules?

6. PHILOSOPHY: CONTENT & METHOD Philosophical Content: reading or learning about others’ ideas about important philosophical issues. Some examples: Buddha’s theory of human nature, Kant’s understanding of mind, Aquinas’ proofs for God’s existence Philosophical Method: critically engaging important issues, actively seeking reasons for holding or rejecting ideas, beliefs and testing them against our own experiences.

7. PHILOSOPHY, SCIENCE & RELIGION Science is committed to empirical study and the scientific method, it does not directly debate the possibility of knowledge itself or value questions Religion: often will accept arguments from religious authority (Sacred Scripture, the Pope, etc.) while philosophy seeks independent reason

8. PHILOSOPHY AND YOU: WHAT IS YOUR PHILOSOPHY? Some personal reasons to do philosophy: we all have beliefs that can be questioned and we are all ethical agents Some global reasons to do philosophy: globalization, increasing interconnectivity, power over nature, democratic participation. What is your philosophy of life? How do you choose right from wrong? Do you believe there is a human nature, a spirit, a mind? Importance of intellectual courage, humility and perseverance.

9. THE OCEAN OF PHILOSOPHY The ocean of philosophical thinking is both wide and deep But the temperature is just fine and the time is now!

10. REVIEW: WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY? Philosophy is 1) the love of wisdom 2) the unbounded pursuit of a meaningful life through rational inquiry Three General Types of Philosophical Inquiry: a. Metaphysics: what is ultimately real? b. Epistemology: what can we know? c. Value Theory: what should we value?

11. CATEGORIES OF VALUE THEORY Aesthetics: study of artistic value, beauty Moral/Ethical Philosophy: the philosophical study of human conduct Social & Political Philosophy: study of the normative and conceptual elements of coercive institutions like governments, families, etc.

12. ETHICS Ethics: the study of human conduct Ethics primarily concerns freely chosen acts, not unconscious or instinctive behaviors that cannot be controlled. Important distinction between describing, explaining what people’s ethical beliefs are (Descriptive Ethics) and evaluating ethical beliefs (Philosophical/Normative Ethics)

13. THE ETHICS CHART Ethics Philosophical Substantive Ethics Ethical Theory Applied Ethics Metaethics Descriptive

14. DESCRIPTIVE AND PHILOSOPHICAL ETHICS Ethics: the study of human conduct Philosophical Ethics: Open-ended, rational investigation into whether particular ethical beliefs, practices, moral theories, values should be accepted (i.e., evaluating) Descriptive Ethics: Scientific investigation of ethical behaviors; what people believe and why, how these beliefs developed e.g., Sociology, Psychology, Anthropology

15. DESCRIPTIVE VERSUS PHILOSOPHICAL ETHICS: SOME EXAMPLES A1. Descriptive Ethics: What do the Inuit people believe about infanticide? Why was this practice widely accepted? A2: Philosophical Ethics: ought we allow infanticide? Is it morally acceptable in certain circumstances for a family to kill a child? B1. Descriptive Ethics: What do the people of Saudi Arabia think about women’s rights? Are rights embedded in current law? B2. Philosophical Ethics: should women in Saudi Arabia enjoy the same human rights as women in America? What is a human right? Are they universal values or not? C1. Descriptive Ethics: what do modern Americans believe about the goodness/badness of homosexual marriage? C2. Philosophical Ethics: should we allow homosexual marriage? Should governments be involved in regulating marriages at all?

16. TYPES OF PHILOSOPHICAL ETHICS Philosophical Ethics Substantive Ethics: The search for foundational principles of right and wrong, the nature of goodness/badness Meta-ethics: Investigating important questions which affect Ethical inquiry itself, e.g., Are people free to choose or determined? Is morality relative to one’s culture?

17. FURTHER DIVISIONS Substantive Ethics Ethical Theory: Identifying, comparing and evaluating general models of how to make ethical decisions Applied Ethics: Applying a particular model of ethical decision-making to a specific problem, or considering ethical issues in a limited range of action, e.g., bioethics or business ethics

18. THE ETHICS CHART AGAIN Ethics Philosophical Substantive Ethics Ethical Theory Applied Ethics Metaethics Descriptive

19. WHAT PHILOSOPHIC ETHICS IS NOT A.Philosophical Ethics (PE) is not descriptive ethics, like anthropology or sociology (see above) B.PE is not positive law, i.e., existing legal statues of particular countries, towns, or international bodies C.PE is not moralistic i.e., attempting to get you to be a better, more ethical person by applying some specific set of beliefs uncritically D.PE is not primarily religious ethics (which can sometimes be based on arguments from religious authority or private religious experiences, which philosophy does not admit, as well as reason, which philosophy does admit) E.PE is not simply etiquette or cultural convention