Unit information: Themes in Value Theory in 2020/21

Unit name	Themes in Value Theory
Unit code	PHIL30136
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Burch-Brown
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	Department of Philosophy
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This is an advanced course in value theory, incorporating topics from practical philosophy, social philosophy, ethics, political philosophy and/or related fields. Priority will be placed on exposing students to a diversity of practical philosophical problems, approached from a diversity of traditions. The unit will give students experience with moving flexibly between different philosophical schools; it therefore assumes a high level of philosophical skill, suitable to third year study. Common themes will be highlighted across the term, to give a sense of continuity as well as diversity across the different traditions studied. Content will vary each term and will be led by the teaching team’s current research interests, giving students a chance to engage with new and emerging research. This unit will help prepare students for masters-level study, and will also support their ability to engage as philosophers with a diverse global community.

The unit will be delivered through a mixture of lectures and seminars, where seminars may be online or in person, consist of group discussion or Q&A, and will typically involve a close reading of a central philosophical text or texts. The text may sometimes be a single work by an author, or a series of articles.

Aim:

To provide students with a grounding in diverse approaches to value theory and practical philosophy (e.g. ethics, social philosophy, political philosophy and cognate areas).

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, students should:

1. Have acquired knowledge and understanding of key topics in central areas of philosophy moral philosophy, and other areas of value theory,
2. Have acquired knowledge and understanding of a diversity of philosophical traditions.
3. Be able to construct and analyze sophisticated philosophical arguments and engage with other philosophers in constructive debate.
4. Be able to communicate ideas clearly and effectively to an audience, using e.g. blackboard, handouts, online presentations, etc.

Teaching Information

Lectures, small group work, individual exercises, seminars and virtual learning environment.

Assessment Information

Formative digital collaborative Presentation (ILOs 1-4) + SUMMATIVE: 1 x 3,500 word essay - 100% (ILOs 1-4)

Reading and References

Hannah Arendt, ‘Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil’, New York: Penguin Books.

Thom Brooks, ‘Philosophy unbound: The idea of global philosophy’ in Metaphilosophy 44(3), 2013.

Joseph Carens, The Ethics of Immigration. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013.

Tommie Shelby, Dark Ghettos: Dissent, Injustice, Reform. Harvard: Harvard University Press.

Mark Csikszentmihalyi, ‘Confucius’, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/confucius/