INTRODUCTORY LECTURE
Welcome to the course! There is only so much one can do in an introductory lecture of this sort so bear with me. In no way can this be complete in itself. This is due to the very nature of the subject matter we are dealing with, not only moral choices but philosophy itself. Perhaps Wittgenstein was correct when he said that philosophy leaves everything as it was. One hopes things are left with greater clarity and insights into the problems examined, and that while we might recognize that we may not have the final say in any of the issues we are to examine, it may well be that we can come to recognize answers that will not hold up to critical evaluation while other answers may seem more coherent and more readily sustainable. If there is anything that I hope you learn, as I have, it is that these are complex issues, and that any stance one takes is itself open to criticism. We can begin to learn the complexities and assumptions of each position on the difficult topics we are about to pursue from the perspective of philosophy. When we begin to recognize how open ended many of our conclusions are, we may approach our opponents on these issues with more tolerance and sympathy. While philosophy no longer deals with absolutes (I'm absolutely sure!), we nevertheless have to make decisions, many of them moral decisions, that in many cases profoundly effect our lives. In the last analysis, if we are to give the reasons for our choices, it may be that after so much effort and anguish, we arrive at a answer the way that Kierkegaard did, by a "leap of faith." But let's hope that leap is from a reasoned, self-critical ground.
What follows is divided into three parts. Part I will be a brief introduction to the meaning behind the terms 'ethics' and 'morals,' their general areas and content, their relationship to one another and how they relate to this course. Certain important distinctions in ethical theory are discussed. In Part II two very important ethical positions are examined ever so briefly: Kant vs. Mill. These two perspectives while not the only ones that you will be introduced to in Chapter I of your readings, will be central to the course, particularly our critical evaluations of some of the pressing moral questions of our day such as euthanasia, the death penalty, famine relief, gay and lesbian rights, etc. Part III will be an ever so brief introduction to what has been called the free will / determinism controversy in philosophy. Or more succinctly, the question is: Are choices, let alone moral choices, possible? Unless one makes the assumption that there is some degree of contingency in or escape from the realm of causal determinacy where human agency is involved, then choice becomes problematic and culpability a chimera unless someone could have done otherwise so that we can hold that person accountable for their actions.