A 21st Century Ethical Toolbox

by Weston, Anthony

• ISBN13: 9780195130409
• ISBN10: 0195130405
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-12-14
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Taking a refreshingly hands-on approach to introductory ethics, A 21st Century Ethical Toolbox provides students with a set of tools to help them understand and make a constructive difference in real-life moral controversies. Thoroughly optimistic, it invites students to approach ethical issues with a reconstructive intent, making room for more and better options than the traditional "pro" and "con" positions that have grown up around tough problems like abortion and animal rights. Ideal for introductory and applied ethics courses, this unique text does not treat ethics as a purely academic, historical, or theoretical subject, but as a wide-ranging and ongoing set of challenges that calls for multiple and interwoven kinds of intelligence. It covers the skills that are most vital to making real progress in ethics, including paying careful attention to the values at stake on all sides of an issue; looking for creative opportunities within difficult problems; critical-thinking skills such as defining key terms and making sure to judge similar cases alike; and learning how to engage in constructive dialogue. Instructors can readily use the experiential and applied activities inspired by this "toolbox" of practical skills to design an interactive and collaborative ethics course. Students can carry these essential skills directly from this book into such projects as campaigning for environmental awareness and staffing local homeless shelters. In addition to his own discussion, Weston includes gripping and provocative short selections from essayists, activists, and philosophers, and also cites his own students. Extensive "Exercises and Notes" sections end each chapter, and a detailed appendix offers instructors advice on how to use the Toolbox in the classroom.

Author Biography

Anthony Weston teaches philosophy and environmental studies at Elon College, North Carolina, and serves as Master Teacher in Elon's Global Studies program.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Welcome to the Ethical Toolbox	1	(8)
I GETTING STARTED
Ethics as a Learning Experience	9	(24)
The Need for Open Minds	9	(2)
Three Easy Routes to a Closed Mind (and How to Avoid Them)	11	(10)
Reading: C. P. Ellis, interviewed	21	(8)
Studs Terkel
Exercises and Notes	29	(4)
Ethics and Religion	33	(16)
Religion's Contributions to Ethics	33	(2)
Religion's Limits in Ethics	35	(4)
Thinking for Yourself	39	(4)
Exercises and Notes	43	(6)
II VALUES
Paying Attention to Values	49	(19)
Definitions: Values and Moral Values	49	(4)
Guidelines	53	(5)
Reading: Edward Abbey, ``The Great American Desert''	58	(6)
Exercises and Notes	64	(4)
Families of Moral Values	68	(15)
Three Families of Moral Values	68	(7)
Mapping Moral Debates	75	(4)
Exercises and Notes	79	(4)
Some Traditional Ethical Theories	83	(20)
Utilitarianism	83	(6)
Theories of Right Action	89	(5)
Theories of Virtue	94	(5)
Exercises and Notes	99	(4)
When Values Clash: Theoretical Approaches	103	(14)
Utlitarian Strategies: Finding a Single Measure	103	(3)
Non-Utilitarian Strategies: Prioritizing Values	106	(2)
When Theories Stalemate	108	(6)
Exercises and Notes	114	(3)
When Values Clash: Integrative Approaches	117	(20)
Another View of Moral Conflicts	117	(3)
Integrative Methods	120	(4)
When to Hold Firm	124	(3)
Reading: Roger Rosenblatt, ``How to End the Abortion War''	127	(4)
Exercises and Notes	131	(6)
III TOOLS FOR CRITICAL THINKING IN ETHICS
Finding the Facts	137	(10)
When Facts Are at Issue	137	(3)
Inferences	140	(4)
Exercises and Notes	144	(3)
Watching Words	147	(13)
Loaded Language	147	(1)
When Terms Are Unclear	148	(1)
When Terms Are Contested	149	(7)
Exercises and Notes	156	(4)
Judging Like Cases Alike	160	(19)
Consistency Is Not Easy	160	(2)
How to Restore Consistency	162	(2)
Invented Cases	164	(3)
Reading: Colin McGinn, ``Speciesism''	167	(6)
Exercises and Notes	173	(6)
IV TOOLS FOR CREATIVITY IN ETHICS
Multiplying Options	179	(11)
The Need for Inventiveness in Ethics	179	(2)
How to ``Get Out of the Box''	181	(3)
More Provocations: ``What If . . . ?'' Thinking	184	(2)
Exercises and Notes	186	(4)
Problem-Shifting	190	(13)
Reframing Problems	190	(2)
Making the Problem an Opportunity	192	(6)
Exercises and Notes	198	(5)
V PUTTING ETHICS INTO ACTION
Picking the Right Tools	203	(15)
Know What Your Goals Are	203	(2)
Matching Tools to Goals	205	(11)
Exercises and Notes	216	(2)
Dialogue: Learning By Talking	218	(20)
How to Have a Fruitless Debate	218	(3)
How to Have a Useful Discussion	221	(7)
Reading: The Common Ground Network for Life and Choice, ``Common Ground Rules''	228	(6)
Exercises and Notes	234	(4)
Service: Learning by Helping	238	(19)
Calls to Service	238	(5)
Visits to a Homeless Shelter	243	(5)
Reading: Ram Dass and Paul Gorman, ``Compassion: The Witness Within''	248	(4)
Exercises and Notes	252	(5)
VI CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
Sexuality	257	(22)
Who Cares About Sex?	257	(3)
Can We Build on Sexual Common Ground?	260	(2)
``Perversion''	262	(5)
Reading: Jason Schultz, ``Bachelor Party''	267	(7)
Exercises and Notes	274	(5)
Abortion	279	(20)
Background	279	(3)
Key Values	282	(4)
Can We Get the Abortion Debate Unstuck?	286	(3)
Reading: Rayna Rapp, ``XYLO''	289	(6)
Exercises and Notes	295	(4)
Business and Professional Ethics	299	(22)
Ethics and Professions	299	(5)
Ethics and Business	304	(5)
Reading: Lisa Newton and David Schmidt, ``Obviously a Major Malfunction''	309	(8)
Exercises and Notes	317	(4)
Poverty and Welfare	321	(24)
Background	321	(2)
Shared Values	323	(3)
Understanding Poverty	326	(3)
Reading: Rosemary Bray, ``So How Did I Get Here?''	329	(8)
Exercises and Notes	337	(8)
VII THE EXPANDING CIRCLE
Animals	345	(19)
Why Should We Care About Animals?	345	(4)
What Can We Do?	349	(4)
Reading: Lorri Bauston, ``Animal Rescue''	353	(6)
Exercises and Notes	359	(5)
Environmental Ethics	364	(19)
Wake-up Calls	364	(1)
Beyond Anthropocentrism?	365	(3)
Integrating Environmental Values	368	(5)
Reading: Violet Woodsorrel Oxalis, ``It's a Little Wild Out There''	373	(5)
Exercises and Notes	378	(5)
Notes for Teachers: The Toolbox in the Classroom	383	(21)
Index	404