Ethics in Your Life: Being, Thinking, Doing (or Not?)

Readings

The table below features the recommended readings for the course.

Note: There were no readings assigned after Week 7.

SES #	TOPICS	READINGS
1	Introduction	Midgely, Mary. “Trying Out One’s New Sword.” In Doing Ethics: Moral Reasoning and Contemporary Issues. 3rd ed. Edited by Louis Vaughn. W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. ISBN: 9780393919288. Žižek, Slavoj. “Ecology.” In Examined Life: Excursions with Contemporary Thinkers. Edited by Astra Taylor. The New Press, 2009. ISBN: 9781595584472. [Preview with Google Books] Transcripts of the discussions in the film “Examined Life” can be found in: Examined Life: Excursions with Contemporary Thinkers. Edited by Astra Taylor. The New Press, 2009. ISBN: 9781595584472. [Preview with Google Books]
2	Racial Profiling	Coates, Ta-Nehisi. “The Banality of Richard Cohen and Racist Profiling.” The Atlantic, July 17, 2013.
3	U.S. Criminal Punishment / Justice System	Fried, Barbara H. “Beyond Blame.” Boston Review, June 28, 2013. Kelly, Erin. “Response to ‘Beyond Blame’.” Boston Review, July 10, 2013.
4	Punishment, Deterrence, Prisons	Menninger, Karl. “The Crime of Punishment.” In Reason and Responsibility: Readings in Some Basic Problems of Philosophy. 9th ed. Edited by Joel Feinberg. Wadsworth, Inc., 1996. Lewis, C. S. “The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment.” In Reason and Responsibility: Readings in Some Basic Problems of Philosophy. 9th ed. Edited by Joel Feinberg. Wadsworth, Inc., 1996. Stillman, Sarah. “Get Out of Jail, Inc.” The New Yorker, June 23, 2014. Hedges, Chris. “The Prison State of America.” Truthdig, December 28, 2014. Isaacs, Caroline. “Treatment Industrial Complex: How For-Profit Prison Corporations are Undermining Efforts to Treat and Rehabilitate Prisoners for Corporate Gain.” (PDF) American Friends Service Committee, November 17, 2014. “Private Prisons.” American Civil Liberties Union. Critical Resistance. The Sentencing Project: Research and Advocacy for Reform. Racial Disparity Committee, Association of State Correctional Administrators. Punishment and Justice Handout (PDF)
5	Military Spending, Federal Spending; Universities’ Research Budgets and Dollars Spent	Ghoshroy, Subrata. “The ‘Star Wars’ Project — My Struggle as a Participant and My Decision to Blow the Whistle.” (PDF - 1.4MB) 2015. Gillis, Justin. “Bill Gates and Other Business Leaders Urge U.S. to Increase Energy Research,” New York Times, February 23, 2015. Wolfers, Justin. “All You Need to Know About Income Inequality, in One Comparison,” New York Times, March 13, 2015. Science for the People.
6	Ethical Sustainable Farming Practices	Chestnut Farms. Why Eat Less Meat.
7	Gender and Gaming	Alexander, Leigh. “A Game is Being Beaten.” The New Inquiry, March 10, 2014. ———. “Playing Outside.” The New Inquiry, June 17, 2013.