Fun Philosophy: Morals and Should We Always Act for the Greater Good?
Making the "right" decision can be difficult. Is Morality subjective or are there objective rules? We examine Utilitarianism & whether acting for the greater good is always the “right thing to do”? A fun introduction to Moral Philosophy!
Class experience
TOPICS COVERED: Philosophy of Morals and Ethics, Consequentialism, Hedonism, Utilitarianism and other Moral Theories The aim of my "Fun Philosophy" series of classes is to discuss the most interesting topics in Philosophy, because if we enjoy our first experiences of thinking, then this encourages kids to keep going (see my other class listing for examples). So this is a great way to get hooked on THINKING, by starting with an easily accessible and enjoyable topic. Kids can then use their...
To think and learn without realising it, because you are having fun! By the end of the class Students will be familiar with the Moral Philosophy called Utilitarianism, which is a form of Consequentialism. We will critically analyse some possible problems with this approach and also briefly look at some refinements and alternatives. They will be able to assess its strengths and weaknesses and have a great introductory level knowledge of Moral Philosophy.
I have a PhD in Philosophy and have taught this class many times - it's one of my favourites and all my students have really enjoyed it too.
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a well respected reviewed source of great introductions into all Philosophical Topics. There are also many follow on references at the bottom of each article. Wikipedia is also a good starting point, but is obviously less reliable as it is not peer reviewed. Utilitarianism "The History of Utilitarianism" in the The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Article First published Fri Mar 27, 2009; substantive revision Mon Sep 22, 2014 - https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/utilitarianism-history/ "Consequentialism" in the The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Article First published Tue May 20, 2003; substantive revision Mon Jun 3, 2019 - https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/consequentialism/ Moral Philosophy - more general links of subjects mentioned in the class https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant-moral/ https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke-moral/ https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/moral-relativism/ https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/skepticism-moral/
I teach Earth Science and Philosophy on Outschool and am very passionate about the topics I teach. You can join any of my classes anytime. They do follow on from each other, but can also be taken as stand alone classes. I use the lecture-style...
Group Class
$18
per classMeets once
50 min
Completed by 59 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 12-17
3-12 learners per class