Announcement: The schedule of topics, readings and due dates on the course outline has been revised. There will be a class on October 20. All dates on the printed course outline distributed in class on September 15 that are earlier than October 20 should be made one week (7 days) later. For example, Reflection 1 is due on September 20, not September 13. All dates later than October 20 remain the same. The corrected schedule can be found on the revised course outline that you can access by clicking below.
Response to question: I have been asked what mark you will get for your essay if you hand in a revised essay to be graded. The answer is that you will get the higher of the two marks: the one for the original essay and the one for the revised essay. (In other words, if your mark on the revised essay is higher, that mark will replace the earlier mark. Otherwise the earlier mark stands.)
Announcement (posted Sep. 27): ELM is now working well enough that I have started posting your marks. If you check your grades, you should see one point for submission of your first reflection (if you submitted it) and a mark out of 20 for the quality of your first reflection (if yours was marked). E-mail me at hitchckd@mcmaster.ca if you notice an error in the posted grades. (Added on November 17: I have also set up three discussion forums on ELM, one about Kant, one about Mill, one about Gert.)
Bibiliographical style and citations in your essay: For guidance, click here .
| Revised course outline | Kant made easier | Mill made easier| FAQs (answers to your questions by e-mail) |
Sample reflections: | On Kant's Preface and First Section) | On Kant's Second Section, Part I) | Also on Kant's Second Section, Part I) | On Kant's Second Section, Part II |
Sample essay proposals by last year's students (pdf files) | Kant's conception of a free will | requirement for moral considerability | Kant on desert |
Lecture outlines
| Preliminary overview of ethics | Preface to Kant's "Groundwork" | First Section of the "Groundwork" | Second Section of the "Groundwork", Part 1 |
| Second Section of the "Groundwork", Part 2 | Third Section of the "Groundwork" |
| Mill, "Utilitarianism" I | Mill, "Utilitarianism" II | Mill, "Utilitarianism" III | Mill, "Utilitarianism" IV | Mill, "Utilitarianism" V |
| comparison of Kant and Mill |
| Gert, Part I (pp. 19-55) | Gert, Part I (55-79) | Gert, Part II (81-116) | Gert, Part II (116-149) |