The Good, the Bad, and the Evil

The Good, the Bad, and the Evil: an Introduction to Moral Philosophy

Why should we be good? What makes an action moral—and how can we know? If an act is moral here and now, is it necessarily moral there and then? Is goodness in some way connected to happiness? And, what constitutes a moral judgment—is it an exercise of reason, or merely an expression of feeling?

In this class, we’ll investigate the nature and scope of morality as it’s been conceived in the western philosophical tradition. We’ll look at four major traditions in moral philosophy, reading both their historical and contemporary advocates: virtue ethics, moral sentimentalism, consequentialism, and deontology. We’ll see what each has to say about questions of normative ethics—that is, how we ought to act. And, we’ll inquire into “meta-ethical” ideas about the grounds and nature of morality itself. Is morality “objective” or merely “relative”? Is morality a feature of nature; or is its existence, in some sense, non-real or ideal? Readings will include works by both classic thinkers, such as Aristotle, David Hume, Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill and Immanuel Kant, and contemporary moral philosophers, such as Alasdair MacIntyre and Christine Korsgaard.

Please Note:

There *is* no physical Brooklyn Institute. We hold our classes all over (thus far) Brooklyn and Manhattan, in alternative spaces ranging from the back rooms of bars to bookstores to spaces in cultural centers, including the Center for Jewish History, the Goethe-Institut, and the Barnard Center for Research on Women. We can (and do) turn any space into a classroom. You will be notified of the exact location when you register for a class.

Instructors will contact students approximately one week prior to the first class with reading assignments and details about the course location.