This module combines three interwoven strands.  The first consists of a series of core issues and questions concerning the nature of ethical judgement and its relation to social affairs.  The second is a comparative account of three key traditions in ethical theory: deontological/Kantian ethics, consequentialist/utilitarian ethics, and virtue ethics.  The third is a focus on recent developments in society, and the particular ethical issues they give rise to.  Throughout, an emphasis will be placed on how ethical perspectives ‘translate’ when applied to particular cases; how they work in practice, and how theoretical issues and concrete social problems can be addressed in a way where each sheds light on the other. 

(Co-taught with module leader Gideon Calder)