Assignment Prompt:
Determine whether or not ignoring Kitty Genovese's cries for help would be morally permissible according to: (a) utilitarianism; (b) the 1st formulation of Kant's categorical imperative; and (c) Aristotle's virtue theory. Need Assignment Help?
Length
Papers should be approximately 3-4 double-spaced pages.
The main purpose of this assignment is to apply your knowledge of three ethical theories (Kant, Mill and Aristotle) to the above action. Not surprisingly, then, your grade will be largely based on how well you do this. Of particular importance is your explanation of why these theories would imply what they do about the morality of ignoring Kitty's cries for help.
A necessary condition for an 'A' paper is its having good depth. How do you achieve this? One way is by exploring different conclusions about the morality of the action through the lens of each ethical theory.
In addition to evaluating the philosophical content of your papers, I will also evaluate various aspects of your writing, most notably the clarity and coherence of the paper and your mechanics (grammar, punctuation). I do this because your writing is the means by which you communicate your thoughts to me. Thus, if your writing is unclear, then, in my book, your thoughts are unclear and I will deduct points from your paper. (I happen to think that clear philosophical writing is inseparable from clear philosophical thinking anyway.)
For further information on how you will be graded, see the Rubric.
Research/Citations:
Since the main purpose of this assignment is to apply what you have learned about the ethical theories to the moral issue above you should do absolutely no research on what these theories would imply about the morality of the action. Please limit yourself to the text and videos and/or notes provided in Canvas; these items should suffice.
If you use direct quotations from the text, please cite the editor's name and page number of our book parenthetically in the body of the text. Example: Kant claims "such-and-such." (Cahn, 434) If you are quoting from class notes or video, cite them as so: Utilitarianism claims "such-and-such." (class notes). You should use direct quotations sparingly. Most of the paper should be in your own words, and papers that do not satisfy this demand will be deducted points.
Advice:
Re-read the relevant texts and review resources in the Canvas site. Doing this will enhance your understanding of the material and help prepare you to write. At this point, you should be trying to put things into your own words.
Make an outline of your paper. This will facilitate the organization of your paper.
Strive for clarity, simplicity and precision in sentence structure. Avoid rhetorical flourishes. Don't use any words that you wouldn't use in everyday conversation or that you're not comfortable with. Don't be afraid to end sentences with prepositions. Don't be afraid to split infinitives. You can break minor grammatical rules if and only if your writing is clearer by doing so. And please feel free to use the first person: "I believe . .. "
For this sort of paper, you do not need a substantial introductory or concluding paragraph. You may want to begin the paper by simply telling the reader what you're going to do and end the paper by telling the reader what you've done. A few sentences in each paragraph would be appropriate.
Be comprehensive and don't waste space. You should struggle to say everything in the allotted space. If you have addressed both theories in one page, your analysis probably lacks depth.