Ethics

iscussion 2: The Example of Confucius Instructions How we develop the ethical theories and approaches we follow and practice them, not surprisingly, is informed by the time and culture in which we live. Watch this video Who was Confucius?Links to an external site. Narrated by Brayn W. Van Norden, about Confucius, his life, and some of the major ethical concepts he developed: Confucius developed his philosophy and ethics in China in the 6th and 5th centuries BCE. Immanuel Kant wrote his philosophy and moral theories in Prussia in the 18th century (1700s). We obviously live in 21st-century America (and some of us may have lived or have backgrounds in other cultures). Consider how humans develop their ethical and moral theories in this discussion. In doing this, we can understand some factors that influence our approaches to applying those ethical theories and, thus, how our approaches might differ, too. After watching the video, craft a discussion post of at least 250 words addressing the following: 1) Describe the range of sources and influences from which human beings derive their ethical theories and/or moral perspectives (you may need to do some brainstorming). 2) Consider how humans give weight to or prioritize these different sources and influences in specific situations. 3) Do we always give weight to the same ethical sources and influences? Why and why not? What might make humans apply ethics differently in different situations? Weight is a term we use in philosophy and ethics to refer to the emphasis or priority a particular concept or moral theory is given. For example, in the video, Confucius decides to give weight to his moral philosophy over his security of social position and status in Lu’s state leadership. You may use personal experiences in your posts in this discussion, but only to the degree you are comfortable. There are plenty of examples in our readings and videos to draw from as well. We can also use public figures and events (respectfully) and common situations as examples to help discuss these questions. Make sure you complete the Academic Integrity Screening for the main text of your discussion post. Simply format your main discussion post as a short one- or two-page paper (replies not needed and you may leave out any images if included) and upload it at the Academic Integrity Screening link for Discussion 2. (The same deadlines apply.) Then reply to at least two of your classmates’ posts with respectful comments, questions of curiosity, and work to make connections between the ideas and concepts discussed. Replies should be at least three complete sentences and present substantive and specific ideas and/or examples. If you’re feeling confident, you might make connections or comparisons to any of the major ethical traditions we’ve started to think about so far, such as deontology, virtue ethics, or utilitarianism. (That’s not required, but discussions can be a good place to work out ideas, too.) Additional Resources: Internet Philosophy of Encyclopedia profile on Confucius (551479 B.C.E.)Links to an external site. Links to an external site. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on ConfuciusLinks to an external site. Full text of The AnalectsLinks to an external site. by Confucius, his work on moral education Submission DO NOT POST YOUR RESPONSE AS AN ATTACHMENT. Type your response directly as a post on the forum, or compose your response in a word processing program and copy/paste it into the discussion forum. Note: the discussion forum has an HTML toolbar that allows you to make sure use of italics, bold, spacing, and many other features are just how they need to be, including advanced features to embed images and video if needed. Reply to the main discussion thread with your post responding to the prompt. Then add at least two quality comments as replies to your classmates’ posts. Once all discussion posts are submitted, students will receive feedback in the comments section in Canvas. The feedback will be based on the grading rubric for this assignment. Grading This assignment is worth 5 points toward your final grade. Discussion Rubric_5pts-1.pdfDownload Discussion Rubric_5pts-1.pdf Looking for more help? Academic Support Student Services Technical Support Services for Students with Disabilities Library Learning Commons