Discussion Question Prompts

Instructions: There will be one discussion in this week. Please select one of the prompts from the set below and post it as an initial post in the discussion this week.

1. Choose an applied ethics issue from one of the previous weeks and explain how one working from a feminist ethical perspective would respond to that issue. How would this person define the issue and what actions would the person take to demonstrate his or her ethical beliefs? Describe how this response differs from a utilitarian, deontological, and/or virtue ethics response. Use specific information from the theories and readings to support your claims.

2. Utilize feminist ethics to examine the applied ethics topics in the course. For example, what does a care ethic look like when applied to business or war? What would be the best way to run a business from the perspective of feminist ethics? How would a feminist ethic transform the way that the military functions or goes about fighting in wars? If you are not interested in these issues, you can respond to the topics of the environment, animal rights, or medical ethics. Be sure to utilize support from the readings while explaining your perspective on these issues.

3. Using Virginia Held's article "Feminist Transformations of Ethical Theory" as a foundation, explain three things that you did not know about feminist thought that you found interesting and/or informative. What were those things? Why are they interesting or informative? How do they relate to the view that you now hold of ethics and how one can live a good life? Explain why you do or do not think that feminist ethics could be a fruitful transformation of ethical theory and practice in the Western tradition. Be sure to utilize the readings from the week and specific examples that relate to your analysis.

4. Explain two ways that feminists have sought to critique or transform Western ethical ideas in the history of philosophy. Now that you have studied multiple ethical theories, explain which ideas you most agree with from these critiques and which you believe to be weaker than the others. Be sure to utilize what you have learned and quotes from the readings to support your position.