Choose any two journal entries from these four, then answer the question.
Project instructions:
Instructions
Choose any TWO journal entries from the following four journal entries. Answer the question about them. Each journal entry should be one page in length (250 words).
> Journal Entry 1
Outline Singer’s line of reasoning in defense of assigning non-human animals the same right not to suffer as humans. Ensure that you understand the principles of
equality and non-discrimination, the concepts of interest, sentience and the ability to suffer. Ensure that you can summarize how he goes about showing how defenders
of human privilege are actually thinking prejudicially and arbitrarily when selecting those who are to count as members of the moral community.
> Journal Entry 2
Compare Naess and Sylvan’s responses to conservative thinking. Who seems to be the more radical? Why? It would be helpful to jot down reasons you might have for your
own position, either radical or conservative.
> Journal Entry 3
Briefly characterize the dispute between White and Moncrief. What precisely is at issue? How different are their ideas in fact? Begin to sketch your own views on the
extent to which Christianity is a root of the ecological crisis we face.
> Journal Entry 4
How do you interpret Hughes’ explanation of the more fundamental cause of the environmental crisis? What is his solution? It is not straightforward, so be careful to
formulate his solution with some subtlety.
Study Schedule
Under normal circumstances, you are given a six-month contract from your date of enrolment to complete this three-credit course. You are, of course, at liberty to go
through the course at whatever pace suits you, as long as you submit the required assignments before your six-month contract expires. However, we strongly recommend
that you try to stick as closely as possible to the following schedule, which has been drawn up on the assumption that you will spend roughly eight to twelve hours per
week working on the course. Keeping to this schedule will ensure that you get through the course at a reasonable pace in the required time. If you find you are able to
work at a faster pace than that suggested, that is fine. However, if you find yourself falling behind your schedule, call your tutor to discuss your progress.
If you find that you will be unable to complete the course within the six-month contract, consult the currentAthabasca University Calendar for full details on
purchasing an extension. However, the surest way of completing the course is to stick to the study schedule. You will find that if you set aside time each week to work
on the course, you can maintain your schedule.
The schedule below has been prepared under the assumption that you will spend a full six months to complete the course. If you plan to finish the course in a shorter
time, you should revise the schedule accordingly. Note that later units in the course build on earlier ones, so you must work through the course in the order specified
below. Remember that we strongly recommend that you keep to the schedule.
Suggested Weekly Study Schedule
Weeks Unit Learning Activities Reading Assignments
1–4 At the end of week 4 jot down your general areas of research interests, a possible case study or type of case you would like to examine
and a position on some of the central themes (world view, value theory, ethics).
Contact your tutor if you have any questions. Read all material quickly, starting with the Student Manual. Read the Study Guide and the readings from the
text and DRR as they are assigned. It is highly recommended that you do not stop to work through any of the assignments until you have read all the course materials.
Use the Study Guide to help you gain some sense of how the readings form a set of problems and perspectives on environmental issues.
5–6 Unit 1 Begin Unit 1, reading with more intensity and focus in light of your research interest. Contact your tutor to talk about your line of
research.
Complete Journal Entries 1 and 2.
At the end of Week 6, submit Assignment 1: General Theme. From the text, Thinking Ecologically, “Introduction”
From the DRR
Reading 1: Richard Sylvan, “Is There a Need for a New, an Environmental Ethic?”
Reading 2: Arne Naess, “The Shallow and the Deep, Long-Range Ecological Movement: A Summary”
Reading 3: Peter Singer, “A Utilitarian Defense of Animal Liberation”
7–8 Unit 2 Complete the study activities for Unit 2 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 3–5.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 1, “Animistic and Classical World Views”
From the DRR
Reading 4: Lynn White Jr., “The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis”
Reading 5: Lewis Moncrief, “The Cultural Basis of our Environmental Crisis”
Reading 6: J. Donald Hughes, “The Ancient Roots of Our Ecological Crisis”
9–10 Unit 3 Complete the study activities for Unit 3 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 6–8.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 2, “The Copernican Revolution, Mechanism and the Modern World View”
From the DRR
Reading 7: St. Thomas Aquinas, “Differences Between Rational and Other Creatures”
Reading 8: Francis Bacon (Forrest E. Baird), NovumOrganum; Discourse on Method and Meditations (excerpt)
Reading 9: René Descartes, “Animals Are Machines”
Reading 10: Immanuel Kant, “Duties to Animals”
11–12 Unit 4 Complete the study activities for Unit 4 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 9–11.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 1, sections on animism (pp. 13–21)
From the DRR
Reading 11: Arne Naess, “The Deep Ecological Movement: Some Philosophical Aspects”
Reading 12: Lily de Silva, “The Buddhist Attitude Towards Nature”
Reading 13: Po-Keung Ip, “Taoism and the Foundations of Environmental Ethics”
Reading 14: Annie Booth and Harvey Jacobs, “Ties that Bind: Native American Beliefs as a Foundation for Environmental Consciousness”
Reading 15: Aldo Leopold, “The Land Ethic; Conservation as a Moral Issue; Thinking Like a Mountain”
13–14 Unit 5 Complete the study activities for Unit 5 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 12–14.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 4, “Values and World View”
From the DRR
Reading 16: Eugene C. Hargrove, “Anglo-American Land Use Attitudes”
Reading 17: Bryan Norton, “Environmental Ethics and Weak Anthropocentrism”
Reading 18: William Baxter, “People or Penguins”
Reading 19: Herman B. Leonard and Richard J. Zeckhauser, “Cost-Benefit Analysis Defended”
Reading 20: Mark Sagoff, “At the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, or Why Political Questions are Not All Economic”
15–16 Unit 6 Complete the study activities for Unit 6 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 15–17.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 4, “Values and World View”
From the DRR
Reading 21: Arne Naess, “Self-Realization”
Reading 22: Karen J. Warren “The Power and the Promise of Ecological Feminism”
Reading 23: Murray Bookchin, “What is Social Ecology?”
Reading 24: Holmes Rolston III, “Naturalizing Values: Organisms and Species”
17–18 Unit 7 Complete the study activities for Unit 7 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 18–20.
Complete Assignment 3: Position Paper.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 5, “Ecology and Ethics”
From the DRR
Reading 25: Tom Regan, “The Radical Egalitarian Case For Animal Rights”
Reading 26: Peter Singer, “All Animals Are Equal”
Reading 27: Kenneth E. Goodpaster, “On Being Morally Considerable”
Reading 28: Thomas H. Birch, “Moral Considerability and Universal Consideration”
Reading 29: Paul W. Taylor, “The Ethics of Respect for Nature”
Reading 30: Don E. Marietta Jr., “Environmental Holism and Individuals”
19–20 Unit 8 Complete the study activities for Unit 8 of the Study Guide.
Complete Journal Entries 21 and 22.
Call your tutor if you have any questions. From the text Thinking Ecologically Chapter 7, “Sustainable Development, Conservation and Sustainability”
From the DRR
Reading 31: World Commission on Environment and Development, “From One Earth to One World: An Overview by the World Commission on Environment and Development”
Reading 32: William E. Rees, “Sustainable Development: Economic Myths and Ecological Realities”
Reading 33: Vandana Shiva, “The Greening of the Global Reach”
21–22 Complete Assignment 2: Entry Journals
Complete Assignment 4: Case Study
Philosophy (PHIL) 375Back to courses | Print page
Philosophy of the Environment (Revision 2)
View previous syllabus.
Delivery Mode: Individualized study online
Credits: 3
Area of Study: Humanities
Prerequisite: None, but a junior-level philosophy course or a course in critical thinking is highly recommended.
Faculty: Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences
Philosophy home page
PHIL 375 has a Challenge for Credit option.
check availability
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Register for a Course
Important Links
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Textbook:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/pu06cn6yhe5pa4w/AABx6kIrd_-dVIZ9uQLzIwR7a
Please download the textbook and keep a copy of it.
Overview
Philosophy 375 addresses core issues in philosophy of the environment and environmental ethics. The course is designed to familiarize students with issues concerning
world view (cosmology), value conflicts, epistemology (ways of knowing) and principles involved in conflicts over our relationship with the environment. Policy issues
such as sustainability and conservation are addressed in this light. Central issues addressed are anthropocentrism vs. ecocentrism, the intrinsic vs. the instrumental
value of the environment, historical shifts and cross-cultural tensions involving world view, to name a few. The breadth of issues examined is indicative of the
introductory nature of the course. But, as a senior-level course, a certain degree of understanding argument structures and principles and an ability to develop
arguments is expected; the pedagogical focus is on developing principled arguments in support of a position on some issue addressed in the course. Students are
strongly advised to take a junior-level philosophy course before registering in Philosophy 375.
Outline
Unit 1: Introduction
Unit 2: World Views: Historical-Ptolemaic Universe and Greco-Christian Cosmology
Unit 3: World Views: Modern
Unit 4: World Views: Alternative and Ecological
Unit 5: Classical Anthropocentrism
Unit 6: Ecocentrism: Intrinsic Value, Deep Ecology, Ecofeminism, Social Ecology
Unit 7: Value Theory: Ethical Obligations?
Unit 8: Sustainable Development and Sustainability
Evaluation
To receive credit for PHIL 375, you must submit all assignments and achieve a composite course grade of at least “D” (50 percent). The weighting of the composite grade
is as follows:
ASSIGN 1: GENERAL THEME ASSIGN 2: FIVE JOURNAL ENTRIES ASSIGN 3: POSITION PAPER ASSIGN 4: CASE STUDY TOTAL
accept/reject 20% 40% 40% 100%
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University’s online Calendar.
Course Materials
Online Version
Students registering in the individualized study, online version receive the following materials.
Morito, Bruce. 2002. Thinking Ecologically: Environmental Thought, Values and Policy. Halifax, NS: Fernwood Books.
You will access all other course materials online.
Before registering in the individualized study, online version of Philosophy 375, students should ensure that they have the minimumcomputer hardware and software
required. In addition to the minimum requirements listed there, students must have a Windows 98® or later operating system, and suitable word-processing software.
Students may also access the online version of this course using a Macintosh® platform. The minimum requirements are a Power Macintosh® with a Mac OS 9® or later
operating system, an Internet connection and suitable word-processing software.
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