Ethical Dilemmas.
Communications and Academic Writing
For the final three assignments, you will choose one of the following topics:
Ethical Dilemmas
Chapter 9 of our textbook takes for its theme “Ethical Dilemmas in Everyday Life.” Using at least two readings from this chapter and referencing at least one article from an academic journal found through Algonquin’s e-database, write either an analysis of the European Union’s obligations in dealing with its current “migrant” crisis or a synthesis argument that focuses on China’s one-child policy.
Part Three – Final Argumentative Synthesis Essay (1500-1750 words without the APA references)
The final paper assignment will be an argumentative synthesis similar to the demonstration paper in Chapter 5 of our textbook. Develop a balanced, detailed discussion that contains
• An introduction that draws the reader in an ends with the thesis statement
• An explicit argumentative thesis that makes an assertion about your content and organizes/announces the arguments in the paper; for the sake of clarity, underline the thesis.
• Arguments that contain claims and specific support
• Critical engagement with the three-four sources (with and against the grain)
• Clear transitions between each section to signal the direction of your discussion
• Correct in-text and end-text APA citations
Chapter 9 Ethical Dilemmas in Everyday Life
The word “ethics” is connected intrinsically with questions of correct conduct within society. Etymologically, “ethics” comes from the Greek “ethos,” meaning “character,” which indicates a concern for virtuous people, reliable character, and proper conduct. “Morality” is derived from “mores” or custom—the rules of conduct of a group or society. An initial definition of ethics, then, is the analysis, evaluation, and promotion of correct conduct and/or good character, according to the best available standards. Ethics asks what we should do in some circumstance, or what we should do as participants in some form of activity or profession. Ethics is not limited to the acts of a single person. Ethics is also interested in the correct practices of governments, corporations, professionals and many other groups. To these issues, ethics seeks a reasoned, principled, position. An appeal to existing practice or the command of a powerful leader is not sufficient. . . . Some ethical questions will require reflection on our basic values and the purpose of human society. Ethics is best conceived of as something we “do,” a form of on-going inquiry into practical problems. Ethics is the difficult practical task of applying norms and standards to ever new and changing circumstances.
—Stephen J. A. Ward, “Ethics in a Nutshell”
In the spring of 2013, Edward Snowden, a former employee of the CIA and former technical contractor for the National Security Agency, leaked to the press thousands of documents detailing top-secret U.S. mass-surveillance programs. Snowden’s actions rocked the national security establishment and divided the country. Some saw him as a hero performing a great public service in tearing the veil of secrecy from such programs and making them known to the American public. Others viewed him as a traitor who had violated his oath and endangered the security of his country. Snowden saw himself as following in the footsteps of others who believed that they were acting honorably in what they regarded as the public interest—such as Private Bradley Manning, who in 2010 passed classified national defense information to the Web site Wikileaks, and Daniel Ellsberg, who in 1971 released to the New York Times the “Pentagon Papers,” a secret Department of Defense history of the Vietnam War, which was raging at the time.
Honorable men or traitors? How we view such people depends upon the ethical standards we bring to bear upon their actions. Are the social benefits of releasing classified information in the interest of transparency outweighed by the harm that may result from these releases? Is it so inherently wrong to violate laws covering official secrecy that there can be no justification for such acts?
To answer such questions, we rely upon ethical frameworks, belief systems forged by our culture, our religion, our parents, our teachers, and our life experience. Sometimes we respond to weighty questions like “Is abortion acceptable under any circumstances?” or “Was the United States justified in dropping the atomic bomb on Japan in 1945 to end World War II?” Generally, though, the ethical dilemmas we face are more mundane: What do we do about a friend we see shoplifting? A family member who makes a racist, sexist, or simply inconsiderate remark? A coworker who habitually arrives late and leaves early and ignores your protests on the subject? How are we to act—and what do our actions say about us?
Large or small, the ethical dilemmas we face can be vexing. In this practice chapter, you’ll get to work through a series of (mostly hypothetical) dilemmas, guided by distinct ethical principles that will help you clarify what, in your view, is a proper course of action. You’ll learn about classic theories of ethics: the utilitarian approach, the rights approach, the fairness approach, and the virtues approach. You’ll also learn how stages of moral development affect the way we judge behavior, our own and that of others. You’ll draw upon all these approaches, alone and in combination, to help resolve the ethical dilemmas inherent in the example cases.