The good life: an anthropology of ethics

SOAN60392 The good life: an anthropology of ethics 15 Semester 2 Postgraduate Taught Level 6 Soumhya Venkatesan Unit coordinator Anthropology 1 FHEQ level (Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) ' Masters/Integrated Masters P4 ' European Credit Transfer & Accumulation System Rating : 7.5 This course will focus on the anthropology of ethics to ask how people conceptualise the good life and good ways to live. The sub-field of the Anthropology of ethics is seen to have originated as a distinct area of investigation since 2001, although, of course, anthropologists have been concerned with what might be termed ethical questions (i.e. questions about how to live) since the inception of the discipline. The kinds of questions that are of interest include: why do people follow moral rules or codes of conduct? Are there some things that are universally considered good (or bad)? Do the same moral codes or rules apply to all members of a given social group? To what extent is ‘being good’ the result of obedience to extant rules and to what extent is this a product of reflection and conscious willed action? This course will focus on the anthropology of ethics to ask how people conceptualise the good life and good ways to live. The sub-field of the Anthropology of ethics is seen to have originated as a distinct area of investigation since 2001, although, of course, anthropologists have been concerned with what might be termed ethical questions (i.e. questions about how to live) since the inception of the discipline. The kinds of questions that are of interest include: why do people follow moral rules or codes of conduct? Are there some things that are universally considered good (or bad)? Do the same moral codes or rules apply to all members of a given social group? To what extent is ‘being good’ the result of obedience to extant rules and to what extent is this a product of reflection and conscious willed action? Drawing on a range of traditions and theoretical underpinnings that inform anthropological understandings of ethics, we will address ethical questions across a range of fields - from religion to politics to economics. Some key areas of concern will include the relationship between the individual and collectivities, the ethical and the moral and the interpenetration of public and private domains. We will also spend time on the question of relativism, e.g. other words, is a good always a good or does it depend on social and other contexts? Student will be able toKnowledge and Understanding:<ul> <li>Develop an understanding of the growing sub-field of the Anthropology of Ethics.</li> <li>Explore what it might mean to be a ‘good’ person and ask whether this might be context-dependent or context independent.</li> <li>Explore the relationship between: <ul> <li>Precept and practice.</li> <li>Is and ought</li> <li>Ethics and morality</li> <li>Public and private spheres</li> </ul> </li> <li>Engage with debates within the Anthropology of Ethics</li></ul> Critically read and write about a number of key texts in the Anthropology of Ethics and related sub-fields. <ul> <li> Engage critically with the notion of Relativism.</li> <li> PGT only: each student will formulate an essay question in the seminars with the active input of course-giver.</li> </ul> Critical engagement with complex questions, and effective written and spoken communication. <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">2 hour lecture per week + PGT seminar (1 hour per week) 0 Other 100% <ul><li>Voice thread presentation (worth 25%);</li><li>2000 word essay (worth 75%);</li></ul> N Preliminary reading:Durkheim, Emile. 1993. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=UVG_bo8Ra6sC&lpg=PA1&dq=Ethics%20and%20the%20Sociology%20of%20Morals%20durkheim&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q=Ethics%20and%20the%20Sociology%20of%20Morals%20durkheim&f=false">Ethics and the Sociology of Morals</a>. Translated and with an introduction by Robert T. Hall. New York: Prometheus.Edel, May and Abraham Edel. 1959. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=8xbDmogYf3cC&lpg=PP1&dq=Anthropology%20and%20Ethics%253A%20The%20Quest%20for%20Moral%20Understanding&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=Anthropology%20and%20Ethics:%20The%20Quest%20for%20Moral%20Understanding&f=false">Anthropology and Ethics: The Quest for Moral Understanding</a>. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction.Fortes, Meyers. 1987. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=uJg4AAAAIAAJ&lpg=PP1&dq=Religion%252C%20Morality%252C%20and%20the%20Person%253A%20Essays%20on%20Tallensi%20Religion&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=Religion,%20Morality,%20and%20the%20Person:%20Essays%20on%20Tallensi%20Religion&f=fa">Religion, Morality, and the Person: Essays on Tallensi Religion</a>. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Linton, Ralph. 1952. “Universal Ethical Principles: An Anthropological Point of View.” In R. N. Anshen (ed.), <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Moral_Principles_of_Action.html?id=-QAtAAAAMAAJ">Moral Principles of Action: Man’s Ethical Imperative</a>. New York: Harper.Malinowski, Bronislaw. 1926. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=U5-ARmWAn8cC&lpg=PP1&dq=Crime%20and%20Custom%20in%20Savage%20Society&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=Crime%20and%20Custom%20in%20Savage%20Society&f=false">Crime and Custom in Savage Society</a>. London: Paul Kegan. 0 0 0