PUBPOL 283 | Ethics in an Unjust World

Semester: Fall 2024
Meeting Times: MoWe 11:45am-1:00pm
Modes of Inquiry: Cross-Cultural Inquiry (CCI)
Ethical Inquiry (EI)
Areas of Knowledge: Civilizations (CZ)
Social Sciences (SS)
Course Description:

The course considers the question, “How can we fix poverty?” It begins by exploring the nature of poverty through a variety of descriptive metaphors (for example, poverty as a “trap” or a “disease”). It then considers the word “we,” and in doing so introduces several basic understandings of ethics (deontology, utilitarianism, virtue ethics, etc.) Finally it considers the word “fix” and offers three models for responding to poverty: working for, working with, and being with. Each model explores several examples of good practice followed by critical reflection as students engage with opportunities in Durham displaying each approach.