Utilitarianism and Deontology
20. Why Doesn’t Batman Kill the Joker?
By Mark D. White
Pop Culture Resources:
-Fun article: “Every Time Batman could have killed the Joker (but didn’t)”
-The Minority Report summary
-The Minority Report full text
Philosophical Resources:
-J.S. Mill, “Utilitarianism”
-Ethics Unwrapped on Utilitarianism (Overview, exercises, discussion questions)
-Ethics Unwrapped on Deontology (Overview, exercises, discussion questions)
-Martin Cooke explains The Trolley Problem (with activity)
-Short summary of Kantian ethics
-Long summary of Kantian ethics
21. Means, Ends, and the Critique of Pure Superheroes
By J. Robert Loftis
Pop Culture Resources:
-About Watchmen (characters)
-About Watchmen (plot)
-About the Tower Commission
Philosophical Resources:
-J.S. Mill, “Utilitarianism”
-Ethics Unwrapped on Utilitarianism (Overview, exercises, discussion questions)
-Ethics Unwrapped on Deontology (Overview, exercises, discussion questions)
-Marlies Glasius, “What authoritarianism is … and is not.”
Virtue Ethics
22. Can Eleanor Really Become a Better Person? (The Good Place)
By Eric J. Silverman and Zachary Swanson
Pop Culture Resources:
-The Good Place: Premise and Synopsis
-Linda Holmes (NPR) on the Finale: “Goodbye to ‘The Good Place’.”
Philosophical Resources:
-Ancient Ethical Theory (Stanford Encyclopedia)
-Saul McLeod on Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development
-New Yorker article on the Stanford prison experiment
Friendship
23.“ You’re a Sucky, Sucky Friend”: Seeking Aristotelian Friendship in The Big Bang Theory
By Dean A. Kowalski
Pop Culture Resources:
-The Big Bang Theory Synopsis
Philosophy Resources:
-Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Book VIII (On Friendship)
-Zat Rana “Aristotle’s Philosophy of Friendship Still Matters Today”
-Stanford Encyclopedia article on Friendship
-Scotty Hendricks “3 kinds of friendship, according to Aristotle.” (Big Think)
Stoicism
24. “You Are Asking Me to Be Rational”: Stoic Philosophy and the Jedi Order
By Matt Hummel
Pop Culture Resources:
-Quick (wiki) intro to Star Wars
-Quick (wiki) intro to Jedi
Philosophical Resources:
-The Daily Stoic Website (Stoic Basics and Exercises)
-Easy Article, by N.S. Gill, on whether “The serenity prayer” reflects stoic principles
Massimo Pigliucii on How to be Stoic:
-Video (short)
-Video (long)
-Video (longer)
-In print
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