Robert Cavalier
Philosophy Department
Carnegie Mellon
Part I History of Ethics
Preface: The
Life of Socrates
Section 1:
Greek Moral Philosophy
Section 2:
Hellenistic and Roman Ethics
Section 3:
Early Christian Ethics
Section 4: Modern
Moral Philosophy
Section 5: 20th
Century Analytic Moral Philosophy
Part II Concepts and Problems
Preface: Meta-ethics,
Normative Ethics and Applied Ethics
Section 1:
Ethical Relativism
Section 2:
Ethical Egoism
Section 3:
Utilitarian Theories
Section 4: Deontological
Theories
Section 5: Virtue
Ethics
Section 6: Liberal
Rights and Communitarian Theories
Section 7: Ethics
of Care
Section 8: Case-based
Moral Reasoning
Section 9: Moral
Pluralism
Part III Applied Ethics
Preface: The
Field of Applied Ethics
Section 1:
The Topic of Euthanasia
Multimedia
Module: A Right to Die? The Dax
Cowart Case
Section 2:
The Topic of Abortion
Multimedia
Module: The Issue of Abortion in
America
Postscript:
Conflict Resolution
Cicero (106— 43 BCE)
In many ways, M. Tullius Cicero ‘translated’ Greek philosophy into Roman culture. His works reveal an active engagement in the philosophical schools of the Hellenistic and Roman period, as well as an appreciation for the active life of the orator and politician. Nowhere was his engagement with the life of philosophy more evident than in his Discussions at Tusculum. In this work he sets out his objections to Epicureanism and his affirmation of the basic Stoic ideal.
- In theory, an Academic Skeptic
- There are only probabilities
- In practice, a Stoic
- Our life and laws should model natural law
Selected Works
See excerpts from the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy article on Cicero. In ethics, contemporary interest in Cicero was sparked by Jonsen and Toulmin’s revival of case-based moral reasoning (casuistry) and the value of returning to Circero’s rhetorical writings such as On Invention.
| Return to Syllabus |
