Foundations of Secular Ethical Theory: Utilitarianism, Deontology, and Virtue Ethics

Every time you decide whether to keep a promise, calculate the likely effects of an action, or ask what kind of person you want to be, you are doing something that philosophers have systematized and debated for centuries. Secular ethical theory provides the conceptual vocabulary and analytical frameworks that make moral reasoning explicit, rigorous, and defensible. This course offers a clear, honest introduction to the three dominant traditions in Western moral philosophy. By the end of this course you will be able to state the core claims of utilitarian, deontological, and virtue-ethical theories accurately and in your own words, identify the major objections to each theory and evaluate the standard responses, apply each framework to a moral dilemma and recognize how they generate different verdicts, and explain the significance of thinkers including Bentham, Mill, Kant, Aristotle, and contemporary contributors to each tradition. What you will learn: - Utilitarian ethics: Bentham's hedonistic calculus, Mill's refinements, and preference utilitarianism - The problem of justice in consequentialism: utility monsters, innocent scapegoats, and distributive concerns - Kant's categorical imperative: the Formula of Universal Law and the Formula of Humanity - Deontological constraints: why some acts may be wrong even if they maximize good outcomes - Aristotelian virtue ethics: eudaimonia, character, the doctrine of the mean, and the role of habit - Contemporary virtue ethics: neo-Aristotelian revivals and the contribution of Philippa Foot and Alasdair MacIntyre - Contractualism as a fourth framework: Rawls, Scanlon, and the idea of reasonable agreement - Metaethical questions: moral realism versus relativism as the background to all ethical theories The course is organized across five thematic units. Each unit introduces a theory through its primary texts in excerpted form, followed by explanatory analysis and worked philosophical examples. Case scenarios — ranging from classic trolley-problem thought experiments to real-world ethical dilemmas — are used to test each theory's verdicts. Reflection prompts encourage you to examine your own moral intuitions and their relationship to the theories being studied. Self-assessment exercises at the end of each unit test your ability to apply and evaluate the framework just introduced. This course is designed for students of philosophy, ethics, law, theology, public policy, and anyone who wants a rigorous introduction to secular moral reasoning. It is suitable for those new to moral philosophy and academic ethical theory. No prior background in philosophy is required.