Contemporary issues in Bioethics [2498]

General Information

• Credits: 6 ECTS
• Prerequisites: baccalaureate level or equivalent; proficiency in French
• Learning format: asynchronous distance learning – 100% e-learning
• Language of instruction: French
• Course access: available at any time of year
• Disability liaison officer: Cécile Boucherle

Course Overview

This course explores the major ethical and political challenges of contemporary societies by examining the relationships between liberty, equality, human dignity, and collective responsibility. Through the works of John Stuart Mill and Ronald Dworkin, it analyzes the tensions between individual freedom and social justice before addressing critiques of patriarchy, debates on pornography, sexuality, and abortion. It also examines the ethical issues surrounding euthanasia, the death penalty, and the protection of refugees from a human rights perspective. Finally, the course shows that the environmental crisis is inseparable from social and economic justice, advocating an integral ecological approach based on solidarity, the common good, and responsibility toward present and future generations.

Learning Outcomes

This course enables you to:

• Understand the major ethical and political theories concerning liberty, equality, justice, and human rights.
• Analyze contemporary debates on gender, sexuality, life ethics, migration, and capital punishment from multiple philosophical perspectives.
• Evaluate the ethical responsibilities of individuals, states, and institutions in promoting justice, protecting human dignity, and safeguarding the common good.
• Examine the connections between environmental sustainability, social justice, and integral ecology in addressing contemporary global challenges.

Course Competencies

This course is linked to the following competency:

• Conduct a rigorous ethical and aesthetic analysis, including on contemporary issues

Course Outline

Section 1: Individual Freedom and Social Control

Section 2: Rights

Section 3: Sexual Equality

Section 4: Censorship

Section 5: Sexual Morality

Section 6: Homosexuality

Section 7: Abortion

Section 8: Euthanasia and End of Life Discussion

Section 9: Refugees: Do We Have a Duty Towards Refugees?

Section 10: Death Penalty

Section 11: War and Peace

Section 12: Environmental Issues

Assessment Methods 

Course assessment is based on:

• tracking and completion of the course and of all learning activities. These activities, designed as essential practice and learning exercises, may be completed multiple times and are not factored into the final grade,
• the final assessment quiz, which constitutes the graded evaluation.

Learning Format

The course is taught entirely online via the MyDomuni platform, accessible 24/7.
Learning resources include:

• written course materials;
• supplementary documents and, depending on the content, video resources;
• interactive learning activities (quizzes, exercises);
• a discussion forum with the course instructor and fellow participants.

Prerequisites

This course is open to anyone with a general level of education equivalent to the baccalaureate, or with personal or academic experience related to the topics covered.

A good command of written French is recommended to facilitate understanding of the content and participation in the activities offered. 

Accessibility

The course is accessible at any time, from any internet-connected device, via the MyDomuni platform.
For students with disabilities, specific support can be arranged upon request to ensure equitable access to course content and activities.

Disability liaison officer: cecile.boucherle@domuni.eu.

Selective Bibliography

• Ronald Dworkin, Taking Rights Seriously, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1977.
• Catharine A. MacKinnon, Only Words, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1993.
• John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, London, John W. Parker and Son, 1859.
• Pope Francis, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home, Vatican City, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2015.
• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and Protocol
• Relating to the Status of Refugees, Geneva, UNHCR, 2010, original Convention adopted in 1951, Protocol adopted in 1967.