From June 7th to 11th, 2021, Moral Skepticism and Ethics (II) were successfully held online. The lecturer is Professor Scott Paeth from DePaul University, USA.
The main theme of this lecture is the application of moral epistemology, metaethics, and the application of ethical theory to lived moral experience. Among them, Professor Paeth focuses on the nature of moral knowledge, moral skepticism, deontological ethics, utilitarianism, virtue ethics, and the nature of contextual ethics.
In the first lecture, Professor Paeth reviewed the last lecture about Moral Skepticism and Ethics (I). Then he introduced the metaphysical problem and the epistemological problem about morality. Professor Paeth also discussed moral realism, moral anti-realism, and moral minimalism.
In the second lecture, Professor Paeth gave a brief introduction to Anti-Skepticism. Moral skepticism appears as early as the beginning of ethical reflection, while the honest review of relativism showed up only about a century. Professor Paeth pointed out that a further question for moral realism is whether moral knowledge is ontic or noetic, and how do we know about moral knowledge?
In the third lecture, Professor Paeth discussed the Key Elements of Moral Theory. Among them, he gave an overview of the main methods of modern ethics, especially deontology, teleology, and virtue ethics. Professor Paeth then introduced Nietzsche's challenge to moral realism, the problem of emotivism, and the characteristics of post-modernism and pragmatic ethics.
In the fourth lecture, Professor Paeth introduced moral theory and applied ethics. Among other things, he led the audience in discussing how moral theory can be used for specific actions in the world and whether these methods provide sufficient guidance for moral life. He pointed out that different ethical principles can lead to opposite results when applied to specific cases. Casuistics may be an effective way to discuss the application of moral theory.
In the fifth lecture, Professor Paeth introduced moral life and professional ethics. He pointed out that because of the high level of expertise required in some industries, professionals can provide more useful advice than ordinary people when it comes to relevant situations. Professor Paeth also specifically discussed the application of ethical theories in certain industries, such as business, education, medicine, and technology.
After the presentation, teachers and students asked questions about the lecture’s content. Professor Paeth answered questions patiently and in detail.
