Introduction to Ethics

Imagine what the world will be like exactly 30 years from now, that is, in 2053. Will this country—and this planet—stay a place where people can live every day without losing hope? As is often pointed out, this country may face a difficult "downhill" period in 30 years. What qualities will today's university students need to develop the "intellectual power" necessary to cope with such difficult "downhill" times? Taking famous Japanese philosopher Seiichi Washida's "Philosophy to the People" as a clue, the aim of this course is to help students find their own answers to the above questions.

Philosophy, ethics, communication, logical thinking

1) Introduction
2) On suffering
3) What it means to study ethics
4) Living independently
5) Doubting and worrying
6) The ""meaning"" of life
7) Modern ethics
8) Reasons for living / Reasons for not dying
9) ""Spontaneous thinking""
10) Telling the truth
11) The end of humans
12) Thinking for yourself once more
13) What can ethics say about ""how to live""?
14) On Socrates
15) Summary and prospect, course survey

Syllabus (Japanese site only)