Philosophy and Ethics

Philosophy and Ethics Summary

Philosophy and Ethics is a critical approach to the consideration of moral and philosophical issues. Can you out think the greatest thinkers?

Entry Requirements

• GCSE Grade 5 or higher in English Language, or
• GCSE Grade 5 or higher in Religious Studies

Course Duration

2 years full-time

Specification

EDUQAS

How you will study

The A Level course provides thorough and diverse philosophical and ethical viewpoints allowing you to analyse and evaluate some of the greatest philosophical arguments that have been debated and contested over thousands of years.

Component breakdown

The Philosophy and Ethics A level course looks at the following units:

Philosophy Theme One

• Arguments for the existence of God, the Cosmological and Teleological Arguments and challenges presented from Science.
• The Ontological Argument, origins and development and challenges.

Theme Two

• The problem of evil and suffering, Augustinian Theodicy and Iranaean Theodicy.
• Challenges to religious belief from Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung and Atheism.

Theme Three

• Religious Experience with reference to visions, conversion,
  mysticism and prayer. Mystical experiences. Miracles with reference to Aquinas,
• David Hume, Richard Swinburne and R.F. Holland.

Theme Four

• Problems with religious language looking at logical positivism.
• Religious Language as non-cognitive and analogical. The functions of symbols. An examination and evaluation of myth and language games.

Ethics Theme One

• Divine Command Theory and the challenges of the Euthyphro
  dilemma.
• Virtue theory from Aristotle and the Beatitudes. Ethical Egoism. F.H. Bradley’s Naturalism and challenges from Naturalistic Fallacy. H.A. Pritchard’s intuitionism and Emotivism.

Theme Two

• St Thomas Aquinas’ Natural Law and its application to abortion and
  voluntary euthanasia.
• John Finnis’ development of Natural Law and its
  application to immigration and capital punishment.

Theme Three

• Joseph Fletcher’s Situation Ethics and its application to homosexual and polyamorous relationships.
• Utilitarianism from Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill and its
  application to animal experimentation for medical research and the use of nuclear weapons as a deterrent.

Theme Four

• Predestination with reference to the teachings of St. Augustine and John Calvin.
• The concept of determinism and concepts of free will and libertarianism.

Christianity Theme One

• Jesus’ birth, resurrection and the Bible as a Source of
  Wisdom and Authority in daily life,
• The early Church and the two views of Jesus as presented by John Dominic Crossan and N. T. Wright.

Theme Two

• The nature of God, is God male and can God suffer?
• The Trinity, Atonement. Religious life; faith and works, the community of believers and key moral principles.

Theme Three

• Social developments in religious attitude and thought towards wealth and poverty, migration and feminist theology.
• Historical developments in religious thoughts on the challenges from secularisation, science and pluralism and diversity within a tradition.

Theme Four

• Religious identity through Baptism, Eucharist and Festivals.
• Religious identity through unification, religious experience and responses to poverty and injustice.

At the end of Year 13, students will sit three two-hour papers covering knowledge from all units. Each paper is equally weighted.

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