Morality and Law (PHIL 280)

In this course, we will focus on three different questions about the law. First, we will consider the question, “What is law, generally speaking?” During this part of the course, we will read selections from each of the major schools of thought about the nature of law, including natural law, positivism, and realism. Second, we will consider the question, “How should we understand our law?” During this part of the course, we will read works on constitutional interpretation and think about whether judges ought to “legislate from the bench” or stick to the law “as written,” as well as whether this distinction even makes sense. Third, we will think about the question, “How should our law treat critical issues facing our society?” During this final part of the course, we will discuss issues like hate crimes, abortion, and tort reform.

Dan Layman’s webpage