Topic: justice

To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

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In Harper Lee’s classic novel, the narrator, Scout (five years old at the story’s beginning), describes the events surrounding her father’s defense of an African American man charged with raping a young white woman, portraying the world of the Deep South of the 1930s. The novel inspires exploration of many philosophical questions. General philosophical questions … To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee

Joy and Heron

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“Joy and Heron,” Animated Short Film by Passion Pictures This lesson plan can be used either in a classroom or online. Plot Summary: In this short, animated film a fisherman sails out with his enthusiastic dog. They are quickly joined by a heron, who lands on the boat. At first, the dog and the heron … Joy and Heron

For the Birds

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Plot Summary: In this short Pixar film, several small birds land on a telephone wire and commence chattering and annoying one another. When a large bird lands nearby and seeks out their company, the smaller birds stop their bickering and turn as one against the large bird. Their attempts to make him leave their wire … For the Birds

Justice and Utopia

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Black and white woodcut print of a map of Thomas More's "Utopia" featuring large ship sailing around the edges of the island. On the island, there are several 16th-century buildings. In the lower corners of the image, two men dressed in 16th-century clothes talk to one another.

Students engage with the ‘Ring of Gyges’ story from Plato’s Republic and John Rawls’ concept of the ‘veil of ignorance’ to examine how a just society might be organized.

Social Contract Theory: Creating a Cooperative Learning Environment

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Wooden people figures shaking hands

Materials needed: John Locke’s Second Treatise on Government, chapters two and eight. An alternative is James Rachels’ The Elements of Moral Philosophy, chapter eleven, “The Idea of a Social Contract” (see full citations and links in the ‘Resources’ section) Questionnaire (see below) Poster board for displaying the finished constitution Optional: online discussion forum; wig and … Social Contract Theory: Creating a Cooperative Learning Environment

Stereotyping

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row of 5 paper dolls

Materials needed Plenty of paper Several sets of 5 different colored pencils or markers Timer Warm-Up Activity: Ask your students to think about how they define a stereotype. Work in small groups to come up with a basic definition. Have your students write this definition down. After small group discussion, write each group’s definition on … Stereotyping

Fair or Equal?

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Materials needed List of roles and responsibilities (see below) A bag of candy   Description Begin the exercise by holding up the bag of candy (make sure you have enough for at least one piece for every student) and ask, “What’s the fair way to distribute the candy in this bag? Who all should get … Fair or Equal?

Moral Philosophy and Genocide

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Photograph of a school project about the Holocaust

Talking About Moral Philosophy and Genocide with Middle School Students Middle school students often face difficult moral choices. We can help students approach these choices thoughtfully by introducing them to philosophical inquiry, and inviting them to consider such moral issues as the consequences of inaction and silence, the difference between inaction and indifference, and whether … Moral Philosophy and Genocide

What is a Human Being?

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The first half of Brave New World  by Aldous Huxley depicts a socially programmed society in which advances in science and technology have created a world full of people who are biologically human but may not be fully human in other ways. This lesson sequence can be done after a few days of initial work on … What is a Human Being?