Moral Reasoning

Talk to someone who you view as a moral exemplar, in some aspect of how they live their life. Do they view themselves in this way? What sets them apart, in your view, as a moral exemplar. Are they especially morally motivated or do they have other reasons for their actions? How do they differ from the exemplars Preston-Roedder describes? Do you think this exemplar displays the kind of self-respect Hampton describes? 

Evidence:  Provide screenshots, recordings, selfies, and/or notes from your conversation with your moral exemplar. 

The Rep Project: Write down a short summary of what you believe your reputation is among some group of people you care about or whom you at least need to work with. (Examples: teammates, family, roommates, people in this class.) Then administer an anonymous poll (either online or through a trusted friend) which includes traits that you think describe how you are perceived as well as other traits that do not describe you and some open-ended questions. At least ten people must take the poll. Submit the poll results and a reflection on what you learned from the exercise as it relates to Berstler’s arguments about self-presentation and public personae. 

Evidence:  Provide screenshots or photos of the poll or questionnaire and responses, as well as the summary of what you thought your reputation would be. 

Make a table with three columns and 51 rows. In the first column, make a list of 50 things that you would do if you weren't afraid. In the second column write the thing that you would gain by doing it (e.g. fun, knowledge). In the third column, write the thing you are afraid of (e.g. injury, embarrassment). Choose one thing on the list and do it. 

Evidence:  Include your list and screenshots/photos of you doing the thing you were afraid to do

Venmo $5 to four friends, and tell them that they can decide how much to send back. Then reflect on how you chose which friends to Venmo, and how you felt about their responses. 

Evidence: Screenshots from Venmo 

Select an activity you find intriguing, but which you are bad at and expect to fail at if you attempt it. (For instance, if you are a bad singer, sing karaoke in public. Or if you are a bad athlete, play pick-up basketball.) This week, try doing it for at least 30 minutes, ideally in public where others can see you fail or perform badly. How did it make you feel? How did others react to you? What did you learn about yourself? Will you keep doing it until you get better?

Evidence:  Include photos of you doing the thing that you were bad

Set an alarm on your phone that prompst you to answer the following question six times throughout the day: 

• Day 1: Who is helping other people?

• Day 2: Who seems lonely?

• Day 3: Who is working hardest?

• Day 4: Who has the most social power?

Keep a log, and at the end of each day, record a 2-3 minute voice memo about what happened that day. In your reflection, discuss whether the world itself seemed different on the different days, when the questions made different parts of of your environment more salient to you?

Evidence: Log and recordings

Choose one thing that feels icky or emotionally "off limits" to you but that you cannot immediately explain why. Examples might include:

• eating cats and dogs

• wearing clothing associated with another culture

• taking sexy selfies in a graveyard 

• saying slurs in private

• consensual romantic relationships between adult first cousins 

• wearing someone else's clean underwear. 

First ask yourself what exactly feels wrong, who, if anyone, is harmed, and ask whether you judge someone else for doing it. Then record a discussion about this topic with someone from this class. Reflect on whether moral emotions track genuine moral facts or whether they sometimes arise for other reasons. 

Evidence: Recorded conversation