Bioethics: Methods and Principles

The course is organized along three main thematic lines:
1) a critical investigation of the origins of the discipline, an investigation aimed at tracing its genealogy, its fundamental questions, meaning, and major assumptions;
2) the course will address the study of the theoretical status of bioethics, through the examination and comparison between theoretical deontological positions/attitudes and consequential theoretical positions/attitudes, and the examination of the main conceptual dilemmas that bioethical disputes bring out: pluralism and disagreement, autonomy and responsibility, paternalism and antipaternalism.
3) Bioethics will be addressed, at the third and final level, from the point of view of the method: from the principle-based approach to the method of cases, through the analysis of the main fallacies, the course will try to define the boundaries of discipline, and to suggest the main criteria to justify argumentative claims in the bioethics field.

The course aims at the following learning objectives:
- to understand the main issues and challenges in bioethics;
- to develop competence on the main theoretical perspectives and methodological criteria in bioethics;
- to improve knowledge and ability to develop argumentation skills on bioethical issues;
- to develop the ability to apply the knowledge and skills acquired to the analysis and discussion of disputes at the heart of public debate (in relation, for example, to end-of-life issues).