I’ve been a professor of philosophy at James Madison University since 2006, and in this time I’ve taught many courses including Moral Theory; Comparative Ethics East and West; The Individual, the State and Justice; Introduction to Philosophy; and Ethical Reasoning, which is a course that I created for our general education curriculum. I enjoy teaching all levels of philosophy courses, and I regularly teach both in person and online. I particularly enjoy bringing philosophical issues on which I am actively working into the classroom. In many ways, my teaching is entwined with my scholarship, and in 2020 I won a Legacy Award from the College of Arts and Letters at JMU. Established by an Alumni Board of the College of Arts and Letters, Legacy Awards recognize faculty who are committed to blending teaching and scholarship in a single endeavor.
My recently offered courses include the following:
Comparative Ethics East and West (Syllabus)
Comparative Ethics is an interdisciplinary team-taught course examining ethics from Eastern and Western traditions. In an increasingly globalized world, ethical decisions often involve considering diverse systems of beliefs about how we ought to live. In this course, we will think about ethical questions from cross-cultural intellectual perspectives, including Confucianism, Buddhism, Aristotelianism, and utilitarianism. By analyzing arguments made in Eastern and Western philosophical and religious traditions, we will begin to see similarities—such as the use of logical reasoning and the undesirability of pain and suffering—as well as fundamental differences. Case studies and examinations of contemporary issues make the course content relevant to the present day.
Moral Theory (Syllabus)
Moral theory is a branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of rightness, wrongness and living well. This course is an advanced study of classical and contemporary work in meta-ethics and normative ethical theory, with some attention to the implementation of moral theories in practice. We begin with three fundamental questions of moral theorizing, “Is morality relative?” “Do – or should – human beings act only from self-interest?” and “Does morality depend upon religion?” Subsequently, we examine several influential moral theories, concentrating on virtue ethics, utilitarianism and deontological ethics. Throughout the course, we will examine such questions as “What is the nature of right and wrong?” “Why be moral?” “What are the components of human flourishing?” “Who or what is morally considerable?” and “Are moral judgments gendered?”
The Individual, the State and Justice (Syllabus)
In this course, we examine fundamental questions of social and political philosophy, focusing on the nature of justice and the relationship between the individual and the state. We’ll study influential work in the history of western political philosophy—including Plato’s Republic, Aristotle’s Politics and the treatises of the modern social contract theorists—in addition to contemporary work on justice, individual liberty, and the basic functions of the state. Our discussions will concern the limits of individual liberty, the obligations of citizens in relation to the state, civil disobedience, human rights, universal basic income, socialism, capitalism, and work, among other topics.
Special Topics in Philosophy: The Idea of Moral Progress (offered online in the winter sessions)
We often speak of moral progress, but how do we make sense of this idea? What makes a practice or policy progressive? How do we tell the difference between moral progress and mere social or historical change? In this course, we’ll examine philosophical approaches to morality that shed light on these questions, in addition to discussing contemporary moral and social issues on which activists call for progress. The course will highlight the philosophical thought of Martin Luther King Jr., as well as utilitarian philosopher Peter Singer. Throughout the class, students will read essays and book excepts on philosophical ideas about the idea of moral progress, in addition to taking exams, contributing to discussion forums, and writing on the idea of moral progress.
Special Topics in Philosophy: The Problem of Evil (offered online in the summer and winter sessions)
The problem of evil is often considered in the context of the philosophy of religion, which is largely concerned with the question of whether it is reasonable to believe in God. This course focuses on the question of whether the abundance of evil and suffering in the world can be reconciled with the existence of a God who is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent. Students read a series of philosophical essays and book excerpts that address the problem of evil, including an excerpt from John Hick’s Evil and the God of Love and J. L. Mackie’s “Evil and Omnipotence.”
Introduction to Philosophy (Syllabus)
As an academic discipline, philosophy is the study of fundamental questions of human existence that defy empirical resolution. Philosophers investigate such questions as “Does God exist?” “Do we have free will?” “What is the meaning of life?” and “What is the nature of right and wrong?” This course surveys several major areas and problems of philosophy, beginning with issues in metaphysics and epistemology and continuing with issues concerning meaning of life, ethics and political philosophy. Throughout the semester, we’ll examine influential writings of classical and contemporary philosophers in a quest for wisdom concerning the above questions.
The course aims to provide an appreciation of the major problems of philosophy and to acquaint students with the questions and arguments that have shaped philosophical traditions. The course also aims to cultivate capabilities for independent thought and critical appraisal of philosophical ideas. Students will read philosophical texts carefully, take exams on major ideas and arguments, write philosophical essays and participate in group presentations examining the merits of philosophical arguments.
Ethical Reasoning
This course is one of several courses in the Madison Foundations Cluster of James Madison University’s general education curriculum. The course promotes skills of critical thinking and good reasoning while focusing on ethical theories, principles and problems. Students gain knowledge of a plurality of approaches to ethical decision making, including influential philosophical and religious accounts of what makes an action right and the components of a good human life. In acquiring knowledge of theoretical approaches to ethical rightness and living well, students also acquire a moral vocabulary for approaching ethical and social issues. Throughout the course, students apply reasoning skills and ethical theories to moral arguments and moral issues, acquiring practice in the justification and evaluation of ethical claims.
Prior to coming to JMU, I also taught philosophy at York University in Toronto and at The University of Wisconsin at Madison. My courses at these universities included Introduction to Philosophy; Introduction to Ethics; Business Ethics; Environmental Ethics; Contemporary Moral Issues; Social and Political Philosophy; Political Philosophy; Feminist Philosophy; and Ancient Philosophy.
I was a first-generation college student when I attended Eastern Illinois University in the 1990s, and I’m happy to connect with James Madison University students who are also first-generation college students.
Andrea Veltman 