Issues of medical outsourcing, ultrasonic teen deterrents and even the treatment of modern day pirates are much on the minds of the Union College Ethics Bowl Team.
Meagan Keenan ’09, Ian Clemente ’10, Lativa Holder ’10, Thanh Mai Bui Duy ’11 and David Leavitt ’12 and have been studiously preparing these and other cases since the beginning of the term.
This weekend, they’ll go head-to-head with other teams at the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl regional tournament at Villanova University. (Team members Andrew Kantor ’09 and Hyma Kavuri ’10 will not be at the event.)
“Our world is full of ethical issues that we often don’t have the time to examine in-depth. Above all, Ethics Bowl has given me a new outlook on the universal laws and ethics that govern this world,” said Keenan. She joined the group as a sophomore after her Freshman Preceptorial professor persuaded her she would enjoy the style of debate that complements philosophy and ethics with rigorous development of arguments.
“I've always been interested in law, and I think Ethics Bowl is one of the best preparations I've had for a future career. One of the more important skills the cases test is the ability to convey a logical and reasonable argument, regardless of the actual issue at hand,” Keenan said.
“Our students are confronting a rich variety of issues and developing moral arguments that draw on a wide range of disciplines,” said team advisor Mark Wunderlich, a visiting assistant professor in the Philosophy Department.
“One of the most striking things about it is that it encourages intellectual exploration and risk-taking in a different way than a formal classroom setting and many other activities on campus. It’s a great opportunity for social interaction, independent study and collaborative research.”
The group is sponsored by the Philosophy Department, but because of the interdisciplinary nature of the cases, at least a dozen faculty members from a variety of departments, including Economics, Modern Languages, Psychology, Theater and Dance, and Schaffer Library have helped to provide perspectives.
There are 15 cases in play, and each student is responsible for developing the team’s position on three of them.
On a recent Friday afternoon, the team could be found in the Humanities Lounge probing the ethics of poverty tours (“poorism”) in places such as Rio de Janeiro, South Africa and Mumbai.
While critics charge that ogling the poor is more voyeurism than tourism, others claim that such exposure to dismal living conditions can be transformative for visitors.
For Keenan, who spent a term abroad in Rio, “the case is as much about the repression of class war as it is about globalization. Ethics Bowl has allowed us to look at the case in depth for the philosophical principles that undergird the issue, and I've learned so much more about it because of it.”
Other cases this year tackle the ethics of surreptitious DNA gathering, babies behind bars, immigrant and soldiers’ rights, and the constitutional rights of Cherokee Freedmen.
Ethics Bowl is known to be one of the more rigorous academic extracurriculars on campus, but for Bui Duy, the extra work is worth it. She enjoys having “the chance to explore different ethical dilemmas while still being myself. I am able to pick the side I want to debate.”
The IEF-funded Union team has received enthusiastic support from the offices of the Dean of Academic Studies and Dean of Academic Departments, as well.
Other teams in the intercollegiate regional this year include the University at Buffalo; Dartmouth College, Franklin Pierce University; Manhattan, Marist and Moravian colleges, University of Notre Dame–Maryland; Wilson College, UMass-Boston; Williams College, Villanova and SUNY-Fredonia.
Nationwide, 120 teams from 10 regions are competing. The top teams will go to the national event in the spring.
Since participating in its first Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl in 2003, Union has distinguished itself as a top contender. In 2006, the Union team placed second at the National Championship.